More than 1,000 short films were initially submitted to BRNO16. An international jury, composed of David Bonneville, Jelena Maksimovic and Afsun Moshiry, selected "Sauna Day" as the winner from a field of 34 films in the competition for the grand prize. The award was accepted in Brno by the movie's co-producer Dora Nedeczky.

"Spatial intimacy, body interaction and human relationships leave an unmistakable feeling under our skin," said the jury. "A subtle but subversive emotionality is presented to us in a ritualistic culture, with a touch of history that reveals the ambiguous nature of gradually revealed male desire. The brilliant camerawork and the carefully crafted film language left a mark in our cinematic consciousness."

The film's producer Johanna Maria Paulson said that winning the festival's top prize is a great honor, as the standard is high and the competition fierce.

"The jury was unanimous about the grand prize and for us, what makes this event even more special is that it is the first time that "Sauna Day" has won such a prestigious award. To date, the film has already made it to 14 festivals, including two of the film world's big guns, Cannes and Toronto, where it has a very low chance of making it. This is a remarkable achievement for an Estonian short film," Paulson said.

BRNO16 is one of the world's oldest dedicated short film festivals and has been held in Brno, Czech Republic, since 1960.

"Sauna Day" had its Estonian premiere at the Tartuff Love Film Festival in Tartu this August. The next screening of the film will be on October 22 at Fotografiska in Tallinn.

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