Golden Prague Festival Winners

 

Grand Prix

Film: Brothers Kühn – Jazz Across Borders  (n.31)
Producer: ZDF - German Television
Co producer: Producer: Eco Media TV-Produktion
Country: Germany
Directed by: Stephan Lamby
Camera: Knut Muhsik, Martin Gross, Steffen Bohnert
Duration: 90 min.

Motivation of the Jury: Formally a portrait of two jazz musicians, "Brothers Kühn” is in fact about much more. It is the story of love and understanding between brothers who have gone on different paths, of childhood in a lost state, of artistic inspiration, musical careers, old age, illness and death. It is also a contribution to German and global music history, inseparable from the drama of war. It feels at times improvisational but never loses its strong narrative structure. Like the music it features, it is a syncopated, detailed observational documentary, which offers context and insight into history, the human soul and what makes art a truly unequaled way of life. 

Czech Crystal – Documentary programmes dedicated to music, dance and theatre

Film: Max Richter‘s Sleep (n.73)
Producer: JA FILMS AND GLOBE PRODUCTIONS
Country: United Kingdom
Directed by: Natalie Johns
Duration: 100 min.

Motivation of the Jury: This film beautifully documents the power of Max Richter’s daring work, which hypnotizes its audience in a way rarely seen before. It portrays the netherworld of a musical performance where both vulnerability and community are to be found at night; the audience bedded down next to hundreds of strangers. The documentary bravely takes its time, matching the work it portrays, but is never boring. It, like the performance it documents, is a brilliant counterpoint to our hectic lives, and at the same time a close portrait of the artist Max Richter, his family, his motivations and how he became who he is today.  

Czech Crystal – Recordings of stage work
(Recordings of operas, operettas, musicals, dance, ballets, theater performances, etc.)

Film: Jenufa  (n. 32)
Producer: Czech Television
Country: Czech Republic
Directed by: Jakub Kořínek
Duration: 123 min.

Motivation of the Jury: In this production, Leos Janacek’s highly emotional opera is placed against stunning, naturalistic yet truly artful scenery. The excellent cast of singers act in a most convincing and compelling way. Jenufa’s dramatic story of unrewarded love and out-of-wedlock pregnancy is presented in a precise and closely filmed manner, which occasionally has the allure of a movie performance.   

Czech Crystal - Recordings of concert performance
(Recordings of symphonic and orchestral performances, chamber music, recital, etc.)

Film: Hope@Home (n. 53)
Producer: ZDF/ARTE
Co producer: Kobalt Filmproduktion Berlin
Country: Germany
Directed by: Stefan Mathieu
Duration: 54 min.

Motivation of the Jury: Born out of a global pandemic that has shuttered concert halls and cancelled performances around the world, Hope@Home is an inspiring response. Aptly named for its lead performer and for the optimism it provides, the program redefines what a filmed concert can be, not only in this time of pandemic. It is thoughtful, intimate and filled with music that is exceptionally performed and captured. In reimagining concert performances, it offers new possibilities, and hope, for the future. 

Special Mention for Extraordinary Artistic Achievement

Film: What To Do With All This Love (n. 76)
Producer: Accentus Music GmbH
Co producer: MDR/Arte
Country: Germany
Directed by: Marita Stocker
Camera: Mitja Hagelüken
Duration: 80 min.

Motivation of the Jury: The Paliashvili Music School, overlooking Tbilisi, is a place where idealistic and dedicated teachers and staff develop promising musical talent in an almost unbelievable way. They prove how passion can compensate for sagging budgets and a political lack of commitment. The artistic achievement in this beautifully captured, observational documentary is shared by both the filmmakers and the subjects they observed, who touch the viewer with their talent and their perseverance in this struggling Georgian institution.    

Special Mention for Cultural Achievement
 
Film: Shun Devloro (n. 24)
Producer: Czech Television
Country: Czech Republic
Directed by: Michael Beyer
Duration: 129 min.

Motivation of the Jury: This concert production with a clear social impact impressed the jury in both a musical and cultural way. This overwhelmingly joyous concert celebration of Romani Day has the power to reach across ethnicities to touch people who are not familiar with the Roma. It offers the opportunity for wide-spread appreciation of the musicians and children appearing on the prestigious stage of Prague’s Rudolfinum, and is a vivid, deeply musical and contagious production, catching every emotional moment of the event.  

Special Mention for Production in Times of the Pandemic 

Film: Europakonzert 2020 from Berlin (n. 52)
Producer: EuroArts Music International GmbH
Co producer: RBB in collaboration with CCTV, Mezzo, Czech TV
Country: Germany
Directed by: Henning Kasten
Duration: 85 min.

Motivation of the Jury: In a time of locked down concert halls and theaters, Kirill Petrenko led a heavily reduced and distantly seated Berliner Philharmoniker through this unforgettable concert. The excellent, congenial visual direction, which in every moment is perfectly in harmony with the playing, enables the music to speak for itself. This production is a jewel, expressing sorrow over hard times while offering comfort with carefully selected musical works. 

Czech Television Prize

Film: The Animated Story of Jenny Lind (n. 8)
Producer: SVT
Country: Sweden
Directed by: Ditte Feuk
Camera: Jesper Klevenås
Duration: 58 min.

Motivation: The film manages to tell the life story of one of the most famous singers of the 19th century in a way that will be interesting not just for opera fans, but for everyone who only follows the world of classical music from a distance. The combination of playful animation, stylisation, music, musical erudition and the presence of the narrator, world-renowned barytone Thomas Hampson, shows an excellent way how to approach in terms of visuals and content a topic for which there are virtually no surviving visual or audio documents.

Dagmar and Vaclav Havel Foundation VIZE 97 Award

Film: A Year in the Life of Choreographer Jiří Kylián (n. 11)
Producer: Czech Television
Country: Czech Republic
Directed by: Martin Kubala
Duration: 53 min.

Motivation: Jiří Kylián is undoubtedly a fascinating person in Czech and world culture. Despite the difficulties of living as an exile in another country, the Netherlands, he managed to build a world-resonating career. But he also never forgot about his homeland and with his contacts helps compose the programme for the annual Tanec Praha festival. The film captures one year in his life in which he became a member of the famous Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris which thanks to him opened a new choreography section. The film never loses its dynamics, in part because of its 53 minutes of runtime, and lets the audiences understand Kylián’s view of the world and his relationship to Czechia and his hew home in the Netherlands. A very nice documentary about an inspiring person.

EBU and IMZ Life Achievement Award

A Prize Receiver: Christopher Nupen (Director)

In the words of IMZ President Arild Erikstad, “It is with utmost pleasure that we celebrate the contribution of extraordinary luminaries to the cultural film landscape by awarding the EBU-IMZ Lifetime Achievement Award together with the EBU Music + Dance Experts Group”. “This year, we are pleased to honour the outstanding work of Christopher Nupen, a great pioneer in our industry and a wonderful artist”, adds Nicolas Auboyneau, Chairman of the EBU Music + Dance Experts.

The EBU-IMZ Lifetime Achievement award is a joint initiative of the IMZ International Music + Media Centre and the EBU European Broadcasting Union together with the ITF Golden Prague, aiming at recognising excellence in music + dance in the audiovisual industry. The award was established in 2017 and has been presented to Brian Large, Bruno Monsaingeon, Anca-Monica Pandelea and Gabrielle Babin Gugenheim.