John V. Soto was named best director at the British Independent Film Festival on Saturday for his crime thriller The Reckoning.
That film’s composer Thomas Rouch took the award for best music at the festival held at the Empire Theatre in Leicester Square, where The Reckoning had its world premiere.
Soto was one of three nominees for best director together with Martin Kemp for Top Dog (the tale of a London bad boy who gets in over his head after he joins a dangerous criminal gang) and Floris Ramaekers for Sleeping Dogs (the story of one woman on the rocky road between happiness and tragedy).
The Reckoning stars Jonathan LaPaglia as a troubled detective who hunts two runaway teenagers who hold video footage that identifies a cop killer. The supporting cast includes Luke Hemsworth, Hanna Mangan-Lawrence, Viva Bianca and Alex Williams.
The thriller is due to open on 8-10 screens in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth in September. Filmscope Entertainment’s Deidre Kitcher produced with Robert Lundberg, Roger and Kim Savill and Malcolm and Kate Rudd as executive producers.
Lightning Entertainment is selling foreign rights at the Cannes Film Market.