Press release from Madman Entertainment
Local filmmaker Glendyn Ivin’s debut feature Last Ride has just won the Black Pearl award for "Best New Narrative Director" at the Middle East International Film Festival (MEIFF) in Abu Dhabi.
The Award, including a cash prize of USD$50,000, was presented to Ivin by Iranian filmmaking great, Jury President Abbas Kiarostami (see attached pic). Previous Black Pearl winners included Australia’s Steve　Jacobs for Disgrace. Ivin introduced Last Ride at MEIFF after successful screenings recently at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Ivin said from Abu Dhabi,"It is a huge honour to receive this award from this festival and this jury. For me just making the film has been a dream come true, so being with the film at festivals around the world and in particular here in Abu Dhabi is like icing on the cake, but winning this award – plus receiving the Black Pearl from one of my heroes, Abbas Kiarostami – is a whole lot of sweet icing!"
A desperate father, played by Hugo Weaving, takes his ten year old son, Chook (Tom Russell), on the run after committing a violent crime. As the two journey into the desert and an unknown future, their troubled relationship and the need to survive, see them battling the elements and each other. Chook eventually takes control and the choices he is forced to make have a devastating effect on both of their lives. Last Ride is an unforgettable love story between a father and a son.
Last Ride was released in cinemas nationally on July 2 and will be available on Madman DVD from November 4.