This year, the VI International Ethnographic Film Festival "OKO" brought together five cities: Kiev, Bolhrad, Sofia, Kamianets-Podilskyi, and Odesa, creating a unique platform for cultural dialogue. The festival featured 95 films in 24 languages from 52 countries, showcasing the diversity of global cinema.
In the capital of Bulgaria, participants, including state officials, filmmakers, and cultural figures, gathered to summarize the festival results, announce the winners, and honor the best film works that reveal human stories through the lens of time and tradition.
Winners of OKO GLOBAL FICTION:
- Jury Grand Prize — "Reed", directed by Cemil Aadjikoglu (Turkey, Bulgaria);
- Special Jury Prize for Ethnographic Representation — "Banzo", directed by Margarida Cardoso (Portugal, France, Netherlands);
- Jury Special Mention — "Id", directed by Youssef Abo Madeghim (Israel).
Winners of OKO GLOBAL NON-FICTION:
- Jury Grand Prize — "To the West. To Zapata", directed by David Beam (Cuba, Spain);
- Special Jury Prize for Ethnographic Representation — "Silent Observers", directed by Eliza Petkova (Bulgaria, Germany);
- Jury Special Mention — "Mashtat", directed by Sonia Ben Slama (France, Lebanon, Tunisia).
Winners of NASHE OKO:
- Jury Grand Prize — "Father's Lullaby", directed by Lesya Dyak (Ukraine, Romania, Croatia);
- Special Jury Prize for Ethnographic Representation — "A Bit Foreign", directed by Svitlana Lishchynska (Ukraine, Germany, Sweden).
A special jury mention was awarded to the film "Checkpoint 'Zoo'", directed by Joshua Zeman (USA, Ukraine), for its truthful portrayal of Russian crimes against people and animals.
Additionally, the special jury prize for the best Ukrainian film went to "My Morning Routine", directed by Vadym Adamov (Ukraine).
Special jury mention — the film "I Died in Irpin", directed by Anastasia Falileeva (Ukraine, Slovakia, Czech Republic), for its ability to tell a poignant story beautifully.
Best films based on audience voting:
- Audience Grand Prize for the Ukrainian Edition — "Search Trilogy: Separation", directed by Sofia Hiera (Ukraine);
- Audience Grand Prize for the Ukrainian Online Edition — "Rock, Paper, Scissors", directed by Franz Böhme (United Kingdom);
- Bolhrad City Council Audience Prize for favorite Bulgarian film — "Spirit of Masquerade Games", directed by Rositsa Lazarova Sbarali (Italy, Bulgaria);
- Audience Grand Prize for the Bulgarian Edition — "2000 Meters to Andriivka", directed by Myroslav Chernov (Ukraine, USA).
