The Circuit

The Calgary International Film Festival announced that Clement Vigo's "Poor Boy's Game" won their best Canadian feature while Daniel Gruener's "Never on a Sunday" won best international film. 

Music video and commercial director Daniel Gruener’s “Never on a Sunday” is a comedy exploring Mexican corruption. “Poor Boy’s Game,” a boxing story about race and class, stars Danny Glover.  Check out the trailer:

Other CIFF awards, from their press release:

• The National Film Board Best Documentary was presented to DRIVEN BY DREAMS / À FORCE DE RÊVES by filmmaker Serge Giguère. DRIVEN BY DREAMS provides a snapshot of a handful of individuals aged 72 through 94 in rural Quebec; ordinary individuals who because of their energy have done extraordinary things.

• The Movieola Best Short Film was presented to MADAME TUTLI-PUTLI by Canadian filmmakers Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski. MADAME TUTLI-PUTLI is a stunning, stop-motion animated film that takes the viewer on an exhilarating existential journey with Madame Tutli-Putli who boards the night train, weighed down with all her earthly possessions and the ghosts of her past.

• CIFF's Best International Documentary was awarded to OUT OF TIME / AUS DER ZEIT by Austrian director Harald Friedl.  The film examines the passing of time and the impact of "big box" retail on small and specialized mom-and-pop shops in Vienna as they struggle to stay open. 

• The Joe Media Alberta Centennial Award (ACA) celebrating the best new Alberta short film was presented to Cam Christensen for I HAVE SEEN THE FUTURE. Christensen's 6-minute short features animation set to the musical talents of Kris Demeanor. The ACAs were awarded at a special screening presentation on Sunday, September 23, 2007 at the Uptown Stage and Screen.

• The inaugural Youth by Youth Cinema (YYC) Filmmaking Competition award was presented to Andrew Gillingham for his short narrative film MR. POSTMAN and to Cheyanne Saddleback, Charise Bates, James Morgan and Ranjene Mazumdar for the short documentary, THE UPRISING. The YYC awards were presented at a special screening presentation on Saturday, September 22, 2007 at The Plaza.

• The recipient of the American Express People's Choice Award is ROCK PAPER SCISSORS by Calgary filmmaker Mike McKeown. ROCK PAPER SCISSORS, a verité style documentary, follows the story of the Walker brothers and the evolution of Rock Paper Scissors into a legitimate sport of skill and strategy, worthy of training and competition.

• An honorable mention was made to filmmaker Michael Damian for MOONDANCE ALEXANDER for Best Family Feature Film. Filmed in the velvet-green pastures, and big blue-sky foothills of Okotoks and High River, Alberta, MOONDANCE ALEXANDER is a classic, uplifting tale of a teenaged girl and the horse she loves.