MX, FR, PL, DE | 2010 | colour | 115 min
dir | Paula Markovitch pro | Pablo Boneu, Juan Pablo Gugliotta, Izrael Moreno wr | Paula Markovitch ph | Wojciech Staron mus | Sergio Gurrola ed | Lorena Moriconi cast | Laura Agorreca, Paula Galinelli Hertzog, Sharon Herrera, Viviana Suraniti, Uriel Iasillo

Seven-year-old Ceci Edelstein lives in Argentina with her mother in a ramshackle house by the seashore. Her mother explains, that they must hide from the people who are looking for them, the same people who took away Ceci’s father and cousin. She has to keep a huge secret, but she doesn’t completely understand what the secret is about. The life of her family depends on her silence. Ceci asks herself: what must she say? What should she really believe and do in order to deserve the love of her mother and others? “The Prize” is a slow and reflective film, concerned with details and individual emotions, a movie where the political background rooted in Argentine reality of the seventies does not obscure the complex history of growing up and loosing one’s child innocence. “The Prize” was a revelation at this year Berlin International Film Festival, where Paula Markovitvh was nominated for a Golden Bear, and Wojciech Staron received a Silver Bear for cinematography.

AWARDS
2011 Berlin International Film Festival – Silver Berlin Bear Outstanding Artistic Achievement for Wojciech Staron (camera)
2011 Berlin International Film Festival – Silver Berlin Bear Outstanding Artistic Achievement for Barbara Enriquez (production design)
2011 Berlin International Film Festival –Golden Berlin Bear nomination for Paula Markovitch

DIRECTOR | Paula Markovitch
She was born in Argentina. She is a director, screenplay writer and producer. She first received recognition as an author of the screenplay for the film Tahoe Lake in 2008. Recently she has been living in Mexico. Her first feature movie The Prize is largely based on her childhood memories which she had spent in a small town San Clemente de Tuyu.