In its most successful year ever for advance ticket sales, the 24th Leeds International Film Festival has announced the winners of its several prestigious competitions, including the Golden Owl award in Official Selection and the Silver Méliès award in Fanomenon, the genre cinema section of the Film Festival, which is the largest in the UK after London.
The Golden Owl competition is a stunning collection of UK premieres, all displaying originality of visions and a strong potential for UK art-house distribution. The Golden Owl Jury have awarded the prize to Tuesday After Christmas, an exquisitely crafted portrait of a married man who has fallen in love with another woman, and a stunning example of the Romanian New Wave, and a Special Mention went to Sweet Little Lies, a gently powerful Japanese film exploring the mysteries of marriage as cracks appear.
The Golden Owl Jury described Tuesday After Christmas as: “A film of raw and emotional honesty and integrity, which doesn’t ignore the politics of our times. It gives a fresh and original perspective on an age-old situation and succeeds through wonderful performances and subtly perfect direction. The jury was unanimous in its decision and look forward to seeing more of Muntean’s work.”
The special mention for Sweet Little Lies was given “For its controlled elegance and meticulous dissection of fidelity and tradition.”
The jury members were Kieron Corless (Sight & Sound), Mehelli Modi (Second Run DVD), and Isabelle Stead (co-founder of Human Film).
This year, the Film Festival has presented for the first time the Golden Owl Lifetime Achievement Award, which has been received by Tsai Ming-Liang, one of the most inspirational film-makers on the art-house circuit. With nine feature-length films in his portfolio, Taipei-based Tsai Ming-Liang has become one of the most distinctive and creative voices in world cinema over the last two decades, and Leeds International Film Festival is proud to have presented the award to Tsai Ming-Liang in person.
Fanomenon, the genre cinema section at Leeds International Film Festival is proud to be the UK affiliated member for the European Federation of Fantastic Film Festivals, and as such hosts its annual Silver Méliès competition for the UK. After a weekend of screenings, the Méliès jury are pleased to announce the winner as The Last Employee; a chilling German horror in the vein of Japanese horror films, which had its UK premiere as part of horror marathon Fanomenon Day of the Dead 4 on Saturday 13th November. A special mention went to Irish thriller Savage, a gritty exploration of Ireland’s violent underbelly.
The Jury comprised of filmmakers Marc Price, the director of Colin, the zombie movie made on a budget of just £45, and Steven Sheil, director of Mum and Dad (Silver Méliès winner at LIFF 08), and Professor of Film and Television Studies at Aberwystwyth University Martin Barker. The Jury also decided upon the Film Festival’s nomination for the Méliès d’Or short film competition, with the darkly comic sci-fi Yuri Lennon’s Landing on Alpha 46 being named as Leeds’ nominee, which will now go on to compete for the Méliès d’Or at Sitges Film Festival next October. A special mention for short film went to Amock, a super-low budget French monster movie.
Short film is never overlooked at Leeds International Film Festival, and in Short Film City, the Festival’s short film programme, the following winners were announced:
World animation: Angry Man – winner Red End and the Seemingly Symbiotic Society – special mention Love Potato – special mention
International film: Deeper Than Yesterday – winner Vilay – special mention A Perm – special mention
Yorkshire short: Astronomer's Sun – winner Outside – special mention
Best of British The Birdman of Tamworth –winner Tad's Nest – special mention
Although its competitions have come to a close, the 24th Leeds International Film Festival is far from over. Running until Sunday 21st November, the Film Festival will continue to showcase some of the best and unseen cinema in the world, including the anCnoc Single Malt Film Festival Favourites Weekend, with repeat screenings of audience favourites from throughout the festival. Following their huge success with audiences, on Friday 19th November audiences can catch Dive!, the ultimate direct action documentary about food waste, Russian Lessons, a highly controversial Russian documentary about the war between Russia and Georgia, Face the Wall, incredible true stories of 5 former GDR citizens incarcerated for attempting to flee, and High on Hope, a documentary celebrating the 20th anniversary of acid house and the infamous Blackburn parties.
On Saturday 20th November two feature films which currently reside in the top 5 of the Film Festival’s audience response chart will receive a second screening: The Art of Negative Thinking, a pitch black comedy from Norway, and The King’s Speech, the Film Festival’s immensely popular Opening Gala film starring Colin Firth, already tipped for Oscar success even before its general release in January.
The 24th Leeds International Film Festival is presented by Leeds City Council, and supported by the MEDIA Programme of the European Union and Screen Yorkshire, with lead sponsors anCnoc Highland Single Malt Whisky, East Coast Mainline, Leeds Brewery, Northern Rail, twentysix Digital, Bewley’s Hotels, Vue Cinemas and Jet2.com.
Taking place over 18 days across 10 venues, of which the Town Hall will be the centre of the action, the Film Festival screens over 110 feature films and 150 shorts from the 4th to the 21st of November 2010.
