On March 9, the closing ceremony of the XXIII International Festival of Cinematographic Debuts "Spirit of Fire" was held at the concert and theater center "Yugra-Classic" in Khanty-Mansiysk. The main prize of the festival - "Golden Taiga" for the best debut film - was awarded to the film "To Kill a Mongolian Horse" by director Xiaoxuan Jiang (Malaysia, Hong Kong, USA, South Korea, Japan, Thailand).
The Spirit of Fire Festival is the largest Russian international platform for film debuts. This year, 47 Russian and foreign films from North and South America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East took part in its competition programs.
The festival participants and jury walked the red carpet, including Emir Kusturica, Yulia Khlynina, Sergey Epishev, Igor Babayev, Nadezhda Mikhalkova, Igor Voloshin, Yulia Mishkinene, Ksenia Kutepova, Alisher Khamikhodzhaev, Ivan Sintsov, Yuri Moroz, Farkhat Sharipov, Magdalena Ralcheva, Irina Rozanova, Epigmenyo Ibarra, Shin Yong-Shik, Ali Behrad, Neda Mahiani, Sebastian Parra, Hegde Natesh, Gulshat Smagulova, Victoria Mokerova, Maxim Dobromyslov, Sergey Chliyants and others.
Festival Winners
International competition
- "Golden Taiga" - "To Kill a Mongolian Horse" (directed by Xiaoxuan Jiang, Malaysia - China/Hong Kong - USA - Republic of Korea - Japan - Thailand)
- "Silver Taiga" – “Desert Seed” (directed by Sebastian Parra, Colombia)
- "Bronze Taiga" - "Tehran as you've never seen it before" (directed by Ali Behrad, Iran - UK)
- Special Jury Mention - "Tiger Pond" (directed by Natesh Hegde, India - Singapore)
Russian Debut Competition
- "Golden Taiga" named after Sergei Solovyov for the best domestic debut film - "Wind" (directed by Sergey Chliyants)
- Audience Award "Flowers of Taiga Hope" - "Summer Will Come" (directed by Kirill Sultanov)
- "Silver Rose" for best work with music – Ekaterina Vladimirskaya (“Summer Will Come”)
- Pavel Lebeshev Cinematographers Guild Prize for Best Cinematography – Maria Falileeva (Northern Station, directed by Sergei Ovechko)
- Alexander Abdulov Prize for Best Actor - Oleg Vasilkov ("Wind")
- Alexander Abdulov Prize for Best Actress - Daria Alypova (Northern Station)
- Special Jury Mention - "Summer Will Come" (directed by Kirill Sultanov)
Competition "Debut - short film"
- "Small Golden Taiga" - "Such a Day" (directed by Klavdiya Korshunova)
- "Small Silver Taiga" - "The Man I Like" (directed by Denis Vilenkin)
The program "Your Cinema"
- "Small Bronze Taiga" – “Navi” (dir. Toby Schmutzler, Kevin Schmutzler, Apuu Mourin, Vallentina Celluguet)
Special prizes
- Prize of the President of the Golden Taiga Festival - "Summer Will Come" (directed by Kirill Sultanov)
- Prize for the Preservation of Cultural Traditions оt the general partner of the film festival – Gazprom Neft – “The Tinderbox versus the Magic Well” (directed by Andrzej Petras)
- Roscongress Foundation Communications Partner Prize "Soul of Russia. World Cinema" - "Citizens of the Roof" (directed by Gulshat Smagulova)
- Prize in the nomination "Film in progress" - "What is the correct way?" (directed by Artem Tumakov)
- Special prize "Kino-Teatr.Ru" for support on the specialized portal – “Space Falls Asleep” (directed by Anton Mamykin)
The closing film of the festival was "Summer Will Come" by Kirill Sultanov, which won several awards.
Business program
The festival included a large-scale business program consisting of six sessions, including a plenary session and the film dialogue "Russia - China". More than 70 speakers from nine countries took part in it: China, India, Brazil, South Africa, Indonesia, Cuba, Belarus, Uzbekistan and Mexico. Among the key topics discussed were the prospects for cooperation between Russia and China in film production, the formation of film clusters in the BRICS countries and the specifics of national cinema.
End of the festival
The closing ceremony took place in a solemn atmosphere. The hosts of the evening were Yulia Khlynina and Sergey Epishev, and the musical accompaniment was provided by the Yugra Concert Orchestra conducted by Alexey Sergeyev.
Festival President Emir Kusturica and Governor of the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug - Yugra Ruslan Kukharuk solemnly declared the XXIII festival closed, simultaneously launching preparations for the next, XXIV Spirit of Fire festival.
“We see the Spirit of Fire festival as a cultural bridge that opens the way for our filmmakers to the BRICS markets,” noted Elena Marinina, Deputy Director of the Roscongress Foundation.
"Spirit of Fire" is the leading debut film festival in Russia and abroad and one of the main platforms for young directors. It was initiated in 2002 by People's Artist of the Russian Federation, film director Sergei Solovyov, who remained the permanent president for almost twenty years.
Since 2023, the new president of the festival is the famous world film director Emir Kusturica.
The festival has been held with the constant support of the Government of the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug - Yugra since its inception.
For 19 years now, Spirit of Fire has been supported by Gazprom Neft. The company acts as a co-organizer of the festival's cultural and educational program and awards the best Russian film in the category "For the Preservation of Cultural Traditions."
The festival’s communications partner is the Roscongress Foundation.
