[Te 2008 Tokyo International Film Festival has just drawn to a close and our thanks go to regular Twitch reader James Hadfield for the following summary of the goings on. Expect to see some reviews from the festival in coming days.]
The 21st Tokyo International FIlm Festival wrapped Sunday, with the US$100,000 Tokyo Sakura Grand Prix going to Tulpan, Sergey Dvortsevoy's tale of nomad life on the Kazakh steppe. No surprises there: the film had already attracted positive reviews in Europe prior to its appearance here, and remained a firm favorite throughout the week. Dvortsevoy also took home the Best Director gong, presumably in recognition of his expert marshaling of Tulpan's cast of children, sheep and randy donkeys.
Acting awards went to Félicité Wouassi, for her commanding performance in François Dupeyron's With a Little Help From Myself, and Vincent Cassel for his barnstorming portrayal of real-life gangster Jacques Mesrine in Jean-François Richet's Public Enemy No. 1 (Part 1 & 2). Jerzy Skolmowski's return to directing after a 17-year absence didn't go entirely unheralded, either: his bleak Four Nights with Anna won the runner-up Special Jury Prize. The Audience Award, voted for by the general public, went to Tetsu Maeda's School Days with a Pig.
The first year of TIFF's eco-friendly makeover saw the opening ceremony's red carpet turn green, with celebrities pulling up in tiny Toyota eco-cars instead of limousines. More meaningfully, the festival was powered by green energy and featured a new section, natural TIFF, that showcased environmentally-themed films. No mention of whether any efforts were made to offset the carbon footprint clocked-up by the filmmakers, celebrities and assorted hangers-on who flew in for the festival, but I suppose it's still early days yet.
You'll find the complete list of award winners below the break.
Competition
Tokyo Sakura Grand Prix: Tulpan (Sergey Dvortsevoy)
Special Jury Prize: Four Nights with Anna (Jerzy Skolimowski)
Award for Best Director: Sergey Dvortsevoy (Tulpan)
Award for Best Actress: Félicité Wouassi (With a Little Help From Myself)
Award for Best Actor: Vincent Cassel (Public Enemy No. 1 [Part 1 & 2])
Award for Best Artistic Contribution: With a Little Help From Myself (François Dupeyron)
The Audience Award: School Days with a Pig (Tetsu Maeda)
Toyota Earth Grand Prix
Toyota Earth Grand Prix: Ashes from the Sky (José Antonio Quirós)
Jury Award: School Days with a Pig (Tetsu Maeda)
Special Award: The Meerkats (James Honeyborne)
Winds of Asia-Middle East
Best Asia-Middle Eastern Film Award: My Marlon and Brando (Huseyin Karabey)
Special Mention: The Sun Also Rises (Jiang Wen), The Way We Are (Ann Hui), The Convert (Yasmin Ahmad)
Japanese Eyes
Best Picture Award: buy a suit (Jun Ichikawa)
Special Award: Ittoku Kishibe (Osaka Hamlet)
Akira Kurosawa Award
Nikita Sergeyevich Mikhalkov (director)
Chen Kaige (director)
