The 61st Sydney Film Festival’s prestigious awards were announced during the Closing Night Gala at the State Theatre tonight.
Before the awards were announced, NSW Minister for the Arts, Troy Grant said, “Sydney Film Festival is a highlight of the city’s rich arts calendar and plays an important role in the local and national film industry. The New South Wales Government, through Screen NSW and Destination NSW, is proud to support another successful year for the Festival.”
SFF CEO Leigh Small said, “Our Closing Night Gala marks the end of another successful 12-day Festival, and the seventh consecutive year of growth in attendance. This year we welcomed over 156,000 people to screenings, events and talks.”
SFF Festival Director Nashen Moodley said, “From the unforgettable Opening Night film 20,000 Days on Earth and the star-studded premiere of David Michôd’s The Rover to the emotional standing ovation at Tender and the warmly received 2014 Cannes Palme d’Or winner Winter Sleep, this year’s Festival truly was one to remember.”
Out of a selection of 12 films in Official Competition, the Sydney Film Prize was awarded to Two Days, One Night directed by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne.
The inaugural Documentary Australia Foundation Award for Australian Documentary was awarded to the brave and confronting 35 Letters, directed and written by Janine Hosking. Special mention went to Tender directed by LynetteWallworth.
The Dendy Awards for Australian Short Films were also announced, with the Dendy Live Action Short Award going to I Want to Dance Better at Parties, directed and written by Matthew Bate and Gideon Obarzanek. The Yoram Gross Animation Award went to Phantom Limb, directed, written and produced by Alex Grigg. The Rouben Mamoulian Award for Best Director was awarded to Eddy Bell for Grey Bull.
The Event Cinema Australian Short Screenplay Award, also new this year, was awarded to Welcome to Iron Knob directed and written by Dave Wade. Special mention also went to Matt Durrant for his short film Pocket Money.
The Closing Night Gala also featured a sold-out screening of New Zealand vampire mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows. Filmmakers and stars Taika Waititi, Jemaine Clements and Jonathan Brugh were in attendance.
EDITOR’S NOTES:
The Sydney Film Prize
Out of a selection of 12 films in Official Competition, the Sydney Film Prize was awarded to Two Days, One Night directed by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne.
The Dardenne brothers have won the Palme d’Or twice: for Rosetta (1999) and The Child (2005). Two Days, One Night stars Oscar-winner Marion Cotillard (La Vie en Rose, The Dark Knight Rises) as a woman who has one weekend to convince her colleagues to sacrifice their bonuses so she can keep her job.
“For its masterfully elegant storytelling, its dedication to a fiercely humanistic, super-realist worldview, its brave, essential commitment to community solidarity, and its celebration of a woman’s power and vitality, we are delighted to present the Sydney Film Prize to Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardennes’ Two Days, One Night,” said Jury President Rachel Perkins.
Sydney Film Festival’s 2014 Official Competition Jury comprised Rachel Perkins as Jury President, filmmakers Khalo Matabane (South Africa) and Oh Jung-wan (South Korea), film critic and curator Shelly Kraicer (Canada) and Australian actress Rachael Blake.
“In Amsterdam, where we are for the release of Two Days, One Night, we have just learned that our film has been awarded the Official Competition prize at Sydney Film Festival. We are delighted and very honoured to receive this award, and would like to thank the jury, as well as our lead actress Marion Cotillard for her wonderful Sandra. In Australia, as everywhere else, solidarity is a value worth fighting for. Thank you,” said Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne.
Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne were born and raised in Belgium. They started their filmmaking career by making social-activist documentaries, then later switching to fiction. Their 1999 feature Rosetta won the Palme d’Or and many other awards and helped change Belgian labour laws. Their other films include The Son (2002), the Palme d’Or-winning The Child (2005) and The Kid with a Bike (2011).
This year, the internationally recognised SFF Official Competition, now in its seventh year, awards a $61,000 cash prize in recognition of the most courageous, audacious and cutting-edge film from the 12 features selected.
The SFF Official Competition was established in 2008 and is endorsed by Fédération Internationale des Associations de Producteurs de Films (the regulating organisation for international film festivals). 12 feature films are selected for Official Competition on the basis that they demonstrate ‘emotional power and resonance; are audacious, cutting-edge, courageous; and go beyond the usual treatment of the subject matter’.
Previous Sydney Film Festival Official Competition winners include: Only God Forgives (2013), Alps (2012), A Separation (2011), Heartbeats (2010), Bronson (2009) and Hunger (2008).
The selection of films in Competition for the SFF 2014 Sydney Film Prize were:
20,000 Days on Earth
UK | Directors: Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard | Screenwriters: Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard, Nick Cave | Producers: James Wilson, Dan Bowen | Distributor: Madman Entertainment
Black Coal, Thin Ice
China, Hong Kong | Director, Screenwriter: Diao Yinan | Producers: Qu Vivian, Wan Juan, Shen Yang, Zhang Dajun | Cast: Liao Fan, Gwei Lun Mei, Wang Xuebing | World Sales: Fortissimo Films
Boyhood
USA | Director, Screenwriter: Richard Linklater | Producers: Cathleen Sutherland, Richard Linklater | Cast: Ethan Hawke, Patricia Arquette, Ellar Coltrane, Lorelei Linklater | Distributor: Universal Pictures International Australas
Fell
Australia | Director: Kasimir Burgess | Screenwriter: Natasha Pincus | Producers: John Maynard, Mary Minas | Cast: Matt Nable, Dan Henshall | Production Company: Felix Media
Fish & Cat
Iran | Director, Screenwriter: Shahram Mokri | Producer: Sepehr Seyfi | Cast: Babak Karimi, Saeed Ebrahimifar, Abed Abest | World Sales: Iranian Independents
The Kidnapping of Michel Houllebecq
France | Director, Screenwriter: Guillaume Nicloux | Producers: Sylvie Pialat, Marco Cherqui | Cast: Michel Houllebecq, Luc Schwarz, Mathieu Nicourt
Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter
USA | Director: David Zellner | Screenwriters: David Zellner, Nathan Zellner | Producers: Nathan Zellner, Cameron Lamb, Chris Ohlson, Andrew Banks, Jim Burke | Cast: Rinko Kikuchi, Nobuyuki Katsube, Kanako Higashi | Distributor: Palace Films
Locke
UK | Director, Screenwriter: Steven Knight | Producers: Paul Webster, Guy Heeley | Cast: Tom Hardy, Ruth Wilson, Olivia Colman | Distributor: Madman Entertainment
The Rover
Australia | Director, Screenwriter: David Michôd | Producers: Liz Watts, David Linde, David Michôd | Cast: Guy Pearce, Robert Pattinson, Scoot McNairy | Distributor: Roadshow Films
Ruin
Australia | Director, Screenwriter, Producer: Amiel Courtin-Wilson, Michael Cody | Cast: Sang Malen, Ros Mony | Distributor: Madman Entertainment
Snowpiercer
South Korea | Director: Bong Joon-ho | Screenwriters: Bong Joon-ho, Kelly Masterson | Producers: Park Chan-wook, Lee Tae-hun, Park Tae-jun, Robert Bernacchi, David Minkowski, Matthew Stillman | Cast: Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Ed Harris, John Hurt, Tilda Swinton | Distributor: Roadshow Films
Two Days, One Night
Belgium, France, Italy | Directors, Screenwriters: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne | Producers: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne, Denis Freyd | Cast: Marion Cotillard, Olivier Gourmet, Catherine Salée, Fabrizio Rongione | Distributor: Madman Entertainment
Each Jury Member and winner of the Sydney Film Prize for 2014 will receive an exquisite timepiece from our watch partner Philip Stein.
The Documentary Australia Foundation Award for Australian Documentary
For the first time, out of a selection of 10 finalists, the Documentary Australia Foundation Award for Australian Documentary awarded a generous cash prize of $10,000 to acknowledge excellence in documentary production. The winner of the Documentary Australia Foundation Award went to 35 Letters.
“The winning documentary is an inventive and deeply moving account of 31-year-old Melbourne writer Angelique Flowers, who is given only months to live, and the different ways in which she and her family face her impending death,” said DAF Award for Australian Documentary Jury Member Dr Mitzi Goldman.
“Unflinchingly, this film shows us Angelique’s desperate search for a way to die with dignity – one made all the more difficult by her parents opposing belief that she should die as God intended, and her sibling's determination to help her die as she chooses, even though it is against the law. Dealing with difficult subject matter that is universal in its urgency and relevance, the film tells a very personal story in an artistic and honest style that delicately balances personal suffering with the larger ethical and moral questions posed by voluntary euthanasia. This is a brave and confronting attempt to bring a subject rarely discussed in Australia back into the public arena.”
“We’d also like to give special mention to the film Tender– a film that guides us through emotionally loaded territory without succumbing to mawkishness. The director Lynette Wallworth’s achievement in covering multiple personal stories during often heightened moments with both sensitivity and humour is singular and done with great skill. The film is authentic, powerful and ultimately, true to its title – Tender.”
Previous winners of the Australian Documentary prize at Sydney Film Festival include: Buckskin (2013), Killing Anna (2012), Life in Movement (2011) and The Snowman (2010). In 2009 the prize was shared between Contact and A Good Man (each film received a $10,000 cash prize).
The 2014 Jury for the Documentary Australia Foundation Prize includes producer, comedian and presenter Andrew Denton, filmmaker Gabe Klinger, and award-winning documentarian and CEO of the Documentary Australia Foundation Dr Mitzi Goldman.
The selection of films in competition for the Documentary Australia Foundation Award for Australian Documentary Film were:
35 Letters
Australia | 2014 | 98 mins | In English | World Premiere
Director, Screenwriter: Janine Hosking | Producers: Janine Hosking, Carol Seeley | Production Company: iKandy Films
On Michelle Flowers’ 35th birthday she received a bundle of letters from her younger sister Angelique. This was no humdrum correspondence; rather they were birthday wishes full of charm and wit. The letters expressed Angelique’s love of nature, art and literature, and most of all her unique and joyful personality, despite suffering from a painful disease since her mid-teens. A year on, she’s in the last phases of terminal illness, and is struggling to find a peaceful way to die – not in
a hospice, but somewhere altogether more in tune with her spirit.
Janine Hosking’s innovative and moving film follows Angelique’s final months as she struggles to find grace in an inflexible health care system. Janine Hosking won a Walkley Award in 1997. Her films include Mademoiselle and the Doctor, My KhmerHeart, Ganja Queen, The Pageant and I’m Not Dead Yet (SFF 2011).
All This Mayhem
Australia | 2013 | 96 mins | In English
Director: Eddie Martin | Producers: George Pank, Eddie Martin, James Gay-Rees | Distributor: Entertainment One Australia
Black Panther Woman
Australia | 2014 | 52 mins | In English | World Premiere
Director, Producer: Rachel Perkins | Screenwriters: Rachel Perkins, Marlene Cummins | Distributor: SBS International
China’s 3Dreams
Australia | 2014 | 90 mins | In English and Mandarin with English subtitles | World Premiere
Director, Screenwriter, Producer: Nick Torrens | World Sales: TVF International
The Last Impresario
Australia | 2013 | 85 mins | In English | Australian Premiere
Director, Screenwriter: Gracie Otto | Producer: NicoleO’Donohue | Distributor: Umbrella Entertainment
Love Marriage In Kabul
Australia | 2013 | 84 mins | In English and Farsi with English subtitles | World Premiere
Director: Amin Palangi | Producer: Pat Fiske | Production Company: Bower Bird Films
Once My Mother
Australia | 2013 | 75 mins | In English, Polish and Ukrainian with English subtitles
Director, Screenwriter: Sophia Turkiewicz | Producer: Rod Freedman | Production Company: Change Focus Media
The Redfern Story
Australia | 2014 | 57 mins | In English | World Premiere
Director, Screenwriter: Darlene Johnson | Producers: Sue Milliken, Darlene Johnson | Production Company: Samson Productions Pty Ltd
Tender
Australia | 2013 | 73 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Lynette Wallworth | Producer: Kath Shelper | Production Company: Scarlett Pictures
A community centre in Port Kembla is the warm heart of this extraordinary documentary from artist-filmmaker Lynette Wallworth. Burials are not just an emotional trauma, but a financial struggle for cash-strapped locals. The centre’s committee decides to investigate other options, including running their own not-for-profit funeral business. As discussions on just how to proceed continue, the close knit group must deal with a terminal illness close to home. With stunning visuals and music from maverick maestros Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, this beautiful documentary speaks tenderly of love and death.
Lynette Wallworth is an Australian artist whose practice spans video installation, photography and film. Her work has been presented in the USA, UK, New Zealand, Melbourne and Sydney.
Ukraine is Not a Brothel
Australia, Ukraine | 2013 | 80 mins | In Ukrainian and Russian with English subtitles | Australian Premiere
Director: Kitty Green | Producers: Kitty Green, Jonathan auf der Heide, Michael Latham | World Sales: Cinephil
The Dendy Awards for Australian Short Film
The Dendy Awards for Australian Short Films were also tonight, with the Dendy Live Action Short Award going to I Want to Dance Better at Parties, directed and written by Matthew Bate and Gideon Obarzanek; the Yoram Gross Animation Award went to Phantom Limb, directed, written and produced by Alex Grigg; and the Rouben Mamoulian Award for Best Director was awarded to Eddy Bell for Grey Bull.
“If this crop of short films reflects what is happening in our industry right now, and where we are headed, then these are very exciting times for Australian film,” said SFF Dendy Jury member Natasha Pincus. “Across the board, the craft of the films was superb. We found it very challenging to compare films of such varied genres and tastes and in the end, we focused on investigating how successful each individual film was in satisfying its own intent, assessing its level of achievement within the terms it set for itself.”
“We would like to wholeheartedly congratulate all of the filmmakers on their wonderful work. The Dendys are the pre-eminent awards competition for short film in Australia and there is a reason why all of you have been chosen to be a part of this competition. We encourage you not to despair if your film does not receive an award this year, and remember that it is far harder to be selected as a nominee than it is to be awarded a winner.”
The 2014 Jury for the Dendy Awards for Australian Short Film was comprised of Australian filmmakers Michael Cody and Natasha Pincus, and Canadian filmmaker Richie Mehta.
‘We are really proud to support short filmmaking with this award,” said Nick Hayes, Icon Film Head of Theatrical Operations. “This year’s selection presents a very high standard and we don’t envy the jury who responsibility it was to choose. For us, supporting short film is an important part of ensuring we have a healthy feature-film industry in Australia, something we at Dendy are very proud of.”
The Dendy Awards for Australian Short Film have been sponsored by Dendy Cinema for 26 years and these awards have launched and aided the careers of many great Australian filmmakers.
2014 is the 45th year SFF has featured a short-film competition. These ground breaking awards have kick started the careers of many prominent filmmakers, including Jane Campion, Phillip Noyce and Ivan Sen, who were all past competitors.
The 10 finalists for the 2014 Dendy Award for Australian Short Film were:
Grey Bull
Australia | 2013 | 15 mins | In English and Denka with English subtitles
Director, Screenwriter: Eddy Bell | Producer: Khoby Rowe | Cast: Dylan Watson, Mayik Deng, Akuein Kueth | Production Company: Victorian College of the Arts
A South Sudanese refugee happens upon a bull he believes is his spiritual totem. He decides to rescue it from the abattoir where he works. Once home, the animal begins to jeopardise the family's chance at fitting into their new life.
The iMom
Australia | 2013 | 14 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter, Producer: Ariel Martin | Cast: Matilda Brown, Marta Dusseldorp, Karl Beattie | Production Company: Filmgraphics Entertainment
I Want to Dance Better at Parties
Australia | 2013 | 29 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Matthew Bate, Gideon Obarzanek | Producer: Rebecca Summerton | Cast: Steven Rodgers, Elizabeth Nabben, Phillip Rose | Production Company: Closer Productions
In need of some form of human contact, a grieving man takes up dance classes with a young instructor. This hybrid film, based on co-director Gideon Oberzanke’s internationally successful stage production, fuses documentary, drama and dance.
Man
Australia | 2013 | 19 mins | In English
Director: Richard Hughes | Screenwriter, Producer: Dave Christison | Cast: Shane Connor, James Rolleston, Richard Sutherland | Production Company: The Woolshed Company
Showboy
Australia | 2013 | 15 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Samuel Leighton-Dore | Producer: Diana Burnett | Cast: Lucas Pittaway, Mal Kennard, Richie Finger | Production Company: BNZ Productions
Stuffed
Australia | 2013 | 22 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Warwick Young | Producers: Rachel Argall, Warwick Young | Cast: Travis Cotton, Anita Hegh, Jan Oxenbould | Production Company: Australian Film Television and Radio School
Welcome to Iron Knob
Australia | 2013 | 21 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Dave Wade | Producer: Alexandra Blue | Cast: Linda Cropper, Jessica Ryles, Chris Duncan | Production Company: Bluebird Productions
When a young boy accidentally shoots a stranger with his father’s gun, it is left to the nonchalant townsfolk of Iron Knob to cover it up as quickly as possible – then get back to whatever it was that they were doing before…
Crochet Noir
Australia | 2013 | 8 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Jessica Harris | Producer: Heamin Kwun | Cast: Ant Neate, Chess Julia Allan, Jacinta Stapleton | Production Company: Victorian College of the Arts
Phantom Limb
Australia, UK | 2013 | 5 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter, Producer: Alex Grigg | Cast: Clifford Hume, Sarah Jones | Production Company: Late Night Work Club
The Video Dating Tape of Desmondo Ray, aged 33 & ¾
Australia | 2013 | 4 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Steve Baker | Producers: Steve Baker, Laura Mustchin | Cast: Bill Waters | Production Company: Taxi Film Production
Event Cinemas Australian Short Screenplay Award
The inaugural Event Cinemas Australian Short Screenplay Award for 2014 was awarded to Welcome to Iron Knob, directed and written by Dave Wade. Special mention also went to Matt Durrant for his short film Pocket Money.
Sponsored by Event Cinemas, this award provides a $5000 cash prize for best short screenplay to one of the short fiction films selected for the SFF program. All Australian short films screening in the Festival were eligible.
“Event Cinemas is proud to present this new short screenplay award to Dave Wade for Welcome to Iron Knob, the story of a little mishap within an Australian bush community and the unique characters of the town who depict a rich array of Australian qualities in getting back to normal,” said Anthony Kierann, General Manager Event Cinemas George Street.
“Dave Wade is no stranger to screenplay nominations and has scored a gem with this short film. Event Cinemas acknowledges the original thoughts, ideas and character creations that a writer pens to paper, that is then put into the collective magic of the filmmaking process to present quintessential Australian Short films.
“We would like to make special mention to Matt Durrant for his film Pocket Money. Event looks forward to seeing all of the Australian short-film finalists going on to future success both locally and into the international arena.”
The Australian short films eligible for the 2014 Event Cinemas Australian Short Screenplay Award were:
Crochet Noir Australia | 2013 | 8 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Jessica Harris | Cast: Ant Neate, Chess Julia Allan, Jacinta Stapleton
Embrace Australia | 2013 | 16 mins | In English
Director: George-Alex Nagle | Screenwriter:Huna Amweero
Grey Bull Australia | 2013 | 15 mins | In English and Denka with English subtitles
Director, Screenwriter: Eddy Bell | Cast: Dylan Watson, Mayik Deng, Akuein Kueth
The iMom Australia | 2013 | 14 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter, Producer: Ariel Martin | Cast: Matilda Brown, Marta Dusseldorp, Karl Beattie
I Want to Dance Better at Parties Australia | 2013 | 29 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Matthew Bate, Gideon Obarzanek | Cast: Steven Rodgers, Elizabeth Nabben, Phillip Rose
MAN Australia | 2013 | 19 mins | In English
Director: Richard Hughes | Screenwriter, Producer: Dave Christison | Cast: Shane Connor, James Rolleston, Richard Sutherland
Meeting Susan Australia | 2014 | 9 mins | In English
Director: Darius Devas | Cast: Alison Bell, Jan Friedl, David Patterson
Phantom Limb Australia, UK | 2013 | 5 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter, Producer: Alex Grigg | Cast: Clifford Hume, Sarah Jones
Pocket Money Australia | 2013 | 10 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Matt Durrant | Cast: Majdi Slaibi, Taha Saleh,Bill Kalaoun
Showboy Australia | 2013 | 15 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Samuel Leighton-Dore | Cast: Lucas Pittaway, Mal Kennard, Richie Finger
Stuffed Australia | 2013 | 22 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Warwick Young | Cast: Travis Cotton, Anita Hegh, Jan Oxenbould
The Video Dating Tape of Desmondo Ray, Aged 33 and ¾ Australia | 2013 | 4 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Steve Baker | Cast: Bill Waters
Welcome to Iron Knob Australia | 2013 | 21 mins | In English
Director, Screenwriter: Dave Wade | Cast: Linda Cropper, Jessica Ryles, Chris Duncan
ABOUT SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL
Sydney Film Festival screens feature films, documentaries, short films and animated films across the city at the State Theatre, Event Cinemas George Street, Dendy Opera Quays, the Art Gallery of NSW, Hayden Orpheum Picture Palace Cremorne, the Apple Store, SFFTV at Martin Place, Skyline Drive-In Blacktown, and the Festival Hub at Town Hall.
The Festival is a major event on the New South Wales cultural calendar and is one of the world’s longest-running film festivals. For more information visit www.sff.org.au
Sydney Film Festival also presents 12 films that vie for the Official Competition, a highly respected international honour that awards a $60,000 cash prize based on the decision of a jury of international and Australian filmmakers and industry professionals. Previous Sydney Film Prize winners include: Only God Forgives (2013), Alps (2012), A Separation (2011) – which went on to win an Academy Award, Heartbeats (2010), Bronson (2009) and Hunger (2008).
The 61st Sydney Film Festival is supported by the NSW Government through Screen NSW, the Federal Government through Screen Australia, and the City of Sydney. The Festival’s Strategic partner is the NSW Government through Destination NSW.