The 3rd Karakuz Film International Audience Choice Film Festival Has Concluded in...
The 3rd Karakuz Film International Audience Choice Film Festival Has Concluded in Almetyevsk
August 10, 2026
Six days of film screenings, premieres, creative meetings, and discussions brought together directors, actors, experts, and, most importantly, audiences in Almetyevsk. The festival’s competition and non-competition programs featured more than 30 films from Russia and other countries, with the winners determined by audience voting.
“Karakuz Film is much more than a film festival. It is a space for open dialogue, new perspectives, and genuine emotions. For the Tatneft Charitable Foundation, it is important to implement projects that bring people together through culture, introduce audiences to the best Russian and international films, and contribute to the development of cinema in the regions. What makes this festival especially valuable is that the audience members themselves are the main judges, because their sincere response is the highest recognition a filmmaker can receive,” said Elmira Gazizova, Director of the Tatneft Charitable Foundation.
The festival’s main awards:
Grand Prix — Two in One Life, Not Counting the Dog (directed by Andrey Zaitsev)
Best Feature Film — Karate Kid
Best Documentary Film — Razlogov
Best Short Film — Dogs Who Know What They Will Become
Children’s Audience Choice Award — The Aul Challenge 2: The Knight’s Move
As is tradition, the Tatneft Charitable Foundation presented special awards. This year, they went to the Chinese family drama Answer to Eternity, which opened the film festival, and the documentary short film Eight Hundred Kasimovs, dedicated to preserving the history of the Tatar village of Kestym in Udmurtia and the memory of one family.
Special awards were also presented by the festival’s partners.
Thank you to all the participants, partners, volunteers, and audience members who made the 3rd Karakuz Film International Audience Choice Film Festival a true celebration of cinema.
