AFA - Architecture Film Award

Jury: Maurizio Nichetti, chairman of the jury, actor, screenwriter, director, film producer and lecturer; Roberto Pisoni, director of Sky Arte HD; Davide Rapp, architect and director; Marco Della Torre, architect and designer, coordinator of the Accademia di architettura di Mendrisio - USI,, Francesco Clerici, director.

The third edition of the Architecture Film Award is now underway, organised by the Milano Design Film Festival in collaboration with the Order and Foundation, focused on encouraging the production and appreciation of audiovisual language as a communication tool for architects. 

Candidacies for films (medium, feature and short) by 27 September 2022

Jury: Nina Bassoli (curator, writer, Lotus International), Marco Della Torre (Coordinator of the Direction of the Accademia di architettura di Mendrisio - USI), Franco Raggi (architect and designer), Carles Muro (Associate Professor of Architectural Design, Politecnico Milano), Bêka & Lemoine (internationally renowned filmmaking duo) and Roberto Escobar (political philosopher and film critic)

Winners:

• ARCHITECTURE'S FILM: Rift Fiinfinnee by Daniel Kötter (Germany 2021, 79’26”)
  It is a work of cultural approach created at a slow pace and seen from an external viewpoint that, without steering the viewer, accompanies them through an active vision, thanks also to the shots that are always kept very wide. It is a reading of the globality of the specific territorial situation conducted with an exploratory choice that becomes a universal emotional crossing. Last but not least, great credit goes to the solitary feat of the filmmaker who, with his camera, managed to enter the geographical context and the complex social environment, restoring a relationship of trust with the people he encountered.
  
  
• STUDIO'S FILM: Utopia by Joana Colomar Palazón (Paesi Bassi, 2019, 5’)
  Excellent in terms of image, sound and editing. Subtle and refined, the fluid story line overturns the way we talk about a building, preferring immersion in the everyday life that takes place within it. In doing so, it also cleverly overturns the way we look at architecture, focusing on quality rather than the purely formal aspect. All of this with the aid of cultured film quotations.
  
  
• Special Mentions
  - The Building di Andréas Lang (Germany 2021, 33’)
  The hypnotic entry into and crossing of the building through memory is captivating. Above and beyond the silent interpretation of the architecture and the architects of the regime, the expressiveness chosen for the narrative and the precision of the historical references to the events that took place is highly appreciable.
  - Troiane by Stefano Santamato (Italy, 2019, 16’)
  The special mention is intended to praise the cinematic idea behind the project. The subjective vision turns the trees, now merely trunks, into characters and follows them until they regain their upright position. It conveys a strong message with a dramaturgy that alludes to a future of redemption.

Due to the long lockdown period, the 2020 edition was postponed to 2021. The MDFF 2020 Award, with prize money of €1,000, was assigned to “Tokyo Ride” by Ila Bêka & Louise Lemoine, Francia 2020, for its narrative originality and having offered the best response to the thene of “Reconnecting”, chosen for the 2020 edition of the Milano Design Film Festival.

Jury: Maurizio Nichetti, chairman of the jury, actor, screenwriter, director, film producer and lecturer; Roberto Pisoni, director of Sky Arte HD; Davide Rapp, architect and director; Marco Della Torre, architect and designer, coordinator of the Accademia di architettura di Mendrisio - USI,, Francesco Clerici, director.