Source: TAP

  • TAP’s On Board Film Festival featured an international jury and the passengers’ vote.

TAP Air Portugal announced on World Cinema Day earlier this week, the winners of the Altitude Film Fest, the airline’s 1st On Board Film Festival, at an awards ceremony that took place in cinema room 11 of the UCI Cinema El Corte Inglés, in Lisbon. Actor and radio presenter Rui Maria Pêgo hosted the ceremony.

This inaugural edition of the Altitude Film Fest invited passengers on TAP long-haul flights to take part in choosing the winners throughout the month of October. The response was extraordinary, with a total of 1,542 votes: 837 in the fiction category and 705 in the documentary category. The winning films were selected from 10 finalists – five in the fiction category and five in the documentary category – chosen by the jury from a total of 355 submissions, which included 101 documentaries and 254 fiction films.

The winners of the Altitude Film Fest were:

  • Best Fiction Film: Vale do Fogo, by João Brás (Portugal)
  • Best Documentary: Memórias, by Inês von Bonhorst and Yuri Pirondi (Italy)

Sofia Lufinha, TAP’s Chief Customer Officer, attended the event and highlighted the impact and purpose of the Altitude Film Fest, “which not only enriches our Customers’ experience, but also reinforces our role as ambassadors of Portuguese culture and promoters of cinematic creativity. The Altitude Film Fest represents TAP’s commitment to culture and art, and this first edition exceeded our expectations with the enthusiasm and participation we received from both filmmakers and our Customers.”

The jury for the Fiction category was made up of Leonel Vieira (Portugal), Rui Tendinha (Portugal), Ricardo Pereira (Portugal), Sónia Balacó (Portugal), Rita Nunes (Portugal) and Elisabete Mendes (TAP, Portugal). In the Documentary category, the judges were Arthur Araújo (Brazil), Paul Visser (Holland), Aldo di Russo (Italy), João Antero (Portugal) and Marco Calábria (Brazil), as well as Elisabete Mendes, representing TAP.

The films awarded the Grand Prix for Best Fiction Film and Best Documentary were rewarded with a travel grant worth 3,000 euros each, a prize that aims not only to recognize the artistic and narrative excellence of the films, but also to offer the filmmakers the opportunity to explore new horizons and be inspired by new experiences around the world. The trophies awarded to the winners, designed by sculptor ZÉVI, were upcycling sculptures made from TAP A321 aircraft parts, giving them a unique and original symbolic value. The 10 finalist films will be shown on the in-flight entertainment systems of TAP’s long-haul airplanes for a whole year.

Through the Altitude Film Fest, TAP Air Portugal reaffirms its commitment to promoting Portugal, its culture and traditions, providing its Customers with unique and memorable experiences that go beyond a flight, and offering an alternative and unprecedented platform for emerging filmmakers and films from different origins.

All the information about TAP’s Altitude Film Fest can be found here.