Life is Beautiful – Gilda Vieira De Mello Award

The Gilda Vieira de Mello Prize – in honor of her son Sergio Vieira de Mello – is awarded to the film: Life is Beautiful by Mohamed Jabaly

This prize is provided by the Barbara Hendricks Foundation for Peace and Reconciliation, and is awarded by the International Jury, comprising Alain Kassanda, Chadi Aoun, Ella Glendining, Mariana Lorenzo and Abdul Aziz Muhamat..

“Gaza as depicted in Life is Beautiful no longer exists.

Its streets, squares and the faces that populate filmmaker Mohamed Jabaly’s memories have been eradicated in the ongoing genocide in Palestine. What we are left with are the images that tell of the past, already under Israeli occupation. The violence of the borders, but also the solidarity and determination of an individual to lead a dignified existence. Cinema becomes the compass of an odyssey that takes us all to Gaza.”

Life is Beautiful provides a moving account of the daily life of Mohamed Jabaly, who is stranded in Norway after the closure of Gaza’s borders. A call for freedom of movement, but above all freedom to pursue your dreams.