Winners at the 2006 Los Angeles Film Festival

by Andre Soares

 

Film Independent’s Los Angeles Film Festival came to a close this past Sunday. According to festival organizers, more than 80,000 people came to the screenings.

Although I missed a few films I wanted to watch - François Ozon’s Le Temps qui reste / Time to Leave, Hans Canosa’s Conversations with Other Women, and Andrucha Waddington’s Casa de Areia / House of Sand - I did manage to catch several good movies. (Before posting my full reviews, I’ll be adding short commentaries on Kirby Dick’s funny - and revealing - This Film Is Not Yet Rated, and on Géla Babluani’s well directed but bleak and utterly absurd 13 (Tzameti).)

Also, the winners of this year’s edition of the Los Angeles Film Festival were announced at a Sunday night awards ceremony.

Bubot Niyar / Paper Dolls (2005) directed by Tomer Heymann

The Israeli documentary Bubot Niyar / Paper Dolls won the International Feature Competition. Tomer Heymann’s film depicts the difficulties encountered by gay Filipino immigrants who work as caregivers in one of Tel Aviv’s most conservative neighborhoods.

Gretchen (2006) directed by Steve Collins, starring Courtney Davis
Ira and Abby (2006) directed by Robert Cary, starring Jennifer Westfeldt, Chris Messina

The jury prize for Best Narrative Feature went to Steve Collins’s feature-film début, Gretchen, the story of a 17-year-old girl (Courtney Davis) obsessed with a "bad boy" at school. The Audience Award went to Robert Cary’s Ira & Abby, a feel-good comedy written by Jennifer Westfeldt (who also stars, along with Chris Messina).

Deliver Us from Evil (2006) directed by Amy Berg

In the feature documentary competition, the jury prize was given to Amy Berg’s Deliver Us from Evil, which covers similar territory to Kirby Dick’s Academy Award-nominated documentary Twist of Faith: Pedophile priest is abetted by the corrupt Catholic Church.

Mario's Story (2006) directed by Jeff Werner and Susan Koch

Jeff Werner and Susan Koch’s Mario’s Story, about the fight to prove the innocence of an East Los Angeles teenager sentenced to life in prison for murder, won the Audience Award for Best Feature Documentary.

Chalk (2006) directed by Mike Akel, starring Troy Schremmer, Janelle Schremmer, Shannon Haragan, and Chris Mass

An acting ensemble award was given to the cast of Mike Akel’s Chalk, a mockumentary that portrays the lives of high-school teachers.

Film trailers and exclusive coverage of this year’s festival can be found at www.lafilmfest.com or www.latimes.com/filmfest.

Full list of winners at the 2006 edition of the Los Angeles Film Festival

Winners at the 28th edition of the Moscow Film Festival

Shanghai Film Festival 2006 Winners

Nominations for Norway’s Amanda Film Awards

Cult and Classic Comedies at the American Cinematheque

Bielinsky’s El Aura Wins Six Argentinean Film Critics Association’s 2006 Silver Condors

 

 

by Andre Soares | July 3, 2006 | Filed Under American Cinema / Hollywood, Film, Film Awards, Gay & Lesbian, Israeli Cinema 

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