{"id":41613,"date":"2026-10-19T18:57:11","date_gmt":"2026-10-19T18:57:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/gbr\/london\/41613\/"},"modified":"2026-10-19T18:57:11","modified_gmt":"2026-10-19T18:57:11","slug":"sergei-loznitsas-imperium-wins-best-film-at-bfi-london-film-festival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/gbr\/london\/41613\/","title":{"rendered":"Sergei Loznitsa’s Imperium Wins Best Film At BFI London Film Festival"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today the BFI London Film Festival ends it\u2019s 2026 programme and the BFI today announce Sergei Loznitsa<\/a>\u2018s Imperium has picked up best film award, pat of the festival\u2019s Competition strand.<\/p>\n

Considered a master of archival film reconstruction, Sergei Loznitsa, reframes Soviet history once again via the revealing gaze of Italian cameramen who captured life there in the early 1970s.<\/p>\n

The Official Competition jury commented on their film choice \u201cImperium is an extraordinary film that explores the Soviet Union in the early 1970\u2019s from a rich archive with a wide-ranging perspective that looks at life in a country with an extraordinary social and cultural landscape that has rarely been seen. The film is richly evocative and emotionally engaging on all levels giving us a visually arresting perspective of life before the Soviet Union was broken apart. Our jury is immensely proud to honour such a powerful and singular piece of work.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other winners announced tonight where Thai filmmaker Sompot Chidgasornpongse<\/a>\u2018s 9 Temples To Heaven which won First Feature Competition (Sutherland Award).Infused with gentle humour and profound humanity, Chidgasornpongse\u2018s fiction debut presents a serene passage through family, faith and the cycles of life.<\/p>\n

The First Feature jury led by \u00a0led by Amir El-Masry<\/a> (Limbo, Giant)called the film \u201can accomplished first feature paving his own path in the well-established tradition of filmmaking in the Southeast Asian region. The film is visually outstanding, spiritual, and meditative where a story about life and death transcends borders and generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bertil Nilsson\u2019s distinctive debut\u00a0 Masc picked up a special mention. It follows Robin as he moves through temporary jobs and tentative relationships in search of a place to belong. The jury said: \u201cA strikingly original new voice in British cinema, using innovative storytelling, notable performances, and artistically crafted scenes. We were impressed by Bertil\u2019s highly unique concept coupled with capable new talent and humorous script.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Documentary Competition award went Asmahan Bkerat and Concrete Island. Bkerat\u2019s feature directorial debut is an intimate, multi-generational portrait of a mixed-raced family fighting displacement and hostility in Jordan.<\/p>\n

The jury said: \u201cThis was a beautifully observed portrait filmed with mastery and confidence. In image creation, sound design, scene building and most importantly the deep and trusting relationship with the films\u2019 characters the filmmaker proved themselves a worthy recipient of the Grierson award. It takes a tremendous cinematic skill and maturity to bring the audience to feel so close to each and every character of this remarkable family, across generations and in a very different part of the world yet the warmth we feel for each is profound. In a noisy and often polemical world it was refreshing, humbling and deeply relevant to see the quiet resilience and dignity of this family in the face of the erasure of their culture and traditions. This is filmmaking which never gets in the way of itself and will surely take its place in the annals of observational greats.\u201d<\/p>\n

A special Mention also goes to film Queer Edward II\u00a0 directed by Theo Rollason. This all-archival tour de force takes us behind the scenes of Derek Jarman<\/a>\u2019s Edward II, set against the backdrop of the anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation of 1980s Britain.<\/p>\n

The Documentary Competition Jury said: \u201cThis was a spirited and tightly constructed portrait of Jarman as both an artist and an activist. Along with the luscious making-of footage, the integration of wider political archive was skilfully and heart-fully done, making it a fitting and timely tribute to Jarman in its defiant call for tolerance and against prejudice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rahul Roye\u2018s Aman picks up the\u00a0 Short Film Competition (Short Film Award). The accomplished short follows a trans man whose journey takes an unexpected turn on the eve of his gender-affirming surgery, when he discovers he is pregnant, forcing a profound reckoning with identity, masculinity, and fatherhood.<\/p>\n

The Short Film<\/a> Competition jury said: \u201cWe were deeply impressed by Aman\u2019s accomplished filmmaking, tackling knotty themes through authentic and nuanced characters we felt compelled to follow. We were struck by the film\u2019s painterly cinematography, and expansive and assured storytelling, which guided us through the world with care. Aman\u2019s finely drawn narrative is made all the more engrossing by the film\u2019s refusal to provide easy answers to the complexities it presents us with.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elizabeth Hobbs\u2018 Daughters of the Late Colonel picks up the special mention in this category. Focused on the aftermath of\u00a0\u00a0the death of their ill-tempered and controlling father, two middle-aged sisters find themselves at a loss.<\/p>\n

The jury for or this one commented: \u201cWe would like to give a special mention to \u201cDaughters of the Late Colonel\u201d for its singular and inventive visual style, and its deft balance of humour, pathos and provocation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Do remember to check out our coverage of this year\u2019s BFI London Film Festival<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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