At the awards ceremony held on Friday, September 5, in Sala Perla at the Palazzo del Casinò, the winners of the 22nd edition of Giornate degli Autori were announced: the GdA Director’s Award, the Europa Cinemas Label, and the Audience Award.
Inside Amir wins the GdA Director’s Award
The GdA Director’s Award 2025, worth €20,000, went to Inside Amir by Amir Azizi.
The jury, chaired by Dag Johan Haugerud, described the film as “a meditation on everyday life, turning daily gestures and conversations into profound reflections on belonging, loss, and exile.” The statement praised the strength of the dialogues and the subtle narrative structure that intertwines different timelines.
A Bearcave receives the Europa Cinemas Label
The Europa Cinemas Label was awarded to A Bearcave by Stergios Dinopoulos and Krysianna B. Papadakis, hailed as “an innovative and vital debut, balancing thriller, folklore, and the supernatural.”
The jury highlighted the outstanding performances of the two leads and the originality of the film’s music, editing, and cinematography, expressing the hope that the award will boost its distribution across Europe.
Audience Award ex aequo
The Audience Award went to two titles, both earning 77.4% of the votes:
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A Memory by Vladlena Sandu, an autobiographical work revisiting the traumas of the Chechen war;
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A Sad and Beautiful World by Cyril Aris, a sweeping love story of passion and survival set in Lebanon, spanning three decades.