2024-10-05 09:38:38
The South Tyrolean director Andreas Pichler won the “Prix Italia” prize awarded by the public TV station RAI with his documentary “Dangerously Close” about the difficult coexistence with bears in the Trentino valleys. He prevailed in the documentary film industry. The bilingual Ö1 “radio play” called “Blasse Hours/Blijedi sati” by Manuela Tomic was honored in the radio/podcast “Drama” category.
When 26-year-old jogger Andrea Papi was attacked and killed by a bear in Caldes in Trentino on April 5, 2023, the news went around the world. It is the first such accident in recent history in the Alpine region – almost exactly 25 years after the bear was reintroduced to Trentino as part of one of the largest rewilding projects in Europe. Pichler had already started filming his documentary a year before the tragic incident, in which he deals with the sensitive topic of the difficult coexistence of humans and bears.
During this time, he not only managed to get very close to the foresters and bears, but also to document the debate between the local population, environmentalists and politicians about the correct treatment of these animals, which was intensified by the fatal incident.
“Pichler’s work is an indispensable film that questions our behavior and ethics and holds out the prospect of our future in building and preserving a fragile ecosystem,” said the Prix Italia jury in its statement.
“I try to design my films in such a way that the viewer can form their own opinion. The bear issue is not just about arguments, but also a lot about emotions. I spoke to animal rights activists who cried when the bears were captured or killed. The fears of the population are also deeply felt and are clearly coming to light,” said Pichler in an interview with the APA before the award ceremony.
“It was important to me to speak to the foresters, who hardly have a say in public, even though they are the only professionals who know the matter and can suggest solutions. However, their hands are tied because the political side makes decisions,” explained the director.
The also award-winning radio play “Blasse Hours/Blijedi sati” is an autobiographical story by the author Manuela Tomic, who was born in Sarajevo in 1988 and had to flee the Bosnian War with her family as a child. The ORF production from 2023 was directed by Andreas Jungwirth.
“‘Pale Hours’ magnificently addresses several difficult human issues simultaneously by examining the impact of the Bosnian War on a particular family,” the jury said. The “language mosaic” present in the radio play leads to a “truly unique listening experience”. Ö1 will repeat the award-winning work on Saturday, October 19th, from 2 p.m.
The Prix Italia was founded in 1948 by the RAI. It is the oldest and most traditional television, radio and web competition. Those honored so far include Dylan Thomas, Samuel Beckett, Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Ingmar Bergmann, Eugène Ionesco and George Tabori.
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