Vicente Pinto Abreu Grand Prix
For the best film in the International Competition

"Short Summer", Nastia Korkia

The jury would like to begin by highlighting the quality of the selection we had the privilege to watch and to thank the festival’s programming team for it. We would also like to emphasise that the decision we are sharing here today was unanimous. The jury of the international competition has decided to award the Vicente Pinto Abreu Grand Prize to a film that engages with poetry, symbolism, and magic in the construction of a childhood that transcends the materiality of the image and of the elements. The film surprises and moves us as well as it instills fear. It is set in a geography surrounded by war, while the world around the character is falling into the void. 

Human Rights In Motion Award
For the film that best promotes the values of human rights, freedom, and democracy

"Rule of Stone", Danae Elon

As a Human Rights Jury, the decision was not easy. The overall quality of the selection was remarkable. One film, however, distinguished itself through a surprising and audacious lens, revealing the hidden power of architecture and the unexpected tools of manipulation shaping an urban landscape. Its masterfully structured narrative shows how ideology can overshadow human rights, and how well-intentioned creators can be instrumentalised with lasting consequences. It challenges us to think differently, to look deeper, and to recognise the political forces at play.

Spautores – Cinema Falado Award
For the best film in the Cinema Falado Competition

"The Last Harvest", Nuno Boaventura Miranda.


A work that encompasses individual, collective and cultural stories of colonisation and its consequences. Exemplary editing, splendid photography, intelligent and appropriate use of sound deals with subjects of grief, memories and past - so far away yet so close - with sensitivity and depth. 

International Medium-Length & Short Film Competition Award
For the best film in the International Medium-Length & Short Film Competition

"
Just Sea", Franziska von Stenglin 

This film is a poetic reflection on nature and the painful decline of marine biodiversity. Through striking and evocative imagery, it immerses the viewer in the world of Salvo, a touching and authentic fisherman, whose life embodies the traditional ways of fishing. Full of melancholy and poetry, the film conveys a powerful atmosphere, reflecting a deep engagement with the natural world and a vision of cinema learned directly from nature itself.

Transmission Audience Award
For the best film in the Transmission section in competition, chosen by the audience

"Orlando Pantera", Catarina Alves Costa

Cinema Novo Canal180 Award
For the best film in the New Cinema Competition

"Dans un souffle", Catarina Couto Gonçalves

The language of breathing drives a compelling soundscape in this moving film. Through skillful black and white cinematography, it tells a touching story of the struggle and resilience of an ambitious young skater. Relying wholly on picture and sound, it effectively delivers its message without bias or judgement.

Honourable Mention

"Closer to Animal", Afonso Gil Mendes Branco.

In portraying the precarious life of a young artist, the filmmaker’s choice of a lo-fi, DIY aesthetic only contributes to a thought-provoking narrative that concludes with powerful moments of expressive, emotional dance.


MAD Award
To a filmmaker in the Cinema Novo Competition

"Dans un souffle", Catarina Couto Gonçalves

Young Jury Award
For the best film selected among the various sections of the programme, to be chosen by the Young Jury composed of students

"Short Summer", Nastia Korkia

For the way the director chooses to approach delicate contemporary issues through the naïve gaze of the main protagonist, an eight-year-old girl—thus leaving, throughout the film, open questions that lead the viewer to reflect on the context in which she is placed and to feel a sense of unease about it; as well as for the visual poetry achieved through the use of a more naturalistic light and an immersive narrative rhythm.

Working Class Heroes Award Filmaporto - film commission  and Fundación "la Caixa"/CaixaForum+
Award for the best project presented within the Working Class Heroes scholarship program.

"Vigília", Elena López Riera.

The selected project stands at a striking intersection of working-class realities, the filmmaker’s stylistic choices, and a fresh blend of fiction and documentary. Grounded in Porto’s history, it engages thoughtfully with LGBTQ narratives and marginalised stories, reflecting the programme’s commitment to cinema as a tool for poetic and political reflection, and for community.