QUEER LISBOA 13 AWARDS
The award winning films of Queer Lisboa 13 – Lisbon Gay and Lesbian Film Festival were announced at the Closing Night Ceremony on the 26th September 2009, at Cinema São Jorge.

COMPETITION SECTION FOR BEST FEATURE FILM

Best Feature Film – Ander, by Roberto Castón (Spain, 2009, 128’)

Ander, by Roberto Cáston (Spain), is the winner in the category of Best Feature Film (1.000,00€). According to the jury, the film “defies youth- and urban-centred fashion and challenges stereotypes of rural life, offering instead a hopeful and courageous alternative to traditional patterns of behaviour.” Ander, which portrays the sexual tension and desire between a solitary middle-aged Basque farmer and a younger Peruvian immigrant, was also referenced for the way it explores “the growing solidarity between its well-developed characters, weaving together their stories in touching, poignant and subtle ways.” The Jury was composed by author Richard Zimler, actress and stage director Isabel Medina, film critic Boyd van Hoeij, programmer Florence Fradelizi, and programmer and distributor Ricke Merighi.

Best Actress – Mina Orfanou / Strella, by Panos H. Koutras (Greece, 2009, 113’)

The Jury decided to award the prize for Best Actress to Mina Orfanou “for her intense and touching performance.” Highlighting that “the energy and physical commitment she puts into her role brings this modern Greek tragedy to life. She goes from joy to desperation, evidencing a wide range of emotion and offering the audience a brilliant portrayal of a transsexual woman with deep emotional conflicts.”

Best Actor – Josean Bengoetxea / Ander, by Roberto Castón (Spain, 2009, 128’)

Josean Bengoetxea was awarded Best Actor “for his truthful, intense and always convincing performance” in Ander, by Roberto Castón, in which by “bravely exposing his body, he brings to the screen the vulnerability of a person painstakingly trying to find himself.

Special Mention – Rabioso Sol, Rabioso Cielo, by Julián Hernández (Mexico, 2009, 191’)

The Jury decided to award a Special Mention to the Mexican feature Rabioso Sol, Rabioso Cielo, by Julián Hernández “for offering the viewer a 3-hour experience of pure cinema, in which strong emotions are generated by the movement of the images and the actors, like in a dance”.

 COMPETITON SECTION FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY

Best Documentary – Fig Trees, by John Greyson (Canada, 2009, 104’)

The award for Best Documentary (1.000,00€), was given to Fig Trees, by John Greyson (Canada). The Jury, composed by psychologist Nuno Nodin, programmer Melissa Prichard, and filmmaker Oded Lotan, stated that “HIV/AIDS and access to treatment is important for everyone, and not least our community; an issue which nowadays has become unfashionable. The jury chose Fig Trees because it gives visibility to this important subject. The rich and complex filmmaking demands the audience’s involvement with its clever combination of classical formal elements, which come together in a very impressive way.”

Special Mention – Verliebt, Verzopft, Verwegen, by Katharina Lampert and Cordula Thym (Austria, 2009, 64’)

The Jury decided to award a Special Mention to Austrian Documentary Verliebt, Verzopft, Verwegen, by Katharina Lampert and Cordula Thym, “a well-crafted first film offering a glimpse of our past via an optimistic portrait of older lesbians and their lives.”

COMPETITION SECTION FOR BEST SHORT FILM – AUDIENCE AWARD

Best Short Film – Yo Solo Miro, by Gorka Cornejo (Spain, 2008, 19’)