Lithuanian cinema, which circulates relatively rarely in France, has seen one of its representatives seduce the spectators of the Crime Film Festival in Reims, the new home of the festival since last year. Indeed, the audience prize of the second Champagne edition was awarded to The Generation of Evil [+leggi anche:
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Unveiled at the Black Nights festival in Tallinn, the 6th feature by the filmmaker (revealed in 2006 with Zero) stars Vytautas Kaniušonis and Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė. Written by the director and Jonas Banys, the script focuses on Gintas, a police commissioner in a quiet provincial town who is soon to retire. Loved by all, respected by his friends and appreciated by his colleagues, he is also part of the local elite that has ruled the town for many years. But when one day, a killer comes out of nowhere and begins to wreak havoc on this tight-knit group, Gintas must not only investigate, but also protect his life... The film was produced by Daiva Varnaitė-Jovaišienė and Asta Liukaitytė for Kino Kultas, and is sold internationally by French company Reel Suspects.

The main jury (chaired by actor Niels Arestrup) and the critics favoured Assault by Kazakh director Adilkhan Yerzhanov, which made its world premiere in the Big Screen competition at the International Rotterdam Film Festival. The new film by the filmmaker (known for The Owners, The Gentle Indifference of the World [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Adilkhan Yerzhanov
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There were also awards for The Execution by the Russian Lado Kvataniya and Are You Lonesome Tonight? by the Chinese Wen Shipei, and in the parallel competitive section New Blood (whose jury was chaired by the actress Marie Drucker) the victory of Cadejo blanco by the American Justin Lerner.

The prize list:

Grand Prize
Assault - Adilkhan Yerzhanov (Kazakhstan/Russia)

Jury Prize
Are You Lonesome Tonight ? - Wen Shipei (China)
The Execution - Lado Kvataniya (Russia)

Police Special Prize
The Execution - Lado Kvataniya

Critics’ Prize
Assault - Adilkhan Yerzhanov

Audience Award
The Generation of Evil [+leggi anche:
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New Blood Award
Cadejo blanco - Justin Lerner (Guatemala)

Great East Region - The New Blood Youth Jury Award
Des feux dans la plaine - Zhang Ji (China)