Franz Grabner Award for Best Documentary Film

Within the framework of this year's “Diagonale” Film Festival in Graz, in addition to the main prizes, the Franz Graebner Prize, each worth 5,000 euros, was awarded in the categories “Cinematic Documentary” and “TV Documentary”. The award honors humanitarian documentary filmmaking in memory of ORF journalist, theologian and long-time head of cultural documentary for ORF TV, who died in 2015. Günter Schweiger received the award for Best Motion Picture Documentary for Who's Afraid of Braunau? Home and the Past Within Us; The organizers announced that the winner in the TV Documentary category was Alex Weser for “Eugenie Schwarzwald – Pioneer of Modernism.”

The documentary about Braunau, the birthplace of Adolf Hitler, convinced the jury as “an environmental study of a special place” that allows many people to express their opinions and “show observations that sometimes seem like genuine satire.” The film talks about oppression, inability to speak, and “lack of connection to one’s history.”

Eugenie Schwarzwald (1872-1940) was an Austrian educator, social reformer, and women's rights activist, considered a pioneer in particular in girls' education. The jury said the documentary depicted “an extraordinary woman who was not only particularly intelligent, possessed of integrity and insight, but also inspired by the idea of ​​making a difference.”

The Styrian State Diagonale Grand Prix for Best Feature Film, which was awarded on Monday, went to Martha Micho for “The Anxious Road User,” and Helene Selek’s “Anqa” took home the award for Best Documentary Feature. Birgitte Minichmeier received acting awards for the film “Sleeping with a Tiger” and a Voodoo Jürgens award for the film “Rickerl – Music is at the Most Hobby”. (information: https://www.diagonale.at/diagonale-preise)

source: kathpress