The 13th
Annual Urbanworld Film Festival winners , presented by BET Networks, announced
the winners for feature, documentary, short film, screenplay and audience award
categories. The five-day festival
was held September 23-27 in New York City; wrapping up on September 27 with a
closing awards brunch to congratulate the competition’s winners. We screened 68
films this year, is the largest
internationally competitive festival dedicated to the exhibition of independent
cinema by and about people of color.
The 13th
Annual Urbanworld Film Festival winners are:
Best
Narrative Feature Film
MISSISSIPPI DAMNED
Written & Directed By Tina Mabry; Produced By Morgan Stiff
Best Documentary
Feature Film
STILL BILL
Written & Directed By Alex Vlack & Damani Baker; Produced By Alex
Vlack, Damani Baker, Jon Fine, & Andrew Zuckerman
Documentary Feature Honorable Mention
THE VISITORS
Directed By Melis Birder
Best
Documentary Short Film
A SONG FOR OURSELVES
Written & Directed By Tadashi Nakamura; Produced By Karen Ishizuka
& Robert Nakamura
THE ROE EFFECT
Written & Directed By Kiel Adrian Scott; Produced By Kiel Adrian Scott, Noelle K. Barnes, & Kiara Jones
Narrative Short Honorable Mention
LIFE ON EARTH
Written By Courtney Stephens; Directed By Jeffrey Keith, Produced By R. Kiplin Pastor
Best
Screenplay
145th STREET
Written By Charles
Burnett
Awarded $5,000 cash prize by HBO
Audience
Award Winner
STILL BILL
Written & Directed By Alex Vlack & Damani Baker; Produced By Alex Vlack, Damani Baker, Jon Fine, & Andrew Zuckerman
Audience Award Honorable Mention
P-STAR RISING
Directed By Gabriel Noble; Produced By Marjan Tehrani
“On behalf of the
Urbanworld Film Festival and our Presenting Sponsor BET Networks, I proudly
congratulate the exceptional winners of the Festival’s 13th annual
competition,” said Stacy Spikes, founder of Urbanworld. “As Urbanworld consistently recognizes
and celebrates excellence in films by and about people of color, we are honored
to present such a diverse slate of filmmakers and content, both represented in
the overall festival and in the 2009 roster of winners.
Highlights of the 13th annual Urbanworld Film Festival included a special closing night screening of Good Hair, directed by Jeff Stilson, produced by Nelson George and Chris Rock, and starring Chris Rock.
