TEHRAN- The 36th edition of the International Film Festival for Children and Youth came to an end in the central Iranian city of Isfahan on Thursday, recognizing the achievements of winners across various categories.

The Golden Butterfly for the Best Film was awarded to the feature “The Dog Thief” directed by Chilean filmmaker Vinko Tomicic, ISNA reported on Friday. 

A joint production of Bolivia, Chile, Mexico, Ecuador, France, and Italy, “The Dog Thief” is about Martin, a shoeshine boy, who works in the streets of La Paz, Bolivia. One day he decides to steal the dog of his best client, a lonely tailor he has begun to imagine as his father.

Golden Butterfly for the Best Director went to Goran Radovanovic from Serbia for his anti-war movie “The Erl-King”. 

The film deals with the consequences of bombarding of NATO of Serbia, and how it affected a child’s perception of the world and their childhood.
 
The cast of the “O'PENing: 2:15” by Jung Se-Ryeong from South Korea received the best actor and actress awards, while the film also earned the best screenplay award for Park Yeon-Ok.

The film follows Hyun Soo, who one day spots a little girl trapped inside a house through a window in her neighborhood. There, she meets Min Ha, and the two begin to spend time together every day at 2:15 p.m. for exactly 15 minutes, just before Min Ha’s frightening father returns home. Min Ha has one simple wish: to visit the playground. Meanwhile, Hyun Soo's mother has made plans to send her to Canada to stay with her aunt. Determined to fulfill Min Ha's wish, Hyun Soo decides to take her to the playground for what will be their first and last time together, unaware of just how profoundly this day will impact their lives and their feelings of longing for each other.

Additionally, “Barren” by Iranian director Mansour Vosouqi received the special jury award in the international section of the festival. 

“My Wild Friend” by Anna Kurbatova from Russia received the Special Jury Award of the International Center of Films for Children and Young People (CIFEJ). 

The movie is about Sasha Menshikov, a seventh-grader, who lives in Moscow with his aunt Nina, however, he suffers from loneliness. Fate brings him together with a little fox who has fallen into a trap, and an unexpected friendship develops between the two.

In the national section of the festival, the Golden Butterfly for the Best Film was awarded to “Kianoush's Garden” directed by Reza Keshavarz Haddad. 

The film follows Hamzeh and Abbas as they plan to invade Kianoush's son's garden on his wedding day. This unexpected incident coincides with the crash of an Iraqi bomber plane near the garden. The arrival of the plane's pilot in Kianoush’s garden sets off a series of unexpected adventures, intertwining the lives of the characters in surprising ways.

The best director award went to Arash Moayyerian for his film “Bamboulak”.

The film features a protagonist who strives to fulfill a girl's wish to have a brother or sister, despite her parents' opposition.

In animation section of the festival, “The Gools” brought Farzad and Kianoush Dalvand the best director award, while “Woolina and the No Birds”, co-directed by Hossein Saffarzadegan and Meisam Hosseini, was named best animated movie.  

The special jury award of the section was given to "Summer of the Same Year" by Mahmoud Kalari. 

This year, the festival received 176 submissions from 48 countries.

The festival aims to promote peace, tolerance, moral values, and instill hope among children and young adults.

SAB/