Photo: Camilla Larsson with the team behind Paths, at the reception, after the awards ceremony.

During the awards ceremony on Sunday night at Duhok International Film Festival, the short film projects Paths and Taxi Margstan was awarded SEK 20 000 each for Best Pitch. The awards were handed out by Göteborg Film Fund manager Camilla Larsson and fund selection committee member Freddy Olsson.

The talent programme Nuhat is a cooperation between The Goethe Institute in Iraq and The Duhok International Film Festival. The programme has been running since september and during the festival the participants teamed up – one screen writer, one director, one producer and one cinematographer – to work with their chosen short film projects. The festival week ended with a pitch at the American University in Duhok, in front of the jury. In addition to the Göteborg Film Fund awards, two awards were given from the Duhok IFF.

Paths is a story about a Yazidi family being attacked when ISIS hits their village in Sinjar (Shingal), and the father has to make an impossible decision. The team behind the project are Azhin Kawa, Tazhan Abdelwahab, Alaa Muhammed and Hezhwan Zendi. The project received two awards – one from Göteborg Film Fund and one from Duhok IFF.

Taxi Magstan is a film about a depressed taxi driver and a passenger who comes to his help in the car. The team behind the project are Ayad Khali, Rayan Tovi, Lana Kamaran and Niwar Abdulrahman.

The project that received the second award from Duhok IFF was ReCasted, by Osama Anwer, Yad Abdulqader, Rowal Nawgundi and Haider Husseini.

In addition, film fund manager Camilla Larsson met with several of the Kurdish film-makers selected earlier by Göteborg Film Fund. She was also heading the jury of the two short film competitions at the festival.

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