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Berlin, Germany, 05.11.2025: IMAGO is proud to announce that at the International Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Film, the IMAGO Archive Award was presented to “The Chef Suffragette,” a found‑footage essay by director Magdalena Szymków. The award includes financial support and the usage of archival materials to advance the project’s development.
“The Chef Suffragette” explores women’s rights through the lens of culinary history, integrating archival footage from the earliest days of cinema with historical and contemporary reflections, ranging from biblical texts and Aristotle to Napoleon’s Codex, Karl Marx, and modern feminist statements. At its heart is Lucyna Ćwierczakiewiczowa, the Polish writer and activist whose bestselling "cookbooks" helped empower women to pursue independence.
In an official statement, the jury wrote: “We are pleased to present the IMAGO Archive Award to The Chef Suffragette, a project in development by director Magdalena Szymków, introduced to the Jury by the producer Justyna Kluczewska. The Jury recognised „The Chef Suffragette“ for its creative use of archival material, its unique historical perspective, and its innovative approach to telling the story of women’s rights from within the kitchen, a place of both care and strength. The project shows how archives and recipes can together preserve women’s experiences and give new meaning to their ongoing pursuit of equality.”
Photo: IMAGO Archive Award, International Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Film 2025. From left to right: Nadja Tennstedt (Director of DOK Industry, DOK Leipzig), Monika Preischl (GRAP), Justyna Kluczewska (Producer), Nicole Woischwill (IMAGO), and Vanessa Christoffers-Trinks (GRAP).
Nicole Woischwill, Marketing & Content Manager at IMAGO and a member of the jury, said: “IMAGO is proud to support creators. With the IMAGO Archive Award, we aim to encourage filmmakers and artists to work boldly with archival material and to shed new and necessary light on historical content. My sincere thanks for the excellent organization go to the entire DOK Leipzig festival team, especially Nadja Tennstedt and Lennart Johannsen; moderator Elizabeth Klinck (Footage Researcher and Archive Producer); as well as my wonderful fellow jurors Monika Preischl and Vanessa Christoffers-Trinks (both GRAP), and Flore de Fontainieu (Little Big Story). A special thank you also goes to the eight finalists; your dedication, curiosity, and inspiring work made this year’s event truly special.”
About the IMAGO Archive Award
The IMAGO Archive Award honors the most innovative use of audiovisual archival material. It is presented to a project that demonstrates outstanding, creative engagement with archives and showcases how historical images can be transformed into compelling contemporary storytelling. Through this award, IMAGO champions archive-driven innovation and supports documentary creators in unlocking the full creative potential of historical footage, providing financial support and access to archival resources to advance the winning project.
About the International Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Film
DOK Leipzig, held every autumn, is unique among festivals worldwide in offering a combination of documentary and animated film. During the week-long festival, it presents around 250 short and feature-length films and extended reality (XR) works across Leipzig. The 2025 edition took place from 27 October to 2 November in Leipzig, Germany. For more information, visit their website.
About IMAGO
IMAGO is a global visual content provider with headquarters in Berlin. One of the world’s largest collections of images and videos from News, Sports, Entertainment and Creative can be licensed through IMAGO.
Founded in 1997 in Berlin, IMAGO offers many years of expertise and customer orientation through dedicated account managers, an in-house picture desk, commissioned photography, photo and video research, image selections, FTP feeds, and newsletters for inspiration.
IMAGO provides solutions for every need. Content can be licensed with one click via our webshop, and larger projects can be implemented easily and successfully with our individual enterprise solutions.
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