Teen Film Wins Top Prize at Locarno Film Festival

“Toxic”, a Lithuanian film about the bond between two teenage aspiring models seeking to escape their bleak home town, won the top prize at the Locarno Film Festival on Saturday.

The debut feature-length movie by Saule Bliuvaite triumphed over 16 other films to claim the Golden Leopard at the Swiss festival.

This year’s festival also celebrated Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan, and directors Jane Campion and Alfonso Cuaron with special awards.

Bliuvaite, at 30, was the youngest of the directors competing for the Golden Leopard.

She shared that her film explored an age when individuals transition from childhood to adulthood, fitting into neither role.

“The sense of being stuck between two worlds and looking for direction is universal,” said Bliuvaite.

The Golden Leopard comes with a prize fund of 75,000 Swiss francs ($86,600), shared between the director and the producer.

Previous winners of this coveted award include Roberto Rossellini, John Ford, Stanley Kubrick, Milos Forman, Mike Leigh, and Jim Jarmusch.

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, 58, was given the Pardo alla Carriera award for individuals whose artistic contributions have redefined cinema.

“So many people stuffed up in a little square and so hot: it’s just like being home in India,” he told the packed piazza.

“I truly believe cinema has been the most profound and influential artistic medium of our age. Awards like this encourage me to keep on trying to embody all the facets of life, to embody all the emotions.”

The 77th festival, which began on August 7, featured 225 films, including 104 world premieres and 15 debut movies.

Mexican filmmaker Alfonso Cuaron, who won best director Oscars for “Gravity” (2013) and “Roma” (2018), received the lifetime achievement award.

“When I set out to do a film, it’s pure instinct,” Cuaron stated.

“All of it is an instinctive process. So, I’m not stopping to overthink things. I’m just trying to put them together and to realise the film I have slowly built in my head.”

On choosing projects, Cuaron explained: “With my current rate of making films, I honestly don’t have that many more in me. So I decided, if I’m going to do something, it should be something that wouldn’t be able to exist without me.”

New Zealand’s Jane Campion was recognised with the Leopard of Honour, given to outstanding personalities in world cinema.

She is the first woman to be nominated twice for the best director Oscar, first for “The Piano” (1993) and then for “The Power of the Dog” (2021), which secured her the Academy Award.

“Filmmaking is all about making mistakes, trying stuff, learning. What’s essential is that your enthusiasm must be greater than your fear,” the 70-year-old said.

Locarno is Switzerland’s largest film event. Nearly 150,000 people attended last year’s festival.

Founded in 1946, Locarno is one of the world’s longest-running annual film festivals and focuses on auteur cinema.

Held on the shores of Lake Maggiore, in the Italian-speaking Ticino region of southern Switzerland, films are shown in Locarno’s central square on one of the largest screens in the world.

The open-air Piazza Grande holds up to 8,000 moviegoers, a feature of Swiss national life depicted on the country’s 20-franc banknotes.

Source: AFP