Awards

Colombia

Colombia

Colombia

Jury Statement: A tragicomic satire and microcosm of melancholy and irreverence, A Poet depicts Óscar, a failed poet turned reluctant mentor drifting between aspiration and self-destruction. The film is a biting fable of art as both an inescapable burden and a personal compass, breaking convention through its refreshingly brisk pace, unpretentious use of 16mm cinematography, deadpan performances by a mostly first-timer cast and pared-back jazzy score. The film's balancing act of unflinching character study and social satire marks Simón Mesa Soto as a vital voice in contemporary Latin American cinema.

"If you feel compelled to make art, how can you afford to become an artist? In a world that does not make it easy for people to choose this path, this is where the compromises start and the struggle begins. The winning film shows how to navigate that struggle through empathy, excellent directing, and having a sense of humor when discussing grand ideas, while also gently exposing European views and expectations. Co-producing this film could not have been easy, but we sensed that the partnership was a dynamic one that diminished many of the challenges involved. This is the kind of co-production we wish to recognize, and the jury is looking forward to seeing what the producers will do in the near future. It's with great pleasure that the jury grants this year's CineCoPro Award of 100,000 euros to UN POETA / A POET by Simón Mesa Soto, a Colombian-Swedish-German co-production."

Runner-up

"The poignant odyssey of a man who dreams of poetry but is held to the ground and to life by a force of gravity and by adverse circumstances is rendered in an observational, semi-documentary form realized in a dancing symbiosis with the extraordinary protagonist Ubeimar Rios. Its very dark and finely calibrated hilarity does not prevent the film from having a politically aware gaze, sustained by an empathy that is never condescending."

"Colombia"