2008 Montreal World Film Festival Awards
2008 Montreal World Film Festival (Montreal Festival des Films du Monde): Aug. 21-Sept. 1, 2008
In Yojiro Takita's Departures — which beat well-received Canadian entry The Necessities of Life — a young (and indebted) Japanese cellist (Masahiro Motoki) returns to his family home to look for some real work. While there, he inadvertently — and more than a little reluctantly — becomes a well-paid "corpse beautician," preparing the remains of the departed before they’re put in caskets.
FEATURE FILMS
Grand prix of the Americas:
OKURIBITO (DEPARTURES) by Yojiro Takita (Japan)
Special Grand Prix of the jury :
THE NECESSITIES OF LIFE (CE QU’IL FAUT POUR VIVRE) by Benoît Pilon (Canada)
Best Director :
THE TOUR (TURNEJA) by Goran Markovic (Serbia/Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Best Actress :
BARBARA SUKOWA for the film THE INVENTION OF THE CURRIED SAUSAGE (DIE ENTDECKUNG DER CURRYWURST) by Ulla Wagner (Germany)
Best Actor :
ERICK CAÑETE for the film TEO’S VOYAGE (EL VIAJE DE TEO) by Walter Doehner (Mexico)
Best Screenplay:
WELCOME TO FAREWELL-GUTMANN (BIENVENIDO A FAREWELL-GUTMANN) by Xavi Puebla, screenplay by Xavi Puebla and Jesús Gil (Spain)
NOBODY TO WATCH OVER ME by Riyoichi Kimizuka, screenplay by Ryoichi Kimizuka and Satoshi Suzuki (Japan)
Best Artistic Contribution :
WOLF (VARG) by Daniel Alfredson (Sweden-Norway-Finland)
Innovation Award:
IT ALL BEGINS AT SEA by Eitan Green (Israel)
SHORT FILMS
1st prize :
THE NECKTIE (LE NŒUD CRAVATE) by Jean-François Lévesque (Canada)
Jury Award:
FAL by Hans Van Nuffel (Belgium)
ZENITHS FOR THE BEST FIRST FICTION FEATURE FILMS 2008
Golden Zenith for the Best First Fiction Feature films :
FOR A MOMENT, FREEDOM (EIN AUGENBLICK, FREIHEIT) by Arash T. Riahi (Austria/France)
Silver Zenith for the First Fiction Feature Film :
WELTSTADT by Christian Klandt (Germany)
Bronze Zenith for the Fisrt Fiction Feature Film :
SUMMER BOOK (TATIL KITABI) by Seyfi Teoman (Turkey)
AUDIENCE AWARDS
Audience Award for the most popular film of the Festival:
THE NECESSITIES OF LIFE (CE QU’IL FAUT POUR VIVRE) by Benoît Pilon (Canada)
Audience Award for the most popular Canadian Feature Film :
THE NECESSITIES OF LIFE (CE QU’IL FAUT POUR VIVRE) by Benoît Pilon (Canada)
Glauber Rocha Award for the Best Latin American Film :
DON’T LOOK DOWN (NO MIRES PARA ABAJO) by Eliseo Subiela (Argentina-France)
Award for Best documentary :
CHILDREN OF THE PYRE by Rajesh S. Jala (India)
Award for Best Canadian Short Film :
THE NECKTIE (LE NŒUD CRAVATE) by Jean-François Lévesque (Canada)
FIPRESCI PRIZE (INTERNATIONAL FILM CRITICS)
THE TOUR (TURNEJA) by Goran Markovic (Serbia/Bosnia and Herzegovina)
ECUMENICAL PRIZES
WOLF (VARG) by Daniel Alfredson (Sweden-Norway-Finland)
Special mention of the Ecumenical jury :
TEO’S VOYAGE (EL VIAJE DE TEO) by Walter Doehner (Mexico)
OTHER AWARDS
Special Awards for their exceptional contribution to the cinematographic art :
ALAN LADD JR.
TONY CURTIS
ISABELLE HUPPERT
OFFICIAL COMPETITION JURY
President : MARK RYDELL, director (U.S.A.)
EVELYNE BOUIX, actress (France)
JOHANNE DUGAS, representing the general public (Canada)
XIE FEI, director (China)
VOJTECH JASNY, director (Czech Republic)
DANY LAFERRIÈRE, writer and director (Canada)
First Fiction Films Jury
Pierre-Henri Deleau (France)
Denis Héroux (Canada)
Armand Lafond (Canada)
Montreal World Film Festival Site