30/04/2009

London’s annual celebration of independent cinema, the London Independent Film Festival (LIFF), culminated with directors David William Mills and Danielle Boucher winning the grand prize for their debut feature The Burial. Sponsored by post house Prime Focus, the £50,000 prize will take care of a good chunk of the duo’s next feature.

Sam Holland won Best Director for Zebra Crossings and Nick Pilton won Best No-Budget feature for Reservations. LIFF’s Champion of Independent Cinema award, which annually recognises one celebrity and one organisation for outstanding service to UK independent filmmakers, was awarded to Mike Figgis and the British Film Institute.

Irish filmmaker Maeve Murphy took home the Best UK Feature prize for Beyond the Fire. The film received development funding from the Irish Film Board and Northern Ireland Screen and will also receive P&A Funding for its June 17 release by MetFilm Distribution.

Murphy said, “I’m thrilled to have won this prestigious award. I am also looking forward to continuing our relationship with Patrick Fischer and MetFilm Distribution. MetFilm have been an invaluable partner on the film since providing all the post-production on the film at their state of the art facility at Ealing Studios.”

This year, LIFF screened 110 films across several venues in London. LIFF combines the best of UK low-budget films with inspirational micro-budget films from around the world, and mixes it up with relevant industry discussions and targeted social networking events. LIFF’s audience is primarily London’s large independent filmmaking community.