Awards 2007

The Gold Hugo – Best Film is awarded to:
Silent Light (Mexico), directed by Carlos Reygadas, for its mesmerizing power to make us hear silence in a world of sound.

The Silver Hugo – Special Jury Prize is awarded to:
Tuya’s Marriage (China), directed by Wang Quanan, for its strong portrait of a woman struggling to survive a remote landscape.

The Silver Hugo for Direction is awarded to:
You, The Living (Sweden) for his extraordinary, quirky vision and humor.

Silver Hugo Award – Best Actress is awarded to:
Yu Nan for Tuya’s Marriage (China) for her delicate, natural performance as a woman in crisis which is the soul of the film.

Silver Hugo Award – Best Actor is awarded to:
Sam Riley for Control (UK) for an incredible star-making performance as Ian Curtis.

The Silver Hugo Award for Best Screenplay is awarded to:
Matt Greenhalgh for Control (UK), based on the book by Deborah Curtis, for brilliantly capturing the essence of a rock legend in a dramatically complete love story.

Plaques:
Chico Teixeira for Alice’s House (Brazil), for recognizing a dynamic new talent in Latin filmmaking.

Please click here to view the Main Jury Members

NEW DIRECTORS COMPETITION

The Gold Hugo is awarded to:
In Memory of Myself (Italy), directed by Saverio Costanzo. Writer/director Costanzo situates a tormented seminarian in a study of the architecture of the existential soul.

The Silver Hugo is awarded to:
Not By Chance (Brazil), directed by Philippe Barcinski, for its vibrant portrayal of the way lives intersect by chance and design as depicted on the streetscape of Sao Paolo. Barcinski also co-wrote the screenplay.

SHORT FILM COMPETITION

The Gold Hugo for Best Short Film is awarded to:
Hesitation (France/UK), directed by Virginia Gilbert.

The Silver Hugo for Best Narrative Short Film is awarded to:
Partus (Denmark), directed by Mikkel Munch-Falls, and Stuck (Scotland) directed by Graham Drysdale.

The Gold Plaque for Best Narrative Short Film is awarded to:
27,000 Days (U.S.), directed by Naveen Singhi.

The Silver Plaque for Best Narrative Short Film is awarded to:
Train Town (U.S., directed by Keith Bearden.

The Silver Hugo for Animated Short Film is awarded to:
Everything Will Be Ok (U.S.), directed by Don Hertzfeld, and For the Love of God (United Kingdom), directed by Joe Tucker.

The Gold Plaque for Animated Short Film is awarded to:
Yours Truly (United Kingdom), directed by Osbert Parker.

The Silver Plaque for Animated Short Film is awarded to:
Sleeping Betty (Canada), directed by Claude Cloutier

The Gold Plaque for Experimental Film is awarded to:
The Delaware Project (Canada), directed by Melanie Shatzky and Brian M. Cassidy.

The Gold Hugo for Best Documentary Short is awarded to:
The Ladies (U.S.), directed by Christina Voros.

DOCUFEST COMPETITION

The Gold Hugo for Best Documentary is awarded to:
Taxi to the Dark Side (U.S.), directed by Alex Gibney.

The Silver Hugo is awarded to:
Chicago 10 (U.S.), directed by Brett Morgen

The Gold Plaque in Direction is awarded to:
America the Beautiful (U.S.), directed by Darryl Roberts

The Gold Plaque in Photography is awarded to:
4 Elements (Netherlands), directed by Jiska Rickels

The Special Jury Prize (Silver Plaque) is awarded to:
Operation Filmmaker (U.S.), directed by Nina Davenport, and A Walk into the Sea (U.S.), directed by Esther Robinson.

CHICAGO AWARD

As part of the Chicago International Film Festival’s special section focusing on local filmmakers, the Chicago Award is presented to a Chicago or Illinois artist for the best feature film, short film, or documentary. The Chicago Award applauds and celebrates the tireless efforts of regional talents who are devotees to the art of cinema and for their contributions to the medium. This year’s Chicago Award goes to Terra Incognita (Director: Maria Finitzo, US)

The Chicago Award Jury included: Mike McNamara (Executive Director of Midwest Independent Film Festival, Chicago); Malik Bader (filmmaker; last year's Chicago Award winner for Street Thief); and Annie Porter (Associate Producer for At the Movies with Ebert & Roeper, Chicago)

This year's Chicago award goes to Street Thief (US), directed by Malik Bader.

SPECIAL TRIBUTES

On October 4, 2007, Roger Ebert was presented with a GOLD HUGO, Lifetime Achievement Award; the entire 2007 Festival is dedicated to the legendary film critic.

On October 12, 2007, John Cusack was presented with a Career Achievement Award preceding the Chicago Premiere of his film, Grace is Gone.

On October 13, 2007, actor Jeffrey Wright was presented with a Career Achievement Award during the 11th Black Perspectives Tribute.

AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARD

Control (UK) - Director Anton Corbijn's account of the tragic life of Ian Curtis - from his youthful existential crises and teenage marriage to his deification as front man of seminal '70s band Joy Division and eventual suicide at age 23.

Lovesickness (Puerto Rico) - Directors Carlitos Ruiz Ruiz and Mariem Perez Riera's darkly comic triptych about love in all of its various forms and stages.

Spirit of the Marathon (U.S.) - Director Jon Dunham's documentary following three amateur runners and two of the world's elite as they train for and finally run the Chicago Marathon.

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