Our thanks go to all the film makers from 27 countries who entered films in competition. We appreciate the skills and efforts that go into all the films submitted. Grand Prize presented by
Berghaus Judges this year were: Film maker and Film Festival authority - Daniela Cecchin - Italy Film maker, Festival Director and Super Climber - Silvo Karo - Slovenia Ex Head of Granada Television and producer - Brenda Smith - UK Film maker, writer and broadcaster - Eric Robson - UK Cameraman and film editor - Mike Timney -
UK THE JUDGES' DECISIONS ON THE WINNING FILMS 2006 FILM SHORT The short film is undoubtedly the category in any film competition that can spring the biggest surprise. Films can cover any topic, and come from any genre, just so long as they're short. We want to make special mention of two films in this category. Parking is a terrific animation where nature fights back in the battleground of an urban car-park, while I do not think anyone here who's seen it would have been surprised if Balancing Point turned out the eventual winner. But, the winning film just had something else - it's a fantastically simple but original idea enhanced by a witty script that's won over audiences here at Kendal. Our winning short film is the one with the very long and difficult name - Solilochairliftquist. CULTURE
This
proved to be one of the toughest categories. We
debated long and hard before we reached a short list of
three films - Pururambo, On the
road with the Red God Machenddenranath, and The
The films of Pavol Barabás are well known to the Kendal audience, with two category winners and one grand prize in past years - and Pururambo continues in the tradition of raw and harrowing adventure that leaves us wondering at times if the team members will survive the journey to complete the film. In contrast to seeking out unfamiliar lands and cultures, On the road with the Red God Machenddenranath is told with an authenticity that can only be achieved by film makers who are truly part of the culture and the story being filmed. In The Magic Mountain, we enjoyed the story and the character of Cynthia and the way the film captured her passion and the engagement of the Ladakhi communities in which she worked and won the hearts of all she met - from the children in local communities to the distant bureaucrats in Leh. But in the end, with its moments of almost Davinci like recognition of humanity across the huge cultural divides of westerns and native peoples meeting for the first time, the winner is by Pavol Barabás. PEOPLE'S CHOICE We had more votes than ever in the People's choice this year. All the films in competition received votes but in reverse order the winners are: 3. Pururambo, 2. Asiemut, 1. Set in Stone. INNOVATION
This was a hard call for the jury because, to be honest, there wasn't that much innovation on show in this years' films. And having seen a lot of films back to back this week, we'd like to issue something of a challenge to some film-makers. Please, lay dudism to rest. I'll explain. Dudism is the genre of films that feature little else than dudes having a cool time set to a sub-nirvana grunge sound-track. It has become a cliché, and perhaps it's time again for thinking and a little reflection to become cool in the films we make. One action
film - 2nd Base - did stand out in this category
for its terrific photography of the
But our
winner is a film that brought something new to the sea-cliffs
of west
ENVIRONMENT Surprisingly
perhaps, this was not a strong category this year. But
our winner is an extremely powerful film, beautifully shot,
and with terrific access to its subjects. It's a film that
grabs your attention from the start, portraying a world
where devastating damage to the environment goes hand in
hand with poverty and oppression. Set in the mountains
and mines of
MOUNTAIN ADVENTURE Two films
- two very different films - stood out in this category.
One, Asiemut, may not have taken place in the world's
wildest places but this young couples' 6 month 8000km cycling
odyssey from
But if
mountain adventure is defined by doing something new in
a place where no one else goes, involving extremes of hardship,
courage and skill, then our winning film ticks every box.
Crossing the Patagonian ice cap with kayaks - either in
the water or on their backs - was turned into a spectacular,
thoughtful and inspiring film. The winner is
MOUNTAINEERING Thanks to the worldwide success of touching the void, mountaineering films have now achieved a reach and popularity undreamt of a decade ago. And Darlow Smithson, the company responsible for touching the void, have taken that formula and made a stunning series of television adventure films. We particularly liked one film from this series, Mckinley - nightmare at 20,000 feet, which once again succeeded in taking a true story and bringing it to life with heart stopping effect. Of the other films in this category, we have to say that there were some weaker entries that seemed trapped in a time-warp from the 1970s, so little did they stray from an old and tired expedition film format. An exception to this were two short films about Kurt Diemberger by Naz Sadoughi and Edward Salkeld. But our winner is a film which makes a clear statement about one especially notorious moment in mountaineering history - and that winner is Cerro Torre - Arco de los Ventos. CLIMBING There were some very good films in this category, and we had a hard time making our decision. The Story of Indian Face is a terrific retrospective film, featuring Johnny Dawes looking back at his ground-breaking climb from 1986. E11 is a gripping film that charts Dave Macleod's determination to push rock climbing to a new level. And what we also loved about E11, was how the film explored the demands a climbing obsession can make on a relationship. It is a very honest and engaging film. But our
winner is a film that portrays a climber at the top of
his game, and a member of a climbing dynasty who have led
the way on routes in the high mountain crags of the
JUDGES SPECIAL PRIZE We decided this year that the judge's special prize should go to a film made by a pair of film-makers who have demonstrated exceptional promise in their work. The film we've chosen was made on a micro budget and, at times, perhaps this shows, but in the things that matter -ambition, action, story-telling, and above all emotional honesty - it punches way above its weight. The winner of the judge's special prize is E11. GRAND PRIZE
It has been a fantastic and enjoyable experience to see all these films - and of those films already mentioned amongst our category winners there are two or three that bid strongly for this, the biggest prize at this year's festival. After much consideration, one film did rise above the rest. Our winner is not a climbing film, though it does feature some rather perilous ascents. It has a great story, some heart stopping moments, and truly engaging characters. It took a year to make, and gained remarkable access to communities keen to preserve their traditional customs. It is a film both set and made
in
Thanks again to all the film makers. Film List - Click here for full film details
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