Basil Da Cunha wins award for Best Film in Vila do Conde (Portugal)

The 30-minute film “Os vivos tambem choram” ("The LIving Also Cry") by the young Swiss director of Portuguese descent Basil Da Cunha was honoured with the award for Best
Film in the Portuguese Competition at the 20th Festival internacional de cinema “Curtas” in Vila do Conde (July 7-15, 2012). The award is endowed with EUR 2,000 as well as EUR 6,000 in services.  In addition, “Os vivos tambem choram” won one of the five RTP2 Onda Curta prizes awarded by the national television broadcaster and the purchase of broadcasting rights.

Second time for Da Cunha!
In 2010 Basil Da Cunha had already won the award for Best Film in Vila do Conde with his short film “À côté” (2009). This film was among the five short films nominated for the Swiss Film Prize “Quartz 2010.” Last May “Os vivos tambem choram” celebrated its world premiere in the Directors’ Fortnight section in Cannes and received an Honourable Mention. The film will be screened in the “Appellations Suisse” section at the film festival in Locarno in August.

“Canal+” Award for “Kali, le petit vampire”
The film animation “Kali, le petit vampire” by Portuguese director Regina Pessoa, a coproduction between France, Portugal, Canada and Switzerland, was honoured with the “Canal+” Award. The Carouge-based Studio GDS coordinated the production for Switzerland and commissioned the well-known independent rock group “The Young Gods” for the film score.

Further awards for two Swiss documentary films
Swiss director Eileen Hofer was honoured with the award for Best Director at the 9th International Women’s Festival «Femina» in Rio de Janeiro (July 2-8) for her first feature-length film “He Was A Giant With Brown Eyes,” while the film “Hoselupf” by This Lüscher won the 1st Prize at the 6th Hanoi International FICTS Festival of Sport, Tourism, Movies & TV (July 4-7).

Geneva, July 16, 2012