25 Days Later, “Dynamite” and “Cove” Tops With Seattle Audiences

by Peter Knegt (June 15, 2009)
25 Days Later, “Dynamite” and “Cove” Tops With Seattle Audiences
A scene from Scott Sanders's "Black Dynamite." Image courtesy of the Seattle International Film Festival.

The whopping 25-day 35th Seattle International Film Festival concluded yesterday with the announcement of juried SIFF 2009 Competition Awards and Golden Space Needle Audience Awards. Over the festival, SIFF presented 203 narrative features, 11 archival features, 54 documentary features, and 124 short films from 62 countries.

In the jury competition, “The Other Bank,” directed by George Ovashvili, won the main prize in the New Directors Showcase Competition, Barbara Schroeder’s “talhotblond” won the Documentary Grand Jury Prize, while Destin Daniel Cretton doubled his weekend pleasure by winning the Narrative Short Grand Jury Prize for “Short Term 12” on the same day he also picked up a prize at CineVegas.

The mass amount of audience awards included top honors being handed out to Scott Sander’s “Black Dynamite” for best film and Louise Psihoyos’ “The Cove” for best documentary. Other winners included Kathryn Bigelow for best director for “The Hurt Locker,” Sam Rockwell for best actor for “Moon,” and Yolande Moreau for best actress for “Seraphine.”

“SIFF was filled with individual triumphs this year, and the entire programming lineup was as successful as it’s ever been,” says SIFF Artistic Director Carl Spence, in a statement. “Loyal audiences braved tough times and beautiful weather to find the unexpected in the thriving tradition of SIFF. Our flourishing local filmmaking community especially showed us that they are making the films they want to make - and the films that we want to see. There were more than 80 sold-out shows this year, and overall Festival attendance actually surpassed last year. As SIFF moves forward towards a permanent home in the SIFF Film Center, the tremendous appreciation shown by our audiences is stronger than ever.”

The full list of winners is below (you can also check out this dispatch from earlier in the festival).

SIFF 2009 New Directors Showcase Competition

Grand Jury Prize
The Other Bank, directed by George Ovashvili (Georgia/Kazakhstan, 2009) Jury Statement: We give our prize to The Other Bank. It is a picaresque narrative with a powerful mise-en- scene and an exceptional skill in addressing a complex post-war situation through a remarkable character incarnated by a 12-year-old nonprofessional.


SIFF 2009 Documentary Competition

Grand Jury Prize:
talhotblond, directed by Barbara Schroeder (USA, 2009) Jury Statement: Because it tells a shocking, true crime story that reveals the Internet’s power to unleash our most dangerous fantasies.

Documentary Competition Special Jury Prize
Manhole Children, directed by Yoshio Harada (Japan, 2008) Jury Statement: For its emotionally brutal depiction of children surviving underground in Mongolia; the film both repulses and engages at the same time.

Winners of the feature film competitions receive $2,500. Short Film Jury winners receive $1,000. All winners receive FrameForge 3D Studio software and Write Brothers Screenwriter software, and a hand-made glass award from the James Mongrain Glass Studio.


SIFF 2009 Short Film Jury Awards

Narrative Grand Jury Prize
Short Term 12, directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, USA Jury Statement: For its raw and honest depiction of life in a teen detention center, which blurs the lines between caretaker and patient, through exceptionally written characters, humorous dialogue, and a captivating sense of immediacy.

Special Jury Prizes
Lowland Fell, directed by Michael Kinirons, Ireland
Next Floor, directed by Denis Villeuneuve, Canada

Animation Grand Jury Prize
Photograph of Jesus, directed by Laurie Hill, United Kingdom Jury Statement: For answering the public’s ludicrous questions with a playful flair and a firm hand in filmmaking.

Documentary Grand Jury Prize
The Herd, directed by Ken Wardrop, Ireland Jury Statement: For its unflinching portrayal of interspecies bonding and its celebration of hopping.


WaveMaker Awards for Excellence in Youth Filmmaking

A Generation of Consolidation, directed by Samantha Muilenberg Jury Statement: For its technical precision in depicting motivated youth who exercise more bravery than most adults.

Special Jury Award
If U Want 2 Get Technical, directed by Riaebia Robinson Jury Statement: for its timely and important subject matter portrayed with exceptional familial intimacy.

FutureWave Shorts Audience Award
A Generation of Consolidation, directed by Samantha Muilenberg


SIFF 2009 Youth Jury Awards

Youth Jury Award for Best FutureWave Feature
My Suicide, directed by David Lee Miller Jury Statement: For its ability to bring an issue clouded by controversy bravely into focus for a breadth of audiences through exceptional editing and organic character progression.

Special Jury Award
Sounds Like Teen Spirit, directed by Jamie J. Johnson Jury Statement: For excellence in capturing the universal experience of young adults discovering their place in the world.

For the audience awards, please check out the next page.

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posted on June 15, 2009
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AFI Fest '09
BROKEN EMBRACES
A Film By Almodovar, Starring Penelope Cruz
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