MEGALOMANIAC AND THE PORTUGUESE INCUBUS WINNERS OF THE FANTASY SECTION AND NARCOSIS OF THE DIRECTOR’S WEEK

The new Multiplex BATALHA received this year the 43rd edition of the iconic and just finished Fantasporto – Festival Internacional de Cinema do Porto.

The International Jury of the fantasy section was LAWRENCE TROTT, MÁRTA BÉNYEI, SANDRA HENRIQUES and LUÍS ROSALES and decided to divide their awards between European and Asian Films. 

PORTUGUESE FILM INCUBUS...THE SURPRISE

The new Multiplex BATALHA received this year the 43rd edition of the iconic and just finished Fantasporto – Festival Internacional de Cinema do Porto.

The International Jury of the fantasy section was LAWRENCE TROTT, MÁRTA BÉNYEI, SANDRA HENRIQUES and LUÍS ROSALES and decided to divide their awards between European and Asian Films. 

BELGIUM AND UNITED KINGDOM WON FANTASPORTO

MEGALOMANIAC of  Karim Ouelhaj, won the best film award of the festival. The jury also decides to give MEGALOMANIAC the award for the best direction and to ELINE SCHUMACHER, the main actress the award. KARIM OUELHAJ is known mainly by “L’ Oeil Silencieux” (2016), Also directed “Parabola” (2005) and “Le Repas du Singe” (2013) among others.  SHEPHERD, the film by Russel Owen, won the awards for Best Actor Tom Hugues and one for best Cinematography. Shepherd is of the best examples of Horror films in the UK. RUSSEL OWEN began to do  “storyboards”, and worked in “Doctor Who” and in games like “Tomb Raider” before directing.  His first feature was “Welcome to the Majority” (2013) and is known by “Patients of a Saint” (2020). 

TAIWAN, MALÁSIA AND JAPAN ARE ALSO WINNERS 

The Special Award of the Jury went to DEMIGOD: THE LEGEND BEGINS of CHRIS HUANG WEN-CHANG from Taiwan. The award for the best Scrip was given to the film from Japan CONVENIENCE STORY of SATOSHI MIKI and a Special Mention to STONE TURTLE by WOO MING JIN, from Malaysia.  

EUROPEAN FIMS WON ALL THE AWARDS OF THE DIRECTORS WEEK OFFICIAL SECTION

The International Jury was composed by ANTHONY WALLER (UK) Director of “An American Werewolf in Paris” and “Mute Witness”, PEDRO FARATE (Portugal) cinematographer, MARINA ANNA EICH  (Germany) actor and producer and ISABEL PINA (Portugal) Director, decided to give the following awards:

DIRECTORS WEEK BEST FILM AWARD

NARCOSIS by Martijn de Jong fron The Netherlands

DIRECTORS WEEK JURY’S SPECIAL AWARD

KAYMAK by Milcho Manchevski a co-production between Denmark, The Netherlands, Croatia and North Macedonia)

DIRECTORS WEEK BEST DIRECTOR AWARD

HANS HERBOTS for RITUAL a co-production between Belgium, The Netherlands and Germany

DIRECTORS WEEK BEST SCREENPLAY AWARD

THE GAME from Péter Fazakas of Hungary

DIRECTORS WEEK BEST ACTOR AWARD

ZSOLT NAGY in THE GAME of Péter Fazakas from Hungary

DIRECTORS WEEK BEST ACTRESS AWARD

THEKLA REUTEN in NARCOSIS by Martijn de Jong from The Netherlands

SPECIAL MENTION OF THE JURY

THE GRANDSON by Kristóf Deák from Hungary

PHILIPINES AND MALASIA WON THE ORIENT EXPRESS OFFICIAL SECTION

The International Jury was composed by ANTHONY WALLER (UK) Director of “An American Werewolf in Paris” and “Mute Witness”, PEDRO FARATE (Portugal) cinematographer, MARINA ANNA EICH  (Germany) actor and producer and ISABEL PINA (Portugal) Director, decided to give the following awards:

BEST FILM AWARD

KARGO directed by T.M. Malones from Philipines

SPECIAL AWARD OF THE JURY

STONE TURTLE by Woo Ming Jin from Malaysia

INCUBUS…THE BEST PORTUGUESE FILM AWARD

The Jury composed by LUÍS MOYA – Director, DANYEL GUERRA – Writer and REGINA MACHADO – Producer decided to give the following awards:

BEST PORTUGUESE FILM AWARD

INCUBUS by Tito Fernandes

BEST SCHOOL FILM

To the film QUANDO A TERRA SANGRA by João Morgado from

Universidade Lusófona de Lisboa

SPECIAL MENTION

THE SPACE IN BETWEEN by Joana Dantas of Universidade do Minho

NON OFFICIAL AWARDS

CRITICS AWARD

IMMERSION by Takashi Shimizu from Japan

AUDIENCE AWARD

LIFE OF MARIKO IN KABUKICHO by Eiji Uchida and Shinzô Katayama from Japan

LIFE ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

FERDINAND LAPUZ 

Multi-awarded Filipino producer, he migrated to Canada in 1990 where he started promoting the films of his country. Back in the Philippines in 2005, he worked as a film producer with over 90 features till the present.  Working regularly with some of the most important festivals in the world, his productions have been screened in Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Locarno, Cairo, Toronto, Tokyo, Karlovy Vary, Tallinn, Shanghai and New York. He is a member of the Asian Film Awards and the Asia Pacific Film Festival. Ferdinand Lapuz is a regular contributor to Fantasporto for many years, and his films have received here several awards.  The Cinema de Lapuz retrospective is the first in Portugal from the Philippines. 

KRZYSZTOF ZANUSSI

Is one of the last masters of Cinema in the World. Born in 1939 in Warsaw, Poland. Documentary and feature film director scriptwriter. Graduated from Lodz Film Academy in 1966. “Death of a Provincial” (1968) won an award in Venice, Mannheim, Valladolid and Moscow in 1967.  “Family Life” (1971) which won in Chicago (1971), Valladolid (1972) and Colombo (1973); “Illumination” (1973) Grand Prix in Locarno (1973); Winner of the Jury Award in Cannes with “Constans” (1980). His latest feature before “Perfect Number” (2022) was “Eter” (2018). 

FANTASPORTO AWARD 2023

ELMO NUGANEN

The “MELCHIOR” Trilogy (2022), screened in Fantasporto 2023 out of competition is made of 3 independent features by this Estonian director and actor, born in 1962, art director of the Municipal Theatre of Tallinn and one of its most prestigious stage directors, mostly for his work with the great classics. As a film director, he is known for the features “Names Engraved in Marble” (2013), Mushrooming” (2012), “Purge” (2012) and “1944” (2015). He also participated as an actor in “Tangerines” (2013), a Golden Globe and Oscar Best Foreign Language nominated feature. 

ANTHONY WALLER

Director, writer, producer, composer and actor, born in Beirut of British parents.  He received a Shakespeare scholarship from the hands of John Schlesinger. As a composer, he made several jingles for companies such as Baileys and Old Spice.  His first feature was “Mute Witness” (1995), shot in Russia and which Fantasporto 2023 screens in the Fantasclassics. Later he directed “An American Werewolf in Paris” (1998),  winner of the Grand Prix and Audience Award in the Gérardmer  Film Festival, released worldwide by Buena Vista.  He also directed “The Guilty” (2000) with Bill Pullman, “The Little Vampire” (2000)  considered the best German children’s movie in 2001, and  “Nine Miles Down” (2009). Between 2017 and 2019 he directed the TV series “Trader” about Iraque. In 2022 he directed “The Piper” with Elizabeth Hurley.