San Sebastian Film Festival announces winners of its 73rd edition

Shafaq News – San Sebastian

The 73rd San Sebastian International Film Festival concluded in Spain with Sundays by Alauda Ruiz de Azúa (Spain/France) winning the Golden Shell, the festival’s highest honor.

The closing ceremony, held on September 27 at the Kursaal Hall and hosted by José Luis Rebordinos and Itsaso Arana, featured awards across the Main Competition, New Directors, Horizontes, Zabaltegi-Tabakalera, Critics’ Prizes, and Audience selections.

Main Competition

The international jury, chaired by J.A. Bayona (Spain) with Laura Carreira (Portugal), Gia Coppola (USA), Zhou Dongyu (China), Lali Espósito (Argentina), Mark Strong (UK), and Anne-Dominique Toussaint (France), awarded:

- Golden Shell Award: Sundays by Alauda Ruiz de Azúa (Spain/France).

- Special Jury Prize: Good Valley Stories by José Luis Guerin (Spain/France).

- Silver Shell for Best Director: Joachim Lafosse for Six Days in Spring (Belgium/France/Luxembourg).

- Silver Shell for Best Leading Performance: Jose Ramon Soroiz for Maspalomas (Spain); Zhao Xiaohong for Her Heart Beats in Its Cage (China).

- Silver Shell for Best Supporting Performance: Camila Plaate for Belén (Argentina).

- Best Screenplay: Joachim Lafosse, Chloé Duponchelle, and Paul Ismaël for Six Days in Spring.

- Best Cinematography: Pau Esteve for Los Tigres (Spain/France).

New Directors Award

The jury of Marco Müller (Italy), Beatriz Arias (Chile), Isabella Eklöf (Sweden), Charlène Favier (France), and Elsa Fernández Santos (Spain) honored:

- Best Director: Emilie Thalund for Weightless (Denmark).

- Special Mention: Irati Gorostidi Agirretxe for Aro berria (Spain).

Horizontes Make & Mark

The jury of Pilar Palomero (Spain), Christoph Friedel (Germany), and Tatiana Leite (Brazil) awarded:

- Horizontes Award: A Poet by Simón Mesa Soto (Colombia/Germany/Sweden).

- Special Mentions: The Ivy by Ana Cristina Barragán (Ecuador/Mexico/France/Spain); A Loose End by Daniel Hendler (Uruguay/Argentina/Spain).

Zabaltegi-Tabakalera

The jury of Yaël Fogiel (France), Xabier Arakistain (Spain), and Line Langebek Knudsen (Denmark) awarded:

- Zabaltegi-Tabakalera Award: The Ice Tower by Lucile Hadzihalilovic (France/Germany).

- Coup de Coeur: Two Times João Liberada by Paula Tomás Marques (Portugal).

- Special Mention: Blue Heron by Sophy Romvari (Canada/Hungary).

Critics, Audience, and Youth Prizes

- FIPRESCI Award: Sundays by Alauda Ruiz de Azúa (Spain/France).

- San Sebastian Audience Award: The Voice of Hind Rajab by Kaouther Ben Hania (Tunisia/France).

- Audience Award for Best European Film: Little Amélie or the Character of Rain by Mailys Vallade and Liane-Cho Han (France).

- DAMA Youth Award: The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo by Diego Céspedes (Chile/France/Germany/Spain/Belgium).

Donostia Lifetime Achievement Awards

- Esther García (Spain), honored for her work as a producer, received the award from Pedro and Agustín Almodóvar.

- Jennifer Lawrence (USA), recognized for her acting career, joined past recipients such as Meryl Streep, Pedro Almodóvar, and Lauren Bacall.

Festival Overview

The San Sebastian Film Festival ran from September 19 to 27, 2025, screening 254 films from 56 countries across sections including the Main Competition, New Directors, Horizontes, Zabaltegi-Tabakalera, Perlak, Culinary Zinema, Nest, Zinemira, and others. It welcomed leading filmmakers, actors, and critics.

For more info: https://www.sansebastianfestival.com/2025/news/1/22948/in

Credit: Independent journalist and reporter Mansour Jahani