The Kobanê International Film Festival organized by the Rojava Film Commune has awarded prizes. 

The festival, held on the 58th anniversary of the Amudê Cinema massacre, received over 400 submissions of films, short films, animations, documentaries and short documentaries from four parts of Kurdistan and around the world. 

The festival launched on November 13 and held screenings for 80 films in Kobanê, as well as Amûdê, Qamishlo, Dêrik, Serêkaniyê, camps in Shehba and Northern and Eastern Syria, Makhmur and Shengal. 

Screenings were focused on films on women and resistance, and special screenings for Afrin were debuted for the audience. 

The festival was open for international submissions for the first time this year and hosted directors, producers and musicians like Katrin Olafsdôttır, Leonardo Heiblum, Berivan Xalid, Rachid Bouksim, Mylene Sauloy and Javier Corcuera in the jury. 

Many jury members and directors were stopped at the Sêmalka Border Gate and weren’t able to attend the festival in person. 

The jury were sent the films over the internet and most members as well as directors sent written and video messages to the festival. 

The films awarded prizes in the week-long festival are as follows:

* Best short fiction: Breathing / Farshid Ayoubi Nejad (Iran) 

* Best short animation: A Gong / Zozo Jhen - Tena Galovic - Marine Varguy (France) 

* Best women’s short film: Asia / Yen-Chen Liu - Ellis Ka-yin Chan (Morocco) 

* Best female director: Agua Mole / Malika Zairi (Portugal) 

* Best documentary: Dûr (Far) / Leyla Toprak (Turkey)

* People’s Award: Bîr / Veysi Altay (Northern Kurdistan)

* Best feature documentary: Bêdengiya kesên din / Almudena Carracedo - Robert Bahar (Spain)

* Jury Award: Afrin Film Commune