The third edition of the Cagliari Essay Film short film festival concluded on Sunday, December 14th at the Cineteatro Alkestis in Cagliari. The three-day festival, dedicated to essay films, brought together audiences, authors, industry professionals, and international guests.

The final evening saw the International Jury, composed of Karianne Fiorini (archivist), Hanna Hovitie (director), and Myriam Mereu (researcher), and the Youth Jury, called upon to award the prizes for the three competing sections and the collateral prizes.

In the International category, the award for best short film (€500) went to Intersecting Memory by Shayma' Awawdeh, recognized for "its extraordinary ability to convey the horror of the Israeli occupation during the second Intifada in Palestine through the director's own words and childhood memories," while a special mention was awarded to The Manifesto of Randomness by Gloria Regonesi. The Body and Mind section awarded Aspis by Antonio Romagnoli (€500), a visual elegy that transforms the asp into a "powerful metaphor for the human condition and the mystery of existence itself," with a special mention going to The Silence of Pomegranates by Clara Baj. The Island category, judged by the Young Jury, saw the winner Domus de Janas by Maria Vittoria Daquino (€500), which brings together Sardinian myth and landscape with an “alternating visual narrative that brings past and present into dialogue”, while the special mention went to Io non dimentico by Antonello Murgia.

Two additional prizes were also awarded: the ZaLab Award, which includes streaming the film on the ZaLab platform, went to Clara Baj's The Silence of Pomegranates, while the Audience Award went to Jordi Marcel Olivares' Where is my family? First prize in the "Human and Beyond" photography competition (€200) was won by Emma Graziani with her project Intersezioni di mondi.

The festival's closing was also an opportunity to take stock of a program that, in addition to the competitions, offered a packed calendar of activities: from the Industry Talk "Short Films in Italy," a discussion with industry experts (Elena Ciofalo of the Centro Nazionale del Cortometraggio, Andrea Gatopoulos of Gargantua Films, Silvia Carobbio of ZaLab, and Sara Colombini of AIACE VDA) on the present and future of the short film format, to the "Cagliari Essay Film Critics" workshop curated by Spinosa Magazine, which involved young participants in a viewing and writing journey throughout the festival.

"In an extremely challenging time for festivals and the promotion of film culture, Cagliari Essay Film is proving to be a growing event with great potential," says artistic director Alberto Diana. "Our goal for 2026 will be to reconfirm this formula, opening up to international guests and deepening the discussion on the industry."

The Cagliari Essay Film is an event promoted and organized by the Creative Factory association. The event's organizational direction is led by Elisa Meloni and Simone Paderi. The organizing team also includes Massimo Angius, Roberta D'Aprile, Elena Garau, Giulia Murru, and Marco Spanu.

(Unioneonline)

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