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The 2009 Worldwide Short Film Festival

Shorter is Better

The 2009 Worldwide Short Film Festival was held June 16 to 21, 2009 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. This film festival is run out of the Canadian Film Center. According to the Canadian Film Centre, 295 shorts from around the world were screened over six days and this year's festival offered 31 different programmes selected from a record breaking 3, 966 submissions. There were five Competitive programs of Canadian short films and videos the largest competition of Canadian films in the world and nine Competitive programs of international short films and videos. Of great interest to film makers would be the over $ 80,000 in cash and prizes awarded. The BIG IDEAS Symposium offers professional development for film makers, while the Business Centre is home to the largest short film marketplace in North America.

The Worldwide Short Film Festival presented thirteen awards and $ 80, 000 in cash and prizes at the 2009 WSFF Awards Picnic on the beautiful grounds of the Canadian Film Center in the presence of over 300 industry delegates and filmmakers from around the globe. Accredited by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences®, these award winners are eligible for the Genie Awards, and winners of the Best Live-Action Short and Best Animated Short are eligible for the Academy Awards . The festival's reputation for programming is doing well due to the five shorts in 2006 that went on to be nominated for Academy Awards® and one winner.

In Toronto Arts & Event's view, the highlight of the Worldwide Short Film Festival is the awards and associated films:

The winners are (the envelope please):

The C.O.R.E Digital Pictures Award For Best Live Action Short - Nicolas Silhol (France) MY NAME IS DOMINIC (TOUS LES ENFANTS S'APPELLENT DOMINIQUE) $5000 in cash eligibility for the 2009 Academy Awards®.
Honourable Mention: Joost Van Ginkel (Netherlands) - SAND (ZAND), drama of a father and daughter separated through divorce.
The Jackson-Triggs Award For Best Emerging Canadian Filmmaker - Aparna Kapur - AMMA, the animated story of a girl's bond with her grandmother - $5,000 cash prize
The Kodak Award for Best Cinematography in a Canadian Short: Miroslaw Baszak - THE WATER along
The Kodak Award Honourable Mention: Director, Pedro Pires - dance of death experimental - DANSE MACABRE.
Best Animated Short honour - Hanna Heilborn and David Aronowitsch (Sweden/Denmark) - documentary - SLAVES.
Best Canadian Short - director Ky Nam Le Duc - drama LAND OF MEN (TERRE DES HOMMES).
The Best Experimental Short honour - Pedro Pires for DANSE MACABRE (Canada)

Best Performance in a Live-Action Short: The Best Performance prize (Female) - Leora Rivlin - WIND CHIMES (Israel); Best Performance Prize (Male) - Jack Wouterse - SAND (ZAND) (Netherlands); Best Performance Prize (Ensemble) - Kil-ho Kim & Tae-hoon Lee - AULD LANG SYNE (South Korea)

Screenplay Giveaway Prize - Kate Hewlett - "SHE SAID LENNY" - a package of goods and services worth over $50,000

The TELUS Audience Choice Award - French romantic comedy - PAUL RONDIN IS…PAUL RONDIN (PAUL RONDIN ES…PAUL RONDIN) (France) $ 5,000

Now in its 15th year, The Worldwide Short Film Festival 2009 showed an amazing array of great short films and videos from around the world. It creates difficulty in deciding which films to see! For those with limited time, TorontoArtsandEvents recommends Festival Award Winners and the opening Gala Winners From Around the World which shows ( as you would expect ) short award winners from around the world.

In 2006, this festival produced five Academy Award nominees including one which won an award; namely, The Danish Poet. It will be interesting to see what is produced this year! Check back here for next year's Worldwide Short Film Festival!

@ Press Conference

@ Awards