JUST FILM #YOUNGFILMMAKER AWARD
The programme consisted of films that have been created during the PÖFF and Just Film scholarship call and are made by international school-kids themselves.
Sunflower
Director: Ketlin Kõiv,
Estonia, 2025
Jury: Helen Takkin, Kaspar Rumm, Piia Parktal
Jury comment: “This film has a strong sense of form. The story, unfolding like a series of memories, skillfully uses camera, sound, and animation to reveal the inner world of a girl. The storytelling trusts the viewer and allows the emotion to emerge naturally.”
JUST FILM CLASS JURY AWARD
Thanks for Nothing
Director: Stella Marie Markert
Germany, 2025
Jury: Class 7D from Saku Gymnasium, including 20 pupils and their teacher.
Jury comment: “A film that approaches heavy themes from a remarkably optimistic perspective. As you watch, it becomes clear how differently people of the same age, place, and even friend group can experience life. The cherry on top is its strong visual language and lively, engaging storytelling.”
JUST FILM JUNIOR’S JURY BEST FILM AWARD
The Songbirds’ Secret
Director: Antoine Lanciaux
France, 2025
Jury: Mika Lipartia, Nora Christella Suurna, Silvia Mätlik
Jury comment: “At the beginning of the film we didn’t immediately know it would become our favorite movie – but it was just so good! It felt like several adventures within one bigger adventure. Also, creating animation out of paper is such a huge amount of work – we definitely couldn’t do it that well!”
The film will be screened as part of the festival also on Sunday, 23 November at 11:30 at Apollo Kino Tartu.
JUST FILM CHILDREN’S BEST FILM AWARD
Leo ja Lou
Director: Carlos Solano
Spain, UK, Romania, 2025
Jury: Karl Jakob Moora, Lumi Soomets, Maarja Köst
Jury comment: “By a hair, the children’s jury award for favorite film went to Leo and Lou, a heart-warming and adventurous movie that resonates with people of all ages. It tells the story of how family doesn’t always have to mean blood relatives — we choose the people around us who become our family!”
Special mention for the best acting
Mira
Director: Marie Limkilde
Denmark, 2025
Jury: Aimei Zuo, Marten Kukk, Tristan Sebastian Haddad
Jury comment: “We really wanted to give a special award to all the actors in the film, but especially to Ellen Edith Pultz-Hansen, who played Mira — it was truly a difficult role, and she had to express an enormous range of emotions. She is an amazing actress, and we wish her a great career ahead!”
JUST FILM YOUTH JURY BEST FILM AWARD
Wheelie
Director: Isis Mihrimah Cabolet
Netherlands, 2025
Jury comment: “The film’s vivid visual language and dynamic soundtrack create a moving portrait of a young man's harsh fate, guiding the audience through shock, sorrow, grief, and joy. The lead actor’s powerful transformation forges a deep empathetic connection, drawing us wholeheartedly into their journey. The film offers a rare glimpse into the everyday life of a person with a disability and brings forward a topic too often left in the background. The Grand Prize of the Just Film competition goes to “Wheelie.”
Special mention
The Pupil
Director: Karin Junger
Netherlands, Belgium
2025
Jury comment: “The film stands out for its sensitive and realistic portrayal of a serious subject that cannot — and should not — be overlooked. Its honest and nuanced approach brings attention to an issue that, unfortunately, remains painfully relevant. A Special Mention goes to “The Pupil.”
The Pupil will be screened on Sunday, 23 November at 14.45 at Apollo Kino Plaza.
JUST FILM ECFA (European Children Film Association) AWARD
Mira
Director: Marie Limkilde
Denmark, 2025
Jury: Nora Lakos, Janne Vierth, Alfred Sesma
Jury comment: This film depicts the thrill of the closeness in a beautiful friendship, the heartache when our protagonist steps over boundaries, both her own and the ones of them around her, in the futile struggle to save the friendship, and the bittersweet insight that it is over, as it used to be.
The script is wonderfully warm and humorous in a way that doesn’t sweep strong feelings under the carpet. The direction is sensitive with a great sense for details, both in relationships, in visuals and in the work with the wonderful cast.
Animated parts comment on the story in a subtle way that gives us insights into the mind and heart of the main character, without spelling it out.
It’s a film for anyone who has lost love in any form, but it never wavers from the perspective of an audience at an age where nothing in the world is more important than your friends.
JUST FILM GRAND PRIX, the winner receives the award worth €3,000.
They Call Me Danka
Director: Dovile Gasiunaite
Lithuania, 2025
Jury: Jen Skinner, Nuria Aidelman, Meel Paliale
Jury comment: “A complex portrayal of a girl navigating adulthood in difficult circumstances. It gives the floor to voices we do not hear from and the opportunity for us to spend time with them.
We chose this film because of the way the film maker relates to the character, to her presence and her evolution. The way she films and works with the sound is powerful, taking care of the main character of Danka in a respectful and tender way.
The performance of the lead actor had a magnetism that took us with her, to share her journey.”
They Call Me Danka will be screened on Saturday 22 November at 12.45 at Apollo Kino Plaza
