The celebrated 9th Annual Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, presented by Avis Rent-a-Car, Sundance Channel and Flamingo South Beach has enjoyed a successful 10-day run with sold-out screenings and wild parties attended by a wide variety of special guests including Latin superstar Albita, noted international film directors, producers and distributors, here!TV and Wolfe Releasing. The Awards were announced by HBO’s Dennis Williams and Festival Director Carol Coombes at the Gusman Center for the performing Arts in Downtown Miami prior to the Gala Closing Night film “ The Chinese Botanists Daughter.”
Winning juried films were selected by a committee of industry professionals and the audience awards were selected from among 104 films throughout the 10 day festival.
BEST FICTION FEATURE – HBO JURY AWARD ($5,000)
“The Bubble”, directed by Eytan Fox is a story about three young Israelis, two guys and a girl, sharing an apartment in Tel Aviv’s hippest neighborhood. Trying to put aside political conflicts and focusing on their lives and loves, these progressive 20-somethings are often accused of living in an escapist bubble until a young Palestinian man enters their lives. Director Eytan Fox accepted his award in person. The film has been acquired for domestic release by Strand Releasing.
BEST DOCUMENTARY – HBO JURY AWARD ($1,500)
“Red Without Blue” directed by Brooke Sebold, Benita & Todd Sills concerns the intimate bond between two identical twin brothers is challenged when one decides to transition from male to female. Director Brooke Sebold accepted her award in person.
BEST FEATURE – MGLFF AUDIENCE AWARD – TIE ($1,000 each)
“The Chinese Botanists Daughter” directed by Sijie Dai and “The Bubble” directed by Eytan Fox
A sumptuous and groundbreaking romantic epic about forbidden love between two women blossoms on a lush jungle island in modern China . It’s a place of haunting beauty and centuries-old customs, at once a liberating Eden and a repressive backwater.
BEST DOCUMENTARY – MGLFF AUDIENCE AWARD ($1,000)
“Emile Norman: By His Own Design” directed by Will Parrinello. From his humble beginnings on a ranch in the San Gabriel Valley to designing window displays for department stores and creating headdresses for movie musicals to his 30 year openly gay relationship during the 40’s and 50’s. Emile Norman is truly a hidden treasure in the pantheon of openly gay artists.
BEST SHORT FILM – MGLFF AUDIENCE AWARD ($500)
“Float” directed by Kareem Mortimer Set in the picturesque but homophobic small island of the Bahamas , Johnny, a young Caucasian painter, travels to an artists retreat to seek clarity and vision and finds instead unexpected love and adventure in the shape of Romeo, a handsome and sexually ambiguous Bahamian.
