Radar Vienna Awards Winners

Many thanks to the members of the jury, Andrijana Ružić, Dr. Tereza Violet Stehlíková and Barbara Luisi.

The award is donated by MuseumsQuartier.

The jury awards On Weary Wings Go By for its fragile and poignant meditation on transience, set within a winter seaside landscape. The film creates a surprising and deeply affecting encounter between real-life footage and delicate animated porcelain figures. We were struck by its haunting atmosphere, careful use of colour and sound, and the melancholy beauty with which it reflects on the passing of time and the fragility of organic life.

The jury awards Permanent Center of Gravity for its unexpectedly haunting images of nocturnal Venice and its inhabitants, embedded within the words of an apolide. The film combines moving image, still photography and black-and-white reduction to create a deeply personal and meditative reflection on how we search for meaning in times of darkness. Its gentle observation, poetic voice-over and sensitive visual approach stayed with us.

The award is donated by the University of Applied Arts Vienna.

The jury awards Dry Food for its engaging storyline, striking psychedelic backgrounds, and spare yet effective animation. We appreciated its unsettling humour, suspenseful rhythm, inventive use of sound and silence, and its unexpected ending. The visual language, with its bold patterns and colours, creates a distinctive and memorable atmosphere.

Many thanks to Hubert Sielecki for selecting and donating this award.

Sielecki statement: In less than six minutes, magically surreal images are superimposed at a consistently rapid pace. The imaginative depiction of horses is striking. A soothing voice invites the viewer into a kind of meditation, but the rapid sequence of images contradicts this, suggesting a provocation or parody. 
A philosophical masterpiece by a young artist.

The jury gives a special mention to Count for its immersive black-and-white journey through countless collective sufferings. The film’s visual restraint and emotional intensity create a touching and powerful experience, inviting reflection on memory, endurance and shared histories.

The jury would also like to give special recognition to Bliss and Fine. Bliss stood out for the quiet beauty of its realisation: a living tree of women reaching upwards, growing and flourishing, and bodies becoming part of a larger organic whole. The film offers a delicate meditation on symbiosis, collaboration and femininity, evoking a strong sense of interconnection, reciprocity and shared presence. Even its most unusual images feel natural, deeply embodied and hopeful. Fine, by contrast, impressed us through its slow-motion fall from order into destruction. As the characters continue to dine, attempting to preserve a sense of normality while everything around them disintegrates, the film creates a strange dissonance and a powerful, unsettling atmosphere.

The jury gives a special mention to On the Way in Vienna for its brilliant idea, collaborative spirit, and sensitive engagement with young future artists, including deaf and autistic children. Through a magical cut-out animation, the film explores the challenges, humour and complexity of navigating Vienna through public transport. We especially appreciated how the children’s drawings and experiences were transformed into a colourful, imaginative and touching film.