Media contact: Priscilla L. Hunter, 312.344.7805, or Bridgette Rutherford, 312.344.6795 or
For Immediate Release
17 November 2004
Chicago, IL - Judging for Columbia College Chicago's Michael Rabiger Center for Documentary Second Annual International Student Documentary Competition (ISDC) wrapped last week. Three of the six winning films, including the award for Best Documentary, came from the Escuela Internacional de Cine Y TV (International Film and TV School) (EICTV) in San Antonio de los Baņos Cuba.
The award for Best Documentary was bestowed upon Brazilian student Marquinhos (Marcos) Pimentel for his poetic film "Nada con Nadie" ("Nothing with No One"), a documentary that observes the isolated mountain life of an elderly man and his son. The film is a reflection on time and silence.
Other winners included:
· Best Social Issue Documentary: "White Cane and Wheels" by Paul Apelgren, University of Southern California.
· Best Biographical Documentary: "Plane Maker" by Yen-Ni Wang, National Taiwan University of Arts, Taiwan and "Jose Manuel, La Mula y el Televisor" ("Jose Manuel, the Mule, and the Television") by Elsa Cornevin, EICTV tied for this category.
· Best Personal Documentary: "Small Town Secrets" by Katherine Leggett, Stanford University.
· Most Technically Skilled Documentary: "Episodios Sinfonicos" ("Symphonic Episodes") by Victor Mares, EICTV.
· Special Mention: "Milk Men: Can we Deliver?" by Peter Templeman, Australian Film Television Radio School, Australia.
The Best Documentary award comes with a cash prize of $500. Each additional category winner will receive a $300 cash prize and a signed copy of author, filmmaker and Columbia faculty member Michael Rabiger's book "Directing the Documentary." All of the above films will be honored on Friday, November 19 with an awards screening and reception. The films will also be screened at the Chicago International Documentary Festival in April 2005.
The winning films were chosen from more than 65 entries submitted by students at 35 film schools from 13 countries as far afield as Ukraine, Nepal, Taiwan, Brazil, Cuba, Europe, Australia as well as the United States. "The number of entries, and the quality and diversity of the films submitted reflects the extraordinary international revival of the documentary form," said Russell Porter, documentary program director in Columbia College's film and video department.
"Around the world a new generation of filmmakers are seeing documentaries as the most meaningful and creatively challenging way to engage audiences with their ideas and realities," he added.
The ISDC is a celebration of student filmmakers from around the world. Students from recognized institutions of higher education with instruction in filmmaking at the undergraduate or graduate level are invited to submit documentaries which have been completed as course work. The work can be originated in any format, style and on any subject, with a maximum length of 30 minutes. Entries must fit into one of the six categories of the competition. Films are pre-selected by a panel of Columbia College documentary faculty and graduate documentary students. Next a panel of five jurors, chaired by Michael Rabiger, view and selects the final films. The other jurors are: Philip Bajorat and Naomi Walker, Chicago International Film Festival; Lee Ferdinand, Home Vision Entertainment; and Christopher Kamyscew, Founder and Director of the Chicago International Documentary Festival. For further information on the ISDC visit www.isdc-chicago.com.
The competition is sponsored by Home Vision Entertainment, Focal Press, the Chicago International Documentary Festival and Screen magazine.
Columbia College Chicago, an urban institution committed to open access and excellence in higher education, provides innovative practice and education in the visual, performing, media and communication arts to more than 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students. Founded in 1890 as a communications school for women, Columbia College Chicago was revisioned in 1963 as liberal arts college with a "hands-on minds-on" approach to arts and media education and a progressive social agenda. Under the modern leadership of President Warrick L. Carter, Ph.D. Columbia is aggressively pursuing its mission to bring a richness of vision and a multiplicity of voices to the creation of culture through the diversity of our students and graduates. For further information visit www.colum.edu.