Jonathan Glazer’s harrowing Holocaust drama The zone of interest It leads the nominations for this year’s European Film Awards (EFAs) and received five nominations, including for best film and best director, which were announced via video on Tuesday.
Areas of interestthe official British entry for the 2024 Oscars in the Best International Feature Film category, also received EFA nominations for Best Screenwriter for Glazer, as well as Best Actress and Best Actor nominations for leads Sandra Hülser and Christian Friedel.
Huller will be competing against herself in the Best Actress category after securing a second EFA nod for her lead role in Justine Triet’s courtroom drama Anatomy of a fall. The Palme d’Or winner received four EFA nominations, including Best European Film, Best Director for Triet and Best Screenplay for Triet and co-writer Arthur Harari.
Other nominations for best European film include Matteo Garrone’s refugee drama I am captain from Italy and Aki Kaurismäki’s Finnish romantic drama Fallen leavesofficial Oscar submissions from their respective countries, alongside those of Agnieszka Holland Green bordera black and white film about the plight of migrants caught at the border between Poland and Belarus. Green border came under fire from Poland’s previous far-right government – Poland’s Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro compared the film to “Nazi propaganda” – and was not selected for the Oscar race.
Holland, Kaurismäki and Garrone all received best director nominations alongside Glazer and Triet.
In the race for best actress, Hülser is competing against Fallen Leaves star Alma Pöysti and Leonie Benesch, who plays a teacher under pressure in “Ilker Çatak”. The teachers’ loungeGermany’s 2024 Oscar contender, Mia McKenna-Bruce for Molly Manning Walkers How to have sexand Eka Chavleishvili for her leading role in Elene Naveriani’s Georgian drama Blackbird Blackberry Blackberry.
Next to Zones Lead actor Christian Friedel, contender for best actor Fallen leaves‘ Jussi Vatanen, Mads Mikkelsen for Nikolaj Arcel’s The Promised LandJosh O’Connor for Alice Rohrwacher’s The Chimeraand Thomas Schubert for Christian Petzold A fire.
Molly Manning Walkers How to have sexEstibaliz Urresola Solaguren’s transgender drama 20,000 species of bees, The silent migration from Malene Choi, the Croatian drama by Juraj Lerotić Safe placePhilip Sotnychenkos The Palisiadaand Stéphan Castang’s wonderful aggression thriller Vincent has to die were all nominated for the European Discovery – Prix FIPRESCI as best debut film.
The 4,600 members of the European Film Academy voted on this year’s nominations, which were based on “the excellence of each film” and reflected the European Film Academy’s diversity and inclusion standards. The winners of the 2023 European Film Awards will be announced on December 9th in Berlin.
Full list of nominees for the 2023 European Film Awards
European film
Anatomy of a fall, you. Justine Triet
Fallen leaves, you. Aki Kaurismäki
Green border, you. Agnieszka Holland
I am captain, you. Matteo Garrone
The zone of interest, you. Jonathan Glazer
European documentary film
Apolonia, Apolonia, you. Leah Glob
Four daughters, you. Kaouther Ben Hania
Hometown, you. Hanna Badziaka, Alexander Mihalkovich
On the adamantine, you. Nicolas Philibert
Smoke Sauna Sisterhood, you. Anna hints
European Director
Justine Triet for Anatomy of a fall
Aki Kaurismäki for Fallen leaves
Agnieszka Holland for Green border
Matteo Garrone for I am captain
Jonathan Glazer for The zone of interest
European actress
Sandra Hülser in Anatomy of a fall
Eka Chavleishvili in Blackbird Blackberry Blackberry
Alma Pöysti in Fallen leaves
Mia McKenna-Bruce in How to have sex
Leonie Benesch in The teachers’ lounge
Sandra Hülser in The zone of interest
European actor
Thomas Schubert in A fire
Jussi Vatanen in Fallen leaves
Josh O’Connor in The Chimera
Mads Mikkelsen enters The Promised Land
Christian Friedel in The zone of interest
European screenwriter
Justine Triet and Arthur Harari for Anatomy of a fall
Aki Kaurismäki for Fallen leaves
Maciej Pisuk, Gabriela Łazarkiewicz-Sieczko and Agnieszka Holland for Green border
İlker Çatak and Johannes Duncker for The teachers’ lounge
Jonathan Glazer for The zone of interest
European Discovery – Prix FIPRESCI
20,000 species of beesDirector: Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren
How to have sex, you. Molly Manning Walker
The Palisiada, you. Philip Sotnychenko
Safe place, you. Juraj Lerotic
The silent migration, you. Malene Choi
Vincent has to die, you. Stephan Castang
European animated feature film
A greyhound of a girl, you. Enzo d’Alo
Chicken for Linda!, you. Chiara Malta, Sébastien Laudenbach
Robot dreams, you. Pablo Berger
The amazing Maurice, you. Toby Genkel
White plastic sky, you. Tibor Bánóczki, Sarolta Szabó
European short film
27, you. Flora Anna Buda
Aqueron, you. Manuel Muñoz Rivas
I dream so vividly about our Spanish holidays, you. Christian Aviles
Flores Del Otro Patio, you. Jorge Cadena
Work hard, you. Susanna Flock, Robin Klengel, Leonhard Müllner, Michael Stumpf
