09/10/2007

Last Saturday evening, at the closing night ceremony of the fourth Reykjavik International Film Festival (RIFF), Csaba Bollók’s Iska’s Journey [+see also:
film review
film profile] (see news) was presented with out the Discovery of the Year Award (Golden Puffin) by Hal Hartley, who sat on the jury with Icelandic filmmakers Friðrik Þór Friðriksson and Gréta Ólafsdóttir.

The FIPRESCI award went to Peter Schønau Fog’s Danish debut The Art of Crying [+see also:
trailer
film profile], which also received the Church of Iceland award. “The film deals delicately with issues that often are kept quiet and presents them with respect, understanding and sympathy. The Art of Crying raises awareness of the fragility of life, moves the audience and calls for discussion and responses,” said the jury.

The Audience Award went to Anton Corbijn's Control [+see also:
trailer
film profile], the biopic on Joy Division singer Ian Curtis, and El Ejido: The Law of Profit, the documentary about immigrants in Southern Spain directed by Belgium’s Jawad Rhalib, won the Amnesty International Award.

The eleven-day festival had its best attendance level ever, attracting over 20,000 visitors, approximately 7% of Iceland’s population. The fifth RIFF will take place from September 25-October 5, 2008.