25th FESTIVAL INTERNATIONAL DE FILMS DE FRIBOURG
19 - 26 MARS 2011

www.fiff.ch

Award of the Ecumenical Jury

This award consisting of CHF 5'000 is conferred jointly by two institutions of the churches working in development cooperation, “Action de Carême” (catholique) and “Bread for All” (protestant), to the director whose film best reflects the working criteria of the two institutions in the field of North-South cooperation.

The Ecumenical Jury of the 25th Fribourg International Film Festival consisting of:

Natalie Fritz, Ottenbach (Switzerland)
Marianne Gujer, Basel (Switzerland)
Marek Lis, Opole (Poland), President
Paulette Queyroy, Marseille (France)

awards its prize to the film

Los Colores de la Montaña / The Colors of the Mountain
by Carlos César Arbeláez, Colombia/Panama 2010

The film depicts the oppressive situation of the Colombian mountain farmers from the perspective of little Manuel. Insecurity, caused by the conflict between Guerilla and paramilitary forces, increases visibly and constrains the families one by one to leave their homes and grounds.

The children's plays, their solidarity and the hope for a peaceful territory are encouraged by the strong will of a brave young teacher. Thus the desired normalcy, the dream to maintain the colours of the mountains, is intensely expressed. Finally Manuel manages to take his football with him: as a symbol of the bond with his assassinated father, the friendship with his chaps an as a symbol for a life, that will go on somewhere else, he lights a beacon of hope.

The members of the jury (from left): Marianne Gujer, Marek Lis, Natalie Fritz; in front: Paulette Queyroy