Thursday, November 27--------On the eve of this year's Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, which begins tomorrow evening, the Festival announced the winners of the POFF Animation Film Festival, which directly precedes the international film festival. Animation has been a staple of entertainment in Eastern Europe for the past 50 years. In many different ways, animators in Eastern Europe perfected a style of impressionistic reality, often using the satire of their subjects as jabs against the constrictive Communist environment. Those films communicated in a subtle but powerful way that made one feel like you were in on a very cosmic joke.

The Animation Film Festival showcases more contemporary work, but the influence of the early period is very evident. This is the great provocative talent from winds East.....to state what it needs to state, without being too obvious. Not only is this an instructive message for our more austere times, but it is an evergreen theme that bears new interpretation for each generation. The Festival honors this tradition while awarding a new generation of talents, keeping the ball rolling for the future.

The Animation Film Festival celebrated its 10th anniversary this year, and is one of the most popular sections in the several weeks long marathon that is the POFF/Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. For the first time, the Festival's highest prize, the Animated Dreams Grand Prix, was awarded to an Estonian film and to Olga and Priit Parn, the team behind the film Life Without Gariella Ferri.

A complete list of the Awards follows:

Festival awards:

GRAND PRIX

“Wooden Wolf”

ELU ILMA GABRIELLA FERRITA / LIFE WITHOUT GABRIELLA FERRI

by PRIIT PÄRN & OLGA PÄRN

Estonia 2008

Award for the Best Story

REFRENY / REFRAINS

by WIOLA SOWA

Poland 2007

Award for the Best Design

MUTO

by BLU

Italy 2008

Jury’s Special Mentioning for the best humour

THIS WAY UP

by SMITH & FOULKES

Great Britain 2008

Jury’s Special Mentioning for the best film for families

DAR KHANE-YE MA / IN OUR HOME

by MARYAM KASHKOOLINIA

Iran 2008

Jury’s Special Mentioning for the enduring nature of love

CHAINSAW

by DENNIS TUPICOFF

Australia 2007

ANOBA nomination for the best Estonian film

ELU ILMA GABRIELLA FERRITA / LIFE WITHOUT GABRIELLA FERRI

by PRIIT PÄRN & OLGA PÄRN

Estonia 2008

Members of the jury: Otto Alder (Switzerland), John Dilworth (USA), Ülo Pikkov (Estonia)

Sandy Mandelberger, Tallinn Black Nights FF