NZ Short Film wins award at Mexican film festival

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Monday 9th August 2010

NZ Short Film wins award at top Mexican film festival

Wellington filmmakers Zoe McIntosh and Costa Botes have been awarded a top international prize for their short film Day Trip at the Guanajuato International Film Festival, Expresión En Corto Film Festival in Mexico  Day Trip premiered at the prestigious Tribeca Film Festival in New York City earlier this year.

Day Trip is an 11 minute short drama about a gang member who wakes up one morning and decides he needs a day off.  A short voyage between islands changes his outlook on life.

Day Trip is written and produced by Costa Botes and is based on a true story told to him by an old friend, the late writer, Bill Payne (author of Staunch and Poor Behaviour).  The film is directed by Zoe McIntosh and stars former Mongrel Mob chapter president, Tuhoe Isaac.

The short film received the Signis Award from the jury of Expresión en Corto, ‘for showing us the way of a man surpassing the limits of his oppressive environment and finding liberty’. The film was one of 25 films selected for this competition, and it screened on opening night of the festival to an audience of 5000 people.

The Guanajuato International Film Festival, Expresión en Corto is a state-sponsored, non-profit, cultural event that does not charge admission to its viewing audience. The festival estimates an attendance of over 85,000 total audience members.  The festival’s international competition is the largest in Mexico, receiving over 2,400 film submissions from more than 90 participating countries. 

Day Trip was funded by the Screen Innovation Production Fund, a partnership between the NZ Film Commission and Creative New Zealand, with post production funding from the NZ Film Commission.  NZ Film represents the film for world sales. 

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