Lila Avilés snagged the top prize at Friday night’s Morelia Intl. Film Festival closing ceremony with her debut feature, “The Chambermaid” (“La Camarista”), which world premiered at Toronto. It also took the Warrior of the Press award.
“Llegamos! Llegamos!” (“We made it! We made it!”), screamed Avilés all the way from her seat to the stage, before breathlessly explaining her excitement. “I used up all of my savings to make this film.”
Alonso Ruizpalacios’ “Museum,” starring Mexico’s most marketable actor Gael García Bernal, had the biggest impact on the public, scoring the Audience Award for best Mexican film. Best director also went to Ruizpalacios.
This year’s festival jury boasted a lineup as impressive as the competition itself. Led by writer-director Lynne Ramsay (“You Were Never Really Here,” “We Need to Talk About Kevin”), the jury included filmmaker Patrice Leconte (“Monsieur Hire”), actor-director-producer Diego Luna (“Star Wars: Rogue One,” “Y Tu Mama También”), EFM founder Beki Probst and Academy Award-winning producer Adele Romanski.
Related
The festival doled out nearly $100,000 in cash prizes in addition to a number of prizes in kind from festival sponsors and honorary awards.
“For the first time, we are presenting an award for Artistic Excellence in Cinema, with Alfonso Cuaron as its first recipient this year,” said festival president Alejandro Ramirez, who co-founded Morelia with VP Cuauhtemoc Cardenas and general director Daniela Michel.
More than half of the documentary and fiction features in competition at this year’s festival came from women filmmakers. And, on Friday night, all the documentary awards went to films directed or co-directed by women.
“We received 500 shorts, 80 features and 100 documentaries, of which we selected 59 shorts, 11 features and 11 documentaries,” said Ramirez who added, “By coincidence, most of the female directors made the cut.”
“Cold War” director Pawel Pawlikowski, in town to lead an Alfonso Cuarón masterclass, was recognized with the UNAM Filmoteca Medal. Michel describes Pawlikowski as: “One of the most extraordinarily lucid and precise filmmakers working today.”
Cuervo, which sponsored the closing night party, also gave a lifetime achievement award to actress Cecilia Suárez.
The Locarno Academy held its fourth edition in cooperation with Morelia, moderated by Interior XIII founder Sandra Gomez. The event is held to foster the growth and development of emerging industry talent through a series of classes, workshops and meetings.
This year’s Impulso Morelia, the festival’s works in progress section for Mexican films, was praised for its selection of films which often took an honest yet critical look at issues facing Mexican society today. Big winners at the event were Hari Sama’s coming-of-age drama “This is Not Berlin” and Gian Cassini’s autobiographical documentary “Comala.”
WINNERS OF THE 16TH MORELIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (October 20-28, 2017)
MEXICAN FICTION SECTION
Best Film
“La Camarista,” Lila Avilés
Best Director
Alonso Ruizpalacios, (“Museo”)
Best Actress
Naian González Norvind, “Leona”
Best Actress Special Mention
Sótera Cruz, “Xquipi’ Guie’dani”
Best Actor
Raúl Briones, “Asfixia”
Press Award for Best Fiction Feature
“La Camarista,” Lila Avilés
Audience Award for a Mexican Feature
“Museum,” Alonso Ruizpalacios
DOCUMENTARY SECTION
Best Mexican Feature Documentary
“Una Corriente Salvaje,” Nuria Ibáñez Castañeda
Best Documentary from a Female Director
“El Sembrador,” Melissa Elizondo
Audience Award for a Mexican Feature Documentary
“El Sembrador,” Melissa Elizondo
Special Mention
“Ya Me Voy,” Lindsey Cordero, Armando Croda
SHORT FILMS SECTION
Best Mexican Fiction Short
“The Girl with Two Heads,” Betzabé Garcia
Best Mexican Documentary Short
“El Peso de los Caídos,” Gastón Andrade
Mexican Online Short
“Las Rancheras,” Hermann Neudert
Best Animated Short
“32-Rbit,” Víctor Orozco Ramírez
Special Mention for a Mexican Short
“Ombligo de Agua,” Laura Baumeister
Renta Imagen Special Award
“El Aire Delgado,” Pablo Giles
MICHOACAN SECTION
Best Film
“El Amor Dura Tres Meses,” Rafael Martínez García
Special Mention
“Noticias de Plutón,” Diego Flores Contreras