The film Woman at War, screened the ZFF’s main competition, won this year’s LUX Prize given by the European Parliament. The European MPs decided to honour this quirky Icelandic comedy with an award presented since 2007 as support to cultural diversity and protection of European identity.

Woman at War (Kona fer í stríð), directed by Benedikt Erlingsson, is a political film, a feminist saga and a tale about a music teacher who, behind the seemingly ordinary routine, leads a double life as a committed environmental activist. Her political convictions are challenged when her plans about adopting a child become real. The Icelandic film won, opposite other entries, The Other Side of Everything, a documentary by Mila Turajlić from Serbia, and Styx by the German director Wolfgang Fischer.

Receiving the award, Benedikt Erlingsson said before the parliament: “I feel like a politician, because they are storytellers as well. In fact, you too are extremely brave, since you are facing the challenges of fighting against climate change, which will be in the focus of all the future policies.”

European Parliament Chair Antonio Tajani congratulated the finalists and said that LUX Prize has never been a tougher decision to make, since the finalists were outstanding in terms subject matter and originality. “The finalists touched on three crucial subjects for the future of Europe: the risk of extreme nationalism, the necessity of preserving our environment and the need to find a coherent and cohesive answer to the migration issue. Although they differ in terms of genre and theme, all of these films share an important quality: they tell stories of strong women, dedicated to a change of the status quo,” said Tajani.

Every year with the LUX Prize, the European Parliament is trying to draw attention to the public discussion about the EU and its policies, providing support to the expansion of European co-productions. The award helps European films find their place on the market and reach broad audiences which otherwise might not have a chance to see them.

Every year they are also available to ZFF’s audience in the program LUX Film Day. Woman at War is scheduled for Thursday at 6.30pm, Europa cinema, and at 10.30am, Tuškanac cinema. This female version of Don Quixote will also be screened to the audience at Travno Centre of Culture on Friday at 7pm. The festival guest, co-producer Marianne Slot is giving a masterclass on international co-productions on Friday at 5pm, F22 – New Academy Scene.

The other two films in the LUX Film Days section are scheduled for Saturday at Tuškanac. Styx will be screened at 7.30pm, and The Other Side of Everything at 9.30pm.