At the award ceremony of the 48th International Film Festival Rotterdam, the third and latest feature by Alice Rohrwacher HAPPY AS LAZZARO was awarded the IFFR Youth Jury Award; an international seal of approval for young people. Previous winners include ‘The Guilty’ by Gustav Möller (2018) and ‘Land of Mine’ by Martin Zandvliet (2016).
The jury called the film “an outstanding achievement”. They continued: “A surreal experience, Lazzaro felice fits perfectly with this year’s theme: feel IFFR. The original and allegorical story about the pure and innocent Lazzaro moved us. We were captivated by Hélène Louvart’s cinematography, carried away by the soundtrack, detailed characters and Rohrwacher’s masterful direction. We believe that Lazzaro will inspire a future audience to be more humane and reflect on their daily experiences and interactions. It is not only an enchanting film experience, but also a beautiful depiction of humanity and the course of its progress.”
About the IFFR Youth Jury: International Film Festival Rotterdam aims to give young people a permanent platform from which their voice can be heard at the festival. The Youth Jury allows young people to participate by deciding on the film that impressed them the most. The IFFR Youth Jury gives young people the opportunity to experience a film festival from the inside, and to express their opinions on film. During the festival, they not only watch films, but also meet filmmakers and other film professionals. The IFFR Youth Jury makes its choice from a range of films specially selected from the IFFR programme before deciding which of these will win the highly sought-after IFFR Youth Jury Award.