The
epic
World
War
II
film
Into
the
Darkness
(De
forbandede
år,)
which
portrays
the
story
of
a
Danish
electronics
factory
owner
who
is
forced
to
produce
for
the
occupying
Nazi
forces,
has
won
the
coveted
Golden
Peacock
Award
at
the
just-concluded
51st
edition
of
the
International
Film
Festival
of
India.
Directed
by
Anders
Refn,
the
152-minute
Danish
film
gives
a
gripping
dive
into
the
complex
emotional
turmoil
which
the
people
of
Denmark
had
to
undergo,
during
the
Nazi
occupation
of
the
country.
The
film
does
this
evocatively
and
powerfully,
through
the
mental
conflicts
to
which
the
protagonist
Karlskov
is
subjected;
on
the
one
hand,
he
is
being
forced
by
the
invaders
to
continue
production
for
the
German
market,
to
protect
his
family;
on
the
other
hand,
the
moral
indefensibility
of
this
choice
results
also
in
painful
breaks
within
his
family.
The
Golden
Peacock
Award
consists
of
a
cash
prize
of
Rs.
40
lakhs
(Rs.
4
million)
to
be
shared
equally
between
Director
Anders
Refn
and
Producer
Lene
Børglum,
both
of
whom
have
also
been
presented
with
a
certificate
each
as
well.
The
Silver
Peacock
for
the
Best
Director
goes
to
Taiwanese
Director,
writer
and
producer
Chen-Nien
Ko,
for
her
2020
Mandarin
drama
film
The
Silent
Forest,
a
candid
and
heart-wrenching
exposition
of
the
systemic
sexual
abuse
that
happens
in
a
school
for
children
with
special
needs.
Told
through
the
eyes
of
the
hearing
impaired
lead
character
Chang
Cheng
who
has
just
shifted
to
a
special
school,
the
108-minute
film
brings
into
sharp
relief
the
tumultuous
cacophony
of
noises
in
the
world
of
the
deaf.
The
story
is
based
on
real
events
which
transpired
in
a
school
in
Taiwan
and
tells
the
painful
tale
of
how
victims
end
up
transforming
into
predators.
The
Silver
Peacock
for
Best
Director
carries
a
certificate
and
cash
award
of
15
lakh
rupees
(Rs.
1.5
million).
Notably,
the
Silver
Peacock
for
Best
Actor
–
Male
too
has
been
awarded
to
17-year-old
Tzu-Chuan
Liu,
who
through
his
role
as
the
protagonist
Chang
Cheng
in
The
Silent
Forest,
has
been
able
to
beautifully
and
powerfully
bring
out
the
world
of
the
differently-abled
boy.
Liu
is
known
also
for
his
roles
in
76
Horror
Bookstore
(2020)
and
On
Children
(2018).
The
award
carries
a
certificate
and
cash
award
of
10
lakh
rupees
(Rs.
1
million).
The
Silver
Peacock
for
Best
Actor
–
Female
has
been
awarded
to
Polish
actor
Zofia
Stafiej,
for
her
role
in
Piotr
Domalewski’s
I
Never
Cry
/
Jak
najdalej
stad,
a
film
which
explores
the
journey
of
self-discovery
of
a
daughter
who
has
to
traverse
the
maze
of
bureaucracy
in
a
foreign
country
to
bring
back
the
body
of
her
dead
father.
Stafiej
receives
a
certificate
and
cash
award
of
10
lakh
rupees
for
the
award.
Stafiej
is
known
also
for
25
lat
niewinnosci.
Sprawa
Tomka
Komendy
(2020)
and
Marcel
(2019).
The
IFFI
51
Special
Jury
Award
for
a
film
goes
to
Bulgarian
Director
Kamin
Kalev
for
his
2020
film
February,
which
tells
the
life
story
of
a
man
at
three
different
ages
of
eight,
eighteen
and
eighty-two.
The
film
presents
a
view
of
life
as
being
a
mysterious
continuity
of
different
incarnations/avatars,
using
poetic
metaphors
which
make
the
audience
reflect
as
to
whether
human
beings
are
just
dots
in
a
vast
open
landscape
beneath
the
wide
sky.
Kalev
is
a
writer
as
well,
and
is
known
for
Eastern
Plays
(2009)
and
Face
Down
(2015).
Kalev
receives
a
Silver
Peacock,
a
certificate
and
cash
award
of
15
lakh
rupees
(Rs.
1.5
million).
The
IFFI
51
Special
Mention
Award
has
been
presented
to
Indian
director
Kripal
Kalita
for
his
Assamese
film
Bridge,
which
reflects
life
amidst
hardships
caused
by
annual
floods
in
rural
Assam.
The
film
tells
the
story
of
the
annual
phenomenon
in
the
state,
wherein
the
mighty
Brahmaputra
and
its
tributaries
flood
many
villages
and
ruin
cultivation.
Kalita
receives
a
certificate
for
the
Award.
The
Award
for
Best
Debut
Director
has
been
presented
to
Brazilian
Director
Cássio
Pereira
dos
Santos,
for
his
2020
Portuguese
film
Valentina,
an
eponymous
film
which
tells
the
story
of
a
17-year-old
transgender
Brazilian
girl,
whose
sole
aim
is
to
lead
a
normal
life
with
her
mother.
Director
Santos
studied
cinema
at
the
University
of
Brasília,
where
he
directed
fiction
and
documentary
projects.
His
works
have
been
selected
at
several
international
film
festivals.
He
has
received
more
than
50
awards.
ICFT
UNESCO
Gandhi
Award
The
prestigious
ICFT
UNESCO
Gandhi
Award,
given
to
a
film
that
best
reflects
Mahatma
Gandhi's
ideals
of
peace,
tolerance
and
non-violence,
has
been
awarded
to
Ameen
Nayfeh’s
2020
Arabic
film
200
Meters,
which
tells
the
moving
story
of
a
Palestinian
father
living
in
the
Occupied
Territories
of
the
Middle
East,
who
is
trapped
on
the
other
side
of
the
separation
wall
and
desperately
tries
to
reach
the
hospital
for
his
son.
The
Award
consists
of
a
certificate
and
a
medal
and
is
given
as
part
of
IFFI’s
collaboration
with
the
International
Council
for
Film,
Television
and
Audiovisual
Communication
(ICFT)
Paris.
The
Awards
have
been
decided
by
the
IFFI
51
International
Jury
comprising
eminent
filmmakers
from
across
the
world,
with
Argentine
Director
Pablo
Cesar
as
Chairman.
Prasanna
Vithanage
(Sri
Lanka),
Abu
Bakr
Shawky
(Austria),
Priyadarshan
(India)
and
Rubaiyat
Hossain
(Bangladesh)
were
the
other
members
of
the
Jury.
In
a
video
message,
Jury
Chairman
Pablo
Cesar
thanked
the
festival
for
the
opportunity
given
to
the
Jury
to
evaluate
the
films
in
the
International
Competition
category.
“We
are
very
happy
with
the
wide
and
varied
themes
showcased
in
the
films
selected
for
the
festival,
especially
those
that
make
us
reflect
on
individual
freedoms,
rights
of
children
and
all
the
people
of
this
world,
empowerment
of
women
and
memories
of
things
that
some
people
have
done
which
we
are
sure
we
never
want
to
happen
again.
Thank
you
IFFI
for
selection
of
films
which
are
rich
in
content
and
aesthetic
search.”