BEST FILMINUTE 2007, WINNER

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FILMINUTE 2007 WINNERS ANNOUNCED
Bulgarian football film wins hearts and top honours at Filminute, the International One-Minute Film Festival.

London UK, October 17, 2007 — Bulgarian Director Kristina Grozeva’s film Game is the big winner at Filminute 2007, the international one-minute film festival. The film won the jury-awarded Best Filminute prize and also ranked as the festival’s Top Rated film by audiences who this year tuned in from over 90 countries to view, rate and vote at the Filminute website.

This film tells the story of a boy who, despite facing serious challenges, enthusiastically finds his place in a neighborhood football game.

The festival’s other top award, The People’s Choice, went to Indian Director Siddartha Jatla’s Missing, a film that quietly draws attention to the ongoing and illegal practice of child marriage in India.

The Filminute 2007 jury gave a nod to 5 films that deserved recognition for the quality of of their stories, art, style and impact. The 5 Jury Commendations went to:

• About Time (Catalin Leescu, Romania),
• In a Circus (Pablo & Gabriel Nicoli, Argentina),
• Egg Love (Zach Math / Jonah Bekhor, Canada),
• Fun Time (Aleksey Andrianov, Russia), and
• One Minute Guide to Planet Earth (Armen Antranikian, UK / Germany).

The winning films were selected from a shortlist of 25 outstanding and diverse entries drawn from a pool of over 800 films from 45 countries. All films were subjected to both a public vote and a review by the international jury, luminaries from film, art, literature, media and communications.

The Filminute 2007 jury members included:

• Michael Ondaatje (Booker Prize-winning novelist and poet)
• Kevin Roberts (CEO Worldwide of Saatchi & Saatchi)
• Samira Makmahlbaf (Cannes Jury Prize-winning film director)
• Klaus Eder (General Secretary of FIPRESCI, the International Federation of Film Critics)
  
• Kenichi Kondo (Assistant Curator, Mori Art Museum, Tokyo).

“From story lines, through to editing and sound design, this year’s collection once again impressed the jury and the public,” said Filminute Executive Director and Head of Jury John Ketchum. “The fact that Game was chosen for Best Filminute and also ranked as the top-rated film by audiences worldwide underscores the film’s appeal, quality, and emotional impact.” The People’s Choice award was a footrace down to the final week. Missing surged ahead to win after running neck-in-neck with Game and One Minute Guide to Planet Earth.

What some members of the Filminute 2007 jury had to say about Game:

• “Talk about an inspirational leader. This young man has enough game for an entire league. I loved the boy’s passion and enthusiasm.” – Kevin Roberts, CEO Worldwide of Saatchi & Saatchi.

• “A nice story, well-suited for a one-minute film. Good photography and excellent editing.” – Klaus Eder, General Secretary of FIPRESCI, the International Federation of Film Critics.

• “The work is very cleverly structured with such a great, unexpected ending. I keep thinking about what dreams the boy has.” – Kenichi Kondo, Assistant Curator, Mori Art Museum, Tokyo.

View the main Filminute site and winning films at http://www.filminute.com