WON THE THREE COMPETITIVE SECTIONS OF FANTASPORTO´99
YANKEE HAPPINESS, CANADIAN CUBE and JAPANESE JIN-ROH
WON THE THREE COMPETITIVE SECTIONS OF FANTASPORTO´99
For ten days Oporto, Portugal´s second largest city, was the centre of the film world. The 19th edition of FANTASPORTO – Oporto International Film Festival, has just closed with a massive attendance of public, distributors, professionals, and media coverage.
The Oporto International Film Festival – FANTASPORTO, is Portugal’s leading film festival with circa 95,000 spectators , and screened in its 8 screens (almost 2,000 seats) over 180 films (features and shorts) coming from far away countries such as New Zeland and Japan, with 60 different screenings per day.
The main centre of activities for the official sections was the Rivoli-Teatro Municipal (two screens) with great attendance of an enthusiastic crowd.
The media coverage included all four national television networks and the presence of circa 140 accredited journalists from all nation-wide newspapers, magazines and radio stations. Spanish TVE and Galicia Television Network have covered the Festival for Spain. The Foreign press also present at the Oporto Festival, included representatives of Japan, Switzerland, France, Spain, Italy, Brazil, Argentina, USA, Belgium, Norway, Great Britain and Canada.
As in past editions, the festival had the support of the ICAM-Portuguese Film and Audiovisual Institute, and of the Ministry of Culture.
The Oporto Film Festival has unique characteristics in the panorama of European Festivals. It presents the most vanguardist films together with the most classical ones, favouring European productions, and creating thus a wide variety of audiences which form a genuine open forum for the fantasy genre and the world of cinema in general.
The Festival, known under the popular name of Fantasporto, has been held in the past eightheen years in one of the Portugal largest cities, Oporto, (one million inhabitants) near by the Atlantic Ocean and best known for being the hometown of Portwine.
Fantasporto is the most important festival in Portugal with an average audience of 100,000 spectators per year.
Fantasporto is divided into three main sections: the Competitive Official Section (dedicated to Fantasy Films), the 9th Directors Week (dedicated to 1st and 2nd feature films) and the Fantasia Section dedicated to eastern cinema.
The Honour Committe of Fantasporto is presided by the President of the Portuguese Republic and by the Portuguese Prime-Minister.
Fantasporto is sponsored by both private and state funds.
Retrospective Section
The Highlights of these edition were a full Retrospective of the world acclaimed animation master Bill Plympton , with the director’s features, short films and ads. Actress Pam Grier, the heroin of Quentin Tarentino, was honoured with a restrospective dedicated to Blaxploitation. Also Alfred Hitchcock, on his 100th birthday, has received an homage thoughout the Festival, with the screening of known and less known films of the master of suspense. From France was shown a full programme of French Fantasy Short films, Last, but not the least, a retrospective of the other side of the Brazilian Cinema Novo, with the films of Julio Bressane.
Attending FANTASPORTO were over 100 directors and producers of the films in competition, in a total of 350 guests.
The Opening Night screened “Bullworth” by Warren Beatty and the Closing Ceremony belonged to “Very Bad Things” by Peter Berg.
The 20th Oporto International Film Festival- Fantasporto’2000 will take place between the 25th and the 5th March 2000
Awards Fantasporto’99
The International Jury of the Fantasy Section on the 19th Oporto International Film Festival – Fantasporto 99 has decided to grant the following awards:
Best Film Award Fantasporto 99
CUBE – VINCENZO NATALI (CAN)
Jury’s Special Award – Ex aequo
MONEY, A MYTHOLOGY OF DARKNESS – VASSILIS MAZOMENOS (Gre)
JIN ROH – HIROYUKI OKIURA (JAP)
Best Direction-
LARS VON TRIER (DIN) – THE KINGDOM 2 (DAN)
MELHOR ACTOR -Best Actor- – Ex aequo
KEVIN MCKIDD and GARY MCCORMACK – THE ACID HOUSE (UK)
Best Actress-
SOPHIE GRABOL – CREDO (DIN)
Special Mention Best Actress
DALILA CARMO – ANJO DA GUARDA (POR)
Best Screenplay –
LARS VON TRIER and NIELS VORSEL – THE KINGDOM 2 (DAN)
Best Special Effects-
BOB MUNROE and JOHN MARIELLA – CUBE (CAN)
Best Short Fantasy Film –
TRIGON – NIKLAS ROY (GER)
The Jury of the Méliès D’Argent has decided to grant its Award to:
Méliès D’Argent Award’99 –
THE ACID HOUSE – PAUL MCGUIGAN (UK)
The International Jury of the IX Directors Week Fantasporto’99 has decided to grant the following awards:
New Directors Week Fantasporto’99 Best Film Award –
HAPPINESS – TODD SOLONDZ (USA)
Special Mention for the New Director’s Week Fantasporto’99 Best Film Award
HIGH ART – LISA CHOLODENKO (CAN)
Jury’s Special Award –
QUANDO TROVEJA – MANUEL MOZOS (PORT)
Best Direction –
DON MCKELLAR – LAST NIGHT (CAN)
Best Screenplay –
COLIN BATEMAN – DIVORCING JACK (UK)
Best Cinematography –
JOHN MATHIESON – LOVE IS THE DEVIL (UK)
The Jury of the Fantasia Official Section, dedicated to oriental films has decided to grant the following awards:
Fantasporto Fantásia’99 award for the Best Film
THE QUIET FAMILY – KIM-JI-WOON (KOR)
Fantasporto Fantásia’99 award for the best animé
JIN- ROH – HIROYUKI OKIURA (JAP)
The Critics’ Jury of Fantasporto ‘99 has decided to grant its Award to:
PRÉMIO DA CRITICA
Critics’ Award DIVORCING JACK – DAVID CAFFREY (UK)
The Jury of the Publics’Award has decided to grant its Award to:
Public’s Award CUBE – VINCENZO NATALI (CAN))
The AMC Award Fantasporto’98 has been granted to THE ACID HOUSE – PAUL MCGUIGAN
Prémio para uma Carreira/Fantasporto Career Award
JÚLIO BRESSANE (Brazil) and BILL PLYMPTON (USA)