Big Muddy Film Festival winners announced

A poignant American documentary that details the struggles of a homeless elderly Japanese-American living in the streets of Soho at the time of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack and his subsequent journey was the top film from this year's 29th annual Big Muddy Film Festival held at SIUC.

A top cat — "The Cats of Mirikitani," a documentary that details the struggles of 80-year-old Japanese-American Jimmy Mirikitani, was the top film at the 29th annual Big Muddy Film Festival held at SIUC.

"The Cats of Mirikitani," directed by Manhattan filmmaker Linda Hattendorf, won the $2,000 top prize, in addition to a $150 honorable mention selection in the John Michaels Film Award competition.

"It's a very moving film. I'm very excited it won," festival executive director Sally Shafto said.

The festival ran Feb. 22 through March 4. Judges in the 11-day event — one of the oldest film festivals affiliated with a university — awarded more than $3,500 in prizes. Attendance at this year's festival for the 65 to 70 films viewed at SIUC and in theaters throughout the region was 2,239, Shafto said.

The three jurors were experimental filmmaker Amy Granat, who is originally from St. Louis; French filmmaker/photographer Babette Mangolte; and renowned film critic Jonathan Rosenbaum.

Hattendorf befriends Mirikitani — who likes painting cats — after inquiring about his art, and learns the man's story. A U.S. citizen, Mirikitani grew up in Hiroshima but returned to America to become an artist a few years before the start of World War II. The government placed him, along with thousands of other Japanese-Americans, in an interment camp, where he lost touch with his family. It is through Hattendorf's efforts nearly 60 years later that Mirikitani learns his U.S. citizenship was reinstated in 1958.

The 74-minute documentary deals with Mirikitani's memories as he retraces his journey, but also explores dealing with foreign cultures in a time of war by drawing parallels with how Americans treat Arab-Americans and Middle Easterners in the aftermath of 9-11, Shafto said.

The film is currently playing at Cinema Village in New York City and opens April 6 at Facets Multi-Media in Chicago. The film airs nationally on PBS at 9:30 p.m., May 8, and will be shown locally on WSIU-TV Channel 8 via tape delay at 9 p.m., May 15. The film airs two more times in May, both nationally and locally, at 2:30 a.m., May 10, and 3 a.m., May 13.

"Part of the power of the film comes from its editing," Shafto said. "It is incredibly well-edited and well-paced. There is a pacing in the narrative and it works really well."

Unlike films that run two hours or longer that sometimes leave "absolutely nothing to the imagination," Shafto said it is important that Hattendorf's effort is "economical," and "leaves you wanting to know a little bit more."

Another powerful film that received the John Michaels Award — which examines important political and social issues — was "Sun and Death: Chernobyl and After …" The French documentary was directed by Bernard Debord, and focuses on the effects of the April 1986 Chernobyl nuclear explosion on nearby Belarus, whose population is "virtually condemned from ingesting small quantities of radioactive materials over a long period of time."

A prescreening committee selected the films shown from 240 entries for this year's showcase, Shafto said. The festival also brought in some of the best non-competing contemporary American and foreign films for viewing, and Shafto was pleased at least twice as many films were shown at Kerasotas University 8 Place Theater in Carbondale than in previous years.

The festival is known for its documentaries, and Shafto said this year was no different in that "we had an exceptional crop of documentaries this year."

Shafto is hoping to receive 300 entries for next year's festival — which will mark the event's 30th anniversary. The 2008 Big Muddy Film Festival is scheduled for Feb. 15-24. Shafto expects the call for entries to go out in May, with deadlines of Sept. 1, Oct. 1, and Nov. 1.

Additional information on the film festival and this year's award-winning films is found here.

The 2007 Big Muddy Film Festival winning films, director, and run time are:

Big Muddy Film Festival $2,000 cash award

• "The Cats of Mirikitani," directed by Linda Hattendorf, USA, 2006, 74 minutes.

Best Animation and Experimental Work — $250 awards

• "Dinner Table," directed by Song E. Kim, USA, 2006, 3 minutes.
• "Pillow Girl," directed by Ronnie Cramer, USA, 2006, 8 minutes.
• "Out of (K)Nowhere: A film by Anne Prat," directed by Christian Lebrat, France, 2006, 24 minutes.

Documentaries — $150 awards

• "Beyond Closed Doors," directed by Hugh Dorigo, USA, 2006, 56 minutes.
• "Like a Ship in the Night," directed by Melissa Thompson, USA, 2006, 30 minutes.
• "Sun and Death: Chernobyl and After …" directed by Bernard Debord, France, 2006, 82 minutes.
• "Up the Ridge," directed by Nick Szuberla and Amelia Kirby, USA, 2006, 54 minutes.
• "Gimmie Green," directed by Isaac Brown and Eric Flagg, USA, 2006, 27 minutes.

John Michaels Film Award Winner — $150 award

• "Sun and Death: Chernobyl and After …" directed by Bernard Debord, France, 2006, 82 minutes.

Honorable mention — $150 awards

• "Hidden Wounds," directed by Iris Adler, USA, 2006, 57 minutes.
• "The Cats of Mirikitani," directed by Linda Hattendorf, USA, 2006, 74 minutes.
• "Up the Ridge," directed by Nick Szuberla and Amelia Kirby, USA, 2006, 54 minutes.

Audience Choice Honors — No cash awards

• "Sex Slaves," directed by Ric Esther Bienstock, Canada, 2005, 89 minutes.
• "The Cats of Mirikitani," directed by Linda Hattendorf, USA, 2006, 74 minutes.
• "Pillow Girl," directed by Ronnie Cramer, USA, 2006, 8 minutes.
• "Alice Sees the Light," directed by Ariana Gerstein, USA, 2006, 6 minutes.

Best of the Fest Program

• "Pillow Girl," directed by Ronnie Cramer, USA, 2006, 8 minutes.
• "Dinner Table," directed by Song E. Kim, USA, 2006, 3 minutes.
• "Out of (K)Nowhere: A film by Anne Prat, directed by Christian Lebrat, France, 2006, 24 minutes.
• "The Cats of Mirikitani," directed by Linda Hattendorf, USA, 2006, 74 minutes.

- Pete Rosenbery