The 77th edition of the Locarno International Film Festival, which took place from August 7 to 17, received more viewers than the previous year. Guillaume Canet and Melanie Laurent, as well as filmmakers Alfonso Cuarón and Jane Campion, cheered at the opening. But how can we not talk about the arrival of Indian film superstar Shah Rukh Khan, who fired up the crowd like never before during his visit?
With no less than 225 films presented and 300 screenings organized, this new edition stood out with its proposals as demanding as ever. The winners, who were announced by the president of the jury Jessica Hausner, are especially female, which is enough to sign the renewal of the history of the festival.
Awarding three prizes to Lithuania’s Saule Bliwvaite’s Toxic – including the Golden Leopard – and a Special Jury Prize to director Kurdwin Ayoub for his film Mundi, the festival is delighted to “Vigorously affirms the centrality of women’s voices in contemporary cinema“, as the artistic director of the event Giona A. Nazzaro explains. Lithuania also emerges victorious from this release with several award-winning films.
The film Toxic, which does not yet have a release date in France, tells the story of young women who want to realize their dream: to become a model. The feature film is a submersion of male violence.
Winners of the 77th edition:
International competition:
Golden Leopard, Locarno Festival Grand Prize for Best Film:
Toxic Saule from Bliwvaite, Lithuania
Special Prize of the Jury of the Cities of Ascona and Lawson:
Mond by Kurdwin Ayub, Austria
Leopard for staging the city and region of Locarno:
Laurynas Bareiša for Drowning Dry, Lithuania
Leopard for the best interpretation:
Gelmine Glemjaite, Agne Caktaite, Gidreus Kiela, Paulius Markevičius for drowning
Leopard for the best interpretation:
Kim Minh for The Stream
Special designations:
QING CHUN (KU) (YOUTH (HARD Times)) WANG Bing, France/Luxembourg/Netherlands
SALVE MARIA by Mar Cole, Spain
Today’s filmmakers:
The Golden Leopard Concorso Cineasti del presents the best film:
Pure Electricity by Tato Kotetishvili, Georgia/Netherlands
Prize for the best new director from the city and region of Locarno:
Denise Fernandez for Hannam, Switzerland/Portugal/Cape Verde
CINÉ+ Jury Special Prize:
Listen to The Voices by Maxime Jean-Baptiste, Belgium/France/Guyana
Leopard for the best interpretation:
Callie Hernandez for Inventing Courtney Stephens, United States
Leopard for the best interpretation:
Anna Mesoli for a lesson taught by Balint Schimler, Hungary
Special designations:
FEKETE PONT (Lesson Learned) by Balint Schimler, Hungary
KADA JE ZAZVONIO TELEFON (When the phone rang) Iva Radivojevic, Serbia/USA
Award for Best First Feature Film:
Toxic Saule from Bliwvaite, Lithuania
Go to see the full list of winners here.
The 78th edition of the Locarno Film Festival will be held from August 6 to 16, 2025.
Source: Allocine
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
