Maja Hohenberg from Berlin wins Emerging Filmmaker Award in Rio
Maja Hohenberg from Berlin, winner of the 6th Vechtaer Jugendliteraturpreis (Vechta Youth Literature Prize), has received the Emerging Filmmaker Award at the 15th International Uranium Film Festival in Rio de Janeiro for her poetic documentary "Albraum". The award ceremony took place on Saturday, May 30, 2026, at the Cinematheque of the renowned Museum of Modern Art (MAM Rio).
In "Albraum," the multimedia filmmaker and poet embarks on a search for traces of her great-grandfather, who worked in the Wismut, then the world's third-largest uranium mine, in the 1950s and subsequently died of lung cancer.
“Maja Hohenberg’s documentary is fundamentally different from all the other films at this year’s festival: an experiment with images, film, and modern poetry,” says festival director Márcia Gomes de Oliveira. “A sensitive, poetic exploration of her grandfather’s legacy and the Wismut uranium mining operations. Albraum and Maja’s presence particularly captivated the young audience in Rio.”
Maja Hohenberg, born in Berlin in 2001, studied creative writing and cultural journalism at the University of Hildesheim. She is currently studying language arts at the University of Applied Arts Vienna.
Award Acceptance Statement
“I am delighted to have received the 2026 Emerging Filmmaker Award for my film Àlbraum’. It is a great motivation for me. It was an enriching experience to be able to share the film at the International Uranium Film Festival in Rio de Janeiro and to discuss it with others. The International Uranium Film Festival is the only festival that deals exclusively with various nuclear hazards and thus offers an important platform for exchanging ideas on this topic. Thank you so much for your incredible commitment!” Maja Hohenberg
The further winners of the 15th International Uranium Film Festival of Rio de Janeiro come from Canada, Spain, Brazil and the USA.
ABOUT THE FESTIVAL
For 15 years the International Uranium Film Festival (IUFF) raises awareness about the risks of atomic power and promotes nuclear disarmament with independent films and panels of experts around the globe. In October 2024, Hollywood's MovieMaker Magazine named it one of the "25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World 2024". And in 2025, the festival's founders, Márcia Gomes de Oliveira and Norbert Suchanek, received the prestigious "Nuclear-Free Future Award" in New York City in the category education. The Uranium Film Festival especially in Rio focuses very much on the young generation.
„You’ve never seen two people get more done than the life and project-partner duo Márcia Gomes de Oliveira and Norbert G. Suchanek, who run the International Uranium Film Festival in deep collaboration with activists around the world. The festival has its grand event in Rio, but also does an extensive U.S. tour in regions impacted by uranium-related industry. Inevitably, folks wonder whether there are enough films on the subject to warrant a festival. The answer is yes. This, of course, is because the issue is expansive, impacting all 50 U.S. states and many more corners of the world than most folks realize. From the Navajo Nation to Las Vegas to Chicago and many places between, this spirited DIY art, advocacy, and activism project brings folks together in a space of support, education, shared outrage, and a good time. The Uranium Film Festival is a refreshing example of what activism and advocacy can be: inclusive, expansive, and celebratory.“ Hadley Austin, MovieMaker Magazine
Since the Uranium Film Festival is not sponsored by big companies like other film festivals, it relies on donations. To ensure the festival's continuation, we appreciate every contribution from those who can afford it. Donate via PAY PAL to info@uraniumfilmfestival.org
Festival Team
Márcia Gomes de Oliveira
Founder & Director
Email: uraniofestival@ gmail.com
Norbert G. Suchanek
Founder & Director
Email: norbert.suchanek@ uraniumfilmfestival.org
Libbe HaLevy
Ambassador of the International
Uranium Film Festival to the USA
Los Angeles
www.nuclearhotseat.com
Website
https://uraniumfilmfestival.org
https://www.instagram.com/uraniumfilm/
Photos by
Choa Yanjião and Norbert Suchanek
Think Globally, Act Locally.
We thank our local supporters in Santa Teresa, Rio de Janeiro: Armazém de São Thiago, Esquina de Santa, Bar do Mineiro, and Cachaça Magnífica de Faria for providing delicious local meals and drinks for filmmakers, audiences, and festival staff. And we thank our international supporter from California, the Samuel Lawrence Foundation.
