STANTON DELIVERS AUSTRALIA'S BEST BAD ACTOR TO BUSHLAND FEST

Director Stuart Stanton will premiere his charming comedy Charlie Bonnet at this years's Dungog Film Festival, attending the much-anticipated event with cast members Peter Stanley, Mat Jones and Di Joselle, composer Brian Canham, director of photography Joel Frances and partner and co-producer Karen Elgar. Five days out from the screening, he talks to SCREEN-SPACE about his funny ode to blind ambition.

Where did the inspiration for Charlie Bonnet come from? Is he an inner-city wanna-be actor archetype with which you are familiar?

The inspiration for Charlie Bonnet came from years of doing short films and corporate productions where I had to watch many, many showreels. What I found was that there are some actors whose unswerving belief that they will be 'the next big thing' doesn't quite match their ability. I know that sounds a bit mean but it is the truth. I always found watching showreels of bad actors to be awkward; I felt embarrassed for them but at the same time I was greatly inspired by their passion and commitment to their art and what they believed in. Tragedy and comedy.

There is an ‘everyman’ quality about the character that goes a long way to making Charlie relatable. He’s not that pretentious actor/wanker type.

I think Charlie is someone everyone can connect with - a person who loves what they do so much but is completely oblivious to how bad they are at it. We all know someone like that: the karaoke addict whose voice can strip paint from walls or the Guitar Hero guru who thinks they should front their own band. Maybe it's also something we secretly fear about ourselves. But you know, it doesn't matter at all, these people love doing what they do and we love them for their dedication. It takes real guts to do that. Besides, we're Aussies and we love the underdog!

One of my favourite films is Peter Sellers in The Party; is Charlie that sort of clueless, talentless buffoon, devoid of self-awareness?

It's a very good comparison. You can draw similarities for sure. Charlie Bonnet is definitely a talentless awkward man who for the most part is oblivious to his actions, but that's what makes him loveable. Just like Peter Sellers in The Party, he's always trying to impress and no matter what he does the world and everything in it is just against him. He never gives up and he's always pushing forward no matter how challenging the problems thrown at him are.  

How do you convince an actor to roll the dice on his career by playing a "bad actor"? Tell me how you and Peter Stanley (pictured, below) went about creating 'Charlie Bonnet'? 

I've known Pete for a while, since film school. We always talk about funny characters and situations. There was no convincing, I just said “I'm writing a film for you, you're a bad actor (laughs).” He's great at awkward comedy and physical comedy. I could trust him completely, his comedic timing and delivery is flawless. Without this it would have been a very awkwardly unfunny film. But seriously he loved the character of Charlie Bonnet, he was on board from the get go.

Tell me about your creative relationship with Eddie Baroo and Peter? Was the 'Charlie Bonnet' concept the result of many long afternoons together at the local?

I knew Eddie from a film shoot years ago. We met once, then reconnected on Facebook. I said, “Hey mate, wanna be in a comedy feature film?” He said, “Send me the script.” I did, and he loved it. After that, yeah, our first meeting was actually at a pub and we all got on like a house on fire. I've never a met a man like Eddie, such a genuine guy with an awesome sense of humour. You can meet him for 20 minutes and it’s like you've known each other for a life time and could trust him with your life. Also, Eddie co-wrote his sequence in the film with Pete and I. Without giving too much away, it definitely showcases Eddie's 'unique' sense of humour. But yeah, between Pete and I, lots of writing involved beer and late nights. We would send over script changes and ideas back and forth at 4 in the morning, it was great. The best writing is done between 12am and 4am. And on set between takes!  

Describe the production process on a low-budget film like this one. Was it the stop-start, day-by-day shooting schedule that is the norm with tightly-budgeted Aussie films?

The production process was simple: shoot when we can. If it was once a week we would, or maybe two days in a row. It was shot completely over a year; the largest gap of time we took was about 3 weeks between shoots. It was simply work around crew availability, locations and money - which came straight out of my back pocket (laughs). I was lucky to have access to specialty equipment through Brian Walker at Pro Cam Services - he helped with car mounts, jimmy-jibs, lighting you name it. I owe a lot to Brian, he's a really good man. (pictured, the director, at right, with DP Joel Frances on-set)

What does a Festival screening like the one you'll experience at Dungog mean for a film like Charlie Bonnet? From my experience, the James Theatre will be at capacity - around 650 patrons. How does that make you feel?

It means a lot. I mean we haven't even had a cast and crew screening yet. This is hot out of the edit suite! As I'm writing this we are outputting the file for Dungog. Having a packed house will be great, being a comedy I'm hoping for 90 minutes of infectious laughing! We can hope :) As far as how I feel? A little nervous, but quite confident. Outsiders who have seen the film so far have all given quite a positive response so it is encouraging. Ultimately though, we made Charlie Bonnet for the laughs. It's is a silly fun film and as long as people have a good time, a lot of laughs and walk out feeling good, we've done our job.

DUNGOG FILM FESTIVAL 2012 PROGRAM LAUNCH

This morning's launch of the 2012 Dungog Film Festival program combined the three key elements that have inspired regular attendees to make the long haul to the rural mecca over the event’s 6 year history – Hunter region hospitality, Aussie films and beer.

From Newcastle’s iconic Honeysuckle Hotel, Festival Director Allanah Zisterman (pictured, below), co-founding member of the philanthropic industry initiative Cockatoo Institute with partner Stavros Kazantzidis, presented the line-up for this year’s event. Having long ago established must-attend status with industry-types, it is now also considered an annual tourism highlight with its inclusion on the NSW Events’ Master Calendar. 

The three-day festivities kick-off on June 29 with the Opening Night film, Peter Templeman’s Not Suitable for Children. The contemporary comedy-drama recently won over the notoriously hard-to-please city-folk as the kickstarter for the current Sydney Film Festival. Those in town early can catch a special pre-launch screening of Penny Vozniak’s Despite The Gods, the Australian director’s vivid account of the Indian film that veered wildly of the rails under the guidance of director Jennifer Lynch.

Though the partially retooled event is offering a slightly condensed range when compared to past incarnations, the non-competitive celebration of Australian film culture and storytelling is still brimming with fresh visions from the nation’s new wave of filmmaking talent. One of the most buzzed-about titles on the international midnight-movie festival circuit, Paul China’s Crawl, will screen in the coveted Saturday Night slot; the director and star Georgina Haig will be in attendance.

Other features to experience the communal love that the township’s James Theatre engenders will be John Duigan’s Careless Love and Stuart Stanton’s Charlie Bonnett, as well as longform documentaries Between Home, from director Jack Rath, and the World Premiere of Michael O’Neill’s Grammar of Happiness (pictured, left). Visitors and locals alike will be thrilled to see ‘The James’ open for business once again; the historically-significant site shuttered for a long period, unable to afford the digital upgrade required to show many first-run features in this modern age.

Our film-making culture has always featured prominently at past Dungog events and this year is no different. 2012 sees a rare screening of Michael Rymer’s Angel Baby, winner of 7 AFI Awards; attending will be star Jacqueline McKenzie, who will reflect upon the film and the career opportunities its success presented. Also enjoying a long-overdue re-emergence will be animation legend Yoram Gross’ classic Dot and The Kangaroo, which organisers will screen at the Dungog Public School for visitors and students alike.

A vast shorts program numbering an incredible 60 locally-made minis has been collated in a strand of thematically-linked sessions, amongst them the conflict-based ‘Did a Bad Bad Thing’, the scary ‘Paranormal Activity’ selection, the male-centric ‘A Man’s Gotta Do’ films  and three different student film sidebars. This year’s always-popular ‘In The Raw’ live script-reading will be of Andrea Rogers’ AWGIE-winning immigrant love-story Diving for Poland and will feature the voice talents of McKenzie, Ben O'Toole, Sophie Hensser and Anna Hruby.  

SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL 2012 DAILY PLANNER

To help Harbour City filmgoers plan their Sydney Film Festival experience, SCREEN-SPACE is providing its inaugural FESTIVAL PLANNER - a day-by-day breakdown of the biggest movies, hidden gems and special events on offer. Bookmark this page and follow the links to reviews, interviews (including Festival director, Nashen Moodley) and the Festival website.

DAY 1 – WEDNESDAY JUNE 6
Hot ticket – Opening Night red carpet arrivals at the iconic State Theatre (pictured, above) for the World Premiere of Peter Templeman’s Not Suitable for Children, starring Ryan Kwanten.
Don’t Miss – Writer/director Keith Wright’s bizarrely original UK zombie-mockumentary, Harold’s Going Stiff.
First-run Reviews – Woody Allen: A Documentary; Whore’s Glory; Tatsumi.

DAY 2 – THURSDAY JUNE 7
Hot Ticket – Premiere of Rachel Perkins’ Mabo, an intimate portrayal of the political life of Eddie Mabo (Jimi Bani) and life-long love he shared with Bonita (Deborah Mailman).
Don’t Miss – Celebrity photographer Fabrizio Maltese at meeting venue The Hub, talking of his life shooting the stars at festivals all over the world; Matthew McConnaughey in William Friedkin’s redneck-noir thriller, Killing Joe; Paul Dano in the Sundance sensation, For Ellen.
First-run Reviews – Killing Anna; Vivan las Antipodas!

DAY 3 – FRIDAY JUNE 8
Hot Ticket – Australian premiere of Sundance winner Beasts of the Southern Wild at the State Theatre, followed by Wes Anderson’s star-studded coming-of-age story Moonrise Kingdom; both direct from Cannes 2012.
Don’t Miss – The second and final screening of iconic Italian directing brothers Paolo and Vittorio Taviani’s prison drama Caesar Must Die; two documentaries exploring the power of music to unite communities – Joe Berlinger’s Under African Skies and Polly Watkins’ Dr Samast’s Music School; the latest French horror sensation, Livid; Season of the Sun, Takumi Furukawa’s 1956 disenchanted youth drama, kicks off the centenary retrospective of Japanese studio giant, Nikkatsu.
First-run Reviews – Livid.

DAY 4 – SATURDAY JUNE 9
Hot Ticket - First screenings in the Bernardo Bertolucci retrospective, 1964s Before The Revolution and 1970s The Spiders Startegem, both at the downstairs auditorium in the Art Gallery of NSW.
Don’t Miss – Pietra Brettkelly’s New Zealand doco Maori Boy Genius, to be introduced by its subject, inspiring teen Ngaa Rauuira Pumanawawhiti; Woody Harrelson as a violent, corrupt cop in Rampart, reteaming him with The Messenger director Oren Moverman; Cate Shortland’s follow-up to Somersault, the Australian-German co-production Lore.
First-run Reviews – A Royal Affair; The British Guide to Showing Off; Despite The Gods.

DAY 5 – SUNDAY JUNE 10
Hot Ticket – The Australian premiere of Cannes-honoured Amour, from German iconoclast Michael Haneke.
Don’t Miss – Kirsten Stewart in Walter Salles’ adaptation of the Jack Kerouac novel, On The Road; Veteran documentarian Frederick Wiseman’s revealing documentary filmed inside Paris’ most famous gentlemen’s club, Crazy Horse; Lee Hirsch’s controversial documentary, Bully.
First-run Reviews – Captive; Beauty; Last Call at the Oasis; Excision.

DAY 6 – MONDAY JUNE 11
Hot Ticket – Walt Disney Studio’s presentation of the latest animated adventure from Pixar, Brave, with co-star Billy Connolly and a host of Australian industry types walking the Red Carpet at Event’s George St Cinemas.
Don’t Miss – The 2012 Ian McPherson Memorial Lecture, during which leading critic David Stratton and Aussie acting great Bryan Brown chat about their careers and the Australian film industry; All 310 minutes of Bertolucci’s 1976 epic, 1900; the World Premiere of the Australian docu-drama, Coniston massacre, presented in traditional Warlpiri and Anmatyerre dialects.
First-run Reviews – The Warped Forest; Marley.

DAY 7 – TUESDAY JUNE 12
Hot Ticket – To coincide with the release of the ACS book Shadowcatchers, a Cinematographers Panel gathers together the artists who shot Mabo, South Solitary and Little Fish, along with author Martha Ansara, to examine the art and craft of capturing the film image.
Don’t Miss – South Korea’s Official Competition entrant, Yuen Sang-ho’s animated social drama The King of Pigs; the French police procedural drama, Polisse; Richard Bates Jr’s surreal splatter/melodrama Excision, featuring ex-porn queen Traci Lords and trash-king John Waters.

DAY 8 – WEDNESDAY JUNE 13
Hot Ticket – Berlinale Best Director winner Christian Petzold’s Barbara, a study in isolation and paranoia in a repressed society.
Don’t Miss – Pen-ek Ratanaruang reinterpretation of the hitman drama; Headshot; a free presentation of the best 40 years of shorts films from graduates of the Australian Film Television and Radio School (amongst them works by Jane Campion, Rowan Woods and PJ Hogan).
First-run Reviews – Postcards From The Zoo.

DAY 9 – THURSDAY JUNE 14
Hot Ticket – The Blackfellas Shorts Program features over 2 hours of short-films from indigenous filmmakers; screening free at The Hub from 5pm.
Don’t Miss – Marc Fennel and cohorts dissect modern movie marketing with their Hub presentation Coming Sooner: The Art of the Movie Trailer; vying for the feel-bad film of the year award, Rick Alverson’s ironically-titled US-indie, The Comedy; the World Premiere of Dead Europe, the adaptation Christos Tsiolkas’ book by Jewboy director Tony Krawitz.

DAY 10 – FRIDAY JUNE 15
Hot Ticket – The latest version of Wuthering Heights, from Fish Tank director Andrea Arnold, spins the classic on its head with a radical new interpretation.
Don’t Miss – Lea Pool’s cage-rattling Pink Ribbons Inc, an expose of the financial practices of the breast cancer charity group; globe-trotting Australian filmmaker Benjamin Gilmour looks at the trials and tribulations of being a first-response Paramedico, in his gripping doco; slice and dice in the third dimension with the legendary Takashi Miike’s Hara-kiri: Death of a Samurai 3D.

DAY 11 – SATURDAY JUNE 16
Hot Ticket – The final film in the Nikkatsu retrospective, Stray Cat Rock: Sex Hunter, is an anti-everything shocker celebrating individual style, personal privileges and a f***-you stance against political correctness.
Don’t Miss – Keanu Reeves interviews Hollywood’s leading directors in Side by Side, his doco on the digital-vs-film revolution that is changing how films are made; Canadian auteur’s Philippe Falardeau’s Oscar-nominated classroom drama, Monsieur Lazhar; director Costa Botes introduces the heart-breaking The Last Dogs of Winter, a personal take on the working dogs of Canda’s frozen North. 

DAY 12 – SUNDAY JUNE 17
Hot Ticket – At a headline-grabbing 320 minutes, and presented in 2 parts at The State Theatre, Anurag Kashyup’s sprawling, vividly cinematic crime drama Gangs of Wasseypur will test the mettle of even the staunchest last-day audiences.
Don’t Miss – ....anything you’ve missed already! The last day of the Festival is your last chance to catch up on the most buzzed-about titles; Bertolucci’s sexually-frank 60’s set free-love tale, The Dreamers, with Eva Green; The Closing Night film, Colin Trevorrow’s hipster-cool romantic/fantasy/comedy Safety Not Guaranteed.

FESTIVAL WRAP-UP....
Having watched the world flash by in widescreen ratio for the best part of the last two weeks, SCREEN-SPACE feels qualified to cast a critical eye over the 59th Sydney Film Festival (also feeling drained, unfocussed and tired, but will push on....). The selection of Yorgos Lanthimos' Alps as the Official Prize winner was certainly unexpected, as most of those I shared the long lines with favoured Beasts of the Southern Wild, Caesar Must Die or Neighbouring Sounds to take out the honour. The 'Greek New Wave' is not for everyone's taste (Ex-SFF director Lynden Barber was a vocal hater of Lanthimos' film - one of two he walked out of during the Festival), but in the Jury President's Rachel Ward's view, "Alps is intelligent, uniquely emotive filmmaking from an important new voice in Greek cinema, a finely calibrated, absurdist study of power and identity." Perhaps...
In his first year as Artistic Director, Nashen Moodley scored big with his Opening and Closing Night choices; the rousing reception afforded Colin Trevorrow's Safety Not Guaranteed set the party-mood perfectly for the Festival's State Theatre curtain call. Some other programme choices were met with raised eyebrows - Walter Salles' On The Road divided opinion ("long and shit", was one audience members boisterous response when queried); in hindsight, the inclusion of Anurag Kashyap's ambitious but flawed epic Gangs of Wasseypur Parts 1 and 2 may have seemed indulgent (Moodley is an avowed expert on Indian cinema); few considered Tony Krawitz's Dead Europe a serious contender amongst the Competition films.
For SCREEN-SPACE, highlights included Matthew McConnaughey's performance in William Friedkin's Killer Joe; New Zealander Costa Botes' documentary The Last Dogs of Winter; and, Side by Side, an examination of the pros and cons of the film industry's digital conversion. We struggled with Umesh Vinayak's Kulkarni's The Temple, Shunchiro Miki's The Warped Forest and Maiwenn's Polisse. The dubious honour of being named the Festival's biggest duds included Paul Gallasch's hardsell-mockumentary Killing Anna (inexplicably awarded the Best Documentary prize) and pretentious French horror film Livid.
Organisers have confirmed year-to-year growth for the Sydney Film Festival. 122,000 patrons, an increase of 10% on 2011, and a 27% uptick in Flexipass sales suggest Sydney continues to value the worth of its annual celebration of film culture. With Melbourne International Film Festival boldly upping its press release announcements during the SFF fortnight, competition for the top honour of being considered Australia's premier film event is at an all-time high.

NASHEN MOODLEY, FESTIVAL DIRECTOR / SFF 2012

Our interview with the Sydney Film Festival's newest director, Nashen Moodley, reveals a determined man driven to share his love of world cinema with Sydney audiences.

Most can recall that skip-a-beat moment in the job interview where your prospective employer puts your knowledge of their organisation on the spot with the question, “What are the greatest challenges you might face in this job?” For Nashen Moodley, it seems his good fortune at being named the Sydney Film Festival’s newest director began before he even took the job. “Um, I don’t think they asked me that question!” he says with a laugh.

Not that the state of the international film festival circuit offers Moodley too many surprises at this stage of his career. The experience that the debonair 35 year-old South African has amassed – Head of Programming for 11 years at the Durban International Film Festival and Director of Asia/Africa Programs for 6 years at the Dubai International Film Festival, to name just two of his high-profile credentials – ensures the unfurling of his fresh perspective on one of the Asia Pacific region’s key cultural events will be fascinating to watch.

“I think the challenge of all films festival is how to stay relevant, [defining] what makes film festivals important,” he tells SCREEN-SPACE in the week prior to the launch of the 59^th edition of the SFF. “Sydney is in a great place in terms of attendance, but it is now about making this communal experience more impactful, more powerful than it has been in the past.”

He will draw upon the respected status of the SFF internationally to help achieve this aim. “We’ll be bringing more international guests to the Festival and creating more opportunities for international filmmakers to interact with the local Australian industry, so that synergies emerge from that contact,” he explains. “These are the important factors, not only for the visiting filmmakers and the local industry, but also the audiences. That’s what makes a festival a festival. Not just a series of screenings but a discussion about film, about creating an environment where cinema takes centre- stage.”

It is this balancing of the Festival’s key strengths in the eyes of the world film sector and ensuring local audiences are satiated over the 11 days of the Festival that is the professional tightrope Moodley walks. “I don’t think the two can be separated, or prioritise one over the other,” Moodley states. “In order to get the films we need for the Festival, we need to have strong relationships with overseas sales agents and producers and the local film distributors. But, at the same time, once we secure those films, we need people to watch them and to have a pleasant viewing experience.”

He understands that his professional future is linked inexorably to both the long- and short-term success of his SFF tenure. He openly admits that the Opening and Closing Night films – the hipster-cool Sydney-set dramedy, Not Suitable for Children, starring Ryan Kwanten (pictured, left) and the droll American indy, Safety Not Guaranteed (cast pictured, below), respectively – skew younger, clearly signalling a strategic consideration to attract new patrons.

“We need to secure a future audience for the festival. All festivals need to do that,” Moodley admits. “But with those two films, I also think they are really great films and will make for great Opening and Closing night celebrations. Both are also from first-time feature filmmakers, which is very exciting for me, introducing new talents to audiences. Both these films tick a lot of boxes.”

The vast knowledge of the Asian and African film industries Moodley’s experience affords him has also influenced the 2012 programme. A sidebar in honour of Japanese studio Nikkatsu’s centenary, a 5 film Focus on India strand and rarely-glimpsed films from Senegal (La Pirogue; Today), Cambodia (Golden Slumbers) and Qatar (The Virgin Copts and Me) undeniably reflect the Festival Director’s influence. But he wants it made clear that those films are screening because they meet the high standard he sets for all Festival entrants. “Those films are not included so that I can tick off some international quota,” he states, bluntly. “[This role] is about bringing the best of international cinema to the Sydney Film Festival, and the best of international cinema includes film from Africa and Asia. It is not a great agenda of mine to increase Asian or African film at the Festival, it is just that I believe the Festival should have a broad geographical representation. I believe the programme is fairly evenly balanced.” (below, the Festival Director previews the full programme)

When asked what he would like analysts to say about his first year in the Festival Director’s chair, Moodley says, “It’s not so much what someone might say but what they do during the Festival.” He understands the importance of the Sydney Film Festival to both the Harbour City’s filmgoers and the state economy. “If all the cinemas are full, all day every day, that would make me extremely happy.” But Nashen Moodley also wants to engage the intellects of a population that proudly embraces its arts culture. “I want people to find the selection really interesting and challenging. If they see 20 or 30 films, I don’t expect them to love every film. I want them to hate some as well. That’s what happens at film festivals; that’s what I enjoy about film festivals. If that happens in the end then I’ll be very, very happy.”

COMMENTS FROM CANNES WINNERS 2012

Courtesy of the official Cannes Film Festival website, winners from all major categories of this year's often contentious event reflect upon the moment their professional lives changed forever...

Michael Haneke, winner of the Palme d'or for Love (Amour) (pictured, above, with stars Emmanuelle Riva and Jean-Louis Trintignant).
The story I tell is based on the promise my wife and I made to each other: not to separate in a situation like the one in the film. We see that all the time and it is a widespread problem. I experienced it in my own family and that is what pushed me to make the film Love.

Matteo Garrone, winner of the Grand Prix for Reality (pictured, left)
I have not read much of what has been written. It was a surprise for me because I know there were many beautiful films. The Competition was tough but I am very happy because the Grand Prix will help the film to reach a wider audience.

Ken Loach, winner of the Jury Prize for The Angels' Share (La part des anges) (pictured, right)
We realized that if we spent time with people like the ones in the film, they have such optimism that it makes us happy. To speak truthfully about things, you have to present them in the form of comedy.

Cristian Mungiu, Best Screenwriter for Beyond the Hills (Dupa Dealuri) (pictured, left)
I am very happy to have this award, a little surprised because it is the longest film in the Competition. I kept on changing the dialogues, the actresses helped me a lot, we tried to give it a continuity.

Carlos Reygadas, Best Director for Post Tenebras Lux
My work comes from the desire to create, to share, to find fraternity in the world with you. I was asked if I was not sad because many people did not like my film. For many filmmakers, the goal is to please. That is not my goal. Mine is to be able to express myself with absolute freedom and to be able to leave someone with something.

Mads Mikkelsen, Best Actor (pictured, left)
It was a big moment for me and for the film. One cannot be a good actor in a mediocre film. During my stay, I didn't have a chance to see other films, but there is a lot of work to do in Cannes! Put me in the Jury and I will come to see films!

Cosmina Stratan and Cristina Flutur, Best Actress in Dupa Dealuri (Beyond The Hills) (pictured, above)
The rhythm is different in film; after two months of shooting, here we are with this award, it’s incredible.

Benh Zeitlin, winner of the Caméra d’or for Beasts Of the Southern Wild (pictured, right)
For almost everyone who contributed to the film, it was their first film. We had worked very hard on small projects, short films in the past. We wanted to make this with friends, as a family. You never know, when you make a film, that success could come like this.

L. Rezan Yesbilas, winner of the Palme d'or - Short Film for Silent (Sessiz-be Deng)
It was amazing to be there, even before the ceremony. This is the second time that Turkey has won a Palm.

The Cinéfondation and Short Film Jury headed by Jean-Pierre Dardenne and including Arsinée Khanjian, Karim Aïnouz, Emmanuel Carrère and Yu Lik-Wai, has awarded the 2012 Cinéfondation Prizes during a ceremony held in the Buñuel Theatre, followed by the screening of the winning films.

The Cinéfondation Selection consisted of 15 student films, chosen out of nearly 1 700 entries coming from 320 film schools around the world.

First Prize: Dorogno Na (The Road to), directed by Taisia Igumentseva, VGIK, Russia
Second Prize: Abigail, directed by Matthew James Reilly, NYU, USA
Third Prize: Los Anfitriones (The Hosts), directed by Miguel Angel Moulet, EICTV, Cuba