Golden Raven Festival Grand Prix Goes To Canadian Beans
On October 17, the 5th Golden Raven Arctic International Film Festival results were summed up in the capital of the Chukotka District – Anadyr. The Closing Ceremony took place at the Polyarny Cinema. The Festival's main prize – the Big Golden Raven – went to a Canadian feature Beans (2020) directed by Tracey DEER. The winner was decided by the audience vote throughout the Festival. Fourteen full-length documentary and feature films from Russia, Norway, Finland, Sweden, and other countries competed for the main prize.

The ceremony started with a video, recapping all the highlights of the film days in Chukotka, filled with competition screenings, masterclasses, creative events, and lectures. During the festival week, the largest film event in the Russian High North brought together filmmakers from different regions of the Arctic and the local audience of Chukotka. They were the ones to choose the winner of the Grand Prix.

The winning film is based on actual events of a 78-day standoff between the Mohawk community and the Quebec village of Oka in 1990. The award was presented by the Governor of Chukotka Roman KOPIN, the Artistic Director of the Festival Filipp ABRYUTIN, and, traditionally, a random spectator from the audience – a girl in the 9th row on the lucky seat #5 (since it's the fifth edition of the festival).

The professional international jury of the full-length documentary and feature competition, chaired by a director, producer, screenwriter, and actor Yuri BYKOV, awarded the Big Golden Raven to a Polish documentary Wieloryb z Lorino / The Whale from Lorino (2019), directed by Maciej CUSKE. The documentary about the uneasy relationship between humans and nature was filmed on the Chukchi Peninsula and won the main prize at Poland's largest documentary film festival Millennium Docs Against Gravity.

The expert jury award for the best film of the documentary and feature shorts competition was awarded by a jury member, director, and screenwriter Ella MANZHEEVA. The Small Golden Raven went to Keppi / The Stick (2020) by a Finnish director Teppo AIRAKSINEN – a touching story about a girl dreaming of a dog.

The audience also chose their own winners in the short film competition. Golden Raven medallions were awarded to the feature Selshamurinn / Sealskin (Iceland, 2020) directed by Ugla HAUKSDÓTTIR and the documentary Kak priruchit' medvedya / How to Tame a Bear (Russia, 2020) directed by Vladimir MARIN.

The special award of the jury – a Golden Raven medallion 'For elegance and accuracy of the author's statement' went to a Finnish documentary Själö / Island of Souls (2020) by Lotta PETRONELLA. Special diplomas from the jury went to two documentary short films – Russian Letuny / Born in the North (2020) by Anna KATORINA ('For an endeavor to find a protagonist') and Norwegian Ealat (2021) by Elle Márjá EIRA ('For the warmth of the northern land').

The special award of the Festival's Organizing Committee went to a Russian full-length feature, Vertolyot / The Helicopter (2021), directed by Mikhail LUKACHEVSKY. A diploma of the FilmRising! regional competition was awarded to Tirkytir short by Vyacheslav VELVUN.

Throughout the evening, the State Academic Chukchi-Eskimo Ensemble Ergyron performed on the stage. Besides several standalone ethnic dances and songs the audience had a chance to enjoy the famous Eskimo Suite.

The Official Closing Ceremony was followed by a screening of the Grand Prix-winning film. The Golden Raven Arctic International Film Festival is over. The whole of Anadyr will be looking forward to the next amazing cinema festival in the remote Chukchi land.

Awardees of the 5th Golden Raven Arctic International Film Festival:

THE BIG GOLDEN RAVEN statuette – Grand Prix of the Festival for the best film of the full-length feature and documentary films competition as per the audience voting – BEANS, directed by Tracey DEER.

THE BIG GOLDEN RAVEN statuette – Festival Award for the best film of the full-length feature and documentary films competition as per the expert jury decision – WIELORYB Z LORINO / THE WHALE FROM LORINO, directed by Maciej CUSKE.

THE SMALL GOLDEN RAVEN statuette – Festival Award for the best film of the short feature and documentary films competition as per the expert jury decision – KEPPI / THE STICK, directed by Teppo AIRAKSINEN.

THE GOLDEN RAVEN medallion – for the best film of the short feature films competition as per the audience voting – SELSHAMURINN / SEALSKIN, directed by Ugla HAUKSDÓTTIR.

THE GOLDEN RAVEN medallion – for the best film of the short documentary films competition as per the audience voting –– KAK PRIRUCHIT' MEDVEDYA / HOW TO TAME A BEAR, directed by Vladimir MARIN.

THE GOLDEN RAVEN medallion – Special Award of the jury – SJÄLÖ / ISLAND OF SOULS, directed by Lotta PETRONELLA. 'For elegance and accuracy of the author's statement'.

Special Diploma of the jury – LETUNY / BORN IN THE NORTH, directed by Anna KATORINA. 'For an endeavor to find a protagonist'.

Special Diploma of the jury – EALAT, directed by Elle Márjá EIRA. 'For the warmth of the northern land'.

THE GOLDEN RAVEN medallion – Special Award of the Organizing Committee – VERTOLYOT / THE HELICOPTER, directed by Mikhail LUKACHEVSKY.

Special Diploma of the FilmRising! regional competition – TIRKYTIR, directed by Vyacheslav VELVUN.

The Golden Raven IAFF is held by the Youth Initiatives Production Center and the Golden Raven Center for Development and Support of Cultural Projects with the support of the Government of the Chukotka Autonomous District, the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, the Presidential Fund for Cultural Initiatives, the Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism of the Chukotka AD, the Okrkinovideoprokat Autonomous Institution of the Chukotka AD for Distribution and Cinema Services, Russian Filmmakers' Union. In 2021-2023, as per the order of the Government of the Russian Federation, the Golden Raven Film Festival became a program event of the Russian Chairmanship in the Arctic Council.

Partners of the 5th Golden Raven Arctic International Film Festival:

the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East and Arctic, KINROSS, SBERBANK, UTair Aviation, Embassy of Canada in Russia, Embassy of the Kingdom of Sweden in Russia, Embassy of Iceland in Russia, Embassy of Finland in Russia, Swedish Film Institute, LENFILM Studio, SOYUZMULTFILM Studio, KULTURA.RF portal, PROCHUKOTKU.RU news portal, KINOAFISHA portal, PURGA Radio, PROFICINEMA industry portal, KRAYNIY SEVER Newspaper, BULLETEN' KINOPROKATCHIKA industry portal, FILM-PRO TV program, Russian Documentary Film and Television Guild, Youth City Hall of Anadyr, Ergyron Academic State Chukchi-Eskimo Ensemble, Heritage of Chukotka Museum Center, FESTAGENT festival agent, EASTWOOD festival agent, CHUKOTKA Hotel, ANADYR Hotel.