Monday, January 28, 2013

2013 Sundance Film Festival Award Winners


Last night the Sundance Institute announced the award winners for the 2013 Sundance Film Festival at the Awards Ceremony, hosted by Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Park City, Utah.

Introducing the ceremony, John Cooper, Director of the Sundance Film Festival, said, “The films at our festival this year truly reflect the unbridled passion, immense talent and diverse stories coming from the independent filmmaking community. I am confident that the awards presented this evening will fuel those films with special promise and that audiences will continue to champion the films they have discovered here.”

“The lively dialogue and genuine excitement sparked by the films over the past ten days is sure to resonate as they further reach audiences in the weeks and months ahead,” commented Keri Putnam, Executive Director of Sundance Institute. “We congratulate and thank all of the filmmakers who shared their stories with us, and we look forward to continuing to support them.”

Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic
  • Fruitvale
    USA, directed by Ryan Coogler
Grand Jury Prize: Documentary
  • Blood Brother
    USA, directed by Steeve Hoover
World Cinema Jury Prize: Dramatic
  • Jisuel
    South Korea, directed by Muel O
World Cinema Jury Prize: Documentary
  • A River Changes Course
    Cambodia USA, directed by Kalyanee Mam
Audience Award: U.S. Dramatic
  • Fruitvale
    USA, directed by Ryan Coogler
Audience Award: U.S. Documentary
  • Blood Brother
    USA, directed by Steeve Hoover
World Cinema Audience Award: Dramatic
  • Metro Manila
    Philippines UK, directed by Sean Ellis
World Cinema Audience Award: Documentary
  • Square (Al Midan)
    Egypt USA, directed by Jehane Noujaim
Best of NEXT <=> Audience Award
  • This is Martin Bonner
    USA, directed by Chad Hartigan
U.S. Directing Award: Dramatic
  • Afternoon Delight
    USA, directed by Jill Soloway
U.S. Directing Award: Documentary
  • Cutie and the Boxer
    USA, directed by Zachary Heinzerling
World Cinema Directing Award: Dramatic
  • Crystal Fairy
    Chile, Director Sebastián Silva
World Cinema Directing Award: Documentary
  • The Machine Which Makes Everything Disappear
    Georgia Germany, Director Tinatin Gurchiani
Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award
  • In a World...
    USA, Screenwriter Lake Bell
World Cinema Screenwriting Award
  • Wajma (An Afghan Love Story)
    Afghanistan, Screenwriter Barmak Akram
Alfred P. Sloan Prize (Outstanding feature film focusing on Science or Technology)
  • Computer Chess
    USA, Director Andrew Bujalski
Excellence in Cinematography Award: U.S. Dramatic
  • Ain't Them Bodies Saints
    USA, cinematography by Bradford Young
  • Mother of George
    USA, cinematography by Bradford Young
Excellence in Cinematography Award: U.S. Documentary
  • Dirty Wars
    USA, directed by Richard Rowley
World Cinema Cinematography Award: Dramatic
  • Lasting
    Poland Spain, cinematography by Michal Englert
World Cinema Cinematography Award: Documentary
  • Who is Dayani Cristal?
    UK, cinematography by Marc Silver & Pau Esteve Birba
Editing Award: US Documentary
  • Gideon's Army
    USA, Editor: Matthew Hamachek
Editing Award: World Cinema Documentary
  • Summit
    Ireland UK, Editor: Ben Stark
U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Achievement in Filmmaking
  • Inequality for All
    USA, directed by Jacob Kornbluth
U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Achievement in Filmmaking
  • American Promise
    USA, directed by Joe Brewster & Michèle Stephenson
U.S. Dramatic Jury Award for Acting
  • Miles Teller & Shailene Woodley for
  • The Spectacular Now
    USA, directed by James Ponsoldt
U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Sound Design
  • Shane Carruth & Johnny Marshall for
  • Upstream Color
    USA, directed by Shane Carruth
World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award
  • Circles
    Serbia Croatia Germany France, directed by Srdan Golubovic
World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Punk Spirit
  • Pussy Riot - A Punk Prayer
    Russia UK, directed by Mike Lerner & Maxim Pozdorovkin
A video of the entire ceremony can be found at the official Sundance website.

Congratulations to all of the winners, I'll be looking forward to seeing all the prize winning films in the coming months.

Friday, January 25, 2013

38th César Awards Nominees


The official nominees for the 38th edition of the César Awards (honoring films released in France during 2012) have been unveiled earlier today at a press conference held at Fouquet's, by the French Academy of Cinema Arts and Techniques (L'Académie des Arts et Techniques du Cinéma).

Noémie Lvovsky's comedy Camille redouble (Camille Rewinds), surprisingly leads the way with 13 nominations, followed by Michael Haneke's Palme d'Or and Golden Globe winner Amour, and Benoît Jacquot's period piece Les adieux à la reine (Farewell My Queen) each with 10. Jacques Audiard's bombastic De rouille et d'os (Rust and Bone), and Leos Carax's wild and wonderful Holy Motors, came up with 9 nominations.

Monday, January 21, 2013

Barfi! (2012)

Barfi! (2012)
Barfi! (2012)
Genre: Comedy
Director: Anurag Basu
Starring: Ranbir Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, Ileana D'Cruz, Saurabh Shukla
Language: Hindi
Duration: 150 min.
Rating: 6.5
Summary:
Quirky romantic tale centered on a deaf mute man from Darjeeling.

Monday, January 14, 2013

Unfair World (2012)

Unfair World • Άδικος Κόσμος (2011)
Unfair World • Άδικος Κόσμος (2011)
Genre: Comedy Drama
Director:Filippos Tsitos
Starring: Antonis Kafetzopoulos, Christos Stergioglou, Theodora Tzimou
Language: Greek
Duration: 107 min.
Rating: 7.1
Summary:
A middle-aged policeman tired of the corruption and bureaucracy, finds himself in a terrible dilemma after he tries to save an innocent man.

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Just the Wind (2012)

Just the Wind • Csak a szél (2012)
Just the Wind • Csak a szél (2012)
Genre: Drama
Director: Benedek Fliegauf
Starring: Katalin Toldi, Gyöngyi Lendvai, Lajos Sárkány, György Toldi, Gyula Hováth
Language: Hungarian
Duration: 86 min.
Rating: 7.7
Summary:
A chilling day in the life of a Romani family who live on an isolated farm in Hungary.

Monday, January 7, 2013

Kon-Tiki (2012)

Kon-Tiki (2012)
Kon-Tiki (2012)
Genre: Adventure
Director: Joachim Rønning, Espen Sandberg
Starring: Pål Sverre Valheim Hagen, Anders Baasmo Christiansen, Odd-Magnus Williamson, Agnes Kittelsen
Language: Norwegian, English
Duration: 118 min.
Rating: 6.3
Summary:
The legendary explorer Thor Heyerdal's epic 4,300 miles crossing of the Pacific on a balsa wood raft in 1947.