Gold Runner received the New Talent Award for World Cinema while Truck was presented with the FIPRESCI Award for the Best Kurdish Feature Film. Truck star Saeid Aqakhani was also named best actor for his role in the film.
Gold Runner is about Reza, a gold runner who delivers gold pieces after work to retailers. Delivering the gold as usual one day, he is held up by a group of gang members who hit him and steal the gold pieces. The owner of the retail business demands repayment, but Reza has no way to pay him back. Hearing from his friend Louie that there is an expensive jewel somewhere in the floor of a traditional toilet in the workshop, Reza uses the money from the aid group to bid on the workshop at an auction.
Truck recounts the story of a Yazidi woman who becomes homeless after the Iraqi ethnic and religious minority is attacked by Daesh forces in the summer of 2014.
In addition, Minu Sharifipur was selected as best actress for her role in Iranian director Salem Salavati’s movie At Dawn.
The film tells the story of Shakhawan, whose sister has been killed by a young boy. The killer’s retaliation has been postponed twice due to the gathering of the villagers and their request for Shakhawan and his family’s forgiveness.
Xalko, co-directed by Sami Mermer from Canada and Hind Benchekroun from Morocco, was crowned best feature film while the awards for best director and best screenwriter were given to Turkish filmmaker Serhat Karaaslan for his film Passed by Censor.
The special jury award for the best international film was presented to Flesh Out by Italian filmmaker Michela Occhipinti.
Ida Panahandeh, the Iranian director of the acclaimed movie Israfil, which was the winner of the New Talent Award for World Cinema at the 6th edition of the Duhok festival, was on the jury panel of the event organized in the Iraqi town of Duhok from September 9 to 16.
Source: Tehran Times