SVA Dusty Film & Animation Fest 2009 Award Winners Ceremony

School of Visual Arts (SVA) 20th annual Dusty Film and Animation Festival and Awards for 2009 - which highlighted over 100 films by students graduating from the BFA Film, Video and Animation Department, proudly bestowed the following individuals awards for their work in film and animation on Saturday, May 9, at an invite-only gala awards ceremony at the all-new SVA Theatre (333 W. 23rd Street). The presenters included notables from the world of film, television, video and theater, including Academy-award winners Kevin Kline, John Patrick Shanley, Robert Elswit, as well as Barbara Tulliver, Cheryl Daly, Roy Frumkes, Tom Sito (SVA alumnus, BFA 1977 Animation), and Randall Emmett (SVA alumnus, BFA 1994 Film and Video).

The 2009 DUSTY winners include:
For Outstanding Achievement in Film: ANA MARIA HERMIDA for "El Elefante Rojo - The Red Elephant."

For Outstanding Achievement in Directing: ANA MARIA HERMIDA for "El Elefante Rojo - The Red Elephant."

For Outstanding Achievement in Traditional Animation: JAKE ARMSTRONG for "The Terrible Thing of Alpha-9!."

For Outstanding Achievement in Screenwriting: JUSTIN RICE for "Quince."

For Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: STEVEN GATTI for "The Wounded and the Slain" and BRIAN GONZALEZ for "Wishing, Well."

For Outstanding Achievement in Editing: ARYS SUBIADUR and NICHOLAS CHAKWIN for "Lion Bold."

For Outstanding Achievement in Animation Design: ALEXANDER WAGER for "Juxtaposed."

For Outstanding Achievement in Documentary (Film): IAN PHILLIPS and VICTORIA RONDON for "Tumi - The Life and Death of Boitumelo McCallum."

The Human Spirit Award (Film): IAN PHILLPS for "Tumi - The Life and Death of Boitumelo McCallum."

The Human Spirit Award (Animation): ELYSSA DIGIOVANNI for "Trade Winds."

The Women in Film Award: KATIE-MADONNA LEE for "Women's Prison."

The National Board of Review Scholarship Awards: ROSS BOLLINGER for "Reward" and LINDSAY WOODS for "Pencilmation" - both for Animation.


"We are very happy to have presented Outstanding Achievement Awards this year, marking the 20th year of the Dustys - recognizing the achievement of these many and varied emerging filmmakers, and letting members of the industry get the chance to see the work of the next generation of some very remarkable film and animation talent," said Reeves Lehmann, chair of the BFA Film, Video and Animation Department at SVA. "We are pleased of the success of our many illustrious SVA students, and the many others in the film & stage industry as they come together with us at our all-new state-of-the art SVA Theatre. We also want to call attention to our many great sponsors and supporters, some have been with us a number of years, while others have joined more recently, and we toast and celebrate each and everyone one of them for making this such a note-worthy and important year. I would also like to thank this year's festival producers Annie Flocco and Heidi Hamelin, plus the incomparable Gene Stavis, SVA Theatre director and faculty member, who together with their teams did a truly amazing job."