8th Les Magritte du Cinéma Award Winners

Last Saturday was the annual awards ceremony of the award that honors Belgian cinema released during 2017 and a milestone event happened, as is the first time a film has 6 nominations and wins 6 awards.  The second film by Philippe Van Leeuw, Insyriated, won the top award and five more, including Best Director for Van Leeuw.

Insyriated premiered at 2017 Berlinale in the Panorama section where won the Label Europa Cinemas award and the award that suggests audience acceptance, the first place in the Panorama Audience Awards.  Starring none other than one of my most favorite actresses, Hiam Abbass, tells the following story:

The reality of life as a civilian in modern-day Damascus is explored in gripping and visceral detail.  Trapped inside her own home as the city around her is reduced to rubble, mother of three Oum Yazan (Hiam Abbass) takes comfort in the familiarity of household routines. The streets below are a war zone, with a barricaded doorway providing the only protection from the threat of deadly bombs and sniper fire. One day, an ominous knock on the door signals that their time in hiding is almost up. And when the world outside finally bursts in, Oum Yazan is forced to make a terrible sacrifice in order to protect those she loves.

To check announcement go official site here, available only in French.  These are the winners.

Best Film: Insyriated, Philippe Van Leeuw, Belgium, France and Lebanon



Best Debut Film: Faut pas lui dire (Don't Tell Her), Solange Cicurel, Belgium and France
Best Flemish Film: Home, Fien Troch, Belgium
Best Co-produced Foreign Film: Grave (Raw), Julia Ducournau, France and Belgium
Best Documentary: Burning Out, Jérôme le Maire, Belgium, France and Switzerland

Best Director:  Philippe Van Leeuw for Insyriated, Philippe Van Leeuw, Belgium, France and Lebanon

Best Actress: Emilie Dequenne in Chez nous (This Is Our Land), Lucas Belvaux, France and Belgium
Best Supporting Actress: Aurora Marion in Noces (A Wedding), Stephan Streker, Belgium, France, Luxembourg and Pakistan
Best Female Newcomer: Maya Dory in Mon Ange (Angel), Harry Cleven, France and Belgium
Best Actor: Peter Van Den Begin in King of the Belgians, Peter Brosens and Jessica Woodworth, Belgium, Netherlands and Bulgaria
Best Supporting Actor: Jean-Benoît Ugeux in Le Fidèle (Racer and the Jailbird), Michaël R. Roskam, Belgium, France and Netherlands
Best Male Newcomer: Soufiaane Chilah in Dode hoek (Blind Spot), Nabil Ben Yadir, Belgium

Best Cinematography: Virginie Surdej for Insyriated, Philippe Van Leeuw, Belgium, France and Lebanon
Best Screenplay: Philippe Van Leeuw for Insyriated, Philippe Van Leeuw, Belgium, France and Lebanon
Best Sound: Alek Goose and Paul Heymans for Insyriated, Philippe Van Leeuw, Belgium, France and Lebanon
Best Production Design: Laurie Colson for Grave (Raw), Julia Ducournau, France and Belgium
Best Costumes: Sophie Van Den Keybus for Noces (A Wedding), Stephan Streker, Belgium, France, Luxembourg and Pakistan
Best Original Score: Jean-Luc Fafchamps for Insyriated, Philippe Van Leeuw, Belgium, France and Lebanon
Best Editing: Sandrine Deegen for Paris pied nus (Lost in Paris), Dominique Abel and Fiona Gordon, France and Belgium

Best Short Fiction: Avec Thelma, Raphaël Balboni and Ann Sirot
Best Short Animation:  Le lion et le singe, Benoît Feroumont

Honorary Magritte: Sandrine Bonnaire