Arthouse streamer and distributor Mubi and the Locarno Film Festival are teaming up on a new award given to a first feature in the official selection of the Swiss fest.
The prize, called the Mubi Award – Debut Feature, “celebrates boldly distinctive visions for storytelling and the aesthetic possibilities of the medium, spotlighting the new films that will shape the future of cinema,” according to a Locarno statement.
It will provide the winning film with 10,000 Swiss francs ($11,000) to be shared equally between its director and producer. A Mubi deal may or may not ensue, but is certainly within the realm of possibilities.
The Mubi Award – Debut Feature at Locarno will be decided by a jury made up of Moroccan director-producer Khalil Benkirane, who is head of grants at the Doha Film Institute; Finnish actor Alma Pöysti, star of Aki Kaurismäki’s Mubi-distributed hit “Fallen Leaves”; and prominent Swiss makeup designer Esmé Sciaroni, whose recent work includes Alice Rohrwacher’s “La Chimera.”
“Elevating great cinema, and the filmmakers that create it, really is why Mubi exists,” said Mubi founder and CEO Efe Cakarel – who will be attending Locarno this year – in a statement. “We truly hope that this prize helps a new generation of storytellers bring their visions and voices to life.”
Commented Locarno artistic director Giona A. Nazzaro: “We’re very glad to be collaborating with Mubi on a new award capable of opening unprecedented avenues and potentialities for young and auteur cinema.”
The 77th edition of the Locarno Film Festival, which is Europe’s preeminent indie cinema event, will run Aug. 7-17.
