Festival Stop Motion Montreal: 11th Edition Winners and Highlights
Skwigly
The 11th edition of Festival Stop Motion Montreal concluded with the enthusiastic unveiling of the 2019 laureates at the closing ceremony held September 22 at Concordia University’s J.A. De Sève Cinema. This year’s jury, composed of film industry professionals Mary Murphy, Philippe Tardif and Emily Paige, had the honor of revealing the films that stood out during this vibrant weekend. Here is the list of award-winning films and filmmakers:
YOUTH FILM
Coeur Fondant, Benoît Chieux, France
EMERGING TALENT
Love Me, Fear Me, Veronica Solomon, Germany
INDEPENDENT FILM
Entre Sombras, Alice Guimarães and Mónica Santos, Portugal/France
PROFESSIONAL FILM
Raymonde ou l’évasion verticale, Sarah Van Den Boom, France
PUBLIC CHOICE
Mémorable, Bruno Collet, France
NAD SCHOOL SPECIAL PRIZE
Disco Still Sucks, Alexanne Desrosiers, Montreal, Canada
An animated edition
This edition of the Festival, launched under the theme of stop motion in the digital era, kicked off in grand style, with an industry cocktail that brought together 70 guests. In total, more than 2000 entries were recorded for this 11th edition of the Festival. Three professional workshops, which sold out in full, provided a platform for fifty artists from Canada, the United States and Mexico to perfect their techniques. The festival-goers were also able to experiment with free video games and a virtual reality work made using stop motion techniques, in keeping with the theme put forward this year.
Master classes
In addition to the hundreds of films screened over the weekend, three international special guest speakers set the tone for the Festival. Philippe Tardif, Quebec animator living his passion in the United States at LAIKA studios, unearthed the many technological tools that influence his work in front of a packed house. Phil Tippett, legendary special effects artist, presented his recent series Mad God and gave a master class with Q&A session followed by an autograph signing; an activity made possible thanks to the support of the Daniel Langlois Foundation for Art, Science, and Technology. Johan Oettinger, founder of the Danish studio Wiredfly, spoke to festival-goers about the challenges of producing Vokabulantis, an independent video game mainly made using stop motion.
Local professionals also shared their knowledge to a captivated audience. Daniel Gies, co-founder of the Montreal-based company E*D Films, spoke about his latest production Hairy Hill, which combines different types of animation. As for Salman Sajun, he presented works from the studio established in Saint-Henri which bears his name. He revealed some behind the scenes exclusives of the short films and advertising projects made from his unique colorful and handmade style.
Cinema under the spotlight
Several local and international filmmakers embellished the festival with their presence; Phil Tippett took part in the Canadian premiere of feature-length documentary Phil Tippett: Mad Dreams and Monsters, directed by Gilles Penso and Alexandre Poncet, and following the screening answered delighted spectators’ questions in a warm and intimate atmosphere. The new and special Hybrid and TNT (Terrifying, Naked and Twisted) screenings attracted novices and thrill-seekers to venture into uncharted festival territories, while several Quebecois productions (Mathieu Handfield’s Mouvement Deluxe, Claire Brognez’s La chambre des filles, Geneviève Guénette’s Et je tiens debout and Alexandre Roy’s Jim Zipper) allowed festival-goers to discover the top of the crop of local talent.
The Festival, an unmatched annual rendez-vous for stop motion lovers, is proud to promote Canadian works from home as well as international works from abroad. More than 100 stop motion animation films from 38 countries were presented during this 11th edition at Concordia University and at Cinéma Moderne.
For more highlights of the latest edition, visit: www.StopMotionMontreal.com