Getting to grips with Turkish Oil Wrestling
Directors Jan Hellwich and Samet Yalcin won a Gold at this years YDA for their passon project Turkish Oil Wrestling. Here they both talk about becoming friends during their studies, the almost two year long shoot, and casting your grandfather in your short film.
How Alexander Kühn made a girl fly
With three Young Director Award Golds under his belt for his epic short If I Could Fly, Alexander Kühn took the event by storm. Here, he explains the two-year project that blends the emotive story of a displaced family with making a girl fly.
Joe Picozzi celebrates his kind of people
Director Joe Picozzi speaks on his YDA Gold winning film My Kind Of People. Here he talks about the importance of preserving your culture, the trials and tribulations of making a short film and also relying on friends and family to make things happen.
How Milo Blake tackled Paralympic disparity
Spindle director Milo Blake won Gold in this years YDA for his commercial The Empty Seat. Here he talks about the music video that inspired the film, how a film can develop in the post stage, and future projects on the horizon.
Lauren Maya Davis flies high with Songbirds
The YDA Video Art Gold-winning director discusses weaving nature, nuance and non-actors into her evocative Mississippi Delta-set short.
YDA Winner Tanner Williams explores the anti-sacred space
Magna Studios director Tanner K Williams' playful and provocative promo for Madge, shiversucker, picked up a YDA Gold in the Music Video category. He explains how the self-funded film was inspired by his and the artist's shared experience of growing up queer in Utah's Orthodox Mormon community.
Folkert Verdoorn & Simon Becks: Directors with drive
shots speaks to the YDA Gold Music Video winners on Driving Round Looking For Unknown's tragic hero, the film's unique visual flair, and how to maintian a delicate balance between emotion and absurdity.
Joachim Morre’s corrective vision: The YDA Gold-winner pushes back against prison clichés
The Danish director reflects on the human-centred series that earned two YDA Golds, and why storytelling should serve rehabilitation, not sensationalism.
How YDA Gold winner Fiona Obertinca brought lost queer history to the screen
Director Fiona Obertinca, who won a Gold in the Film School (ten minutes and over) category for her short Dandelion, talks about the vital work of the 1970s Youth Advocates program and how she captured the vibe of the time.
Seeing through Leve Kühl's eyes
UPPERFAST director Leve Kühl's UNHCR film, Through My Eyes, picked up YDA Gold Screen trophies in three categories; Changing the World Frame by Frame, Creative Use of Sound and Film School [up to 10 minutes]. Here, Kühl discusses searching for truth, the power of audio, and why the film isn’t aimed at refugees, but at people like him.
Oliver Pilemand's lessons in love
True love never did run smooth, and the recognisable scenario in Oliver Pilemand's YDA-winning comedy short is proof of that. Here, the director talks lucky breaks, reckless courage and not waiting for permission.
Anja Giele’s peas of mind
The Filmakademie Baden‑Württemberg director discusses how she sprouted the YDA‑winning stop‑motion short What was I made for from a seed of an idea to a fully‑grown production.