14th International Uranium Film Festival of Rio de Janeiro announces Award Winners at the Cinematheque of Rio’s Modern Art Museum (MAM Rio)

Photo by Paloma Anjos

Films from USA, Italy, , and UK received top awards in Rio.

US director Greg Mitchell won the Uranium Film Festival Award for Best Documentary Feature Film for „The Atomic Bowl: Football at Ground Zero - and Nuclear Peril Today“, a revelation of Nagasaki's place in history. And the US directors Judy Irving and Christopher Beaver received for „Nagasaki Journey (Digitally Restored Version)“ the festival’s Memory Award for the restoration of a powerful historical documentary film that connects todays young generation with the suffering of the young atomic bomb victims of Nagasaki. The screening of the Digitally Restored Version in Rio de Janeiro was a world premiere.

„Both films help us and future generations to never forget the meaning of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki“, adds festival executive director Márcia Gomes de Oliveira.

„I am thrilled, and proud, that my new film received its premiere tonight here in Rio, for I believe that the International Uranium Film Festival is one of the best, and most important, festivals in the entire world“ said filmmaker Greg Mitchell from New York in his acceptance speech. „My journey in making these films and writing books began over forty years ago when I spent a month in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. I interviewed dozens of survivors of the atomic bombings - and they are the ones who have inspired my work ever since—along with, sadly, the escalating threat of another nuclear attack. So thank you again for shining your spotlight on them - and on the need to take action today to reduce nuclear dangers.“

Judy Irving and Christopher Beaver said: „We accept the Memory award with gratitude on behalf of the people who appear in our film: Sumiteru Taniguchi, Victor Tolley and Itsuko Okubo, whose voices and testimony continue to be heard and reverberate beyond the time of their ing. We are grateful to the Uranium Film Festival for keeping their voices present and alive for this generation and generations to come. The continuing question raised in our film is whether Nagasaki will be ed as only the second city to be destroyed by a nuclear weapon, or whether it will be the last.“

Italian filmmaker Camillo Sancisi received the Best Animation Award for „In Our Hands“. „I'm very happy to receive this award. I hope my short film can contribute to the Uranium Film Festival's mission of raising awareness about the dangers and ongoing relevance of nuclear weapons, especially in these times of rising tensions between nuclear powers and increasingly fragile leadership in the Western world“, said Camillo Sancisi. 

His compatriot Daniele Grosso won the Best Art Animation Award for „The View from the Plane“.  He said: “I knew that the theme of my film would have been a good fit for this special festival but I'm surprised and grateful for the prize. I hope it will be an occasion to rediscover the powerful words of the philosopher Günther Anders against nuclear weapons.“

The award for Best Investigative Documentary goes to the French film „The Polygon (Le Polygone, un secret d’État)“ by Cédric Picaud. „This is such great news! I feel honored and touched. Being part of the selection was already a victory for the film. But being awarded means a lot more. I am glad the story of this small village can reach people across the ocean. It feels like magic“, said French filmmaker Cédric Picaud.

Tokyo-based British filmmaker Arif Khan received the award for Best Immersive VR Documentary for „Address Unknown: Fukushima Now“.  Arif Khan: „It's such wonderful news and we couldn't be more thrilled. It's a true honour & privilege for us to receive the Best Immersive VR Documentary Award from the Uranium Film Festival. This project has been a labour of love for all involved and this recognition means the world to us. We'd like to give our gratitude to the Uranium Film Festival for providing us the platform to share this project at such an important event that focuses on nuclear energy and the impact it has in both history and today. And of course, our most sincere thanks to the Fukushima locals who opened up their hearts and homes to bring this story to life."

Last but not least: German filmmaker Patrik Thomas who came form Munich to the festival in Rio won the Award for Best Fiction Short Film for „Taiwaste (Taiwan's Nuclear Waste)“. A brilliant film that in a smiling manor brings the audience face-to-face with the still-unresolved global question of `What to do with or how to get rid of Nuclear Waste?´. 

The Deputy Consul General for , Joachim Schemel, presented Patrik Thomas with the festival trophy at the MAM Rio Cinematheque (Photos by Fernando Alvim).

„I am deeply grateful for the award for my film TAIWASTE as best short film at the International Uranium Film Festival. Nuclear waste is one of the most pressing and at the same time least visible challenges of our time – an issue that transcends national borders, generations, and political cycles. With TAIWASTE, I wanted to help bring this global blind spot into public awareness. The decision to use a hybrid format combining fiction and documentary, as well as the fictional idea of a decentralized nuclear waste storage facility, was deliberately provocative—not as a solution, but as an invitation to confront the absurdity and moral gravity of nuclear waste in a world searching for sustainable answers“, said Patrik in his acceptance speech.

„The personal presentation of the award by German Consul Joachim Schemel was a special moment that underscored the international relevance of the festival. My special thanks go to the Uranium Film Festival and its directors Márcia & Norbert for their many years of unwavering work on this important platform. I would also like to thank the artist Getúlio Damado, whose trophy made from recycled materials is a powerful reminder that we don't have much time left. Participating in the festival in Rio was not only an artistic honor, but also a creative impulse: it inspired me to further deepen my research on nuclear power in Brazil and . The perspectives of both countries on this issue could hardly be more different — and that is precisely where an exciting and necessary dialogue lies.“

In addition a dance performance, coreographed for the Uranium Film Festival, also commemorated the atomic bombings. In front of an audience of over 200 people, 26 students from the Technical Dance Course at the Adolpho Bloch Faetec State Technical School presented a dance performance at the Modern Art Museum (MAM Rio) to 80 years of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and in solidarity with the atomic bomb survivers (Hibakusha). 

Under the guidance of director Luciana Carnout, the performance established a sensitive and at the same time powerful correlation between the 80th anniversary of the bombings and the daily wars taking place in Rio de Janeiro’s favelas. Although separated by time, culture and geography, these wars have common traits: destruction, violence, human suffering, but also — and most importantly — resistance and hope.

"We want our voice to cross borders, carrying solidarity, respect and hope", said the students. "The memory of Hiroshima and Nagasaki lives on, not only as a reminder of a tragic past, but as a call to build a future where peace is, in fact, a reality."

The 14th International Uranium Film Festival (IUFF) of Rio de Janeiro was held at the Cinematheque of the Modern Art Museum (MAM Rio) from May 17 to May 31, 2025.

In 2024 the in the world unique film fest on everything nuclear and radioactive was honored by the MoviemakerMagazine as one of the 25 Coolest Film Festivals in World. And earlier this year the festival founders Márcia Gomes de Oliveira and Norbert Suchanek accepted the Nuclear-Free Future Award 2025 in New York City. In October this year the festival will travel with a selection of the best films first to Berlin and in November to Window Rock in Arizona and Las Vegas in Nevada.

Think global, act local. Many thanks to Armazém de São Thiago, Bar do Mineiro e Cachaça Magnífica for providing free tasty local food and drinks for filmmakers, audiences and the festival team.

AWARD WINNERS LIST 584o

HONORABLE MENTIONS

In Exile

United States, 2023, Director Nathan Fitch, Documentary, 12 min

 

Quoth the Raven, Nevermore

United States, 2025, Directors Ari Beser and Regis Hirwa, Documentary, 6 min

 

The Conqueror: Hollywood Fallout

United Kingdom/United States, 2023, Director William Nunez, Documentary, 116 min

 

Half-Life of Memory: America's Forgotten Atomic Bomb Factory

United States, 2024, Director Jeff Gipe, Documentary, 55 min

 

We Live Here

Kazakhstan, 2025, Director Zhanana Kurmasheva, Documentary, 80 min

  

Object 817

Belgium/Moldova, 2024, Director Olga Lucovnicova, Documentary, 21 min

 

The Accelerator

United States, 2024, Director Wendy Garrett, Documentary, 56 min

 

URANIUM FILM FESTIVAL RIO 2025 IN PICTURES

URANIUM FILM FESTIVAL RIO 2025 PROGRAMM

 

All the best from Rio!

 

www.uraniumfilmfestival.org