July
23 CCI:IFF winners

The awards were given out this morning for the Comic-Con Intl. Independent Film Festival, for which I was a judge. Here's who won in the various categories, followed by a few comments from me (and me only):

Action/Adventure: Der Ostwind, written and directed by Kohl Glass. This is a sort of animated adventure about a biplane pilot in WWI that really stands out for striking visuals that show the creative potential of digital animation tools in the hands of small filmmakers. 

Animation: Gorgonas, directed by Salvador Sanz. This was an Argentine film that tells a striking story that combines the myth of the gorgons with American Idol. Beautifully animated ina detailed, anime-influenced style, this was impossible to take your eyes off of.

Comics-oriented: Zombie Prom, directed by Vince Marcello. Imagine Grease as it might have appeared in the pages of EC Comics and you'll have some idea of what this hugely entertaining and extremely well produced film is like.

Humor/Parody: The Vinyl Battle, directed by Owen Hammer. This may be one of the strangest ideas ever -- that there are people living in the grooves of records who flee every time the needle comes along -- but it's also just too funny. With the changes in music and culture reflected by the DJ who plays the records and his sidekick, played by Patton Oswalt, this is inventive as well as funny.

Horror/Suspense: Post Mortem, directed by Jennifer Soemantri. There's probably more zombies per film in this festival than in every other festival in the world (unless there's a zombie film fest somewhere that I don't know about). But this is a film that works great as horror because it effectively exploits the fears of zombies and maintains tension that really pays off.

Science Fiction/Fantasy: Outside, directed by Jenn Kao. This was one of my favorites, and I'm glad it won and I'm glad Jenn Kao was on hand for me to convey my admiration for this film in person. This is like one of those great high-concept sci-fi films of the 1970s, about a woman who lives in an isolated, controlled environment until a face appears in her lone window on the world.

Documentary: Drakmar, directed by Lowell Frank and Destin Cretton. Nothing tugged at my heart as much as this film about a young boy involved in medieval recreations who makes a connection with his long-absent father.   

Judges' Choice: Zombie Prom, directed by Vince Marcello. This was, to my surprise, the only film that got the top rating from all three judges -- and deservedly so.

Congratulations to all the winners and to everyone who submitted a film. The entries were overall of very good quality, both technically and creatively. Each film also showed a real passion for filmmaking that was refreshing and exciting.

Thanks to Gary Sassaman, the programming director of Comic-Con and the film festival, as well as the sponsors -- IFC, Variety and Write Brothers software -- and my fellow judges, Chris Gore of Film Threat.com and Amber Benson, actress and filmmaker best known for her role on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

On a final note, while it was great to see that the times I stuck my head into the screening room that there were a fair number of people paying attention, these films deserve a wider audience. I would hope that some one -- IFC, are you listening? -- could show at least the winners on cable or put out a best of fest DVD. This is good work and it should be seen.