Bahamas International Film Festival<\/a> is pleased to announce the results of this year\uffb4s competition.<\/P>
\nFilmmakers arrived a day early for an exclusive filmmaker\ufffds retreat at Nyg\ufffdrd Cay before moving to the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort, the Festival\ufffds headquarters. \ufffd\ufffdThe Festival launched with an address by the Right Honorable Perry G. Christie, Prime Minister of The Bahamas followed by the international premiere of Warner Brothers\ufffd OCEAN\ufffdS TWELVE directed by Steven Soderbergh. \ufffdA VIP reception hosted by Versace preceded the film and a champagne dessert reception followed the event at Atlantis\ufffd Fathoms Restaurant. \ufffd\ufffdThe topics of educational panels at Adastra Zoo & Gardens ranged from film financing and screenwriting to the art of collaboration between directors and actors. \ufffd\ufffdParticipants included: Actors Jeffrey Wright and Anthony Mackie, Producer Catherine Wyler, Film Critic Elvis Mitchell and directors David Gordon Green and Jacob Aaron Estes, in addition to others. \ufffd\ufffdOn Saturday evening, a reception honoring Roger Corman was held at the prestigious Mountbatten House, former residence of Ernest Hemmingway. \ufffd\ufffd\ufffd<\/P>
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THE SPIRIT OF FREEDOM<\/P>
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The Spirit of Freedom Competition section explores cinema, its potential to express the human spirit and how freedom pervades our lives. \uffa0Showcasing a combination of narrative and documentary features, this section provides insight into the mosaic of cultures that make up our world. \uffa0Mania Akbari\uffb4s 20 FINGERS (20 Angosht) was awarded the Grand Jury Prize for the Spirit of Freedom International Film Competition. The jury stated: \uff93The grand jury prize for Spirit of Freedom goes to 20 FINGERS \uffa0by Mania Akbari of Iran for her innovative style as well as the frank and honest exploration of love, sex, and marriage through the eyes of a woman traditionally suppressed in a fundamentalist religious society.\uff92 A film structured in episodes, 20 FINGERS explores the issues of men and women within the confines of tradition and family in Iran.<\/P>
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Enrique Pinyero\uffb4s WHISKEY ROMEO ZULU received an honorable mention. \uffa0\uffa0The jury stated: \uff93We would also like to mention the personal bravery of WHISKEY ROMEO ZULU\uffb4s filmmaker, Enrique Pinyero of Argentina to expose the dangers of his profession, which resulted in his having to let go of his lifelong cherished dreams.\uff92 \uffa0The film re-tells the events preceding the LAPA Airlines Boeing 737 crash on August 31, 1999 into midtown Buenos Aires that resulted in the deaths of 67 people. \uffa0It exposes the collusion between the Air Force and the airline to evade air safety controls and maximize profits.<\/P>
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Jean Roy, the former Director of Critics\uffb4 Week of the Cannes Film Festival; President of Film Finders, Sydney Levine, and independent producer\uffb4s representative Steven Beer comprised the Spirit of Freedom Jury. \uffa0\uffa0\uffa0<\/P>
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MODERN MAVERICK AWARD AND <\/P>
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Two awards were given in the New Visions Section, which showcases films from first or second-time directors. \uffa0\uffa0The MODERN MAVERICK AWARD, sponsored by the Bank of the Bahamas, is given to an emerging filmmaker. \uffa0\uffa0\uffa0Yann Samuell, director of LOVE ME IF YOU DARE received the first annual Modern Maverick Award. \uffa0\uffa0The jury stated: \uff93LOVE ME IF YOU DARE receives the Modern Maverick Award for its risk taking ambition and its healthy embrace of audience\uffb4s expectations, in addition to demonstrating a superb control of film craft.\uff92 \uffa0Roger Corman presented the award to the jury, who received it on behalf of Yann Samuell. \uffa0The film describes the friendship of Julien and Sophie, who as adults continue the odd game they started as children\uff97a fearless competition to outdo one another with daring and outrageous stunts. <\/P>
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At the same time, BIFF presented Roger Corman with an Honorary Modern Maverick Award in recognition of his extensive body of work and his contributions to the motion picture industry.<\/P>
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THE TORCHLIGHT SCREENWRITING AWARD<\/P>
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DORIAN BLUES was awarded the Torchlight Screenwriting Award for best screenplay in the New Visions Section. \uffa0\uffa0The jury stated: \uff93DORIAN BLUES is awarded the best screenplay for its universally endearing content and spirit as well as the overall quality of the ensemble\uffb4s performance.\uff92 \uffa0\uffa0Director of the Torchlight Foundation Charlene Sullivan presented the award to Tennyson Bardwell, the director and screenwriter of DORIAN BLUES, a funny, quirky comedy that adds freshness to a coming of age story. <\/P>
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Jurors for the Modern Maverick Award \uffa0and the Torchlight Screenwriting Award are: independent producer Ted Hope (whose credits include DOOR IN THE FLOOR, 21 GRAMS, IN THE BEDROOM, HAPPINESS and THE ICE STORM); Film Threat founder Chris Gore; and the US Editor of Screen International, Michael Goodridge.<\/P>
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AUDIENCE AWARDS<\/P>
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The filmBUZZ Audience Awards were also given to a Feature and Documentary film. Rick Elgood and Don Lett\uffb4s ONE LOVE received the Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature. \uffa0\uffa0Producer Yvonne Deutschman accepted the award. \uffa0\uffa0ONE LOVE is the story of Kassa, a free-wheeling Rasta man, who falls for a straight laced gospel singer Serena, when they both meet as they enter a music contest. Tom Peosay\uffb4s TIBET: Cry of the Snow Lion won the Audience Award for Best Documentary. \uffa0TIBET powerfully chronicles the dark secrets of Tibet’s recent past through riveting personal stories and interviews, and a collection of undercover and archival images.<\/P>
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The inaugural Bahamas International Film Festival will craft a genuine cultural experience for its guests by showcasing the nation\uffb4s many tropical charms, mixing international cinema with paradise. \uffa0The Bahamas International Film Festival (December 9-12, 2004) is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing the local community and International visitors \uffa0\uffa0with a diverse presentation of films from around the world. In addition to offering films that might not otherwise be released theatrically in the Bahamas, BIFF will provide a unique cultural experience, educational programs, and forums for exploring the future of cinema. Founding sponsors for the 2004 Bahamas International Film Festival are the Island of the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort. \uffa0Airline partners include British Airways and US Airways. <\/P>
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Please visit www.bintlfilmfest.com for details.<\/P><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BIFF ended its first Festival with a bang on Sunday evening with the Awards Ceremony, followed by a screening of 'Head In The Clouds' and a Closing Night Gala Reception at Atlantis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_10223285771444175_51037792744":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-246255","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-headlines"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=246255"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246255\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=246255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=246255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=246255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}