The Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM) ended this past Saturday after presenting 135 films and an array of events and activities. The festival culminated by honoring ten films with awards and another five with honorable mentions including “E agara? Lembra-me” (What Now? Remind Me), which took home the Grand Prize for Best international Feature while the critically praised film “The Square” earned the People’s Choice Award.
Here is the complete list of awards:
BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE – “E agora? Lembra-me” by Joaquim Pinto.
The
jury who awarded the Grand Prize noted that they were particularly moved by Pinto’s film diary “by the breadth and depth of the reflections; the
beauty of the words and the images that Joaquim and his companion Nuno share
with the viewer in their daily lives.”
IN AN INTERNATIONAL FEATURE-“Tzvetanka“ by Youlian
Tabakov
The film
explores Bulgaria’s tumultuous history through the director’s grandmother. The jury appreciated “the
film’s textures and its compositional strength.”
INTERNATIONAL FEATURE– “Let the fire burn“ by Jason
Osder
The
documentary examines one of the most tragic events in the modern history of Philadelphia, the stand-off between the organization MOVE and the Philadelphia Police Department which lead to over the destruction of over 60 homes and the death of 5 children and 6 adults.
BEST CANADIAN FEATURE– Dominic Gagnon
for his film “Hoax_Canular“
A special mention was awarded to “Night Labor” by Ashley Sabin and David Redmon.
FROM QUEBEC/CANADA– Khoa Le for the film “Ba
noi (grandma)“
The film was cited for “its intimate and complex examination of living at
the intersection of two cultures.” Khoa Le shows his grandmother’s colorful
personality in a sensitive portrait.
SHORT FILM– “Da Vinci“by Yuri Ancarani.
The jury appreciated this short for “taking on both the issue of the extension of the look in the
contemporary world and the complex and active relationship that links humanity
to technology.“
The jury also awarded a special mention to “A Story for the Modlins” by Sergio Oksman.
BEST INTERNATIONAL
MEDIUM-LENGTH FILM– “A New Product” by Harun
Farocki.
“The Art
of Disappearing” by Bartek
Konopka and Piotr Rosolowski received a special mention.
This film which
also opened the festival was appreciated by audiences for its spectacular and moving portrayal of the epic and recent events in Egypt.
AWARD– Melanie Carrier and Olivier
Higgins for “Quebekoisie“
This award which was created last year in tribute to Montreal
documentary filmmaker Magnus Isacsson, the Magnus Isacsson Award is presented
to an up-and-coming Canadian director for work demonstrating exceptional
social consciousness.
A special mention was awarded to Alexandra Sicotte-Levesque.
Institution
selected a winner from among the eight Official Competition and Panorama films
screened for them.
by Kim Longinotto.
To learn more about the RIDM click here.
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