HASTA LA VISTA tells the tale of three young disabled men who go on a road trip down Spain’s wine route to visit a brothel catering to people with special needs. The film not only won the top jury prize, but also was voted the most popular film by the public and received a special mention by the Ecumenical Jury. The film
Bavo Defurne’s touching debut feature NORTH SEA, TEXAS is the story of a timid teenage boy in rural Belgium who falls in love with his best friend, a rugged motorcycle enthusiast. The film won a Silver Zenith for first fiction feature, and a FIPRESCI (international film critics) Prize for first feature film. “This is my first time in Montreal,” Defurne said at the ceremonies. “The public was very generous. This is a love story, but it’s special. It required courage from those who financed it, courage from the young actors, courage from their parents, from the festival and the jury.”
Other major awards of the event included; BLACK THURSDAY, a political thriller by Polish director Antoni Krauze that won the FIPRESCI International Critics Award for best feature film in the World Competition; and CHRONICLE OF MY MOTHER by Japanese director Masato Harada won the Jury’s Special Grand Prize. German director Brigitte Maria Bertele snatched Best Director honors rightfully for her gripping thriller on the consequences of a rape, THE FIRE ((Der Brand), one of the more controversial films in the Festival. about a rape victim who goes to great lengths to obtain justice. Iranian actress Fatehmeh Motamed-Arya was named Best Actress for her sparkling role as the dominating mother in HERE WITHOUT ME, an Iranian adaptation of the Tennessee Williams family drama THE GLASS MENAGERIE. Best actor honored was shared by Borys Szyc in the Polish thriller THE MOLE (Kret) and by Danny Huston for his portrayal of an Israeli basketball coach who goes to work in Germany in the Israeli drama PLAYOFF. The Best Screenplay award was won by Emmanuel Mouret for the French sex comedy L’ART D’AIMER (The Art of Love).