Interview
■Award Winners of Feature Length Competition
■Award Winners of Short Length Competition
■Award Winners of Animation Competition
Award Winners of Feature Length Competition
＜Grand Prize＞ Porgy Franssen (Cast) "Matterhorn"
― How do you feel?
I'm really happy. I truly understand how the Director feels as well because I myself direct shows in my country. Diederik must be surprised with winning. I would like to meet and report this to him right after I come back home.
― Impression of the festival?
This is my first visit to Japan, so I had lots of fun. The festival was well organized and the screening facilities were superb. Audiences gave a warm welcome, so this was a really great visit.
＜Best Director and SKIP CITY AWARD＞ Natsuka Kusano (Director) "Antonym"
― How do you feel?
I'm just surprised, really! I tried not to think about winning awards because doing that hadn’t brought me any success in the past. Although my cast and crew said I am stubborn, I'm very pleased the jury members appreciated my persistence as a sign of courage.
― Impression of the festival?
I think this festival is nice as we could watch lots of different films such as, feature, short, animations, and international films all together. I was very happy to talk about the title and intention of my film to audiences at the Q&A. I hope I can come back to the festival with my 2nd, 3rd, or other films, in the future.
＜Best Screenplay＞ Daniel Ribeiro (Director) "The Way He Looks"
― How do you feel?
I'm very happy to have my film screened in Japan and to win an award. My aim was to make a film with a universal theme, so it was a great pleasure for me to have my film enjoyed by Japanese audiences.
― Impression of the festival?
Everyone here welcomed my film nicely and I could answer questions and talk with people after the screenings. It was really great.
Award Winners of Short Length Competition
＜Best Picture＞ Takayuki Ohashi(Director) "Angel in the Closet"
― How do you feel?
I came to the festival as a member of the audience three years ago. I thought it was a very nice film festival and hoped to have my film selected here more than any other domestic film festival. I just can’t believe I received the Best Picture because I had really only hoped for a nomination. I turned 30 during the festival, so it was a very happy birthday.
― Impression of the festival?
I truly thought the screening facilities with the big screen and clear sound were amazing. I enjoyed the Q&A sessions because I could directly listen to the audience who had just watched my film.
＜Honorable Mention＞ Aki Yamamoto(Director) "The Tie and the Wall"
― How do you feel?
I'm truly grateful because this is the first festival for the film and it could win an award. I had no opportunity to watch other films at my previous festival visits, but I could watch lots of films this time and was actually expecting that other films would win. But my film received an award and so I could forget the terrible heat of this summer!
＜Honorable Mention＞ Takuya Matsumoto(Director) "Let’s Go Home!"
― How do you feel?
This is the first time for my film to be nominated to SKIP CITY INTERNATIONAL D-Cinema FESTIVAL. The film was screened with English subtitles, and I was moved to have my film participate in an international film festival. I am also pleased with receiving an award. I think feature films and short films have different values, so I would like to keep making both types of films, and then I hope to come back to the festival.
Award Winners of Animation Competition
＜Best Picture＞ Yuanyuan Hu (Director) "Sunset Flower Blooming"
― How do you feel?
I'm really surprised because I didn't think of winning an award. I'm honored to receive the first Best Picture Award of the newly-created Animation Competition section. The screening facilities were excellent, so I'm truly happy to show the beautiful images of my film to the audience.