The international ADAMI Media Prize-2018 was held in the capital of Moldova, Chisinau. As we have previously reported, several representatives from Ukraine at once were among the nominees: Olga Krechko, STB TV channel presenter in the News category, Our Others project of the Ukrainians online journal, initiated by Olesya Yaremchuk, and Path to Culture: Ethnic tours of Kherson and the South of Ukraine by Mykola Khomanyuk – in the category of web pages.
The organizers of the competition specially mentioned a ten-minute film "Odessite is my nationality" produced by the Echo Media studio. Director Tatyana Suchkova, journalist Dilyaver Saidakhmetov and cameraman Evgeny Ladik were in the film team, and took part in the two-day event.
The event included the welcome reception of the finalists in the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova, visit of local sights, a panel discussion and, of course, the gala evening for the winners.
The film “Odessite is my nationality” did not leave the jury indifferent and was remembered by the organizers with its local charm and special humor that they noticed during the awards ceremony. And although from the very beginning it was known that it was awarded with special mention outside the main competitive program, its creators were a bit worried before the gala evening.
According to Dilyaver Saidakhmetov, it is important for Muslim journalists to highlight how Islamic culture interacts with other cultures in Ukraine.
- This is what we are trying to make our films about. It's nice when these works get international recognition, - said he on the sidelines before the ceremony.
The film's director Tatyana Suchkova noted that one of the main ideas was to show Odessa, first of all, as a multinational and multi-religious city.
- Showing the heroes, we wanted to reveal how they communicate and live side by side, what similar traditions, and different cultures, behaviors they had. But the most important thing is that they all live in Ukraine. And this is a country where the identity of representatives of different faiths and ethnic groups is clearly visible.
The direct broadcast of the awards ceremony for ADAMI Media Prize-2018 winners in different nominations was free to watch in several countries of Eastern Europe at once, including Ukraine.
An interesting fact, the film about Odessa was marked out even during the ceremony. Its presentation and awarding actually were at the end of the gala evening official part. Then the organizers thanked all the participants and spectators and bided farewell until next results summing up of the ADAMI Media Prize 2020 competition, which would be held in Georgia.
Background information:
The ADAMI Media Prize was created in 2015, aimed to encourage filmmakers, journalists and audio-visual professionals in the media from the EU Eastern Partnership countries - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. The ADAMI’s aim is to promote highlighting the migration issues, tolerance and cultural diversity.
