THE RICE PADDY Among Winners at 6th Annual Gotham Screen International Film Festival

The 6th Annual Gotham Screen International Film Festival (GSIFF) drew to a close yesterday after ten days of screenings and events in downtown New York. Film competition and screenplay contest winners were announced at the closing ceremony for filmmakers, industry and press.

Festival director Michael Gunther said of the event, "We're very proud of this year's program, which brought no less than eleven world premieres to New York, with films as diverse as Chinese drama "The Rice Paddy," US feature "The Citizen" and Iranian comedy "Laboratory." The 2012 festival brought an encouraging growth in both creative quality and audience attendance, which we hope to continue next year."

Programmer Alex Blakeney said of the Jury's decision, "The festival's line-up took quite a few risks this year, and we were able to bring unique films to New York, and the Festival Jury's choices award a set of great films that deserve to find a wider audience."

Highlights of the festival included the US premiere of "The Exam" by Peter Bergendy, the world premiere of the Kurdish-Iraqi feature "Dr. Qassimlu Street" and popular US drama "The Last Day of August."

The Gotham Screen International Film Festival will run again in October 2013.

Winners of 2011 Gotham Screen International Film Festival:

Best Feature: "The Rice Paddy (La Riziére)," directed by Xiaoling Zhu
Best Actress: Gabriella Hámori as 'Gát Éva' in "The Exam (A viszga)"
Best Actor: János Kulka as 'Markó Pál' in "The Exam (A viszga)"
Best Cinematography: Philippe Bottoglione, for "The Rice Paddy (La Riziére)"
Best Documentary: "Underground Hip Hop in China," directed by Jimmy Wang
Best Short Film: "Pablo On Wheels," directed by Brett Sorem -- Winner of the $1,000 Circleframe Short Film Award, sponsored by Triboro Pictures.

Special Jury Mentions:

Feature Film: "Dr. Qassimlu Street," directed by Fathy Mirzaeian
Best Actress: Yang Yingqiu as 'A Qiu' in "The Rice Paddy (La Riziére)"

Winners of the 2012 Gotham Screen Screenplay Contest:
Best Screenplay: "The Macau Omen" (Thriller), by Tony Shyu -- Winner of the $2,500 Circleframe Screenwriting Award, sponsored by Triboro Pictures.

Best Action / Adventure: "The Gods of Death," by Phillip Watson
Best Drama: "Walk to Mississippi," by Ellen Johnson
Best Horror: "The Bloodline," by Christine Feldman
Best Mystery / Crime: "KopKiller," by Shane McCabe
Best Romantic Comedy: "Materminated," by Carey Dunn
Best War / History: "Charlotte the Soldier," by Jill O'Halloran
Best Fantasy: "Patchwork," by Amanda Keener
Best Sci-Fi: "Tragic Acts of Cleavon Ray," by Joshua Montcalm
Best Family: "My Greatest Mistake," by Rebecca Rocheford Davies