Overview
- Atlantic Rhapsody, a debut feature by Zhong Kaifeng, won the Golden Goblet for Best Feature and also took Best Cinematography, an outcome announced at the festival’s awards ceremony on June 20.
- The main competition jury, led by Tony Leung Chiu-wai, awarded Jury Grand Prix to Iluminada and gave Best Director to Yassine El Idrissi for Halima, with acting prizes to Zhang Songwen and Khadija Amari.
- SIFF’s Asian New Talent section honored Her First Taste as Best Feature and recognized debut filmmakers with awards for direction, acting, screenplay and cinematography.
- Organizers said the 28th edition received about 4,100 submissions from 125 countries with roughly 82% of eligible entries screening as world or international premieres, underscoring the festival’s role as a launch platform.
- Winners include a broad mix of international co-productions and first-time directors, a pattern that could boost distribution and career opportunities for emerging filmmakers who screened at the June 12–21 festival.