The 2020 Church of Sweden Film Prize went to the film "Cinema Pameer" by Martin von Krogh. The prize was awarded in connection with the film's premiere at the Göteborg Film Festival on Thursday 30 January.
"Cinema Pameer" is about the only remaining cinema in Kabul, the people who run it and its visitors. It depicts everyday life in a city torn apart by years of conflict, but also the importance of culture and film to provide insights into other realities and to inspire and educate.
A unanimous jury chose to award the prize to the debut film of director Martin von Krogh.
The motivation of the jury reads: "Cinema Pameer is an urgent and warm portrayal of humanity. In the film we get an insight into life around Kabul's only cinema where we meet another side of the war-torn city than the one usually seen in the news. The cinema offers more than a temporary escape from a harsh reality, it is an oasis where films become expressions of civilisation in an uncivilised world and a place where warmth and dreams grow. A place for stories, sharing life, community and faith."
The Church of Sweden Film Prize consists of SEK 50,000 and the statuette Angelos, created by Erland Forsberg. The members of the jury were Cristina Jardim Ribeiro, director of the Bergman Centre on Fårö, Ludvig Lindelöf, priest in Carl Johan's parish in Gothenburg, and Mikael Ringlander, chairman of the jury, priest, former press photographer, and project manager for the Church of Sweden's work at the Göteborg Film Festival.