2012 San Diego Film Festival Announces Awards

The SDV Award for Best Event of the Fest goes to...
The Almost Famous Block Party!!!

October 5, 2012

The San Diego Film Foundation announced the winners of the competitive categories for the 2012 San Diego Film Festival last Saturday night, September 29, at the awards ceremony hosted at Kimpton’s Hotel Palomar San Diego. The winners for features and documentaries were chosen from 32 narrative and 16 documentary films. Shorts winners were chosen from 64 selections in competition. Over 1300 films were submitted to this year’s Festival from 55 countries. The Festival was also host to 11 World premieres, 16 West Coast premieres and 4 US premieres. Film programming was led by Program Director, Tonya Mantooth.

Gus Van Sant and Anne Heche at the Gus Van Sant Tribute

The 2012 San Diego Film Festival was highlighted by several celebrity-filled events including the Gus Van Sant tribute and retrospective which was the first time his collective works have been featured in a festival setting.  The 2012 San Diego Film Festival presented the following Awards:

FEATURE NARRATIVE COMPETITION AWARDS

Best Feature Film Award — The Story of Luke – USA – World Premiere. Directed and written by Alonso Mayo. Sheltered by his grandparents, Luke, a young man with autism, is thrust into a world that doesn't expect anything from him. But Luke is on a quest for a job and true love. And he isn't taking no for an answer. Cast: Cary Elwes, Seth Green and Kristin Bauer van Straten.

Best Comedy Feature Award — 3, 2, 1... Frankie Go Boom – USA.  Directed and written by Jordan Roberts. Frank Bartlett has been tortured, embarrassed, and humiliated by his brother Bruce -- usually on film -- his entire life. Now that Bruce is finally off drugs and has turned his life around, things should be different. They are not. Cast: Sam Anderson, Lizzy Caplan and Whitney Cummings.

Best Foreign Feature Award — Best Little Whorehouse in Rochdale – UK. Directed and written by Ian Vernon. After the untimely death of her husband, shy Joan has to make money fast to keep from losing her home. She's forced to resort to extreme measures. Aided by Sharon, and her two friends, Joan becomes the Madame of a do-it-yourself co-operative brothel... A brothel with no sex! Cast: Jeni Howarth Williams, Denice Hope and Sophia Hatfield.

Best Documentary Feature Award — A Sister’s Call  – USA. Directed by Kyle Tekiela, Rebecca Schaper.
Call and Rebecca Richmond were born into Atlanta's high society. Call developed paranoid schizophrenia and walked out on his life. Overwhelmed by voices in his head, he wandered the country, drifting in and out of sanity. Amazingly, after twenty years of searching, Rebecca found Call alive, but not well... A Sister's Call chronicles Rebecca's mission to bring her brother back from the depths of homelessness and schizophrenia all while seeking a way to heal her self from the past.

Best Screenplay for a Feature Film Award — Below Zero – Canada. Written by Signe Olynyk. Based on true events, BELOW ZERO is a thriller with a 'Fargo' feel. It is the story of 'Jack the Hack', a less than average, but once successful screenwriter who now faces writer's block. Desperate to meet a career-saving deadline and lock out the distractions of his troubled life, Jack arranges to be left alone and locked inside a meat cooler, with only vegetarian meals and his imagination to inspire him. The screenwriter of the film locked herself in the meat freezer of an abandoned slaughterhouse. The film was ultimately shot there.

SHORT FILM COMPETITION AWARDS

Best Short Drama Award — Cherry Waves – USA. Directed and written by Carey Williams. A female underground street fighter faces her biggest challenge yet: deciding whether to continue living her life for her handicapped mother and dubious fight promoter, or finally living for herself and the woman she loves.

Best Short Comedy Award — The Hiccup – USA: Director and writer Matt Smukler.  Two friends desperately trying to skip town find that an overheated radiator is the least of their problems. Cast: Dennis Howard, Carol Mansell and Eric Normington.

SPECIAL AWARDS

U-T San Diego Award - Red Line – USA: World Premiere. Directed by Robert Kirbyson, written by Tara Stone. Moments after departing the Metro Station, commuters experience a sudden explosion. In a small pocket deep underground the few survivors discover the danger has just begun. The passengers also uncover a second bomb that has yet to detonate and begin to suspect that the terrorist has been trapped among them. Cast: Nicole Gale Anderson, John Billingsley and Kunal Sharma.

Chairman’s Award — Tony Tango – USA.  Dale Strack, Chairman of the San Diego Film Foundation presented his choice for outstanding feature to the filmmakers of Tony Tango, directed by Manolo Celi and screenplay by Manolo Celi and Bill Sommer. The comedy features Tony, a Latin dance instructor with high cholesterol and an even higher belief in his own sex appeal.

The San Diego Film Festival is a five-day film festival held in the historic Gaslamp Quarter and coastal La Jolla. Premiering more than 100 American and international features, short films and thought-proving documentaries, SDFF also hosts high profile industry panels, filmmaker and celebrity gatherings. Films which have gone on to worldwide acclaim include Garden State, Supersize Me, Roger Dodger, Taxi To The Dark Side, Born Into Brothels, Hustle & Flow, Transamerica, A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints, and 50/50, among others.

Thanks for having us!  Cheers!

The 2012 San Diego Film Festival sponsors include: Presenting Sponsors – ArcLight Cinemas, BMW Encinitas, Cox Communications, People Water, Peroni Italy, Think Blue, UT San Diego, Commission for Arts and Culture City of San Diego, Wells Fargo, Joia Soft drinks. Festival Partners: Gaslamp Quarter Association, La Jolla Village Merchants Association, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, Amtrak, Ace Parking, Procopio, CreativeAmerica, CineCause, digitaleventbags. Media Partners: KPBS, Pacific Magazine, NBC, La Jolla Light, Hale Media, 760 KFMB, Jack FM, San Diego Home Garden, Rage, SDGLN, SDCNN, Uptown News, San Diego Downtown News, Gay San Diego. Major Hotel Partners were The Keating, Kimpton’s Hotel Palomar, The House of Blues and The Grand Del Mar. Event Partners were Fluxx and Roppongi.

Co-founded in 2001, the Festival is produced by the nonprofit 501(C) 3 San Diego Film Foundation with the mission to support the best in independent filmmaking and enhance the diverse cultural landscape and economic vitality of San Diego as a leading film destination. The Foundation promotes filmmaker development programs and community outreach throughout the year.  For more information visit www.sdfilmfest.com. Join San Diego Film Festival on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.