The Event

The 2009 SILVERDOCS Festival, held in Silver Spring, Maryland from June 15 to 22, 2009, screened 122 films representing 58 countries and held a five day International Documentary Conference.
The festival hosted over 25,000 attendees, including more than 1,000 filmmakers, film and television executives and media professionals where were there to explore the documentary genre, with a particular emphasis on youth, education and next generation media artists.

Winning Documentaries with Cash and In-Kind Awards

Winning filmmakers, selected by professional panels of filmmakers, distributors and critics, received over $70,000 in combined cash and in-kind prizes. The 2009 winners are:

• SILVERDOCS Sterling Award for a US Feature - October Country

  • Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher, directors
  • $10,000 in cash.
  • • The film documents several generations of a working-class family grappling with poverty, teen pregnancy and foster care, as well as the added horrors of child molestation and war.
      Jury comment: “The documentaries we’ve been watching all week motivated a heartfelt discussion amongst us. We have chosen a film that has resonated with us long after we viewed it. It is a film that is subtle and intuitively creative while presenting important social issues in a surprising way. It showcases an extraordinary fresh talent, which left us excited to see what they do next.
      
      Jurors; Margaret Brown, filmmaker (Be Here To Love Me, Order Of Myths); David Kwok, director of programming for the Tribeca Film Festival; Cian Smyth, program director, GAZE Film Festival at the Irish Film Institute.
      

  SILVERDOCS Sterling Award for a World Feature - Mugabe and The White African

  • Lucy Bailey and Andrew Thompson, directors
  • $10,000 in cash.
  • • Through the lens of a 74-year-old-white farmer, the film looks at Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe’s deeply controversial land seizure program, which was intended to re-distribute white-owned farmland.
      Jury comment: “The three of us on the International Jury have very different backgrounds, sensitivities and outlooks. But all three of us were totally unanimous in our verdict. Our chosen film displays a moral conviction which grew from the vision behind it, became an integral part of the trusting relationship between the contributors and the filmmakers, and that powerfully elevates a resonant story to a global stage. We want to commend the filmmaking team for the physical risks they took in their relentless pursuit of this story, and for having the wisdom and humility to simply give their characters the freedom to intimately express anguish, doubt and resolve.”
      
      Jurors: Geoffrey Smith, filmmaker (The English Surgeon); Esther Robinson, filmmaker (A Walk Into The Sea); Karina Rotenstein, programming manager, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival.
      

  SILVERDOCS Sterling Award for a Short Film - 12 Notes Down

  • Andreas Koefoed, director
  • $5,000 in cash.
  • • The film is follows 14-year old choir star, Jorgis, after his voice starts changing and he decides when and how to make an unexpected yet graceful exit from the choir.
      Special Jury mention - Salt - Michael Angus and Murray Fredericks, directors.
      
      The film documents photographer Murray Frederick’s journey into South Australia’s remote salt flats.
      
      Jurors: Bryan Stamp, former creative executive, documentary department at Participant Media; Angela Tucker, filmmaker (Pop Star On Ice); Ingrid Kopp, US director, Shooting People, an international networking community for independent filmmakers.
      

  SILVERDOCS Music Documentary Award - Riseup

  • Luciano Blotta, director
  • Gibson Guitars presents a Gibson Les Paul Studio to the winner.
  • • The film follows three Jamaican musicians trying to make their way in the overcrowded reggae field.
      Special Jury Mention - Soul Power - Jeffrey Levy-Hinte, director
      
      The film recaps the legendary rock concert held in conjunction with the Ali-Forman boxing match in Zaire in 1974.
      
      Jurors: Anna Gabriel, filmmaker (Growing Up On Tour, Still Growing Up); Sascha Paladino, filmmaker (Throw Down Your Heart, Obstinato: Making Music For Two); Brendan Canty, film composer, musician, music producer and filmmaker (Disarm.).
      

  SILVERDOCS Cinematic Vision Award - Old Partner

  • Lee Chung-ryoul, director
  • $2,500 in cash, $4,000 in-kind services from Alpha Cine.
  • • The film chronicles the touching relationship between an old farmer, living in a remote South Korean village, and his 40-year old ox.

  SILVERDOCS WITNESS Award in honor of Joey R. B. Lozano - Good Fortune

  • Landon Van Soest, director
  • $5,000 in cash.
  • • The film covers the two multi-million dollar international aid projects in Africa that may actually be undermining the very communities they seek to help.
      The award is given to the strongest documentary about human rights violations or social justice issues.
      

  Animal Content in Entertainment (ACE) Grant - Cinema Chimp

  • David Grabias, director
  • $25,000 in cash.
  • • The feature-length film follows Cheeta, the film and TV ‘star,‘ and explores the ethical debate over the entertainment industry’s use of non-human primate “actors.”

  WGA Documentary Screenplay Award - Nicole Opper, writer/director of Off and Running

  • $1,000 in cash
  • one-year free membership in the WGAW Nonfiction Writers Caucus or WGAE Nonfiction Writers Committee
  • .
    • The film, a study of personal identity, race and family, focuses on Avery, a talented African-American teenager adopted by Jewish lesbians.
      The prize is awarded by The Writers Guild of America, West and the Writers Guild of America, East.