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Short Shorts Film Festival Asia Awards

The Closing Ceremony of the first Short Shorts Film Festival Asia was held at the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography on Sunday, 31 October, 2004. It was well attended by filmmakers, all members of the jury, representatives of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and general audience. The results were announced on stage by the 5-person jury. As anticipated by many, Korean works swept the boards and the jury commended the Korean government's wholehearted support of its film industry. Below please find the award results, and comments by the jury.

For the National Program, the general "National Non-Ghost Award" and "National Ghost Award" were created. After the discussion by the members of the Jury, they have come up with a result that none of the films were qualified for the awards. But the Jury would like to mention two "National Encouragement."

National Non-Ghost Encouragement
[My Life as a LCD] Dir. Maiko Tsunoda
Strong and sharp, it gets to the point about what a short film is. It makes a statement that you don’t have to conform to any genre or style to make a point, and shows that short films do not have to be a door to features.

National Ghost Encouragement
[VS] Dir. Isamu Hirabayashi
It is stylish, interesting and stands out from the other National shorts.

Asian Non-Ghost Award
[Wanita Cosmos] Dir. Diffan Sina Norman / Malaysia
A courageous film that tackles a sensitive issue with wit and humor. It is full of color and is positive in a seemingly ridiculous way.

Asian Ghost Award
[Radio Dreams] Dir. Yune Ji-Won / Korea
This film takes an imaginative approach to a theme that is now quite common, and represents tough situations through simple, human drama, with a memorable ending.

Asian Ghost Award
[The Hell] Dir. Yeon Sang-Ho / Korea
This film served its purpose as a horror film, blending ordinary reality with the surreal in a creative and shocking way.

Non Ghost Grand Prix
[The Life] Dir. Kim Jun-Ki / Korea
Innovative, original, and makes a big impact through the little details. It tells a strong story, in a consistent tone, with a metaphorical, symbolic expression that is not at all trite. With the current predominance of computer graphics, it stands out on its own.

Ghost Grand Prix
[Pipio] Dir. Kang Man-Jin / Korea
Governor of Tokyo Award was also given to Dir. Kang Man-Jin.
It has a strong acting ensemble, technical excellence, and most of all, a positive spirit. It does not resort to conventional ways of making a horror film. Instead, it is grounded in real life, and is moving in a visual way.

Audience Award
[The Secret Heaven] Dir. Sun Koh / Singapore
This is not the first time that The Secret Heaven has won the hearts of audiences at a film festival. The story about a 5-year-old girl who hates piano lessons has previously won the People's Choice for Best Short Film Competition at the 5th Women's Film Festival in Seoul.
By Maggie Lee, Program Director
more info at http://www.shortshorts.org/asia/language.html