Benjamin Kračun BSC wins European Film Academy Cinematography Excellence Award

The European Film Academy announced the winners of this year’s Excellence Awards.

These awards honour the different arts and crafts of film making in eight categories.

The winners will receive their awards at the award ceremony of the 37th European Film Awards on 7 December in Lucerne. A special eight-member jury decided on the winners in the following categories based on the European Film Awards Feature Film Selection.

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European Cinematography

Benjamin Kračun BSC for THE SUBSTANCE

The jury: “Just as Elisabeth Sparkle’s world in THE SUBSTANCE contracts, the cinematography of Benjamin Kracún simultaneously excels. Despite the constraints of her environment, he playfully explores her physical and psychological demise with highly stylised lens distortions and manipulations. It is loud and glossy, but also manages to eke out an unexpected intimacy and vulnerability. The audience is transported through to an unbearably painful, and hilariously raucous ending, achieved only through collaboration with all departments and is undoubtably a celebration of cinematography and cinema.”

European Editing

Juliette Welfling for EMILIA PÉREZ

The jury: “In the feverish musical odyssey EMILIA PÉREZ, Juliette Welfling’s editing strikes us with its incredible fluidity and elegance. The richness of the story’s registers and tonalities is orchestrated with remarkable meticulousness, immersing the audience in the narrative without feeling any of the usual stop-and-go between sung scenes and the others. Very impressive!”

European Production Design

Jagna Dobesz for THE GIRL WITH THE NEEDLE

The jury: “The difficult life and psychological drama of young Karoline in post-WWI Copenhagen is expertly illustrated by an excellent, interesting, visually strong, and striking production design. Through skillfully designed interiors, along with carefully chosen exteriors, production designer Jagna Dobesz strongly and powerfully contributes to the visual quality and atmosphere of the movie.”

European Costume Design

Tanja Hausner for THE DEVIL’S BATH

The jury: “With great precision and great intelligence, Tanja Hausner’s costumes in THE DEVIL’S BATH build every single character in a masterful and very modern way. They contribute perfectly to the overall picture and story. On top of that, each costume, including the background actors and extras, is a piece of art, exciting in colour, proportions, texture, and visual rhythm.”

European Make-up & Hair

Evalotte Oosterop for WHEN THE LIGHT BREAKS

The jury: “Evalotte Oosterop’s make-up and hair in WHEN THE LIGHT BREAKS takes into account the complexity of the protagonists’ relationships. Without a guideline to follow, she creatively combines classic hairstyles with something we’re not so used to see, matching the story perfectly.”

European Original Score

Frederikke Hoffmeier for THE GIRL WITH THE NEEDLE

The jury: “In an original and experimental way, Frederikke Hoffmeier’s original score in THE GIRL WITH THE NEEDLE works with distortion of acoustic sources and noisy electronic soundscapes. It is minimalistic so as not to steal the show but still to be remembered and conveys the cruelty of the protagonist’s experience. Next to the cinematography which seems extremely modern, although it’s a period film, the music has a modern and brave approach as well and creates a timeless musical language.”

European Sound

Marc-Olivier Brullé, Pierre Bariaud, Charlotte Butrak, Samuel Aïchoun & Rodrigo Diaz for SOULEYMANE’S STORY

The jury: “A perfectly modulated masterpiece of sonic realism. Rather than relying on score, the film utilises dialogue, diegetic music, sound effects and atmospheres to dramatise a despairing journey through the cacophony of Parisian traffic, shops, offices, restaurants and Metro stations. The result is a brave, dynamic work of extreme emotional precision and subtlety. A sublime example of dramaturgical collaboration from script to sound design.”

European Visual Effects

Bryan Jones, Pierre Procoudine-Gorsky, Chervin Shafaghi & Guillaume Le Gouez for THE SUBSTANCE 

The jury: “Combining organic SFX and VFX in a surprising way, THE SUBSTANCE shows high-level visual effects in good combination with prosthetics. Stepping back where necessary, there is a lot of excellent VFX which you don’t even notice.”

Representing the respective crafts, the members of the jury for the Excellence Awards were: composer Dascha Dauenhauer (Germany), production designer Miljen Kreka Kljakovic (Serbia), make-up artist Barbara Kreuzer (Germany), costume designer Katarzyna Lewinska (Poland), VFX supervisor Iñaki Madariaga (Spain), cinematographer Kate McCullough (Ireland), editor Laurent Sénéchal (France), sound designer Joakim Sundström (Sweden).

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The complete list of selection experts and nomination committees involved in the awarding procedures for the Europen Film Awards 2024 is now available.

The selection is taking into account the Diversity & Inclusion Standards of the European Film Academy.

The ceremony of the European Film Awards – the most renowned and prestigious award for European film – is presented by the European Film Academy and European Film Academy Productions gGmbH.