Curtains came down on the 46th International
Film Festival of India, IFFI with a grand award presentation ceremony at the
Shyama Prasad Mukherjee indoor stadium in Goa today.
Amidst colourful cultural performance and in
the presence of prominent personalities from the world of cinema, the awards
were presented to the winners at a glittering ceremony attended by the Governor
of Goa, Ms. Mridula Sinha, Chief Minister of Goa Shri Laxmikant Parsekar,
Union Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting Col. Rajyavardhan
Singh Rathore and I&B Secretary Shri Sunil Arora. Internationally acclaimed
music director A. R. Rahman was the chief guest on the occasion.
The Awards
Internationally co-produced adventure drama
film ‘Embrace of the Serpent’ (Al Abrazo de la Serpiente) bagged the Best
Film Award at the 46th IFFI. The film produced by Christina
Gallego and directed by Ciro Guerra depicts the first contact, encounter,
approach, betrayal and eventually life transcending friendship between
Amazonian shaman Karamakate and two scientists who work together over the course of 40 years to search the
Amazon for a sacred healing plant. The film is shot in the Amazonian rain forest in richly detailed black
and white. The Best Film Award comprises the Golden Peacock and a citation with
a prize money of Rs 40 lakhs (Rs 4 million) to be shared between the Director
and the Producer.
The Best Director award went to Peter
Greenaway for the film ‘Eisenstein in Guanajuato’. Greenway portrays
the lead character Soviet filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein as an eccentric, self
absorbed artiste who travels to a new place and culture
and is forced by the experiences he has there to question his assumptions about
himself and Stalinist Russia. Peter Greenway is a British film Director,
initially trained as a painter, who later took to film making. The Best
Director is presented with a Silver Peacock, a citation and a prize money of Rs
15 lakhs (Rs 1.5 million)
The Best Actor (Male) went to Vincent
Lindon for his portrayal of a laid off factory worker Thierry Taogourdeau
in the film ‘The Measure of a Man’. The film, a French social drama
turns the spotlight on ordinary people who are pushed by circumstances to the
corners.
The Best Actor (Female) award was shared
by Gunes Sensoy, Doga Doguslu, Tugba Sunguroglu, Elit Iscan and
Ilyada Akdogan for portrayal of role of five young orphaned sisters in the
Turkish fim ‘Mustang. The film set in a remote Turkish village depicts
the life of five young orphaned sisters
and challenges they face growing up as girls in a conservative society.
The Best Actor – Male and Female are awarded
the Silver Peacock, citation and a prize money of Rs 10 lakhs each (Rs 1
million)
The Special Jury Award went to the
Spanish film ‘Sealed Cargo’ (Carga Sellada) directed by Julia Vargas.
The Special Jury Award carries a Silver Peacock, citation and a cash prize of
Rs 15 lakhs (Rs 1.5 million)
The Serbian film ‘Enclave’ directed by Goran
Radovanovic got the special mention award. The main theme of the film is life of Kosovo Serbs in small isolated communities, called enclaves
The International Jury of IFFI
2015 headed by internationally acclaimed Indian film maker Shekhar Kapur, comprised
UK based director, Micheal Radford,
Palestinian based Israel director, Ms. Suha Arraf, German Actress, Julia
Jentsch and South Korean filmmaker Jeon Kyu-Hwan.
Lifetime Achievement Award
The Russian film maker, actor and head of
Russian Cinematographers’ Union Nikita Mikhalkov was conferred upon the Lifetime
Achievement Award at the 46th International Film Festival of
India. Mikhalkov trained as an actor at the Shchukin School and studied
direction under Mikhail Romm. At Home Among Strangers (1974) was his first
feature, while he garnered international recognition with ‘A Slave of Love’ .Greatly
popular for his portrayal of the memorable Sergei in ‘Burnt by the Sun’, Mikhalkov
has built up a reputation as an actor's director, winning numerous
international awards. IFFI 2015 had a special tribute section of Mikhalkov’s
films, screening his masterpieces – ‘Sunstroke’, ‘the Barber of Siberia’ and
‘Burnt by the Sun’. The
Lifetime Achievement Award carries a Silver Peacock, certificate, shawl and a
scroll along with a cash prize of Rs 10 lakhs (Rs 1 million)
ICFT – UNESCO Fellini Medal
The ICFT – UNESCO Fellini Medal was
awarded to Kaushik Ganguly’s ‘Cinemawala’ that focuses on the sad state
of single screen cinema halls in West Bengal. In collaboration with International Council for
Film, Television and Audiovisual Communication (ICFT), Paris, and UNESCO the
UNESCO Fellini Award was presented at IFFI for the first time this year. This medal is given to a film that reflects the
socio-cultural ideals promoted by UNESCO.
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MD/NCJ/KM