Hommam Al Nassim 
The joint Russian-Georgian film “Snowflakes in My Garden”, directed by Bakur Bakuradze, won the “Gold Cup” award for best film direction at the 26th Shanghai International Film Festival.
The film revolves around the daily life of an ordinary man who used to play for the Georgian national rugby team, and now lives in a modest room in Tbilisi. He suffers from diabetes, and constantly needs money to buy medicine.
The film includes many other characters, including the character of a film director from Moscow, played by director Bakuradze himself.
These two characters studied together in the same school, and they communicate 30 years after graduation, as the former rugby player begins to describe his life and daily problems, which arouses the interest of the director who is thinking of making a film about her.
The film contains many life and daily details, with notes of sadness and nostalgia, and the philosophical thinking of the main character is often accompanied by a sense of humor.
Bakuradze expressed his astonishment at winning the award, and said at the awards ceremony: “Of course, it is unexpected for me to stand here now. I did not think that my film was so intimate that it could participate in the festival.”
The Shanghai International Film Festival was established in 1993, and the jury has at various times included world-famous filmmakers such as Oliver Stone and Karen Shahnazarov.
Winning the “Gold Cup” award at the Shanghai International Film Festival is a great achievement for the film “Snowflakes in My Garden” and its makers and reflects international appreciation for the film and its profound human story.
The ECOWAS Countries and the International Power Struggle