Press release by Byron Bay Film Festival
The 6th Byron Bay International Film Festival wound up at the weekend after screening over 200 films, from 39 countries at 5 different venues.
A highlight of the festival was BBFF’s free beach-side Sunset Cinema where over 2000 people came to watch the environmental surf documentary Minds in the Water and which featured a surprise performance by Jack Johnson. BBFF2012 opened with a sold out crowd for Cockatoo Film’s Face to Face with cast and crew members present and closed with the Byron Premiere of local filmmaker David Bradbury’s On Borrowed Time which focuses on Paul Cox, who has been BBFF’s Patron since 2007. The festival also included an intimate Masterclass with brothers Peter & Jack Thompson and a workshop with legendary Surf Cinematographer Jack McCoy.
13 Awards were presented through-out the festival. The winners were:
Best Film – Inuk (France/Greenland)
Best Dramatic Feature – Face to Face (Australia)
Best Short Film – Tethered (Australia)
Best Byron Film – On Borrowed Time (Australia)
Best Young Australian Filmmaker – Chris Haysom – Better on the Inside
Best Animation – The Missing Key (Australia)
Best Surf Film – Come Hell or High Water (USA)
Best Environmental Film – Minds in the Water (USA)
The Byron International Documentary Prize ($5000) – PressPausePlay (Sweden)
Best Cinematography – PressPausePlay (Sweden)
Best Music Video – Have you Seen My Sister Evelyn (USA)
Best Experimental Film – Year Zero (Czech Republic/Netherlands)
Contribution to the Northern Rivers’ Film Community – Lois Randall.
BBFF2013 will run from March 1st to the 10th.