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The Rocket (12A)
(Kim Mordaunt, 2013, Aus/Thai/Laos) Sitthiphon Disamoe, Loungnam Kaosainam, Thep Phongam, Bunsri Yindi. 96 mins
Children are often the best ambassadors for world cinema and so it proves here, in a Laos-set tale that's sympathetic but never condescending. The story centres on a displaced boy burdened by a perceived "curse". But it's told with documentary-like conviction and distinctly local details, from James Brown-worshipping war vets to the unexploded ordnance littering the landscape.
Under The Skin (15)
(Jonathan Glazer, 2013, UK) Scarlett Johansson, Paul Brannigan. Krystof Hádek. 108 mins
Glazer's delectably mystifying sci-fi makes Glasgow look like another planet – as seen through the eyes of Johansson's alien seductress, on the prowl for unsuspecting males. It sounds like a highbrow Species, but the imagery and sustained strangeness put it in a realm of its own.
The Zero Theorem (15)
(Terry Gilliam,...
The Rocket (12A)
(Kim Mordaunt, 2013, Aus/Thai/Laos) Sitthiphon Disamoe, Loungnam Kaosainam, Thep Phongam, Bunsri Yindi. 96 mins
Children are often the best ambassadors for world cinema and so it proves here, in a Laos-set tale that's sympathetic but never condescending. The story centres on a displaced boy burdened by a perceived "curse". But it's told with documentary-like conviction and distinctly local details, from James Brown-worshipping war vets to the unexploded ordnance littering the landscape.
Under The Skin (15)
(Jonathan Glazer, 2013, UK) Scarlett Johansson, Paul Brannigan. Krystof Hádek. 108 mins
Glazer's delectably mystifying sci-fi makes Glasgow look like another planet – as seen through the eyes of Johansson's alien seductress, on the prowl for unsuspecting males. It sounds like a highbrow Species, but the imagery and sustained strangeness put it in a realm of its own.
The Zero Theorem (15)
(Terry Gilliam,...
- 3/15/2014
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
This Laos-set drama about a firework competition – and unexploded wartime ordnance – is sweet natured, if low-key
Kim Mordaunt's The Rocket is a debut fiction feature from an Australian documentary-maker, set in Laos. It is a likable piece of work whose gentleness is an interesting contrast to the grim and even tragic subject matter. It should, perhaps, be seen specifically as a children's film. The Rocket seems to have grown out of Mordaunt's 2007 documentary Bomb Harvest, about the work of an Australian bomb disposal expert trying to clear away the huge number of unexploded devices dropped on Laos by the Us during the Vietnam war. Children are still at risk from these terrifying objects in the ground. The story is about a young Laotian boy, Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe), who is believed by his family to be "cursed", a bringer of bad luck. Ahlo battles on, however, making friends with an orphan and her wacky uncle,...
Kim Mordaunt's The Rocket is a debut fiction feature from an Australian documentary-maker, set in Laos. It is a likable piece of work whose gentleness is an interesting contrast to the grim and even tragic subject matter. It should, perhaps, be seen specifically as a children's film. The Rocket seems to have grown out of Mordaunt's 2007 documentary Bomb Harvest, about the work of an Australian bomb disposal expert trying to clear away the huge number of unexploded devices dropped on Laos by the Us during the Vietnam war. Children are still at risk from these terrifying objects in the ground. The story is about a young Laotian boy, Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe), who is believed by his family to be "cursed", a bringer of bad luck. Ahlo battles on, however, making friends with an orphan and her wacky uncle,...
- 3/14/2014
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
The repercussions of the past are felt in more ways than one in The Rocket – an elegantly-told and spirited yarn which hints at a magical realism, while keeping its (at times, sobering) feet firmly on the ground. In the dilapidated, war-scarred country of Laos, an old superstition deems a baby named Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe) as the harbinger of bad luck from birth, when his twin brother is stillborn. A decade on, the young boy and his family are forced to relocate from their soon-to-be purposely flooded village. Ahlo is still being labelled a curse, and that accusation is sadly magnified when his insistence on talking his cherished boat cross-country results in tragedy.
Relocated to a temporary, slum-like housing encampment, the deflated Ahlo strikes up a much-needed friendship with a similarly-aged orphan girl and her uncle – the local drunk who (somewhat bizarrely) models himself on the late soul superstar, James Brown.
Relocated to a temporary, slum-like housing encampment, the deflated Ahlo strikes up a much-needed friendship with a similarly-aged orphan girl and her uncle – the local drunk who (somewhat bizarrely) models himself on the late soul superstar, James Brown.
- 3/13/2014
- by Adam Lowes
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The feature debut from documentarian Kim Mordaunt follows the plight of a young village boy in rural Laos, who is believed to bring bad luck to his family, and his efforts to win them back by entering a dangerous rocket festival. 10-year-old Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe) has been branded as bad luck since the day he was born alongside a stillborn twin brother. Cited as the cause of all his family's misfortune, including the accidental death of his mother, Ahlo is finally shunned from the community when a new dam development ousts them from their homes. Ahlo seeks refuge with an eccentric outcast, Uncle Purple (Thep Phongam) and his young niece, Kia, but yearns for the love of his father. As the villagers prepare for the annual...
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- 3/13/2014
- Screen Anarchy
Ivan Sen.s Mystery Road and Kim Mordaunt.s The Rocket shared the best film honours at the Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards presented last night.
The Great Gatsby collected four awards followed by The Rocket with 3 and Mystery Road and The Turning with 2 awards each.
Naomi Watts was named best actress for her role in the little-seen Adoration and Aaron Pedersen was best actor for Mystery Road. Sen was best director.
There was another tie for the supporting actor prize: The Great Gatsby.s Joel Edgerton and Mystery Road.s Hugo Weaving. The Turning.s Rose Byrne was best supporting actress. The Rocket.s Sitthiphon Disamoe was on hand to receive the gong for best young performer.
Best script award went to The Railway Man.s Frank Cottrell Boyce and Andy Paterson. Haydn Keenan's Persons of Interest was named best documentary.
An Acknowledgment Award was presented to...
The Great Gatsby collected four awards followed by The Rocket with 3 and Mystery Road and The Turning with 2 awards each.
Naomi Watts was named best actress for her role in the little-seen Adoration and Aaron Pedersen was best actor for Mystery Road. Sen was best director.
There was another tie for the supporting actor prize: The Great Gatsby.s Joel Edgerton and Mystery Road.s Hugo Weaving. The Turning.s Rose Byrne was best supporting actress. The Rocket.s Sitthiphon Disamoe was on hand to receive the gong for best young performer.
Best script award went to The Railway Man.s Frank Cottrell Boyce and Andy Paterson. Haydn Keenan's Persons of Interest was named best documentary.
An Acknowledgment Award was presented to...
- 3/11/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Ivan Sen.s Mystery Road. won six of the eight awards for Australian films at the Australian Film Critics Association 2014 film and writing awards.
The murder mystery produced by David Jowsey was feted as best film and for Sen.s direction, screenplay and cinematography, lead actor Aaron Pedersen and supporting actor Hugo Weaving.
Nicole Kidman was named best actress for The Railway Man and Rose Byrne took the supporting actress prize for Tim Winton's The Turning.
Tarantino's Django Unchanged was judged best international film and Michael Haneke.s Amour best foreign-language international film. Best documentary went to Sarah Polley.s Stories We Tell.
The Afca has about 75 members. .All our members voted on the Awards and the majority clearly felt Ivan Sen's gripping outback noir was the best Australian film from the last 12 months,. said Afca chair Richard Haridy, whose outlets are ABC Radio Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast,...
The murder mystery produced by David Jowsey was feted as best film and for Sen.s direction, screenplay and cinematography, lead actor Aaron Pedersen and supporting actor Hugo Weaving.
Nicole Kidman was named best actress for The Railway Man and Rose Byrne took the supporting actress prize for Tim Winton's The Turning.
Tarantino's Django Unchanged was judged best international film and Michael Haneke.s Amour best foreign-language international film. Best documentary went to Sarah Polley.s Stories We Tell.
The Afca has about 75 members. .All our members voted on the Awards and the majority clearly felt Ivan Sen's gripping outback noir was the best Australian film from the last 12 months,. said Afca chair Richard Haridy, whose outlets are ABC Radio Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast,...
- 3/2/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
While a lively debate over the 13 Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards for The Great Gatsby rages on social media, TV viewers have given their verdict on the Network Ten telecast.
The delayed two-hour show, which started at 8.30 pm, drew an average audience of 400,000 in the capital cities and a peak of 540,000. That was better than last year.s one-hour telecast which had 331,000 viewers. To be fair the AFI confirmed Ten as its broadcast partner only a couple of weeks before that so there was a lack of promotion last year.
The show, which had a weak lead-in from Jamie Oliver's new series Save with Jamie,. was beaten by Person of Interest on Nine and Bones on Seven.
On Facebook and Twitter there was a pronounced backlash against The Great Gatsby.s domination over The Rocket. Kim Mordaunt.s low-budget Lao-set drama got 12 nominations, two fewer than Baz Luhrmann.s opus,...
The delayed two-hour show, which started at 8.30 pm, drew an average audience of 400,000 in the capital cities and a peak of 540,000. That was better than last year.s one-hour telecast which had 331,000 viewers. To be fair the AFI confirmed Ten as its broadcast partner only a couple of weeks before that so there was a lack of promotion last year.
The show, which had a weak lead-in from Jamie Oliver's new series Save with Jamie,. was beaten by Person of Interest on Nine and Bones on Seven.
On Facebook and Twitter there was a pronounced backlash against The Great Gatsby.s domination over The Rocket. Kim Mordaunt.s low-budget Lao-set drama got 12 nominations, two fewer than Baz Luhrmann.s opus,...
- 1/30/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation wins every film category but two at the annual Australian awards ceremony.
The big budget Us-financed jazz age extravaganza The Great Gatsby won every film category but two at the annual Aacta (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television) Awards this evening Australian time in Sydney.
This included the best film gong, which goes to Australian producers Baz Luhrmann, Catherine Martin and Catherine Knapman and their Us counterparts Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher.
Luhrmann also scored best director and, with his high school friend and regular collaborator Craig Pearce, best adapted screenplay.
The only award The Great Gatsby could have won but didn’t was for best actress: that instead went to Rose Byrne for her small part — all the actors had small roles overall — in the bold anthology film The Turning, adapted from a book of short stories by popular novelist Tim Winton.
The Rocket, a festival hit made on a shoestring budget...
The big budget Us-financed jazz age extravaganza The Great Gatsby won every film category but two at the annual Aacta (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television) Awards this evening Australian time in Sydney.
This included the best film gong, which goes to Australian producers Baz Luhrmann, Catherine Martin and Catherine Knapman and their Us counterparts Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher.
Luhrmann also scored best director and, with his high school friend and regular collaborator Craig Pearce, best adapted screenplay.
The only award The Great Gatsby could have won but didn’t was for best actress: that instead went to Rose Byrne for her small part — all the actors had small roles overall — in the bold anthology film The Turning, adapted from a book of short stories by popular novelist Tim Winton.
The Rocket, a festival hit made on a shoestring budget...
- 1/30/2014
- by Sandy.George@me.com (Sandy George)
- ScreenDaily
Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation wins every film category but two at the annual Australian awards ceremony.
The big budget Us-financed jazz age extravaganza The Great Gatsby won every film category but two at the annual Aacta (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television) Awards this evening Australian time in Sydney.
This included the best film gong, which goes to Australian producers Baz Luhrmann, Catherine Martin and Catherine Knapman and their Us counterparts Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher.
Luhrmann also scored best director and, with his high school friend and regular collaborator Craig Pearce, best adapted screenplay.
The only award The Great Gatsby could have won but didn’t was for best actress: that instead went to Rose Byrne for her small part — all the actors had small roles overall — in the bold anthology film The Turning, adapted from a book of short stories by popular novelist Tim Winton.
The Rocket, a festival hit made on a shoestring budget...
The big budget Us-financed jazz age extravaganza The Great Gatsby won every film category but two at the annual Aacta (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television) Awards this evening Australian time in Sydney.
This included the best film gong, which goes to Australian producers Baz Luhrmann, Catherine Martin and Catherine Knapman and their Us counterparts Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher.
Luhrmann also scored best director and, with his high school friend and regular collaborator Craig Pearce, best adapted screenplay.
The only award The Great Gatsby could have won but didn’t was for best actress: that instead went to Rose Byrne for her small part — all the actors had small roles overall — in the bold anthology film The Turning, adapted from a book of short stories by popular novelist Tim Winton.
The Rocket, a festival hit made on a shoestring budget...
- 1/30/2014
- by Sandy.George@me.com (Sandy George)
- ScreenDaily
Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation wins every film category but two at the annual Australian awards ceremony.
The big budget Us-financed jazz age extravaganza The Great Gatsby won every film category but two at the annual Aacta (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television) Awards this evening Australian time in Sydney.
This included the best film gong, which goes to Australian producers Baz Luhrmann, Catherine Martin and Catherine Knapman and their Us counterparts Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher.
Luhrmann also scored best director and, with his high school friend and regular collaborator Craig Pearce, best adapted screenplay.
The only award The Great Gatsby could have won but didn’t was for best actress: that instead went to Rose Byrne for her small part — all the actors had small roles overall — in the bold anthology film The Turning, adapted from a book of short stories by popular novelist Tim Winton.
The Rocket, a festival hit made on a shoestring budget...
The big budget Us-financed jazz age extravaganza The Great Gatsby won every film category but two at the annual Aacta (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television) Awards this evening Australian time in Sydney.
This included the best film gong, which goes to Australian producers Baz Luhrmann, Catherine Martin and Catherine Knapman and their Us counterparts Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher.
Luhrmann also scored best director and, with his high school friend and regular collaborator Craig Pearce, best adapted screenplay.
The only award The Great Gatsby could have won but didn’t was for best actress: that instead went to Rose Byrne for her small part — all the actors had small roles overall — in the bold anthology film The Turning, adapted from a book of short stories by popular novelist Tim Winton.
The Rocket, a festival hit made on a shoestring budget...
- 1/30/2014
- by Sandy.George@me.com (Sandy George)
- ScreenDaily
If the 3rd annual Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards could be categorised as a David vs Goliath battle between The Rocket and The Great Gatsby, Goliath is the hands-down winner.
Baz Luhrmann.s opulent romantic drama won six awards tonight, for best film, director, adapted screenplay, lead actor Leonardo DiCaprio, supporting actor Joel Edgerton and supporting actress Elizabeth Debicki.
That.s in addition to the six awards in craft categories plus the Aacta award for outstanding achievement in visual effects bestowed on Luhrmann.s film on Tuesday.
Kim Mordaunt's The Rocket, which had 12 nominations versus 14 for Gatsby, had to be content with just one trophy, for Mordaunt.s original screenplay.
The outcome is likely to reignite the debate about the near-impossibility of comparing a lavishly-mounted 3D film financed by Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow Pictures, which cost $160 million, with an independently-funded Lao-set film from a first-time director budgeted at about $2 million.
Baz Luhrmann.s opulent romantic drama won six awards tonight, for best film, director, adapted screenplay, lead actor Leonardo DiCaprio, supporting actor Joel Edgerton and supporting actress Elizabeth Debicki.
That.s in addition to the six awards in craft categories plus the Aacta award for outstanding achievement in visual effects bestowed on Luhrmann.s film on Tuesday.
Kim Mordaunt's The Rocket, which had 12 nominations versus 14 for Gatsby, had to be content with just one trophy, for Mordaunt.s original screenplay.
The outcome is likely to reignite the debate about the near-impossibility of comparing a lavishly-mounted 3D film financed by Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow Pictures, which cost $160 million, with an independently-funded Lao-set film from a first-time director budgeted at about $2 million.
- 1/30/2014
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Making magnificent use of the Laotian landscape and tribal traditions, Australian director Kim Mordaunt's The Rocket is a coming-of-age tale infused with fantastic elements that more than compensate for its predictability.
In every set of twins lives a curse, according to tribal elders. Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe) survived childbirth while his sibling was stillborn, but even this good fortune is dampened by beliefs that all but brandish him a bad seed from the womb.
He spends the entirety of his youth trying to unburden himself from this shadow, constantly attempting to prove his worth and goodness to his parents and grandmother.
When his mother dies during a freak accident for which he appears responsible, Ahlo sets out to make something of himself and f...
In every set of twins lives a curse, according to tribal elders. Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe) survived childbirth while his sibling was stillborn, but even this good fortune is dampened by beliefs that all but brandish him a bad seed from the womb.
He spends the entirety of his youth trying to unburden himself from this shadow, constantly attempting to prove his worth and goodness to his parents and grandmother.
When his mother dies during a freak accident for which he appears responsible, Ahlo sets out to make something of himself and f...
- 1/9/2014
- Village Voice
There’s a tricky balance to be found in Australian documentarian Kim Mordaunt’s impressive narrative debut “The Rocket.” Mordaunt, who returns to Laos after exploring the country in his documentary “The Bomb Harvest,” tells a tale that’s both humanistic and soulful, yet political and socially aware. Tip the scales in either direction and your tonal equilibrium is thrown out of order. And that’s perhaps what makes “The Rocket” so special; it’s a thoughtful, well-observed drama that contains many painful struggles and hardships, quietly chronicles third world poverty and social inequities, and yet never condescends to preach or teach. In fact, when the beleaguered protagonists finally receive some much-needed respite and joy, the payoff is well-earned. In rural Laos, a young boy, Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe), is unknowingly born into bad luck. Local superstition dictates that twins are evil omens and the children should be killed off. Ahlo...
- 1/8/2014
- by Rodrigo Perez
- The Playlist
New Release
The Invisible Woman
R, 1 Hr., 51 Mins.
It’s a pleasure to see Ralph Fiennes, in the second film he’s directed, abandon his reticence to play Charles Dickens as an ebullient, laughing mensch a Victorian rock star whose literary celebrity masks his hunger for love. Dickens’ wife has borne him 10 children, but the two have little communion. So when he meets Nelly (Felicity Jones), a young actress with a yen for his novels, he falls for her but must keep their bond a secret. Alas, the impeccably shot film dribbles more than it builds. B- —Owen Gleiberman
New Release
Divorce Corp.
The Invisible Woman
R, 1 Hr., 51 Mins.
It’s a pleasure to see Ralph Fiennes, in the second film he’s directed, abandon his reticence to play Charles Dickens as an ebullient, laughing mensch a Victorian rock star whose literary celebrity masks his hunger for love. Dickens’ wife has borne him 10 children, but the two have little communion. So when he meets Nelly (Felicity Jones), a young actress with a yen for his novels, he falls for her but must keep their bond a secret. Alas, the impeccably shot film dribbles more than it builds. B- —Owen Gleiberman
New Release
Divorce Corp.
- 1/8/2014
- by EW staff
- EW - Inside Movies
Silver Linings: Morduant’s Debut a Breezy, Formulaic Crowd Pleaser
After winning awards and audience accolades at nearly every film festival it’s screened at (including Berlin, Tribeca, and AFI), Australian documentarian Kim Morduant’s narrative debut, The Rocket, is sure to become an art-house favorite for its heartwarming tale of a young Laotian boy’s struggles, presented as it is without douses of miserablism, melodrama, or exploitation. A unique locale and cinematically underexplored group of people serves an intriguing jumping point into a tale that’s otherwise quite predictable, though enhanced by its ability to remain, simply, a tale of overcoming unfortunate circumstances.
In the Northern mountains of Laos, Mali (Alice Keohavong) gives birth to her son Ahlo, whose large testicles earn him the immediate nickname of “Little Balls” by grandmother Taitok (Bunsri Yindi). But soon after his delivery, she discovers that she’s about to give birth to twins,...
After winning awards and audience accolades at nearly every film festival it’s screened at (including Berlin, Tribeca, and AFI), Australian documentarian Kim Morduant’s narrative debut, The Rocket, is sure to become an art-house favorite for its heartwarming tale of a young Laotian boy’s struggles, presented as it is without douses of miserablism, melodrama, or exploitation. A unique locale and cinematically underexplored group of people serves an intriguing jumping point into a tale that’s otherwise quite predictable, though enhanced by its ability to remain, simply, a tale of overcoming unfortunate circumstances.
In the Northern mountains of Laos, Mali (Alice Keohavong) gives birth to her son Ahlo, whose large testicles earn him the immediate nickname of “Little Balls” by grandmother Taitok (Bunsri Yindi). But soon after his delivery, she discovers that she’s about to give birth to twins,...
- 1/7/2014
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Kim Mordaunt's The Rocket is about a child’s at-times comic battle against the insanity of the post-war culture in Laos. In a country riddled with governmental corruption and inefficiency; in one spattered with the remnants of still-live bombs and other remnants of a lengthy, brutalizing bloodshed; and in one populated by impoverished communities often without such basic necessities as electricity and plumbing, the odds seem stacked against ten-year-old Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe) achieving any lasting happiness in this lifetime.
But matters get worse. He was born a twin, and in his society, all twins are immediately slaughtered because one is blessed and the other cursed, and it's impossible to tell which one has the devil within him. Luckily for Ahlo, his sibling was a stillborn, who’s secretly buried, so no one knows he was a twin except his loving mother Mali (Alice Keohavong) and his bellyaching grandmother who wishes he had never survived.
But matters get worse. He was born a twin, and in his society, all twins are immediately slaughtered because one is blessed and the other cursed, and it's impossible to tell which one has the devil within him. Luckily for Ahlo, his sibling was a stillborn, who’s secretly buried, so no one knows he was a twin except his loving mother Mali (Alice Keohavong) and his bellyaching grandmother who wishes he had never survived.
- 12/19/2013
- by Brandon Judell
- www.culturecatch.com
Kim Mordaunt's The Rocket is about a child’s at-times comic battle against the insanity of the post-war culture in Laos. In a country riddled with governmental corruption and inefficiency; in one spattered with the remnants of still-live bombs and other remnants of a lengthy, brutalizing bloodshed; and in one populated by impoverished communities often without such basic necessities as electricity and plumbing, the odds seem stacked against ten-year-old Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe) achieving any lasting happiness in this lifetime.
But matters get worse. He was born a twin, and in his society, all twins are immediately slaughtered because one is blessed and the other cursed, and it's impossible to tell which one has the devil within him. Luckily for Ahlo, his sibling was a stillborn, who’s secretly buried, so no one knows he was a twin except his loving mother Mali (Alice Keohavong) and his bellyaching grandmother who wishes he had never survived.
But matters get worse. He was born a twin, and in his society, all twins are immediately slaughtered because one is blessed and the other cursed, and it's impossible to tell which one has the devil within him. Luckily for Ahlo, his sibling was a stillborn, who’s secretly buried, so no one knows he was a twin except his loving mother Mali (Alice Keohavong) and his bellyaching grandmother who wishes he had never survived.
- 12/19/2013
- by Brandon Judell
- www.culturecatch.com
The Rocket (Bang fai) Director: Kim Mordaunt Screenwriter: Kim Mordaunt Cast: Sitthiphon Disamoe, Loungnam Kaosainam, Bunsri Yindi, Sumrit Warin, Alice Keohavong Screened at: Review 2, NYC, 12/12/13 Opens: January 10, 2014 Part National Geographic, part Hallmark Hall of Fame and even some leftist political points make up this exotic fare called “The Rocket.” “The Rocket” is filmed mostly in rural Laos but some in Thailand and is directed by Australian Kim Mordaunt—whose documentary “Bomb Harvest” in 2007 deals with efforts to clean up the unexploded bombs in Laos, known as per capita the most bombed country in the world. “The Rocket” is right up her alley, then, as she focuses [ Read More ]
The post The Rocket Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
The post The Rocket Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.
- 12/13/2013
- by Harvey Karten
- ShockYa
Other best film nominations include Dead Europe, Mystery Road, Satellite Boy and The Turning.Scroll down for full list
Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby and Kim Mordaunt’s The Rocket lead the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television (Aacta) Award nominations: 14 and 12 respectively, it was announced today.
Luhrmann’s adaptation of F Scott Fitzgerald 1925 novel was made on a Hollywood-sized budget by a very experienced director while festival hit The Rocket, which tells the story of a boy trying to prove he isn’t cursed, was filmed in Laos by a writer/director who had not previously made a dramatic feature.
The Rocket and The Great Gatsby are pitted against each other for the prestigious best film award, for best director and in three of the four acting categories.
The best actor award, for example, could go to Leonardo DiCaprio for his performance in The Great Gatsby or to Sitthiphon Disamoe, a one-time...
Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby and Kim Mordaunt’s The Rocket lead the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television (Aacta) Award nominations: 14 and 12 respectively, it was announced today.
Luhrmann’s adaptation of F Scott Fitzgerald 1925 novel was made on a Hollywood-sized budget by a very experienced director while festival hit The Rocket, which tells the story of a boy trying to prove he isn’t cursed, was filmed in Laos by a writer/director who had not previously made a dramatic feature.
The Rocket and The Great Gatsby are pitted against each other for the prestigious best film award, for best director and in three of the four acting categories.
The best actor award, for example, could go to Leonardo DiCaprio for his performance in The Great Gatsby or to Sitthiphon Disamoe, a one-time...
- 12/3/2013
- by Sandy.George@me.com (Sandy George)
- ScreenDaily
Exposure at numerous festivals including Berlin, Tribeca, Melbourne and Sydney combined with rave reviews continues to pay off for Kim Mordaunt.s Laos-set feature The Rocket.
Tine Klint of international sales agent LevelK has concluded a slew of sales after negotiating a Us deal with Kino Lorber during the Cannes film market.
Among the territories that have acquired the film are the UK (Eureka), China (Jy Entertainment), Israel (Lev Cinemas), Middle Eastern countries (Moving Turtle), Taiwan (Flash Forward Entertainment), Slovenia (Rtv Slovenia), Poland (Spectator) and Turkey (Kurmaca Films).
.I am very proud of The Rocket . a brilliant film. It keeps winning everywhere it shows,. she tells If. The film, which is Australia.s submission for best foreign language film at the Academy Awards, has earned a healthy $240,000 in its first two weeks in Oz, playing on 13 screens.
Kino Lorber plans a November launch in Us cinemas. The plot revolves around a boy,...
Tine Klint of international sales agent LevelK has concluded a slew of sales after negotiating a Us deal with Kino Lorber during the Cannes film market.
Among the territories that have acquired the film are the UK (Eureka), China (Jy Entertainment), Israel (Lev Cinemas), Middle Eastern countries (Moving Turtle), Taiwan (Flash Forward Entertainment), Slovenia (Rtv Slovenia), Poland (Spectator) and Turkey (Kurmaca Films).
.I am very proud of The Rocket . a brilliant film. It keeps winning everywhere it shows,. she tells If. The film, which is Australia.s submission for best foreign language film at the Academy Awards, has earned a healthy $240,000 in its first two weeks in Oz, playing on 13 screens.
Kino Lorber plans a November launch in Us cinemas. The plot revolves around a boy,...
- 9/13/2013
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Kim Mordaunt.s Laos-set feature The Rocket launched at 11 screens in Australia last weekend, making $55,000, the highest per-screen average of all the openers.
That brings its cumulative earnings to just under $150,000, including previews and well-received screenings at the Sydney and Melbourne film festivals.
.We.re thrilled with the figures; that gives us a great foothold as we add screens going into the September holidays,. said James Hewison, a consultant for distributor Curious Film. Curious is booking additional cinemas in outer suburban and regional areas, expanding to a maximum of 20 screens.
The plot revolves around. Ahlo (10-year-old Sitthiphon Disamoe), a twin, who fears he is cursed because his tribe is convinced twins bring bad luck. To try to disprove that belief, he sets out to build a giant rocket to compete in the lucrative but dangerous Rocket Festival.
The producers are hoping the film will be selected as Australia's nomination for...
That brings its cumulative earnings to just under $150,000, including previews and well-received screenings at the Sydney and Melbourne film festivals.
.We.re thrilled with the figures; that gives us a great foothold as we add screens going into the September holidays,. said James Hewison, a consultant for distributor Curious Film. Curious is booking additional cinemas in outer suburban and regional areas, expanding to a maximum of 20 screens.
The plot revolves around. Ahlo (10-year-old Sitthiphon Disamoe), a twin, who fears he is cursed because his tribe is convinced twins bring bad luck. To try to disprove that belief, he sets out to build a giant rocket to compete in the lucrative but dangerous Rocket Festival.
The producers are hoping the film will be selected as Australia's nomination for...
- 9/2/2013
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Writer-director Kim Mordaunt.s debut film The Rocket was voted best narrative feature at the Sydney Film Festival in the Foxtel Movie Channels Audience Awards.
The award is a propitious sign in the lead-up to the Lao-set film.s premiere on August 29. Sitthiphon Disamoe stars as Ahlo, a boy who enters a rocket festival competition to help save his poverty-stricken family after they are uprooted by the construction of a hydro-electric dam.
The gong for most popular documentary went to The Crossing, director Julian Harvey.s account of two young Aussies, Clark Carter and Chris Bray, who decide to cross a remote island in the Arctic for the hell of it.
The Rocket beat Saudi Arabian director Haifaa Al Mansour.s Wadjda, Iranian director Asghar Farhadi.s The Past, Belgian director Felix van Groeningen.s The Broken Circle Breakdown and Spanish director Pablo Berger.s Blancanieves.
In the docs category...
The award is a propitious sign in the lead-up to the Lao-set film.s premiere on August 29. Sitthiphon Disamoe stars as Ahlo, a boy who enters a rocket festival competition to help save his poverty-stricken family after they are uprooted by the construction of a hydro-electric dam.
The gong for most popular documentary went to The Crossing, director Julian Harvey.s account of two young Aussies, Clark Carter and Chris Bray, who decide to cross a remote island in the Arctic for the hell of it.
The Rocket beat Saudi Arabian director Haifaa Al Mansour.s Wadjda, Iranian director Asghar Farhadi.s The Past, Belgian director Felix van Groeningen.s The Broken Circle Breakdown and Spanish director Pablo Berger.s Blancanieves.
In the docs category...
- 6/19/2013
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Kim Mordaunt’s Tribeca and Berlinale winner The Rocket has been snapped up in the UK and Middle East among others.
Level K has secured sales of Mordaunt’s debut, following buzz from Tribeca.
Territories joining North America (Kino Lorber) include UK (Eureka), Middle East (Moving Turtle), Israel (Lev Cinemas), Poland (Spectator), Slovenia (Rtv), Turkey (Kurmaca) and World Airline (Encore).
The Rocket is set to screen at more festivals throughout the summer and autumn with more sales currently lined up, according to Level K.
Produced by Red Lamp Films, with funding from Screen Australia, the film had its Us premiere at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, where it won several awards among them the Narrative Feature prize, the Audience Award for Best Narrative Film and the Best Actor in a Narrative Feature award (given to 10-year-old Sitthiphon Disamoe).
At this year’s Berlinale, The Rocket also won the “Crystal Bear” (Generation Kplus prize for Best Film...
Level K has secured sales of Mordaunt’s debut, following buzz from Tribeca.
Territories joining North America (Kino Lorber) include UK (Eureka), Middle East (Moving Turtle), Israel (Lev Cinemas), Poland (Spectator), Slovenia (Rtv), Turkey (Kurmaca) and World Airline (Encore).
The Rocket is set to screen at more festivals throughout the summer and autumn with more sales currently lined up, according to Level K.
Produced by Red Lamp Films, with funding from Screen Australia, the film had its Us premiere at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, where it won several awards among them the Narrative Feature prize, the Audience Award for Best Narrative Film and the Best Actor in a Narrative Feature award (given to 10-year-old Sitthiphon Disamoe).
At this year’s Berlinale, The Rocket also won the “Crystal Bear” (Generation Kplus prize for Best Film...
- 6/10/2013
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
Festival accolades have translated to a significant commercial deal for first-time director Kim Mordaunt.s Laos-set feature The Rocket, which will be released in Us cinemas nationwide in the northern autumn.
The deal was negotiated at the Cannes Film Market last week with Us distributor Kino Lorber by Tine Klint of Danish-based international sales agent LevelK. That.s the fifth Australian film to secure theatrical release in the Us this year, or six if The Great Gatsby is included. The Sapphires has raked in $US2 million after nine weeks, now playing on 102 screens, for The Weinstein Co..
Dada Films gave P. J. Hogan.s Mental a token exposure at 12 screens in key cities in March, released on the same day on Video-On-Demand platforms. Kieran Darcy-Smith.s Wish You Were Here premieres on June 7 via eOne and Wrekin Hill Entertainment will launch Ben Nott and Morgan O.Neill.s Drift in August.
The deal was negotiated at the Cannes Film Market last week with Us distributor Kino Lorber by Tine Klint of Danish-based international sales agent LevelK. That.s the fifth Australian film to secure theatrical release in the Us this year, or six if The Great Gatsby is included. The Sapphires has raked in $US2 million after nine weeks, now playing on 102 screens, for The Weinstein Co..
Dada Films gave P. J. Hogan.s Mental a token exposure at 12 screens in key cities in March, released on the same day on Video-On-Demand platforms. Kieran Darcy-Smith.s Wish You Were Here premieres on June 7 via eOne and Wrekin Hill Entertainment will launch Ben Nott and Morgan O.Neill.s Drift in August.
- 5/19/2013
- by Don Groves
- IF.com.au
Kino Lorber has acquired all U.S. and Canadian rights to "The Rocket," the first feature film by director and writer Kim Mordaunt. Produced by Sylvia Wilczynski at Red Lamp Films, with funding from Screen Australia, the film had its Us premiere at this year's Tribeca Film Festival and won three major awards: Best Narrative Feature prize, the Audience Award for Best Narrative Film and the Best Actor in a Narrative Feature award (given to 10-year-old Sitthiphon Disamoe). At this year's Berlinale, "The Rocket" also won the "Crystal Bear" (Generation Kplus prize for Best Film) as well as the Best First Feature award and The Amnesty International Award. Kino Lorber is planning a national theatrical release for the film during the fall, followed by a digital, VOD and home media release in 2014. KinoLorber CEO Richard Lorber negotiated the deal for the film with Natja Noviani Rosner, LevelK's Sales Director out of the Cannes Market.
- 5/18/2013
- by Indiewire
- Indiewire
Battle Of The Damned
Anchor Bay has snapped up United States, Australian and New Zealand rights to Christopher Hatton's futuristic tale "Battle Of The Damned" from Compound B. Dolph Lundgren stars in the story of survivors of a test facility meltdown who are hunted by infected hordes and malfunctioning robots.
Big Bad Wolves
Magnet Releasing has acquired all North American rights to Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado's Israeli thriller "Big Bad Wolves" from Xyz Films. The story centers on a series of brutal murders that puts the lives of three men on a collision course — the father of the latest victim, a vigilante police detective and the main suspect in the killings.
Breath of the Gods
Alive Mind Cinema has picked up North American rights to Jan Schmidt-Garre’s documentary "Breath Of The Gods" which charts the origins of yoga.
A Case of You
IFC Films has acquired...
Anchor Bay has snapped up United States, Australian and New Zealand rights to Christopher Hatton's futuristic tale "Battle Of The Damned" from Compound B. Dolph Lundgren stars in the story of survivors of a test facility meltdown who are hunted by infected hordes and malfunctioning robots.
Big Bad Wolves
Magnet Releasing has acquired all North American rights to Aharon Keshales and Navot Papushado's Israeli thriller "Big Bad Wolves" from Xyz Films. The story centers on a series of brutal murders that puts the lives of three men on a collision course — the father of the latest victim, a vigilante police detective and the main suspect in the killings.
Breath of the Gods
Alive Mind Cinema has picked up North American rights to Jan Schmidt-Garre’s documentary "Breath Of The Gods" which charts the origins of yoga.
A Case of You
IFC Films has acquired...
- 5/17/2013
- by Garth Franklin
- Dark Horizons
The 12th annual Tribeca Film Festival announced the recipients of the Heineken Audience Awards Saturday night. Kim Mordaunt's 'The Rocket,' which has already won two prizes at Tribeca, was the audience favorite for narrative film while "Bridegroom," directed by Linda Bloodworth Thomason, won for documentary. The festival concluded on Sunday with a screening of each film. Both received $25,000 prizes. The story of a displaced family in Laos, "The Rocket" won the world narrative prize for best feature last Thursday at Tribeca. Its young star Sitthiphon Disamoe took best actor as a scrappy kid who sets out to find a new home for his family (our Toh! review). "Bridegroom," a documentary chronicling the legal struggles of a gay man after his partner's accidental death, is poised to be a controversial film given its incisive -- and personal -- portrait of marriage inequality (Indiewire's interview with the director). Watch trailers for both films below.
- 4/29/2013
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
Tribeca’s 12th annual festival, running from April 17-28, wrapped up the festival by announcing The Rocket and Bridegroom winners of the Heineken Audience Award. Read below for the official press release.
2013 Tribeca Film Festival Announces
Heineken Audience Award Winners – The Rocket And Bridegroom
The 12th annual Tribeca Film Festival (Tff), co-founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff, and presented by founding sponsor American Express, announced the winners of the two Heineken Audience Awards tonight at the wrap party in New York City. Two awards—one for narrative and one for documentary—were given to the audience choices for the best films. The Rocket, directed by Kim Mordaunt, was chosen to receive the Narrative award; the film also took top honors at the Festival awards Thursday where it received both The Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature and Best Actor in a Narrative Feature Film for Sitthiphon Disamoe’s performance as Ahlo.
2013 Tribeca Film Festival Announces
Heineken Audience Award Winners – The Rocket And Bridegroom
The 12th annual Tribeca Film Festival (Tff), co-founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff, and presented by founding sponsor American Express, announced the winners of the two Heineken Audience Awards tonight at the wrap party in New York City. Two awards—one for narrative and one for documentary—were given to the audience choices for the best films. The Rocket, directed by Kim Mordaunt, was chosen to receive the Narrative award; the film also took top honors at the Festival awards Thursday where it received both The Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature and Best Actor in a Narrative Feature Film for Sitthiphon Disamoe’s performance as Ahlo.
- 4/29/2013
- by Christopher Clemente
- SoundOnSight
Australian feature The Rocket has triumphed at the TriBeca Film Festival in New York, winning Best Narrative Feature, Audience Awards and Best Actor (awarded to ten-year-old Sitthiphon Disamoe). Set in Laos, the film follows Ahlo (Disamoe) whose family are forced to leave their home due to the construction of a dam. Considered unlucky and blamed for the family.s misfortune, Ahlo tries to prove his worth by entering a rocket into the biggest and most dangerous competition of the year . the Rocket Festival. The success of The Rocket at TriBeca comes after receiving similar acclaim at the Berlin Film Festival, where the film was awarded with the Crystal Bear for Best Feature (Generation Kplus program), Best First Feature (across all sections of the Festival) and the Amnesty International Film Prize. Written and directed by Kim Mordaunt and produced by Sylvia Wilczynski, The Rocket will be released by Curious Distrubution in Australia later this year.
- 4/29/2013
- by Inside Film Correspondent
- IF.com.au
Australian feature The Rocket has triumphed at the TriBeca Film Festival in New York, winning Best Narrative Feature, Audience Awards and Best Actor (awarded to ten-year-old Sitthiphon Disamoe). Set in Laos, the film follows Ahlo (Disamoe) whose family are forced to leave their home due to the construction of a dam. Considered unlucky and blamed for the family.s misfortune, Ahlo tries to prove his worth by entering a rocket into the biggest and most dangerous competition of the year . the Rocket Festival. The success of The Rocket at TriBeca comes after receiving similar acclaim at the Berlin Film Festival, where the film was awarded with the Crystal Bear for Best Feature (Generation Kplus program), Best First Feature (across all sections of the Festival) and the Amnesty International Film Prize. Written and directed by Kim Mordaunt and produced by Sylvia Wilczynski, The Rocket will be released by Curious Distrubution in Australia later this year.
- 4/29/2013
- by Inside Film Correspondent
- IF.com.au
The 11th annual Tribeca Film Festival has wrapped itself up with a special presentation of the new restoration of Martin Scorsese's "The King of Comedy" last night. If I hadn't been traveling so much the last few weeks, I'd have tried to make it to more events. There was some top-notch programming this year as the festival pivoted toward a new identity. Friday and today, winners were announced across a wide variety of categories, and the big winner in the narrative jury and audience competitions was Kim Mordaunt's "The Rocket." The film also picked up a prize for actor Sitthiphon Disamoe....
- 4/28/2013
- by Kristopher Tapley
- Hitfix
The Laos-set drama "The Rocket" and the documentary about same-sex unions "Bridegroom" have won the top audience awards at the Tribeca Film Festival. Tribeca's Heineken Audience Awards carry $25,000 cash prizes, which were given out at the festival's wrap party and awards announcement on Saturday night. Australian director Kim Mordaunt made "The Rocket," which follows a young boy in rural Laos as he tries to find a new home and escape the country's legacy of war. On Thursday, the film also won the top jury prize, and non-professional actor Sitthiphon Disamoe (photo...
- 4/28/2013
- by Steve Pond
- The Wrap
There’s a tricky balance to be found in Australian documentarian Kim Mordaunt’s impressive narrative debut “The Rocket.” Mordaunt, who returns to Laos after exploring the country in his documentary “The Bomb Harvest,” tells a tale that’s both humanistic and soulful, yet political and socially aware. Tip the scales in either direction and your tonal equilibrium is thrown out of order. And that’s perhaps what makes “The Rocket” so special; it’s a thoughtful, well-observed drama that contains many painful struggles and hardships, quietly chronicles third world poverty and social inequities, and yet never condescends to preach or teach. In fact, when the beleaguered protagonists finally receive some much-needed respite and joy, the payoff is well-earned. In rural Laos, a young boy, Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe), is unknowingly born into bad luck. Local superstition dictates that twins are evil omens and the children should be killed off. Ahlo...
- 4/27/2013
- by Rodrigo Perez
- The Playlist
On the fateful night that Ahlo is delivered into this world, he is followed by a stillborn sibling. Surprisingly, Ahlo's curmudgeonly grandmother (Bunsri Yindi) wants to kill Ahlo instantly. This is because the folklore of their Laotian tribe states that twins always include one child who will be bad luck. It is much easier to kill both babies than to wait and see which twin will be the unlucky one. Luckily for Ahlo, his mother (Alice Keohavong) will not let him die. Several years later, an Australian energy company arrives in their village to announce that a new dam will flood the entire region. So, Ahlo's (Sitthiphon Disamoe) tribe is relocated to a new location where a new home with electricity and water is promised to every family. The energy conglomerate obviously does not follow through with any of their promises and Ahlo’s knack for clumsiness -- or just...
- 4/27/2013
- by Don Simpson
- SmellsLikeScreenSpirit
The Tribeca Film Festival still has a couple more days left, but earlier today they announced the winners of the competition categories. The big winner was The Rocket, a film about a displaced 10-year-old Laotion boy who, while searching for a new home with his father and grandmother, stumbles upon and decides to enter a rocket-building contest. It won the Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature and Best Actor, for Sitthiphon Disamoe, who played the young boy. Read the full list of winners below, and congratulate them with the customary Robert De Niro impression: "You talking to me, international cinema?" The Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature — The Rocket, directed by Kim Mordaunt (Australia). Special Jury Mention — Stand Clear of the Closing Doors, directed by Sam Fleischner. Best Actor in a Narrative Feature Film — Sitthiphon Disamoe as Ahlo in The Rocket, directed by Kim Mordaunt (Australia). Best Actress in a...
- 4/26/2013
- by Jesse David Fox
- Vulture
If there was any doubt that this year’s Tribeca Film Festival featured one heck of a varied slate, last night’s awards ceremony put that question to rest. The festival’s many winners included films about rockets, Flemish bluegrass music, an Internet-popular dwarf cat, Oxycontin, Hurricane Sandy, and Thomas Haden Church (well, sort of). The night’s big winner was Kim Mordaunt‘s feature, The Rocket, an Aussie entry that picked up both The Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature and Best Actor in a Narrative Feature Film for young star Sitthiphon Disamoe. Other standout winners include The Broken Circle Breakdown, Whitewash, Oxyana, and The Kill Team. You want variety? Tribeca has got variety in spades. After the break, check out all the winners of this year’s Tribeca Film Festival. The Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature: The Rocket, directed by Kim Mordaunt (Australia). Winner receives $25,000, sponsored by Aka, and...
- 4/26/2013
- by Kate Erbland
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Thursday night, the 12th Annual Tribeca Film Festival announced recipients of its world narrative and documentary prizes. Narrative competition jurors Bryce Dallas-Howard, Blythe Danner, Paul Haggis, Kenneth Lonergan and Jessica Winter selected "The Rocket," about a family uprooted to Laos, for best narrative feature, awarding the prize to Australian director Kim Mordaunt (Indiewire's interview with Mordaunt here). The young Sitthiphon Disamoe also took best actor for "The Rocket." (Read our Toh! review.) Veerle Baetens won best actress for Belgian filmmaker Felix van Groeningen's crisis-of-faith love story "The Broken Circle Breakdown." The Europa Cinemas Label Award-winner also won best screenplay. In the documentary category, Dan Krauss' film on the Afghanistan War, "The Kill Team," took best documentary feature. "Oxyana," Sean Dunne's portrait of a drug-addled mining town in West Virginia, received a special jury mention. (Toh! review and interview with Dunne here.)...
- 4/26/2013
- by Ryan Lattanzio
- Thompson on Hollywood
Winners of the 12th annual Tribeca Film Festival competition categories were announced last night, with “The Rocket,” “The Kill Team,” “Whitewash,” and “Oxyana” taking home the top prizes. The winning films will be screened again on Sunday, April 28. A full list of winners is below. The Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature “The Rocket,” directed by Kim Mordaunt (Australia) Special Jury Mention “Stand Clear of the Closing Doors,” directed by Sam Fleischner Best Actor in a Narrative Feature Film Sitthiphon Disamoe in “The Rocket,” directed by Kim Mordaunt (Australia) Best Actress in a Narrative Feature FilmVeerle Baetens as Elise Vandevelde in “The Broken Circle Breakdown,” directed by Felix van Groeningen (Netherlands, Belgium) Best Cinematography in a Narrative Feature Film Marius Matzow Gulbrandsen, for “Before Snowfall,” directed by Hisham Zaman (Germany, Norway) Best Screenplay for a Narrative Feature Film “The Broken Circle Breakdown,” written by Carl Joos and Felix van Groeningen...
- 4/26/2013
- backstage.com
New York — The Laos adventure "The Rocket" and the Afghanistan War documentary "The Kill Team" have taken top honors at the Tribeca Film Festival.
In an awards ceremony Thursday evening in New York, festival jurors selected Kim Mordaunt's "The Rocket" for best narrative film. Its 10-year-old star won best actor. The young Sitthiphon Disamoe stars as Aholo, who enters a rocket festival to help save his poverty-stricken family that's been uprooted for the construction of a dam.
Taking best documentary was Dan Krauss' "The Kill Team," an examination of the so-named group of U.S. soldiers charged with killing Afghan civilians.
Earlier Thursday, the festival awarded its first recipient of the inaugural Nora Ephron Prize, an award for female filmmakers. The prize went to writer-director Meera Menon. Her first film, "Farah Goes Bang," chronicles friends making a road trip to campaign for John Kerry during the 2004 presidential election.
In an awards ceremony Thursday evening in New York, festival jurors selected Kim Mordaunt's "The Rocket" for best narrative film. Its 10-year-old star won best actor. The young Sitthiphon Disamoe stars as Aholo, who enters a rocket festival to help save his poverty-stricken family that's been uprooted for the construction of a dam.
Taking best documentary was Dan Krauss' "The Kill Team," an examination of the so-named group of U.S. soldiers charged with killing Afghan civilians.
Earlier Thursday, the festival awarded its first recipient of the inaugural Nora Ephron Prize, an award for female filmmakers. The prize went to writer-director Meera Menon. Her first film, "Farah Goes Bang," chronicles friends making a road trip to campaign for John Kerry during the 2004 presidential election.
- 4/26/2013
- by AP
- Huffington Post
Tribeca’s 12th annual festival, running from April 17-28, recently announced that their festival awards, including the top juried world competitions going to The Rocket, The Kill Team, Whitewash and Oxyana. See below for the official press release.
2013 Tribeca Film Festival Announces Awards
* * *
The Rocket, The Kill Team, Whitewash And Oxyana
Win Top Awards In Juried World Competitions
* * *
Sandy Storylines Wins First-ever Bombay Sapphire Award For Transmedia
* * *
Festival Awards $155,000 In Cash Prizes
[April 25, 2013 – New York, NY] – The 12th annual Tribeca Film Festival, co-founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff, and presented by founding sponsor American Express, announced the winners of its competition categories tonight at a ceremony hosted at the Conrad New York in New York City. The Festival runs through April 28, 2013.
The world competition winners for narrative and documentary films were chosen from 12 narrative and 12 documentary features from 14 countries. Best New Director prizes were awarded to a first-time director for both narrative and documentary films,...
2013 Tribeca Film Festival Announces Awards
* * *
The Rocket, The Kill Team, Whitewash And Oxyana
Win Top Awards In Juried World Competitions
* * *
Sandy Storylines Wins First-ever Bombay Sapphire Award For Transmedia
* * *
Festival Awards $155,000 In Cash Prizes
[April 25, 2013 – New York, NY] – The 12th annual Tribeca Film Festival, co-founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff, and presented by founding sponsor American Express, announced the winners of its competition categories tonight at a ceremony hosted at the Conrad New York in New York City. The Festival runs through April 28, 2013.
The world competition winners for narrative and documentary films were chosen from 12 narrative and 12 documentary features from 14 countries. Best New Director prizes were awarded to a first-time director for both narrative and documentary films,...
- 4/26/2013
- by Christopher Clemente
- SoundOnSight
The 12th annual Tribeca Film Festival unveiled on Thursday the winners of its awards at a ceremony Thursday evening. Among the films juries selected for top prizes? Australian film The Rocket, Dutch-Belgian film The Broken Circle Breakdown, and American documentary The Kill Team.
The awards were announced as the festival heads into its second and last weekend. Films will screen through Sunday, and the winners of the Heineken Audience Awards, determined by audience votes throughout the festival, will be announced on Saturday.
Though the juries for the festival were populated with several familiar names from the movie world — including Whoopi Goldberg,...
The awards were announced as the festival heads into its second and last weekend. Films will screen through Sunday, and the winners of the Heineken Audience Awards, determined by audience votes throughout the festival, will be announced on Saturday.
Though the juries for the festival were populated with several familiar names from the movie world — including Whoopi Goldberg,...
- 4/26/2013
- by Emily Rome
- EW - Inside Movies
The 12th annual Tribeca Film Festival presented the winners of its competition categories with awards tonight in New York City. Topping the night with two awards each were Kim Mordaunt's Australian drama "The Rocket" and Felix Van Groeningen's Belgian film "The Broken Circle Breakdown." "The Rocket" nabbed Best Narrative Feature and Best Actor for Sitthiphon Disamoe, while "Broken Circle" walked away with Best Screenplay for a Narrative Film for Carl Joos and Van Groeningen, and Best Actress for its star Veerle Baetens. The locally shot "Stand Clear of Closing Doors," from Sam Fleischner, got a Special Jury Mention in the Narrative category. Over in the World Documentary Competition, Best Documentary Feature went to the war film "The Kill Team," directed by Dan Krauss, with a Special Jury Mention for Sean Dunne's "Oxyana," which went on to win Best New Documentary Director. Below, find the full list of winners.
- 4/25/2013
- by Nigel M Smith
- Indiewire
The Rocket has won the Founders Award for best narrative feature at the Tribeca Film Festival. Kim Mordaunt's film, starring a mainly non-professional cast, tells the story of a youngster in Laos who is displaced with his family. The jury of the 12th edition of the festival - which ends on Sunday - also picked The Rocket's young star Sitthiphon Disamoe - who plays the central role of Ahlo - as best actor. A special jury mention was given to Stand Clear Of The Closing Doors - which tells the story of an autistic boy's odyssey on the New York subway.
The jury said: “The Rocket is a spectacular achievement that is powerful and delightful in equal measures. Artfully structured and gorgeously shot, it chronicles the struggles of a displaced family while steering well clear of either sentimentality or despair. Complex in its tone and characterisations, the film takes an unflinching.
The jury said: “The Rocket is a spectacular achievement that is powerful and delightful in equal measures. Artfully structured and gorgeously shot, it chronicles the struggles of a displaced family while steering well clear of either sentimentality or despair. Complex in its tone and characterisations, the film takes an unflinching.
- 4/25/2013
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
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