Tuesday, September 25-------- Tropfest@Tribeca, the new outdoor short film screenings event that attracted nearly 7500 attendees on Sunday evening in lower Manhattan, announced its award winners. The new Festival, a collaboration between Tribeca Enterprises and John Polson, creator of Australia’s Tropfest, the world’s largest short film festival, premiered 16 films at the World Financial Center Plaza in New York and was also sent live via satellite to Brookfield Properties FCP Park at First Canadian Place in Toronto, Canada.

As with the Australian festival, all 16 films in the competition included the Tropfest Signature Item (TSI) Slice, which shows that each film was made specifically for the festival, were less than 7 minutes long and had their premieres at the event. The finalists interpreted ‘Slice’ in the films in a variety of manners, from incorporating slices of food in their films to slicing up its characters and even slicing the screen in half.  

A jury comprised of actor Josh Lucas (Poseidon), Australian born actress Rose Byrne (Damages, Troy), actor/director Griffin Dunne (The Accidental Husband, Fierce People, After Hours), Academy Award®-nominated director Bennett Miller (Capote), actress/director Mary Harron (American Psycho), director Tom McCarthy (Station Agent), and last year’s winner Matthew Bonifacio viewed the films alongside the audience and selected the winners.

The Target Filmmaker Award was presented to Belinda King from Marrickville, Australia for her film THE PICNIC. The film was a tour-de-force about a crazed woman who turns a friendly family picnic into a day to remember. The Award included a cash prize of $10,000 from Target and a trip for two to Australia provided by Australia.com and Qantas Airlines. “I am overwhelmed", King exuded at the event. "It’s my first time out of Australia and just arrived in New York on Saturday. “I have been blown away by this city and this Festival.”

Following are the additional awards given out at Tropfest@Tribeca: Each award winner received a Target GiftCard, Apple Final Cut Studio 2 and 2 passes to the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival.

• Second Prize was won by Daniel Knight from Sydney, Australia for SNOOKERED. The prize includes a $500 Target GiftCard. 
• Third Prize was awarded to Jonathan Emmerling from New York City for THE SWITCH. The winner received a $250 Target GiftCard.
• The Best Actress award was won by Loani Arman from THE PICNIC, who received a $100 Target GiftCard.
• The Best Actor award was given to James Wright III from BLACK TEARS, who received a $100 Target GiftCard.
• The Audience Award was selected at the end of the Festival screenings by the audience who used paddles to vote for their favorite short film. Stephen Franciosa Jr. won the prize for his pizza tale, SUPER SLICE.
• The Nokia Nseries “Slice of Life” clip contest, for the best clip captured on a mobile phone, was won by Shane Carter from Spokane, Washington for THE CREATION.

The 2007 Tropfest@Tribeca was presented by Target, co-sponsored by Australia.com, Nokia Nseries and official host Brookfield Properties along with media support from The Daily News, Time Out New York and WNBC4HD. The success of the venture means future short film screening events are going to be part of the New York film scene for some time to come.

Sandy Mandelberger, Awards Watch Editor