MICHAŁ MARCZAK AWARDED IN NYON!
During the ending ceremony of the 17th edition of Visions du Réel in Nyon, Switzerland, 16 prizes were given in the festival’s international competition. One of them went to Polish documentary filmmaker, Michał Marczak, director of “At the Edge of Russia”.
Judging the films in the international competition of Visions du Réel Festival, the Regard Neuf Jury including: John Appel – Dutch documentary filmmaker, Cornelia Seitler – producer from Switzerland (Maximage) and Carlos Muguiro – film critic, filmmaker and programmer of International Documentary Film Festival Punto de Vista in Pamplona, Spain, awarded the Special Mention to Michał Marczak for his film “At the Edge of Russia”, ex aequo with Swiss documentary „Eine Ruhige Jacke” directed by Ramón Giger.
“At the Edge of Russia” is a story about Alexei, a nineteen year old recruit being flown in to perform his military service on the frontier of northern Russia. The base is one of few remaining outposts on the Arctic Ocean guarding this vast border on the remote fringes of the great Russian state. There are five other seasoned and long serving soldiers stationed here, each with their own personal story or secret that has caused them to retreat from the real world. Their training and breaking in of the new arrival is sometimes humorous, at times harsh. Gradually, each of them reveals something in their daily interactions and private moments as they continue their absurd duty in this snow covered no man's land, hundreds of miles from the nearest human settlement.
It is worth to mention that at the this year’s Visions du Réel Festival apart from Marczak’s film there were two Polish documentaries screened in the international competition: “Slowly” by Tomasz Wolski (international premiere) and “Phnom Penh Lullaby” by Paweł Kloc (world premiere).
The 17th edition of Visions du Réel was held form the 7th to 13th April.
Here you can find more about Visions du Réel.