04/11/2010

The Viennale 2010 (October 21-November 3) closed with the Vienna Film Prize for Best Narrative Feature going to Marvin Kren’s German zombie flick Rammbock [+see also:
trailer
film profile].

The jury praised this "unconventional interpretation of a genre, and to crown it all, this debut feature shows the inner and outer worlds colliding in a surreal way". The film, presented at Toronto, is also currently bringing success to Vienna-based sales company EastWest Filmdistribution (see news).

The Vienna Film Prize for Best Documentary went to Hüseyin Tabak’s Austrian film Kick-Off and an Honourable Mention to Houchang Allahyari’s The Crazy World of Ute Bock, a cross between fiction and documentary.

Meanwhile, the FIPRESCI Prize was awarded to Bogdan George Apetri’s Austrian/Romanian title Outskirts [+see also:
trailer
interview: Ana Ularu
film profile].

Festival director Hans Hurch is once again delighted at the event’s success. Not only has the Badeschiff, the Viennale’s new centre (since 2009), been completely adopted, but admissions have risen since last year, from 94,800 to 96,300.

The attendance level at screenings also went up, from 79.60% in 2009 to 79.80% for an equal number of showings (351 this year, of which 123, i.e. more than a third, sold out). Once again, narrative features and documentaries both received equal attention. The programme dedicated to US director Larry Cohen was tremendously successful, but the Eric Rohmer retrospective also did very well, attracting almost 4,700 viewers.

(Translated from French)