25-09-2011

FESTIVALS: Docs Prized at Slovak Cinematik

By FNE Staff

    PIESTANY, SLOVAKIA: British director Mike Leign took home the main prize at Slovakia's 6th Cinematik film festival (www.cinematik.sk), with Slovak documentaries capturing two additional awards.

    Leign's film Another World won the Meeting Point Europe Award at the doc festival taking place in the Slovak spa town of Piestany.

    Film Europe, the Bratislava-based international distribution and production company which launched a series of awards recognizing Slovak films, gave a prize to Matchmaking Mayor directed by Erika Hnikova and produced by Endor Film. The documentary about a Slovak village mayor whose plans to encourage population growth through social events, was selected for the Berlinale and began its heralded international career by taking home the main prize of the Jihlava doc festival in 2010.

    Nicky's Family from Slovak director Matej Minac and producer/editor Patrik Pass picked up yet another prize on its tour of festivals, the Mayor of theTown of Piestany Award.

    The festival's audience award went to Susanne Bier's documentary In a Better World.

    Festival artistic director Vladimir Stryc called the festival "the most successful in its history so far." The record-breaking attendance reached 17,520 visitors with, Stryc said,"especially promising are the numbers of atendance at both competition section screenings."