CIFF Conquers the Big Apple!

A sincere apology for the radio silence this past month.  We’ve been extremely busy this New Year (Happy belated 2010!), holding events in association with the 2010 Cinema Eye Honors in NYC, as well as gearing up for what some are already saying is going to be a very dynamic year for docs!  Although CIFF was unable to attend Sundance this year, we’ve got some choice representatives luring doc filmmakers NorthEast for this years CIFF (Thanks Sean Flynn!).

For those who don’t know, the CINEMA EYE HONORS for NONFICTION FILMMAKING is an annual event recognizing and honoring exemplary craft and innovation in nonfiction film.  The event is the brainchild of doc moguls, AJ Schnack (Convention, CIFF ’09 and ALL THESE WONDERFUL THINGS blog) and Thom Powers (Toronto Intl Film Festival Head Programmer / STF Program Director).  This year AJ asked CIFF Director, Ben Fowile, to take-part as a member of the nominating committee, a group of 11 documentary programmers from the best festivals from all over the world.

The night before the awards, CIFF held a reception for all nominated filmmakers and a number of industry guests.  The event went smashingly, thanks to sponsors Above Allen, Thompsons Hotel LES and of course, Maker’s Mark.  Thanks also to Leah Hurley, CIFF ’09’s producer for helping put this event together.  I think the consensus of the entire CE weekend was just how gracious and supportive the documentary community is.  In a city of over 10 million, somehow it felt like the only people who surrounded you were people who eat, sleep and breath nonfiction.  CINEMA EYE reminds us that there are several reasons why we devote our time and energy to nonfiction filmmaking, whether it’s creation, consumption or exhibition.  Thanks to everyone involved in making this special weekend happen.  It was an honor to have CIFF be a part of an event that recognizes craft and innovation in an art form that is continually pushing its own boundaries.

It should also be mentioned that there were tons of CIFF alum there as nominated filmmakers including the filmmakers from BECAUSE WE WERE BORN, THE WAY WE GET BY, OCTOBER COUNTRY and even a special appearance by CIFF alum, Peter Davis!  Below are a few pictures from the event.  If you are interested in seeing more, join us on facebook here. We’ll also be posting them to our flickr account soon.

Finally, big ups to Mike and Donal from OCTOBER COUNTRY for taking home two awards, BEST DEBUT FEATURE and BEST ORIGINAL MUSIC SCORE.  Also, congrats to our good friend Jessica Oreck and her film BEETLE QUEEN CONQUERS TOKYO for taking home the SPOTLIGHT AWARD.  Check out a complete listing of winners here.

And The Winners Are….

The Camden International Film Festival announced its award winning films at the Closing Night Ceremony on Sunday, October 4^th at the Camden Opera House in Camden.  The Closing Reception ended 09 festival activities that included screening 45 films representing numerous countries, the inaugural edition of the POINTS NORTH Documentary Film Forum, live musical performances and video installation exhibits.  Winning filmmakers received $1,000 cash prize and the CIFF Award Winner receives a scholarship to attend courses at the Maine Media Workshops in Rockport, Maine through a sponsorship from Maine Media Workshops.

This year’s Harrell Award for Best Documentary goes to BECAUSE WE WERE BORN directed by Jean Pierre Duret and Andrea Santana.  The film documents two young teenage boys who hang out at a service station in Pernambouc in the poor northeast of Brazil, watching trucks and travelers and hearing stories about a wider world they can only dream of.

The Harrell Award Jury noted: “The jury gives Jean-Pierre Duret and Andrea Santana’s BECAUSE WE WERE BORN the Harrell Award for Best Documentary Feature for its excellence in cinematic craft and for its rigorously pure vérité aesthetic.  The filmmakers have created a work that challenges the viewer on many levels.  Told with a quiet intensity and deep love and respect for their subjects, in our opinion, this piece represents the best of what nonfiction cinema has to offer.”

This years CIFF Award for Emerging Cinematic Vision goes to Patrick Shen’s THE PHILOSOPHER KINGS.  The film documents the search of wisdom in unlikely places. The Philosopher Kings takes us on a journey through the halls of the most prestigious colleges and universities in America to learn from the staff members who see it all and have been through it all: the custodians.

The CIFF Award Jury noted: “The jury is thrilled to present the CIFF Award to Patrick “Die Hard” Shen for his remarkable achievement, PHILOSOPHER KINGS.  The film took a sensitive and humanistic approach to its material, allowing its unconventional yet universal subjects to speak for themselves.  Though they all had experiences that bordered on the extreme – from losing an arm in an accident to being traumatized by war – the subjects were individuals with wisdom and emotion before being victims of any tragedy.  Shen, through his subjects, managed to touch on larger social issues through the eyes of several disparate, and remarkable, characters.  In short, we wanted to marry every single character on screen, or at least, hang out with them in the stairwells or bathrooms of Princeton, Duke, Cornish College of Art, and other higher learned institutions.  So, for an amazing combination of casting, crafting, editing, and thinking outside the box about what makes a compelling film, we are proud to honor Patrick Shen and PHILOSOPHER KINGS.”

Benjamin Fowlie, Festival Director said, “We are honored to have had the opportunity to share such a wonderful nonfiction program with our audiences, and congratulate all of this year’s winners.  We would also like to thank our jury members for their dedication and commitment to this very challenging role.  Congratulations to BECAUSE WE WERE BORN and PHILOSOPHER KINGS.  We are honored to be a part of both films successful festival run.”

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The Camden International Film Festival award winners were chosen by a distinguished jury including:

Harrell Award Jury: Pamela Cohn (PFunk Productions), Ryan Harrington (Gucci Tribeca Fund) and Dana Rae Warren (Moody Mountain Media).

CIFF Award Jury: Sara Archambault (LEF Foundation), Ian Cheney (King Corn, The Greening of Southie), Danielle DiGiacomo (IFP).