At an evening ceremony held November 23 in Hamburg, Minister of State and Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media Claudia Roth presented the German Short Film Awards (or Lola Awards). Five filmmakers were honored, winning out against 220 competitors for a share of the 260,000 euro s in prize money. Roth lauded the winning films as “unique and important for German cinematic art.”
The award for Best Animated Film was given to Xanh, directed by Thi Dang An Tran and produced by Sylvia Jorde, from the acclaimed Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg (FABW). The 2D film was created in FABW’s experimental filmmaking program before the filmmaking team transferred into the school’s Animationinstitut.
Xanh opens in the kitchen of an Asian fast food restaurant, where Duy Em and her father Ba are discussing a discriminatory incident. She asks her father why he does not defend himself against racist remarks. His answer takes the two of them back to his former life among the “boat people” in Vietnam. “Xanh” means both green and blue in Vietnamese — so, the film’s title reflects the different perspectives of the protagonists: the childlike, privileged view of the daughter clashes with the father’s lived experiences.
“We are grateful for the attention Xanh is receiving and are pleased to contribute to raise awareness of a very important topic,” the filmmakers commented upon receiving the award.
Prof. Thomas Schadt, Managing Director of the FABW, noted, “The German Short Film Award is one of the most important awards in the national film industry. To receive such an award this early on in your studies is truly a great achievement. Congratulations to the entire team of Xanh!”
The German Short Film Award is regarded as the most prestigious — and most highly endowed — award in the short film sector in Germany, established in 1956 to honor and support local filmmakers. In 2023, nominees received €15,000, while the federal government provided up to €30,000 for winning an award. With the Golden Lola in hand, Xanh is now also eligible for the Academy Awards.
This year’s German Short Film Award winners also included Marie Zrenner’s Alex in the Fields (Best Feature Film, under 30 Minutes), Thuy-Han Nguyen-Chi’s Into the Violet Belly (Best Experimental Film) and Killian Armando Freidrich & Tizian Stromp Zagari’s Nuclear Nomas (Best Medium-Length Film).
