Video Contests, Film Festivals, and Awards

2013 Amsterdam Film Festival Announces Winners

By StudentFilmmakers.com
posted Jun 4, 2013, 18:03

AFF announces the award winners of the 2013 Amsterdam Film Festival Van Gogh Awards.

This has been another truly remarkable year for the Amsterdam Film Festival. The contest received several hundred submissions representing top storytellers from over 20 countries around the world. The quality of the work that we had the honor of reviewing was simply astounding. Judging from among this exceptionally high caliber of filmmaking talent proved to be extremely difficult as there were so many unique, well-made and worthy projects. After several months of careful consideration, we present to you the very best of the 2013 competition.

The De grote Prijs van de Jury was presented to Blood Country directed by Adam Bowers (USA). A determined 12-year-old boy wants his grandfather's respect as a hunter, but accidently shoots a man in the process and must deal with the consequences in this dark coming-of-age thriller.

The Cinematic Vision Award was presented to Man of Glass directed by Temenuga Trifonova (USA). Man of Glass is a film about delusion and obsession, sanity and insanity, and the line between the two. The story unfolds against the backdrop of fin de siècle Paris, a turbulent period marked by the rise of the new 'sciences of mind'-psychology and psychiatry-and the development of new 'scientific' theories of madness and criminality.

The Van Gogh Award was presented to Theresa is a Mother directed by C. Fraser Press & Darren Press (USA). Theresa McDermott has chased her “ideal” life as an urban-dwelling, punk(ish) singer-songwriter to the very end of its possible existence. She is broke, options have run out and she happens to have a few kids she is raising on her own since their dad split a year ago. Facing eviction and nowhere to go, Theresa packs up her children and what is left of her life and moves back to the small rural town, childhood home and parents she deliberately ran from a decade ago.

The Prodigy Auteur Prize was presented to The Art of Repair, directed by Will Stewart (UK). The everyday heroes of the sometimes forgotten East End trades person.

The Grand Jury Prize was presented to Age of Delirium directed by David Satter (USA). The film, “Age of Delirium,” is the story of the fall of the Soviet Union as lived and experienced by the Soviet people. The film shows what it meant to live in a state based on a utopian ideology and how truthful information led to the Soviet Union’s rapid and unstoppable collapse.

The Grand Jury Prize was presented to Lesbiana – A Parrallel Revolution directed by Myriam Fougere (Canada). Filmmaker Myriam Fougère takes us on a journey to meet the lesbian writers, philosophers and activists who were key players in creating a revolutionary sisterhood. From Montréal to Texas, by way of New York, Myriam encounters lesbians who chose to live only among women.

The Grand Jury Prize was presented to 200 Comfort Road directed by Cory Tomascoff (USA). A small town family collapses in this story of impermanence and abandonment.

The Grand Jury Prize was presented to Perfect Day directed by Shane Magnier (USA). A film about a day in the life of Rick, an Irish forty-something who lives in Phuket, Thailand. He sets out to have what is for him the perfect day, a combination of hedonism and spirituality, traveling the island 'Easy Rider' style on a large chopper motorbike.

The Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Documentary was presented to From Queens to Cairo directed by Sherif Sadek (Egypt). From Queens To Cairo is an award-winning documentary about the Egyptian Revolution and the problems Egypt faces in trying to overcome the difficulties of establishing a democracy.

The Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Dramatic was presented to The K Effect Stalin’s Editor directed by Valenti Figueres (Spain). Maxime Stransky, a childhood friend of Sergei Eisenstein, is an actor in 1920s Moscow and an adventurer of the revolution, a counterfeiter and Hollywood producer - Stalin's film editor. Together Stransky and Eisenstein will experience the great journey of personal creation through cinema and the collective formation of a new society.

The Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Short was presented to Closure directed by Desmond Devenish (USA). Jude throws himself into his past to fully unravel his deepest fear and finds the truth may be harder to come to terms with than the fear itself.

The Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Music Video was presented to Secret Fear directed by Daniel Bedingfield (UK). This visually stunning and boundary-testing video finds Daniel and his lover locked naked in the eternal spin-cycle of yin and yang, opposing force, desire, murder, tenderness, entrapment and escape.

The Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Animation was presented to I’ll Be Your Mirror directed by Vita Weichen Hsu (Taiwan). A series of drawings reworked on pages of a book withdrawn from the library. Charcoal figures are being forced to ink its own shape onto the facing side as we flip and draw from page to page, formed almost identical silhouettes, bleeding versions of the mirrored figures.

The Special Jury Prize for Spirit of Independence was presented to Golden Illuminations directed by John Fitzsimmons Mahoney (USA). Filmmaker John Fitzsimmons Mahoney explores the themes of Gulick's Sacred Geometry, basketball's origins, spiritual realization and the Golden Ratio.

The Jury Prize: International Short Filmmaking was presented to The Lesson directed by Hen Ni (China) The Lesson is a period piece that takes place in World War II, where a passionate Chinese mathematician cannot cope with the reality of the war and finds his escape and refuge in his teaching. He hides in his work until reality finally knocks on his doorstep.     

First Place Feature Screenplay was awarded to The Kid written by Joe O’Bryne.

Second Place Feature Screenplay was awarded to Station Number Six written by Tim Sasaki.

Third Place Feature Screenplay was awarded to The Eaglet written by Eugene Gavrilenko.

Fourth Place Feature Screenplay was awarded to Becoming Lana Liu written by David J. Schroeder & Alfonso Orsini.

Fifth Place Feature Screenplay was awarded to On the Water written by Stephen Potts.

AFF is also pleased to announce additional Van Gogh Award Winners listed below, arranged by competition category:

Dramatic Directing Award: La Meduse Rouge directed by Michael Wellenreiter
Documentary Directing Award: A Man Since Long Time directed by Mohmound Yossry

World Cinema Directing Award: Eurofalsh directed by Daniela Aizeman and RoiEvron
World Cinema Directing Award: El Dia De La Familia directed by David Blankleider
World Cinema Directing Award: Empyrean directed by Sophia Savage

Excellence in Cinematography Award: Kingdom Incorporated directed by Christina Campagnola & Lauren Brinkman
Excellence in Cinematography Award: Hiob directed by Mario Jadje
Excellence in Cinematography Award: I Am Nasrine directed by Tina Gharavi
Excellence in Cinematography Award: Satisfaction People directed by Hanan Rady

World Cinema Cinematography Award: Fifty People One Question directed by Kamil Krolak
World Cinema Cinematography Award: Dead Mans Burden directed by Jared Moshe
World Cinema Cinematography Award: Winter Frog directed by Slony Sow
World Cinema Cinematography Award: You However Are the Harbour directed by Astrid Kohler

Best Documentary Film Editing: Red, White, Black, and Blue directed by James Brown
Best Dramatic Film Editing: Parudeesa directed by R Sarath
Best Feature Film Screenplay: Death Of A Tree directed by John Martoccia
Best Short Film Screenplay: Everything like Always directed by Peter Leder & Marvin King

World Cinema Documentary Editing Award: Roundabout American directed by Boris Wexler
World Cinema Screenwriting Award, Feature Film: Beach Pillows directed by Sean Hartofilis
World Cinema Screenwriting Award, Short Film: Une Vie Deportee directed by Marie-Helene Roux

Best Avant-garde: Yarnana directed by Gina Vecchione
Best Animation: Emile directed by Oliver Pesch
Best Comedy: Shabbat Dinner directed by Michael Morgenstern
Best Coming of Age Film: Between the Forest & The Field directed by Ben Mehlman
Best Documentary: Ordinary Miracles: The Photo League's New York directed by Daniel Allentuck, Nina Rosenblum
Best Drama: The Solar System directed by Flavia Casa
Best Family Film: The summer Side directed by Antonia San Juan
Best Documentary Short: Amidah directed by Gene Bernofsky
Best Music Video: Jet directed by Devereux Milburn
Best Mystery: A Shade of Grey directed by Herve Demers
Best Thriller: I.F directed by Allan Benzies

Resources:

www.amsterdamfilmfestival.com