Franz Grabner Prize 2024

On behalf of the Franz-Grabner-Board, Diagonale is pleased to announce the winners of the Franz-Grabner-Award 2024.

Awarded in the television documentary film category:
Alex Wieser for Eugenie Schwarzwald – Pionierin der Moderne

Excerpt from the jury statement:<
“The award-winning film is a lovingly crafted portrait of an extraordinary woman who was not only particularly clever, full of integrity and visionary, but also inspired by the idea of making a difference. The film is based on in-depth research into its protagonist and the socio-political implications of her work and is formally characterised by solid and coherent craftsmanship with a keen eye for detail at all levels.”

Also nominated in this category were Eine Gesellschaft ohne Arbeiter by Heidi Neuburger-Dumancic and Flash Wars – KI im Krieg by Daniel Andrew Wunderer.

Awarded in the cinema documentary category:
Günter Schwaiger for Wer hat Angst vor Braunau? Ein Haus und die Vergangenheit in uns

Excerpt from the jury statement:
“A film that takes a very personal look at what home is actually like. It is a milieu study of a special place, lets many people have their say, shows observations that sometimes seem like real satire. It tells of repression and speechlessness, and of a lack of confrontation with one’s own history. The cinematic narrative achieves its strength here, especially towards the end; the film places things in relation to each other so that the core of a horror becomes all the clearer on the one hand, but on the other hand sometimes creeps in at the back and settles with the viewer. A horror about the past and what has happened.”

Also nominated in this category were … ned, tassot, yossot . .. by Brigitte Weich and Stillstand by Nikolaus Geyrhalter

The Franz Grabner Prize was awarded at a ceremony during Diagonale ’24 in the categories cinema documentary and television documentary and is endowed with € 5,000 each – donated by AAFP and ORF. The prize money is earmarked for the development of the award winners’ follow-up project. Journalist and author Solmaz Khorsand gave the keynote speech.

The 2024 jury consists of Karin Berghammer (filmmaker), Olga Kosanović (filmmaker) and Martin Kowalczyk (film editor, Bayerischer Rundfunk).