Moroccan film, Senegalese documentary triumph at FCAT

The 27 films was screened in three different competitive sections: The African Dream (feature length films), On the Other Side of the Strait (Documentary Films) and Africa in Short (with short films, both fictional and non-fictional).

C'est eux les chiens, directed by Hicham Lasri, was awarded the Griot for the Best Feautre Length Film. The Counselor of Magtel, Isidro López Magdaleno, presented the award, sponsored by this enterprise in Cordoba, to the main character of the film, Yahya El Fouandi.

The jury, whose president and acclaimed French film critic Olivier Barlet, firmly stated that this section presented "a large number of innovative and stunning films", thus the difficulty of the election. The jury's resolution was based on the "way of surprising continuously the spectators, of taking to unbelievable directions, and achieving, at the same time, a reflection on the history of the country and the most recent social movements, corruption and chaos".

Best documentary

The Griot for the Best Documentary Film was awarded to the Senegalese documentary Mille Soleils, by Mati Diop, niece of Senegalese filmmaker Djibril Diop Mambéty. The documentary followed the life of one of the main characters of the film by Mambéty, Touki Bouki (1973), Magaye Niang, who played the role of Mory.

The Griot was presented by Miguel López, in representation of Eurostars Hotels enterprise sponsoring this award. Kodou Sene, one of the granted Senegalese students of the Film Criticism Workshop, represented the Senegalese filmmaker, enjoying the occasion to congratulate the Andalusian city on the hospitality and kindness received.

Audience Award

The Audience Award was awarded to the feature length film 'Malagasy Mankany', by Haminiaina Ratovoarivony. This road movie, other than being the first feature length film for the filmmaker, is also the first film that has been fully shot in Madagascar. A film with a very low budget, it narrated Jim's road trip to Madagascar, with his friends Bob and Dylan, with the aim of meeting his father. In representation of the city, the Cultural Counselor of the City Council of Cordoba, Juan Miguel Calderón, gave the award to this film, sponsored by the enterprise Magtel.

As for the award for the Best Short Film, it was awarded to an Algerian production by the filmmaker Karim Mouassaoui, director of 'Les jours d'avant'. Blanca Escribano, representing El Corte Inglés, sponsor of this award, gave the award to Algerian filmmaker Hassen Ferhani, who received it on behalf of the filmmaker. According to the jury, the film "takes us to the memory with no concession, and achieves to restore, through cinema, the complexity of the points of view and life experiences, with a great deal of sensitivity".

The Cameroonian film 'Le Président', by Jean-Pierre Bekolo, was awarded with the Cordoba, city of solidarity, a honorific prize for the best film programmed as part of the special session Cinema & NGO, composed of eleven films whose themes revolve around human rights. The jury, integrated by five people of the Association Coordinating the Social Collectives of Cordoba, City of Solidarity, highlighted the "educational and transforming aspect of the film", as well as its tone of political denounce.

The jury firmly stated that "selecting the winners has not been an easy task", due to the "richness and quality of the festival programme". According to the jury, this festival programme shows that African cinemas "know how to reinvent their regard, and due to their diversity and a powerful voice to be heard worldwide".

The jury

The members of the jury of the 10th African Film Festival of Cordoba was Olivier Barlet, author and critic specialised in African Films, director of Africultures and Sud Planet, and president of the jury; Beatriz Leal Riesco, Art Historian, specialised in African film; and Alfonso Crespo, critic and teaching member of the Film Criticism Workshop that took place during the festival.

A cinematographic trip

The African Film Festival of Cordoba-FCAT has screened, from the 11-19 October, a panoramic trip to 32 different countries to celebrate its tenth anniversary, loyal to its aim of fostering a better understanding of the African realities through their cinemas.

In this tenth edition, the second one in the city, after eight year in Tarifa (Cadiz), Cordoba has cemented its place as the only platform in the Spanish speaking regions showcasing cinemas from Africa and the Middle East.

FCAT Cordoba, organised by the NGOD Al Tarab with the sponsorship of the City Council of Cordoba, Magtel Corp. and Instituto Halal, will screen during one week 70 films from or on Africa made by 32 different countries. This will be completed by a series of activities implying all audiences and professionals, spread across the city.