It was a long and hard one…the festival that is…and now that Sundance has wrapped, here are the winners of the Independent Feature Film Competition.
The Documentary Grand Jury Prize was given to “CAPTURING THE FRIEDMANS,” directed by Andrew Jarecki and produced by Andrew Jarecki and Marc Smerling. The Dramatic Grand Jury Prize was presented to AMERICAN SPLENDOR, directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini and produced by Ted Hope.
The Documentary Audience Award was presented to MY FLESH AND BLOOD, directed by Jonathan Karsh and produced by Jennifer Chaiken. The Dramatic Audience Award winner was THE STATION AGENT, directed by Tom McCarthy and produced by Mary Jane Skalski, Robert May, and Kathryn Tucker.
The World Cinema Audience Award was given to “WHALE RIDER,” directed by Niki Caro and produced by Tim Sanders, John Barrett, and Frank Hubner.
The Directing Award recognizes excellence in directing for dramatic and documentary features. The Documentary Directing Award went to MY FLESH AND BLOOD, directed by Jonathan Karsh. The Dramatic Directing Award was presented to Catherine Hardwicke for “THIRTEEN.”
The Excellence in Cinematography Award honors exceptional photography in both a dramatic and documentary film at the Film Festival. Dana Kupper, Gordon Quinn, and Peter Gilbert for STEVIE from the Documentary Competition and Derek Cianfrance for QUATTRO NOZA from the Dramatic Competition received the 2003 Cinematography Awards.
The Freedom of Expression Award is given to a documentary film that informs and educates the public on issues of social or political concern. The Documentary Jury awarded the Freedom of Expression Award to “WHAT I WANT MY WORDS TO DO TO YOU,” directed by Judith Katz, Madeleine Gavin, and Gary Sunshine and produced by Judith Katz.
The Dramatic Jury presents the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award to outstanding achievement in writing. The 2003 prize was given to Tom McCarthy for THE STATION AGENT. The award is sponsored by the Utah Film Commission.
The Documentary Jury bestowed Special Jury Prizes to THE MURDER OF EMMETT TILL, directed by Stanley Nelson and produced by Mark Samels and to “A CERTAIN KIND OF DEATH,” directed and produced by Blue Hadaegh and Grover Babcock.
The Dramatic Jury bestowed Special Jury Prizes for Outstanding Performance to both Patricia Clarkson, for her work in THE STATION AGENT, PIECES OF APRIL, and ALL THE REAL GIRLS, and Charles Busch for his role in “DIE MOMMIE DIE.” The Dramatic Jury also presented two Special Jury Prizes for Emotional Truth to ALL THE REAL GIRLS, directed by David Gordon Green, and “WHAT ALICE FOUND,” directed by A. Dean Bell.
The Shorts Jury presented the Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking to TERMINAL BAR, directed by Stefan Nadelman. The Shorts Jury awarded Honorable Mentions in Short Filmmaking to “OCULARIST,” directed by Vance Malone; “EARTHQUAKE,” directed by James Brett; “PAN WITH US,” directed by David Russo; “ASYLUM,” directed by Sandy McLeod and Gini Reticker; “THE PLANETS,” directed by Francesca Talenti; THE FREAK, directed by Aristomenis Tsirbas; FITS & STARTS, directed by Vince Di Meglio; and “FROM THE 104TH FLOOR,” directed by Serguei Bassine. The Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking is sponsored by American Express.
The 2003 Sundance Online Film Festival Viewers Awards went to “BROKEN SAINTS,” by Brooke Burgess (Animation), and “ONE,” by Stewart Hendler (Short Subject).
The Sundance/NHK International Filmmakers Award was created to honor and support emerging filmmakers with their next screenplays – one each from the United States, Europe, Latin America and Japan – who possess the originality, talent and vision to be celebrated as we look to the future of international cinema. The winning filmmakers and projects are: Yesim Ustaoglu, “WAITING FOR THE CLOUDS” from Europe; Juan Pablo Rebella and Pablo Stoll, “WHISKY” from Latin America; Michael Kang, “THE MOTEL” from the United States; and Mai Tominaga, “100% PURE WOOL” from Japan.
Also, the 2003 Sundance Film Festival announced that DOPAMINE, directed by first-time director Mark Decena, and co-written by Decena and Tim Breitbach was the winner of the first annual Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize. The Prize carries a $20,000 cash award to be split equally between the writer and the director, and is designed to increase the visibility of outstanding independent films on science and technology and to showcase the work of emerging filmmakers tackling compelling topics in science.
For more post festival information, visit the Sundance website.
