2008 Sundance/NHK International Filmmaker award finalists announced

LOS ANGELES — Sundance Institute and NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) announced Tuesday the twelve finalists for the 2008 Sundance/NHK International Filmmakers Award.

This annual award supports new visionary artists in international cinema and is presented to emerging film directors from four global regions to support them in realizing their next projects. One winner each from Europe, Latin America, the United States and Japan is selected by members of an international jury. The four winners will be announced during the 2008 Sundance Film Festival and presented with their awards at the Festival Awards Ceremony.

The winning filmmaker from each region will receive a $10,000 award and a guarantee from NHK to acquire the Japanese television broadcast rights upon completion of their project.

Past recipients of the award include: Miranda July, ME AND YOU AND EVERYONE WE KNOW (USA); Andrucha Waddington, THE HOUSE OF SAND (Brazil); Lucrecia Martel, LA CIENAGA (Argentina); Juan Pablo Rebella and Pablo Stoll, WHISKY (Uruguay); Walter Salles, CENTRAL STATION (Brazil); Chris Eyre, SMOKE SIGNALS (USA); György Pálfi, TAXIDERMIA (Hungary) and Catalin Mitulescu, THE WAY I SPENT THE END OF THE WORLD (Romania).

Recent winners include Lucia Cedron, AGNUS DEI (Latin America); Caran Hartsfield, BURY ME STANDING (USA); Tomoko Kana, TWO BY THE RIVER (Japan); and Dagur Kari, THE GOOD HEART (Europe). Alex Rivera (USA) will premiere his film SLEEP DEALER in competition at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.

This year's projects range from Slovenia and Bosnia to Chile, Japan and the United States. The twelve finalists for the 2008 Sundance/NHK International Filmmakers Awards are:

EUROPE

Janez Burger / CIRCUS FANTASTICUS (Slovenia) — After losing his wife and home to the ravages of war, Stevo and his two children discover a new beginning when a circus arrives at their demolished home to stage a final performance.