Melies d’argent winners at Amsterdam 2019
Silver Méliès for the best European film: O BEAUTIFUL NIGHT by Xaver Xylophon (Germany, 2019)
Synopsis:
Juri is a young musician who is afraid to die. One night he meets a man who claims to be Death. He warns Juri that he will die that evening and then takes him into the night, where Juri becomes fascinated by the mysterious Nina.
The jury of the Méliès d’argent for best European fantastic feature film consists of journalist Hugo Emmerzael, screenwriter Tim Koomen and Noa Johannes, head of film at NPO
The jury report said:
The winner of this year’s prize for best European genre film has a high concept idea and the jury caught themselves telling friends and people here at Imagine about it again and again. With its rich neon-splashed cinematography, funky soundtrack and strong performances by an ensemble cast that’s high on chemistry, but also remarkably high on life for a film about an approaching death. Sure, this hypnotic road trip ends with a message that could have been explored a little bit deeper. But that barely takes away from the unexpected, innovative twists in the story and its beautiful baroque underground atmosphere. It’s as if this film was written during a walking daydream.
What’s for sure is that we’re dealing with an exciting new voice in genre film. The jury unanimously called this a promising start for debut filmmaker Xaver Xylophon and his team. Congratulations to the winner of the Méliès d’argent 2019: O Beautiful Night.
Silver Méliès for the best European short film: WILD by Jan Verdijk (Netherlands, 2019)
Synopsis:
A family takes a vacation in Limburg, where the annoying behaviour of the father soon causes tension. When the wife can’t take it anymore and leaves with the son, the man gets into trouble when he meets two hunters
The short film jury consists of Ronald Simons, film programmer at the Eye Film Institute, and PR advisor Charlotte Groen, and their report said:
The winning short film of the Imagine Film Festival 2019 opens with a family going on a short holiday in spring. As they drive through the hillside we hear the song Adelaide by Ludwig van Beethoven, that ends with the sentence ‘Someday, o miracle! a flower will blossom,’ which sums up what this fantastic film is about. This is a film about a woman, who has spent far too much time in the dark, buried under a thick layer of male aggression. When she decides to choose light and life, nature restores the harmony of things by ruthlessly taking care of the male dominant pig. Life again returns to her preferred state: that of balance instead of wilderness. The winning short film of the Imagine Film Festival 2019 is Wild, directed by Jan Verdijk, and produced by The Rogues, Guusje van Deuren, Rianne Poodt and Harmen Kreulen.