Awards Ceremony Highlights
AWARDS CEREMONY HIGHLIGHTS
The 14th Encounters Short Film Festival announced its winners on Saturday 22nd at its awards ceremony held at the Watershed. The overall quality of the films in competition this year was especially high, giving the judges many difficult decisions to make. This is reflected in the resulting commendations for several runners up in addition to the each of the main prizes.
The £3,000 International Jury Award was won by Danish film Dennis, by Mads Matthiesen, which the jury praised for its ‘sensitive portrait of loneliness’. Commendations in this category were René from Switzerland, Alexandra from Romania, and the British animation The Control Master. Significantly, the major award winners and runners-up were dominated by longer form short dramas – films of fifteen to thirty minutes length, suggesting an emphasis this year on strong cinematic stories and character development.
This tendency is also true for Esther May Campbell’s September, which won the £1,000 Best of British Award. The jury were impressed with the film’s combination of realism and magic, and its story-telling perfectly suited for its 21 minute screen time. Esther May Campbell also attended the festival, giving an account of ‘The Film-maker’s Journey’ in a UK Film Council sponsored special event.
Commendations in the Best of British category went to Akbulak and Christmas With Dad.
The UK Film Council Audience Award for the best of the festival went to the French animation Skhizien. The film will take its place alongside Varmints and Our Wonderful Nature as the British nominations for the European Cartoon D’Or.
The festival’s stand-out film from the south west was Leaving, by Richard Penfold and Sam Hearn, which took home the £1,000 prize in both the South West Screen Audience Award and the ITV West Award. The film impressed both audiences and juries alike for its bold insight into domestic violence and was described as ‘emotionally gripping’.
Encounter’s own DepicT! Competition was again a success with over 600 entries received from 33 countries, including 30 entries from Iran. The jury noted that this year there was a healthy balance of both animated and live action films. The £1,000 award was won by Enough, with its edgy and relevant depiction of street crime in the UK. Receiving the award, the film’s producer made a point of thanking the local community for their support of the film.
Over a thousand members of the public voted in the 2nd Shooting People DepicT! Audience Award, which was won by the animation Breaking the Mould. What’s Virgin Mean garnered the new NFTS DepicT! Special Mention Award.
As for the other categories: in the Children’s Jury Award, the decision was so close that a casting vote was needed, with the award eventually going to Office Noise, and a special mention given to The Bellringer.
An animator to watch for the future is Joseph Pierce of the National Film and Television School, whose Stand Up won the Nahemi/Kodak Prize For Creative Filmmaking and received special commendation in the 4mations International Newcomer in Animation Award. Another film that generated sufficient approval was The Life Size Zoetrope, which received commendations from both 4mations International Newcomer in Animation Award and ITV West Award. But the winner in this prestigious category of animated film was Our Wonderful Nature which impressed the juries with its startling integration of Matrix-style spectacle into a natural history documentary.
Others to watch in the future from the Nahemi/Kodak category were Janis Pugh, who received special commendation for Blue Collar and Buttercups, and Billy Campbell who received the Kodak/Nahemi Cinematography Award for Island to Isla.
Below are a few of this years telented winners:
Esther May Campbell (September): Best of British Award Dustin Rees (Bellringer): Runner up, Children's Jury Award
Tor kristofferson's Producer picks up DepicT Award Billy Campbell (Island to Isla) Picks up the Nahemi/Kodak Cinematography Award
NFTS DepicT! ’08 Special Mention Award went to Michael Davies Director (Whats Virgin Mean)
Joseph Pierce (Stand Up) Nahemi/Kodak Prize For Creative Filmmaking
From Left: Richard Penfold, Racheal Drummond - Hay, Adrian Utley and Sam Hearn picking up the South West Screen Audience Award and ITV West Award.
