USA Film Festival Shorts Awards Announced

by Mark Rabinowitz

The USA Film Festival (USAFF) announced the winners of the 20th annual short film & video competition on Sunday, with Don Hertzfeldt's "Lily and Jim" picking up the Grand Prize, as well as being picked for the first prize in the Animation category. Winners in each category were presented with $1,000 cash, with several special achievement and apecial jury awards of $500 and $250 being handed, as well. First place in the fiction category went to "Stuck," by Matt Johnson, while the non-fiction award winner was "The Spitball Story," by Jean Back. The experimental winner was Ellie Lee for her film, "Repetition Compulsion." First place winners in all categories become eligible for Oscar consideration by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

The jury for the competition included Jury Chair actress Frances Fisher ("Unforgiven," "Titanic"), directors Sam Green ("The Rainbow Man/John 3:16") and Andy Anderson ("Positive I.D."), and Elvis Mitchell, film criticfor NPR's Weekend Edition with Scott Simon and the ForWorth Star-Telegram. The jury handed out several special jury awards of $250 each, to Gayla Jamison's "Approach of Dawn," Steven Dovas' "Call Me Fishmael," David Blood's "Headless at the Fair" and David Birdsell's "Phil Touches Flo."

Several other awards were handed out, all for $500, including a Special Achievement Award for "One Self: Fish/Girl" by Emily Hubley, daughter of groundbreaking animator Faith Hubley. The Family Award, dedicated to the memory of former competition chair Charles Samu, went to Paul Dekuchitz and Marianne McCune for "Memories Do Not Burn." The Texas Award to the memory of USAFF co-founder Dr. G. William Jones, went to Heather Korb for "Third Ward Blues," and Joel Hopkins picked up the Student Award for "Jorge."

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