WINNERS ANNOUNCED FOR THE FIRST EVER
SUNDANCE CHANNEL SHORTS COMPETITION
Alvethor From Pawel Kryza
Wins The Grand Jury Prize
Disconnected From Ben Talar
Wins the Vimeo® Audience Award
Warsaw – 21st May
2015 – Sundance
Channel today announced the winners of the first ever Sundance Channel Shorts Competition.
Alvethor from Pawel Kryza has been selected as the winner of the
Grand Jury Prize and the winner of the Vimeo®
Audience Award is Disconnected from
Ben Talar. The winner of the Grand Jury Prize will receive a trip for two to a
screening of their film at a special event in London hosted by Sundance
Institute in June and the winning film will be broadcast on Sundance Channel
later in the year. The winner of the Vimeo®
Audience Award will receive a high-end digital camera as well as a 12-month
Vimeo® PRO membership.
The
winner of the first ever Sundance Channel Shorts Competition’s Grand Jury Prize, Alvethor from Pawel Kryza, explores
motivation and boredom in the corporate world through the apparently simple
story of Anka who despises her job and passes her time in the company bathroom,
smoking. As she considers her enforced
discomfort, her reluctance to engage with her work and even the health risks of
cigarettes, a colleague visits to cajole her into attending their planned lunch
meeting. However, when Anka begins to
feel unwell, the viewer is exposed to the full implications of her anomie and
her overarching sense of dehumanisation in the workplace.
Disconnected from Ben Talar, the winner of
the Vimeo® Audience Award, manages to
create a grand, sweeping statement about the nature of contemporary life
through the daily activities of just a few inhabitants of the city of
Berlin. A young, uncommunicative couple,
a jogger making his way through the cityscape to a leafy green park, a young
woman admiring the goods on sale in shop windows and an artist hanging his work
at home: all are resolutely alone.
Utilising historic news footage and a split screen device, the director
explores the prevailing nature of urban alienation, a quarter of a century
after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
The
first ever Sundance Channel Shorts Competition consisted of two awards
including the Grand Jury Prize and the Vimeo®
Audience Award chosen by Sundance Channel fans.
Submissions from filmmakers were invited from 30th March
until 20th April at www.sundancechannel.pl/scshorts. The films had to be
submitted by the producer or director of the film who could provide proof of
residency in Poland. Films could be no longer than 10 minutes and entries had
to meet Sundance Channel’s official rules and technical requirements which were
available on the website.
The
first ever Sundance Channel Shorts Competition’s Grand Jury Prize was judged on
several criteria, including creativity, entertainment value, original
storytelling and production values. The jury members included Harold Gronenthal
from Sundance Channel, Mike Plante from Sundance Institute, Jason Sondhi from
Vimeo® and film critic Artur
Zaborski. Voting for the Vimeo® Audience Award by independent
film fans took place between 27th April and 8th May at www.sundancechannel.pl/scshorts.
The
competition has been supported by Sundance Channel affiliates Multimedia, Toya,
NC+ and UPC.
For more information:
About Sundance Channel
Dedicated
to founder Robert Redford's mission to celebrate creativity, Sundance Channel
is the television destination for independent-minded viewers seeking something
different. Bold, imaginative and uncompromising, Sundance Channel offers
audiences a diverse and engaging selection of high-quality independent films,
documentaries and original programs. In addition to being widely distributed
throughout North America, Sundance Channel is available throughout Europe, Asia,
Latin America, North Africa and the Middle East. Owned and operated by AMC
Networks International (the global division of AMC Networks), Sundance Channel
is a highly recognizable and magnetic brand that is available in HD and across
multiple platforms.
About AMC Networks
International
AMC
Networks International (AMCNI), the global division of AMC Networks, delivers
entertaining and acclaimed programming that reaches subscribers in more than
140 countries and territories, including Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America
and the Middle East. AMCNI consists of global brands, Sundance Channel and AMC,
as well as popular, locally recognized channels in various programming genres.
For more information, visit: www.amcnetworks.com/amcni.
About Sundance Institute
Founded
in 1981 by Robert Redford, Sundance Institute is a nonprofit organization that
provides and preserves the space for artists in film, theatre, and new media to
create and thrive. The Institute's signature Labs, granting, and mentorship
programs, dedicated to developing new work, take place throughout the year in
the U.S. and internationally. The Sundance Film Festival and other public
programs connect audiences to artists in igniting new ideas, discovering
original voices, and building a community dedicated to independent
storytelling. Sundance Institute has supported such projects as Beasts
of the Southern Wild, Fruitvale Station, Sin Nombre, The
Invisible War, The Square, Dirty Wars, Spring
Awakening, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder and Fun
Home. Join Sundance Institute on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.
About
Vimeo
Vimeo® is the high-quality video platform for creators and their
audiences. Vimeo’s mission is to empower and inspire people around the world to
create, share, and discover videos. Vimeo enables creators to sell original
films and series worldwide through Vimeo On Demand, its open self-distribution
platform. Vimeo has more than 30 million registered members and reaches a
global monthly audience of over 170 million people. Founded in 2004 and based
in New York City, Vimeo, LLC is an operating business of IAC (NASDAQ: IACI).
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