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REYKJAVIK INT’L ANNOUNCES 2010 PRIZEWINNERS

Posted Saturday, October 2nd, 2010 - Comments Off on REYKJAVIK INT’L ANNOUNCES 2010 PRIZEWINNERS
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RIFF 2010 Awards
Festival admissions grow to 25,000, best year ever
RIFF celebrates opening of five new art house screens in downtown Reykjavik

THE GOLDEN PUFFIN

Discovery Award

Italian director Michelangelo Frammartino´s film THE FOUR TIMES (Le Quattro Volte) which tells the story of an old shepherd living his last days in a quiet medieval village perched in the hills of Calabria.

Jury Statement

“An ambitious and meditative second feature, Michelangelo Frammartino’s Four Times explores Pythagoras’ views on transmigration through four tales of rural life involving an old shepherd, a goat, a tree and charcoal, all connected by the soul that travels through them. Beautifully conceived and shot, the film provokes thought without a single line of dialogue, and with unexpected humor.”

First and second films are eligible.

The jury was led by Cameron Bailey, Co-Director of Toronto International Film Festival, and included noted Icelandic Director/ Editor Valdís Óskarsdóttir and Film Comment’s Managing Editor, Laura Kern.

FIPRESCI AWARD

Awarded by International Federation of Film Critics

Italian director Michelangelo Frammartino´s THE FOUR TIMES (Le Quattro Volte)

Jury Statement

“For a brave and fresh approach to the film medium which conveys both spiritually and poetically the inexorable forces of nature. Furthermore, it underlines that narrative cinema does not need to rely on dialogue to fully involve the audience in its means of expression”

Films from the New Visions program are eligible.

The jury members are Polish film journalist/critic Mariola Wiktor, Danish film journalist/critic Louise Kidde Sauntved and British film journalist, Steven Yates.

THE CHURCH OF ICELAND AWARD

Romanian director Marian Crisan´s TOMORROW which tells the story of Nelu, a Romanian security guard who promises to help a Turkish illegal immigrant cross the border over to Hungary.

The Church of Iceland film award is presented for the fifth time this year.

Jury Statement

“Tomorrow is a low-key film with a powerful undercurrent. It recounts the friendship of two men, who don’t even share a language, but nevertheless understand each other. The film deals with  demanding questions regarding the borders between nations and people, the status of immigrants and refugees and respect for those who are alien to us. This film also takes a clear stand against laws who serve themselves and not the human being. Thus, Tomorrow gives a clear and positive answer to the eternal question: “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

Special Mention :
THE CHRISTENING (Chrzest) / Skírnin (Marcin Wrona: 2010) (POLAND)
Jury Statement

An splendidly made film which tells a haunting story of sacrifice and confrontation, despair and hope. The Christening paints a believable picture of the senselessness of violence. It reflects the guilt of grown-ups in the innocense of the child.

First and second films are eligible.

Leading the jury is Father Arni Svanur Danielsson and members are Deacon Armann H. Gunnarsson and Theologist Johanna Magnusdottir.

RIFF AUDIENCE AWARD

Most Popular Film Award

Sponsored by mbl.is

American director Mike Ott´s feature film LITTLEROCK, the tale of two Japanese students stranded in a small town in California, discovering an America different than their fantasies.

Presented by Soffia Haraldsdottir, Manager of mbl.is.

RIFF audience choose their favourite film on the Festival‘s website, www.riff.iswww.riff.is and on mbl.is.

RIFF ENVIRONMENTAL AWARD

Canadian director Sylvie Von Brabant´s EARTH KEEPERS documentary which tells the true story of Mikael Rioux, an environmental activist of Trois-Pistoles, Québec.

Jury Statement

“An empowering film, designed to foster the hope we so desperately need.

Earth Keepers tells the story of an eco-activist learning from an older activist about other fighters, all over the world. The message is: Local action makes global change possible. Global cooperation between eco-actors  and various environmental projects is a vital step to save us from ourselves, if not for us, then for our kids!”

Films from the World Changes program are eligible.

Gudrun Tryggvadottir (CEO Nature.is), Larus Vilhjalmsson (CEO Icelandic Environment Assoc.) and Irma Erlingsdottir (Director of Centre    for Women & Gender Studies, University of Iceland).

RIFF GOLDEN EGG AWARD

To Encourage Young Talent

Faroe Islands director, Sakaris Fridi Stora’s THE PASSENGER

The jury consists of director Borkur Gunnarsson, actress Nanna Kristin Magnusdottir and director Isold Uggadottir.

RIFF ANNOUNCES

ATTENDANCE FIGURES AND 2011 DATES

RIFF continued its remarkable growth with an increase of 10% in admissions which this year reached 25,000. This represents 8% percent of the Icelandic populations.

RIFF hosted over 200 international  industry guests from over 22 countries to see the 140 films presented over the ten days of the festival.

RIFF also celebrated the opening of BIOPARADIS, a multiplex art house cinema in partnership with the Icelandic Filmmakers Union, the Icelandic Producers Union and the Icelandic Directors Union. Joining the industry partners are a group of serious cinephiles, The Friends of BioParadis.

In addition to this, RIFF celebrated the reopening of the TJARNABIO, an art house cinema in partnership with the Icelandic Independent Theatres Association.

RIFF Dates for the 2011 are September 22 – October 2, 2011.

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It shows how out of it I was in trying to be in it, acknowledging that I was out of it to myself, and then thinking, “Okay, how do I stop being out of it? Well, I get some legitimate illogical narrative ideas” — some novel, you know?

So I decided on three writers that I might be able to option their material and get some producer, or myself as producer, and then get some writer to do a screenplay on it, and maybe make a movie.

And so the three projects were “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” “Naked Lunch” and a collection of Bukowski. Which, in 1975, forget it — I mean, that was nuts. Hollywood would not touch any of that, but I was looking for something commercial, and I thought that all of these things were coming.

There would be no Blade Runner if there was no Ray Bradbury. I couldn’t find Philip K. Dick. His agent didn’t even know where he was. And so I gave up.

I was walking down the street and I ran into Bradbury — he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” — and I’d forgot who he was.

So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging — I was with her at that moment — she said, “Talk to him! That guy really wants to talk to you,” and I said “No, fuck him,” and keep walking.

But then I did, and then I realized who it was, and I thought, “Wait, he’s in that realm, maybe he knows Philip K. Dick.” I said, “You know a guy named—” “Yeah, sure — you want his phone number?”

My friend paid my rent for a year while I wrote, because it turned out we couldn’t get a writer. My friends kept on me about, well, if you can’t get a writer, then you write.”
~ Hampton Fancher

“That was the most disappointing thing to me in how this thing was played. Is that I’m on the phone with you now, after all that’s been said, and the fundamental distinction between what James is dealing with in these other cases is not actually brought to the fore. The fundamental difference is that James Franco didn’t seek to use his position to have sex with anyone. There’s not a case of that. He wasn’t using his position or status to try to solicit a sexual favor from anyone. If he had — if that were what the accusation involved — the show would not have gone on. We would have folded up shop and we would have not completed the show. Because then it would have been the same as Harvey Weinstein, or Les Moonves, or any of these cases that are fundamental to this new paradigm. Did you not notice that? Why did you not notice that? Is that not something notable to say, journalistically? Because nobody could find the voice to say it. I’m not just being rhetorical. Why is it that you and the other critics, none of you could find the voice to say, “You know, it’s not this, it’s that”? Because — let me go on and speak further to this. If you go back to the L.A. Times piece, that’s what it lacked. That’s what they were not able to deliver. The one example in the five that involved an issue of a sexual act was between James and a woman he was dating, who he was not working with. There was no professional dynamic in any capacity.

~ David Simon