{"id":545382,"date":"2026-07-12T03:55:14","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T03:55:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/545382\/"},"modified":"2026-07-12T03:55:14","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T03:55:14","slug":"fruit-gathering-the-guest-win-at-karlovy-vary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/545382\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Fruit Gathering,’ ‘The Guest’ Win at Karlovy Vary"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tAung Phyoe\u2019s \u201cFruit Gathering<\/a>\u201d won the Crystal Globe at Karlovy Vary Film Festival<\/a> on Saturday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tSet in contemporary Myanmar, it follows the friendship and connection that forms between two young women working at a textile factory.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe film \u201cbegins as a lush and meditative portrait of work and friendship before morphing, unexpectedly and organically, into a harrowing drama of obsession and queer desire,\u201d the jury said.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cMy producers have gone through many difficulties to make this film \u2013 and they had to deal with me, too. I don\u2019t know why they believed in me. I don\u2019t believe in myself,\u201d said Phyoe, during the ceremony, also thanking his mother: \u201cShe has been the mother of a long-suffering artist for many, many years.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI wanted to make a film that was very atmospheric, maybe, and also very restrained because it was a world I knew,\u201d he told\u00a0Variety.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe are trying to achieve our own national language of cinema. We are very behind, and for most of the things we don\u2019t have support; it\u2019s very difficult to make films in this country,\u201d he admitted.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe also have to be very careful that political things have to be very subtle. For me personally, I try to achieve the rhythm in the film, which will hopefully resonate with my own lived experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tJurors Justin Chang, Amanda Nell Eu, Pavel Rejholec, Nadia Turincev and Eskil Vogt also awarded Trine Dyrholm-starrer \u201cThe Guest<\/a>,\u201d calling it \u201ca squirmingly funny yet precisely modulated drama that subtly raises questions about motherhood, filial duty and mental illness.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIt received the Special Jury Prize and $15,000 \u2013 as well as the best director award for Mads Mengel.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe made a film about a family, so I want to thank my family and my sister, who has always been there. Even when times were a bit rough. I also want to thank my fianc\u00e9e, who told me: \u2018If you win, don\u2019t forget to thank your hot wife.\u2019 So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you my hot wife,\u201d he said, picking up his second trophy.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWhat fascinated me wasn\u2019t telling my own story, but exploring something many people can recognize: how our understanding of our parents changes as we grow older, especially when we start our own families. I was interested in that moment when certainty begins to crack. When the people we\u2019ve spent years judging slowly become more complicated and human,\u201d noted Mengel.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cLife rarely gives us perfect endings, but it does occasionally give us the chance to begin again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe best actress award went to Anna Schinz for \u201cA Happy Family\u201d by Jan-Eric Mack and her \u201cgripping, hauntingly restrained performance as a mother driven to desperate extremes.\u201d Ghassan Saad was named best actor for \u201cPipes,\u201d directed by Karim Kassem.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the Proxima Competition, Martina Buchelov\u00e1\u2019s \u201cLover, Not a Fighter\u201d<\/a> walked away with the Grand Prix and $15,000.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe jury was refreshed by the film\u2019s extraordinary lightness [and by] how it refuses to take itself too seriously while also portraying essential themes: the absurdity of family, the delirium of young love, the apprehensions of aging \u2013 all with luminous sincerity,\u201d it was stated.<\/p>\n

\n\tTheir Jury Prize was given to \u201cIncinerator\u201d by Shuntaro Uchida \u2013 \u201ca film of deceptive simplicity\u201d \u2013 while Efthimis Kosemund-Sanidis was named best director for \u201cA Whole Person Almost.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tFinally, the Special Mention went to \u201c33 Steps.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cInstead of reducing those who bear the brunt of racism to mere symbols, it goes deep into their inner lives and confronts hard truths: about the nonlinearity of trauma, the nature of inherited fear and the difficulty of closure in a broken society,\u201d argued the jurors.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tDuring the ceremony, Juliette Binoche<\/a> picked up the Crystal Globe for Outstanding Artistic Contribution to World Cinema.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI have to thank all the directors I\u2019ve worked with. I don\u2019t do that very often. I was very lucky in my life and my career. I have two patient children and wonderful nannies who were taking care of them when I wasn\u2019t around,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tBinoche also talked about countries, and artists, who \u201ccannot express themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI\u2019m thinking about Palestine, Lebanon, Ukraine. We need artists to tell stories, to tell the truth. Passion is really the heart of what we do. Life goes by very quickly, so let\u2019s give ourselves as much as possible. We need to unite.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tJeffrey Wright<\/a> \u2013 who earlier this week surprised the audience by remembering Karlovy Vary\u2019s late president Ji\u0159\u00ed Barto\u0161ka and saying \u201che taught him how to laugh\u201d when promoting \u201cBasquiat\u201d \u2013 was given the Festival President\u2019s Award.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThere are forces in this world, right now, that insist on disconnecting us. But our stories, our films, our history insists otherwise,\u201d said Wright, also recalling his meeting with \u201cAmadeus\u201d director Milo\u0161 Forman. At one point, they wanted to make a film about Alexander Pushkin \u201cto celebrate their commonality.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI heard a rumor he had a script about a story that interested me greatly. It was a story of a young artist who lived a life on fire and died young \u2013 story not unlike the story of Jean-Michel Basquiat, which first brought me here,\u201d he said. Quincy Jones wanted to produce. <\/p>\n

\n\t Pushkin might have been described as a \u201cquintessential Russian,\u201d but his great-grandfather was African. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe didn\u2019t make it, but there\u2019s still time. Milo\u0161 won\u2019t direct again, Quincy won\u2019t produce again, but maybe I\u2019ll return with that story. I will take this [award] as an incentive to continue to create in an effort to bring us together. As an American, I think this is our greatest power. It\u2019s not what we destroy \u2013 it\u2019s what we create.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u2003<\/p>\n

\n\tYou can find the full list of awards here:<\/p>\n

\n\tCrystal Globe Competition<\/p>\n

\n\tGrand Prix \u2013 Crystal Globe ($25,000)<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cFruit Gathering<\/a>\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tMyanmar, Czech Republic, France<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Aung Phyoe<\/p>\n

\n\tSpecial Jury Prize ($15,000)<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe Guest<\/a>\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tDenmark<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Mads Mengel<\/p>\n

\n\tBest Director Award<\/p>\n

\n\tMads Mengel for \u201cThe Guest\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBest Actress Award<\/p>\n

\n\tAnna Schinz for \u201cA Happy Family\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSwitzerland<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Jan-Eric Mack<\/p>\n

\n\tBest Actor Award<\/p>\n

\n\tGhassan Saad for \u201cPipes\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tLebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Karim Kassem<\/p>\n

\n\tPr\u00e1vo Audience Award<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cB\u00e1ra \u2013 Diary of a Rockstar\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tCzech Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Helena T\u0159e\u0161t\u00edkov\u00e1<\/p>\n

\n\tProxima Competition<\/p>\n

\n\tProxima Grand Prix ($15,000)<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cLover, Not a Fighter\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSlovak Republic, Czech Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Martina Buchelov\u00e1<\/p>\n

\n\tProxima Special Jury Prize ($10,000)<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIncinerator\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tJapan<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Shuntaro Uchida<\/p>\n

\n\tProxima Best Director Award<\/p>\n

\n\tEfthimis Kosemund-Sanidis for \u201cA Whole Person Almost\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tGreece, Bulgaria, Germany, Cyprus, Romania<\/p>\n

\n\tProxima Special Mention<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201c33 Steps\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSlovak Republic, Czech Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Anna Dom\u010dek, \u0160imon Dom\u010dek<\/p>\n

\n\tCrystal Globe for Outstanding Artistic Contribution to World Cinema\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tJuliette Binoche<\/a>, France<\/p>\n

\n\tDustin Hoffman, U.S.<\/p>\n

\n\tRobert Richardson, U.S.<\/p>\n

\n\tFestival President\u2019s Award<\/p>\n

\n\tJesse Eisenberg, U.S.<\/p>\n

\n\tMaggie Gyllenhaal, U.S.<\/p>\n

\n\tMagda V\u00e1\u0161\u00e1ryov\u00e1, Slovak Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tJeffrey Wright, United States of America<\/p>\n

\n\tGrand Prize of the Ecumenical Jury\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe Lion at My Back\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tCyprus, Luxembourg, Greece<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Tonia Mishiali<\/p>\n

\n\tEuropa Cinemas Label Award\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201c3 Weeks After\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tSerbia, Bulgaria, Italy, Croatia, Luxembourg<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Miroslav Terzi\u0107<\/p>\n

\n\tThe FIPRESCI award for the best film in the Crystal Globe Competition<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cOnly Beautiful Things to Look At\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSlovak Republic, Czech Republic, Hungary<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Ivan Ostrochovsk\u00fd<\/p>\n

\n\tThe FIPRESCI award for the best film in the Proxima Competition<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cPetty Thieves\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tCroatia, France, Germany, Serbia<\/p>\n

\n\tDirected by Mate Ugrin<\/p>\n

\n\tKVIFF Promises Winners<\/p>\n

\n\tMidpoint & KVIFF Development Award (10,000 EUR)<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThey Bloom at Dawn\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tNorth Macedonia<\/p>\n

\n\tDirector: Angela Dimeska<\/p>\n

\n\tEurimages Co-Production Development Award (20,000 EUR)<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cSelamlik\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSweden, Denmark<\/p>\n

\n\tDirector: Jerry Carlsson<\/p>\n

\n\tEurimages Special Co-Production Development Award (20,000 EUR)<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cReminiscence\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tUkraine<\/p>\n

\n\tDirector: Anastasia Tykha<\/p>\n

\n\tConnecting Cottbus Award\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cReminiscence\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tRotterdam Lab Award\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tMonika Matuszewska, producer of the film \u201cConfirmation\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tPoland<\/p>\n

\n\tMarch\u00e9 Du Film Producers Network Award<\/p>\n

\n\tTom\u00e1\u0161 Hrub\u00fd, producer of \u201cCowgirl,\u201d Czech Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tEva V\u00e1chov\u00e1, producer of \u201cA Few Branches Off,\u201d Czech Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tFeature Pool (120,000 CZK for further development):<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cExposed\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tCzech Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tDirector: Kl\u00e1ra Tasovsk\u00e1\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cUntil We Leave\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tCzech Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tScriptwriter: Lucia \u010ci\u017einsk\u00e1\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cNera\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tCzech Republic, Slovenia<\/p>\n

\n\tDirector: Ivana Vogrinc Vidali<\/p>\n

\n\tCreative Pool (50,000 CZK for further development):<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cInhalatorium\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tCzech Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tDirector: B\u00e1ra Anna Stejskalov\u00e1\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cBurning Witches\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tCzech Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tScriptwriter: Martina Babi\u0161ov\u00e1 and V\u011bra Stare\u010dkov\u00e1<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cK-Dream\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tCzech Republic<\/p>\n

\n\tDirector: Adam Sedl\u00e1k\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Aung Phyoe\u2019s \u201cFruit Gathering\u201d won the Crystal Globe at Karlovy Vary Film Festival on Saturday.\u00a0 Set in contemporary…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":545383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[93,231294,61,60,59901,133493,208392,270,231295],"class_list":["post-545382","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-entertainment","tag-fruit-gathering","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-jeffrey-wright","tag-juliette-binoche","tag-karlovy-vary-film-festival","tag-movies","tag-the-guest"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/545382","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=545382"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/545382\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/545383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=545382"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=545382"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=545382"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}