Film Documentary "Immortals" wins the "Prix de Soleure" in Solothurn

SDA

29.1.2025 - 19:00

Swiss producer Frank Matter, winner of the "Prix du Public" with "Quir", producer Nadine Luechinger and director Maja Tschumi, winner of the "Prix de Soleure" with "Immortals", and Italian director Nicola Bellucci, winner of the "Prix du Public" with "Quir" (from left).
Swiss producer Frank Matter, winner of the "Prix du Public" with "Quir", producer Nadine Luechinger and director Maja Tschumi, winner of the "Prix de Soleure" with "Immortals", and Italian director Nicola Bellucci, winner of the "Prix du Public" with "Quir" (from left).
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The documentary "Immortals" by Maja Tschumi won the main prize "Prix de Soleure" at the 60th Solothurn Film Festival. The visually powerful and political film portrays two young people in Baghdad who long for freedom - and risk a lot to achieve it.

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"Aesthetics and narration come together and in this way the filmmakers allow us to share in the hope of their protagonists, giving us a glimpse of the hope of a generation, of an entire people," said the jury, explaining its decision. Switzerland's most valuable film prize, worth CHF 60,000, was awarded on Wednesday evening at the traditional "Soirée de clôture" in Solothurn.

Two portraits in three chapters

The film captures the mood after the 2019 protests in Iraq and is divided into three chapters. The first introduces the protagonist Milo, who disguises herself as a man. The second chapter is about Khalili, who documented the protests and the state of emergency on film. In the third chapter, they both have to make an important decision for the future.

Director Maja Tschumi, who lives in Zurich and Berlin, wrote the book for the film together with the main characters.

The "Prix de Soleure" is awarded to a film with socially critical or humanistic content. "Immortals" was one of six films nominated. It beat off competition from the documentaries "Dom" by Svetlana Rodina and Laurent Stoop, "Il ragazzo della Drina" by Zijad Ibrahimovic and "Unter Mangobäumen" by Damaris Lüthi, as well as Piet Baumgartner's feature film "Bagger Drama" and Léa Pool's "Hôtel Silence".

Audience award goes to "Quir"

The documentary film "Quir" by Nicola Bellucci also won the Audience Award. The "Prix du Public" is endowed with 20,000 francs. The film tells the story of Massimo and Gino, who have been a couple for over 40 years. They run a boutique in Palermo that is a meeting place for the queer scene.

This is not the first award in Solothurn for filmmaker Nicola Bellucci, who was born in Arezzo, Italy, and works in Basel. In 2010, he won the "Prix de Soleure" with the film "Nel giardino dei suoni".

The 60th Solothurn Film Festival comes to an end with the "Soirée de clôture".