The jury of the iCOFF-Gasteiz festival in Vitoria-Gasteiz has decided that Furia is the top winner of this edition. Fran Moreno and Santi Pujol are the directors of this work.
The rest of the awards for the festival's Official section are as follows: best direction for Lucas Parra for Ser un hombre; best screenplay for Teresa Bellón and César F. Calvillo, for In memoriam; Dreams for a better past, by Albert Khun, best documentary; best animation for El cuerpo de cristo, by Bea Lerma; best female performance for Marina Salas, for her role in El color gris; best male performance for Guillermo Leal Oso for his performance in El príncipe nigeriano; and best Basque short film for Dicen que tu padre, by Aitor Abio.
Additionally, there was a special mention for actresses and actors under 18 years old, and the audience award went to Cara de Cona, by Guillermo de Oliveira.
In the festival's other two sections, the Bagare award went to Orain Zer? by Ainhoa Urgoitia. The Nazioartekoa award, which was part of the competition for the first time, was an ex aequo award for Le Dèrapage, by Aurélien Laplace (France) and The Spectacle, by Bálint Kenyeres (Hungary).
The iCOFF-Gasteiz festival, co-directed by Sonia Pacios and Kepa Sojo and supported by Fundación Vital, with the backing of the Vitoria-Gasteiz City Council, premiered a new location in Arkabia this year. "Having the new cultural space as the festival's venue has meant a leap in quality, both in terms of projection and the resources available for organizing the event," its organizers stated. The venues were at full capacity for the Official and Bagara sections, and Nazioartekoa also saw high attendance.
The awards were presented on Saturday afternoon during a closing gala hosted by actress and presenter Gemma Martínez, who shared the stage with Navarra monologist Aroa Berrozpe and the music of Twin room duo, Sonia Vera & Josu Jung.
The fifth edition of iCOFF-Gasteiz screened 50 short films throughout the past week, addressing current and diverse themes such as feminism, childhood, immigration, and social marginalization. In Furia, the winner of the grand prize, Eric is an impulsive teenager who has lived in a minors' center since he was 15 and tries to rebuild his relationship with his mother to be able to live with her again when he turns 18. When she doesn't show up for a visit, he runs away to her house and discovers she has a new family and has moved on with her life without him.




