Open Doors, Locarno Pro’s co-production and talent development program for artists from underrepresented communities around the world, has announced its 2024 winners. Eight projects in development were selected for its coproduction platform, the Projects Hub, and were eligible for the three main cash prizes. Along with nine creative producers who participated in the program’s talent incubator, the Producers Lab, and the directors of films of the Open Doors Screenings, who form the Directors Club, they make up the full selection of this year’s program.
Winners Open Doors 2024
Open Doors Grant
A total of CHF 50,000 sponsored by visions sud est (with the support of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation), the City of Bellinzona and the Open Doors initiative.
CHF 20,000 to Salvación by Ernesto Bautista, produced by Melissa Guevara (Burn and Die Films), El Salvador / Mexico
Jury statement: “For a proposal that portrays often overlooked post-war processes, with a very strong artistic approach, a non-chronological storytelling and with a poetic and intimate vision that renews the idea of genre. A project about a situation from the past of one of the small countries of Latin America that we never hear from that resonates today all around the world.”
CHF 20,000 to El único tiempo by Paz Encina, produced by Gabriela Sabaté (Sabaté Films) and Julio Chavezmontes (Piano), Paraguay / Mexico / Germany
Jury statement: “For a very convincing project and a filmmaker with a clear voice and dedication we would like to give an award to a film that delicately explores themes of exile and the longing for the return of the disappeared.”
CHF 5,000 to La levedad de ella by Rosa María Rodriguez, produced by Armando Capó Ramos (GatoRosafilms), Martha Orozco (Martfilms) and Cristina Gallego (Ciudad Lunar), Cuba / Mexico / Colombia
Jury statement: “For a sensitive, intimate approach to the question of freedom of choice in the face of life and death, from a woman’s point of view, in a raw, realistic film.”
CHF 5,000 to Huaco retrato by Fernando Luis Mendoza Salazar, produced by Silvia Eisleen Arellano Rojas (Cybermuchik Cine), Peru
Jury statement: “This film particularly convinced the Jury for its innovative blend of cultural heritage, history and modern video games, set in a region often overlooked within the country.”
For complete winners list, click here
The Award Ceremony on Tuesday, 13 August 2024, marked the end of a three-year focus on Latin America and the Caribbean.
Patricia Danzi, Director General of Open Doors’ main partner, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), announced the program will focus on the African continent for the next four editions.
Danzi said: “The African continent is a focus region for international cooperation of SDC and for the next four years we will continue to develop synergies between the SDC Programmes and Locarno Open Doors. Arts and culture are engines for social change and creativity and contribute to social cohesion and peace. Hence, they are indispensable for societal progress.”
Zsuzsi Bánkuti, Head of Open Doors, adds: “After three successful years of focusing on Latin America and the Caribbean, we are excited to announce that our attention will now shift to the African continent for the next four years. This transition is not just about changing our focus, but about expanding our work. We plan to foster strong collaborations between Latin America, the Caribbean and the African continent, ensuring that the connections of the previous years continue while forming new ones. Building on this year’s focus on collaborative efforts, our goal is to create a connected and thriving network that benefits all regions.”
The Open Doors Screenings, a curated, non-competitive section of the Locarno Film Festival showcasing feature and short films from the focus region of Open Doors, will continue until Saturday 17 August.
More details on the new focus region will be announced this autumn.
