Congratulations to all our winners this year!
The winner of the Short Film Competition was Hold the Line. Written by, produced by and starring Laura O’Shea, and directed by Karen Killeen and Laura O’Shea, the film follows Em who works in a call centre. She faces a day that’s more difficult that the usual “customer care queries” and is on the brink. That’s until, she picks up the phone to Patsy.
One of the judges, Sarah Edge, said, “We particularly liked this film because it represents what quality can be achieved on a limited budget. It has a very tight storyline which focuses on one character but offers a very engaging story with social relevance. We were unanimous on our decision to award first prize to this film”
A special commendation was awarded to Dianne Lucille Campbell’s El Hor, a film that honours one of the most ancient and highly honoured dog breeds, the Saluki.
The Audience Award went to Heavy Trip, directed by Jukka Vidgren and Juuso Laatio. The Finnish, heavy metal comedy follows Turo who is the lead vocalist for the amateur metal band Impaled Rektum. The only problem is that they have been together for 12 years without playing a single gig.
On Twitter one fan commented, “Heavy Trip has to be one of the best comedies I’ve seen in a long time. Endless laughs and bucket loads of heart. One for both fans and non fans of heavy metal. Thank you Belfast Film Festival for sussing out this gem of a film.”
The winner of Cinemasports, where teams have only 10 hours to make a short film, was won by The Granny Muggers with their film Die Hard Fans. In this mockumentary, a fan of Bruce Willis gets stuck in the ventilation shafts of the Nakatomi building while crew are filming Die Hard.