Entertainment · Film · 4 hrs ago
‘6TM’ and ‘Searching for SmarterChild’ win top Ji.hlava awards
‘6TM’ and ‘Searching for SmarterChild’ won top project awards at the Ji.hlava Documentary Film Festival.
The awards recognize a promising European project and a promising U.S. project.
‘6TM’ is a Belgian family comedy set in Brussels’ largest housing project, where three connected stories unfold over a scorching summer.
Its characters include children trying to help a friend who uses a wheelchair, a teenager forming a soccer team and a mother investigating a stolen rain supply.
‘Searching for SmarterChild’ revisits an early internet chatbot created in 2003, which people treated as a confidant, target of insults and object of propositions.
The film uses those conversations to examine how people treat AI and one another as artificial intelligence becomes more embedded in daily life.
The European project receives visual post-production and sound services, while the U.S. project receives $7,000; the festival gave another award to Danish producer Signe Byrge Sørensen.
“6TM” won the Ji.hlava New Visions Award for the most promising European project.
“Searching for SmarterChild” won the award for the most promising U.S. project.
The awards were announced at the Ji.hlava Documentary Film Festival on Friday.
“6TM” is directed by Karim Akalay, while “Searching for SmarterChild” is directed by Lindsey Sitz and Zan Gillies.
The festival also gave its APA World Excellence Award to Danish producer Signe Byrge Sørensen.
- Who
- 6TM,” directed by Karim Akalay, and “Searching for SmarterChild,” directed by Lindsey Sitz and Zan Gillies, won awards. Signe Byrge Sørensen also received an award.
- What
- 6TM” won the New Visions Award for the most promising European project, and “Searching for SmarterChild” won the award for the most promising U.S. project.
- When
- Friday. The article was published on October 30, 2026.
- Where
- The Ji.hlava Documentary Film Festival.
- Why
- The New Visions awards recognized the projects’ promise. The APA World Excellence Award honored Sørensen’s contribution to international film production and achievements in world cinema.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Searching for SmarterChild” looks back to the creation of the online chatbot.
The Ji.hlava Documentary Film Festival presented its New Visions awards to “6TM” and “Searching for SmarterChild.
- European project winner
- 6TM
- U.S. project winner
- Searching for SmarterChild
- 6TM” director
- Karim Akalay
- Searching for SmarterChild” directors
- Lindsey Sitz and Zan Gillies
- APA World Excellence Award recipient
- Signe Byrge Sørensen
What people are saying
With its imaginative blend of magical realism, humor and social relevance, ‘6TM ‘ offers a fresh vision of European cinema.
Rooted in lived experience and shaped through co-creation, ‘6TM’ challenges conventional representations and opens up new possibilities for who gets to tell stories, whose voices are heard, and who sees themselves reflected on screen.
‘Searching for SmarterChild’ takes us back to the early days of the internet to confront one of the most pressing questions of our time: what does our relationship with artificial intelligence reveal about ourselves?