‘Silver Haze’ by Sacha Polak Wins the Solé Tura Award for Best Film at Brain Film Fest 2024

‘7:11 Cuarzo’ by Daniel Ortiz Entrambasaguas recognized as Best Short Film

The Documentary ‘While you are you. The here and now of Carme Elias’ Receives the Audience Award and a Special Jury Mention

The festival driven by the Pasqual Maragall Foundation counts 3,500 spectators in its seventh edition

Barcelona, March 16, 2024. With The ages of the brain as its central theme and a record provisional audience figure of 3,500 spectators, the Brain Film Fest celebrated the closing gala of its seventh edition today at the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (CCCB). Driven by the Pasqual Maragall Foundation and co-organized with Minimal Films, with the collaboration of the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology – Ministry of Science and Innovation, the first European festival dedicated to the brain has screened eight feature films and twenty-two short films in its two competitive sections, and nine more films in parallel screenings. Roundtables, workshops, presentations, and case studies accompanied this expanded cinematic experience, which will extend until tomorrow with programming and activities at the CCCB and until March 23 on Filmin.

Cristina Maragall, president of the Pasqual Maragall Foundation, highlighted “the enthusiastic participation of the younger audience, in screenings such as La vida de Brianeitor, or the extraordinary connection with the public experienced in many of the sessions, such as the one dedicated to the emotional management of the filming of Society of the snow, with casting director María Laura Berch, actor Santi Vaca-Narvaja, and J. A. Bayona as a spontaneous guest.” Maragall also emphasized “the emotion of the opening gala, with the presentation of the Brain Film Fest Special Award to Chilean filmmaker Maite Alberdi by actress Carme Elias, a special guest with a unique bond to the festival, where she announced in 2022 that she had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.”

Silver Haze, a Humanistic Drama about the Act of Forgiving

The jury of the official feature film section, composed of actor and theater director Josep Maria Pou, journalist Samanta Villar, Imma Aguilar (director of FECYT, Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology), and Glòria Oliver (manager of the Pasqual Maragall Foundation), awarded the XIV Solé Tura Prize, endowed with the official statuette and €3,000, to Silver Haze, a deep and evocative humanistic drama. The Dutch co-production that tops the Brain Film Fest’s list, uses the tools of social cinema to reflect the experience of a young victim of a fire, portrayed by actress Vicky Knight, who also suffered severe burns as a child. Director Sacha Polak debuted in 2012 with the feature film Hemel, followed by Zurich (2014), both awarded at the Berlinale. Her filmography also includes Dirty God (2019), premiered at Sundance.

Carme Elias Returns to Brain Film Fest

The members of the official section jury also gave a special mention to the documentary While you are you. The here and now of Carme Elias, an extraordinary piece that uniquely contributes to the dissemination and understanding of Alzheimer’s disease. The verdict highlights the actress’s bravery in deciding to share her process publicly on screen, as well as “the artistic quality of the documentary, achieved through impeccable direction, and the utmost alignment with the mission and values of the Brain Film Fest.” The feature film directed by Claudia Pinto also received the festival’s audience award.

7:11 Cuarzo: The Path of Mourning After Child Abuse

The short film jury, composed of the artistic director of Filmets de Badalona, Agustí Argelich; Carla Rubio, presenter of the 3Cat program Ets un motivat, dedicated to mental health; and Eduard Vallory, director of the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST) and president of CATESCO, decided to award the Solé Tura Prize for Best Short Film, endowed with the official statuette and €1,500, to 7:11 Cuarzo. With a solid career as a short filmmaker (Argumosa 11, Aliento, Jacket), director and screenwriter Daniel Ortiz Entrambasaguas delves into mourning after child abuse with this documentary to depict the path after breaking the silence.

At the closing gala of the festival, The Longest Goodbye, a documentary by Ido Mizrahy that closely examines the mental health challenges experienced by astronauts during their missions to Mars and the role played by NASA psychologists, was screened. The screening was attended by its screenwriter, Nir Sa’ar.

XIV SOLÉ TURA AWARDS — BRAIN FILM FEST 2024

BEST FEATURE FILM
Silver Haze by Sacha Polak

JURY SPECIAL MENTION
Mientras seas tú. El aquí y ahora de Carme Elias by Claudia Pinto

BEST SHORT FILM
7:11 Cuarzo by Daniel Ortiz Entrambasaguas

AUDIENCE AWARD
Mientras seas tú. El aquí y ahora de Carme Elias by Claudia Pinto