Alpha, a film by the Dutch director and screenwriter Jan-Willem van Ewijk which has been shot almost entirely in Slovenia, won the Europa Cinemas Label award at the 81st Venice International Film Festival. The award is presented by Europa Cinemas, an association of over 3,000 art-house cinemas across Europe.

A Dutch-Swiss-Slovenian co-production, the film follows Rein, who moves to an Alpine village and lives a quiet life as a snowboarding instructor. His peace is disrupted by a surprise visit from his extroverted father, Gijs. During a skiing tour, their clash escalates into a survival struggle when nature unleashes its force.

The film was shot in the Slovenian and Swiss Alps, including on Mount Kanin, Zelenica, the Pokljuka Plateau and Vogel. It also features some Slovenian actors, including Pia Nikolič as Priska, a mountain hut manager. Miha Knific was responsible for production design. The Slovenian co-producer of the film was Staragara Productions.

In receiving the Label, Alpha will benefit from promotional support from Europa Cinemas and wider screening thanks to a financial incentive for network cinemas to include it in their programming schedule.

Alpha was the jury's unanimous choice. They praised the film's script, editing, photography and character development, the choice of music and the genuine portrayal of a father-son relationship against the "majestic backdrop of the vast, silent mountains".

"The film is beautifully shot but the director never allows the audience's attention to waver from the intensity of the physical and emotional interaction between father and son as they are faced with a fight for survival. A real tour de force which we think audiences will connect with," the jury wrote.

Having had its world premiere in the Critics' Week section at the Venice Film Festival, the film will premiere in Slovenia at the Ljubljana International Film Festival in November. It will later be screened at select art-house cinemas.

"Being featured at Venice is a significant achievement. The Europa Cinemas Label demonstrates that Slovenian co-producers can successfully support ambitious Western European projects, even within a scheme designed for commercial films," Slovenian co-producers Jožko Rutar and Miha Černec wrote.