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SILVERDOCS ANNOUNCES 2009 FESTIVAL WINNERS

SILVERDOCS ANNOUNCES FESTIVAL WINNERS

OCTOBER COUNTRY Wins Sterling US Feature Award

MUGABE AND THE WHITE AFRICAN Wins Sterling World Feature Award

12 NOTES DOWN Wins Sterling Short Award

Special Jury Mention went to SALT

Music Documentary Award Goes to RISEUP

Special Jury Mention went to SOUL POWER

OLD PARTNER Wins The Cinematic Vision Award

The WITNESS Award Goes to GOOD FORTUNE

Writers Guild of America Documentary Screenplay Award to OFF AND RUNNING

ACE Grant Winner is CINEMA CHIMP

Feature Audience Award Goes to THE COVE

Short Audience Award Goes to 12 NOTES DOWN

Silver Spring, Maryland, June 22, 2009—SILVERDOCS: AFI-Discovery Channel SILVERDOCS Documentary Festival announced its distinguished award winners, culminating the weeklong Festival activities that included screening 122 films representing 58 countries, free outdoor screenings and live performances, and a five-day concurrent International Documentary Conference. The festival is on target to host over 25,000 attendees, including more than 1,000 filmmakers, film and television executives and media professionals exploring the documentary in action, with a particular emphasis on youth, education and next generation media artists. Winning filmmakers received over $70,000 in combined cash and in-kind prizes.

This year’s SILVERDOCS Sterling Award for a US Feature goes to OCTOBER COUNTRY directed by Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher, which documents the multi-generational story of a working-class family coping with poverty, teen pregnancy, foster care and the ineffable horrors of child molestation and war. The directors will receive $10,000 cash.

The Sterling Feature Jury noted: “We want to congratulate Sky and the SILVERDOCS team for putting together a varied and compelling competition. The documentaries we’ve been watching all week motivated a heartfelt discussion amongst us. We have chosen a film that has resonated with us long after we viewed it. It is a film that is subtle and intuitively creative while presenting important social issues in a surprising way. It showcases an extraordinary fresh talent, which left us excited to see what they do next. We are thrilled to present the grand jury award to Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher for OCTOBER COUNTRY.”

This year’s SILVERDOCS Sterling Award for a World Feature goes to MUGABE AND THE WHITE AFRICAN directed by Lucy Bailey and Andrew Thompson, which explores, through the lens of a 74-year-old white farmer, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe’s deeply controversial land seizure program, which intended to re-distribute white-owned farmland. The director will receive $10,000 cash.

The Jury noted: “The three of us on the International Jury have very different backgrounds, sensitivities and outlooks. But all three of us were totally unanimous in our verdict. Our chosen film displays a moral conviction which grew from the vision behind it, became an integral part of the trusting relationship between the contributors and the filmmakers, and that powerfully elevates a resonant story to a global stage. We want to commend the filmmaking team for the physical risks they took in their relentless pursuit of this story, and for having the wisdom and humility to simply give their characters the freedom to intimately express anguish, doubt and resolve.”

The SILVERDOCS Sterling Award for a Short Film was given to 12 NOTES DOWN directed by Andreas Koefoed, which documents 14-year old star choir performer, Jorgis, after his voice starts changing as he decides when and how to make an unexpected yet graceful exit from choir. The filmmaker will receive $5,000 cash.

Special Jury mention went to SALT directed by Michael Angus and Murray Fredericks, which chronicles photographer Murray Frederick’s journey into the remote salt flats in South Australia.

The SILVERDOCS Music Documentary Award presented by Gibson Guitars went to RISEUP directed by Luciano Blotta. The film chronicles three Jamaican musicians as they fight for a place in the overcrowded reggae field. Gibson Guitars will present a Gibson Les Paul Studio to the winner.

The SILVERDOCS Cinematic Vision Award went to OLD PARTNER directed by Lee Chung-ryoul. The film captures the peculiar yet touching relationship between an old farmer, living in a remote South Korean village, and his 40-year old ox. The filmmaker will receive $2,500 cash and $4,000 of in-kind services from Alpha Cine.

The SILVERDOCS WITNESS Award in honor of Joey R. B. Lozano was given to GOOD FORTUNE by Landon Van Soest, which examines two multi-million dollar international aid projects in Africa that may actually be undermining the very communities they seek to help. The award is given to the strongest documentary about human rights violations or social justice issues. The filmmaker will receive $5,000 cash.

The Award Winner for the Animal Content in Entertainment (ACE) Grant went to CINEMA CHIMP by David Grabias. The feature-length documentary profiles Cheeta, “star” of film and TV, as it explores the ethical debate over using non-human primate “actors” in the entertainment industry. The director will receive a $25,000 grant.

The Writers Guild of America, West and the Writers Guild of America, East have named co-writers Nicole Opper and Avery Klein-Cloud as the winners of the WGA Documentary Screenplay Award for their film OFF AND RUNNING, a story of race, identity, and family focusing on Avery, an accomplished African-American teenager adopted by Jewish lesbians. The award carries with it a prize of $1,000 and the winners will be granted one-year free membership in the WGAW Nonfiction Writers Caucus or WGAE Nonfiction Writers Committee Membership.)

The Feature Audience Award went to THE COVE directed by Louie Psihoyos, which follows Richard O’Barry, the man who made “Flipper” a household name, as he and his team try to stop Japanese fishermen from slaughtering dolphins for the consumer marker. Psyhoyo’s film is an indictment of human greed and arrogance, a tale of redemption and a desperate call to action. The winner of the Feature length Audience Award will receive two market badges to the American Film Market in November.

The Short Audience Award went to 12 NOTES DOWN directed by Andreas Koefoed, which documents 14-year old star choir performer, Jorgis, after his voice starts changing as he decides when and how to make an unexpected yet graceful exit from choir.

Sky Sitney, Artistic Director said, “We are thrilled to celebrate the best that cinema has to offer and congratulate all of this year’s award winners. We also thank our jurors who have had to wrestle long and hard in selecting winners among so many great films. We are pleased to recognize OCTOBER COUNTRY with the esteemed Sterling US Grand Jury Prize. The beautifully crafted film takes us on a complicated and surprising journey for one family over the course of a year. We are equally excited that the Sterling World Feature Award goes to MUGABE AND THE WHITE AFRICAN, which takes us on a riveting journey inside Mugabe's regime through the lens of a white farmer in Zimbabwe."

The SILVERDOCS award winners were chosen by an eminent Festival jury including:

Sterling US Feature Jury: Margaret Brown, filmmaker (BE HERE TO LOVE ME, ORDER OF MYTHS); David Kwok, director of programming for the Tribeca Film Festival; Cian Smyth, program director, GAZE Film Festival at the Irish Film Institute.

Sterling World Feature Jury: Geoffrey Smith, filmmaker (THE ENGLISH SURGEON); Esther Robinson, filmmaker (A WALK INTO THE SEA); Karina Rotenstein, programming manager, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival.

Sterling Short Film Jury: Bryan Stamp, former creative executive, documentary department at Participant Media; Angela Tucker, filmmaker (POP STAR ON ICE); Ingrid Kopp, US director, Shooting People, an international networking community for independent filmmakers.

Best Music Documentary Jury: Anna Gabriel, filmmaker (GROWING UP ON TOUR, STILL GROWING UP); Sascha Paladino, filmmaker (THROW DOWN YOUR HEART, OBSTINATO: MAKING MUSIC FOR TWO, PARTY FOR THE PEOPLE); Brendan Canty, film composer, musician, music producer and filmmaker (DISARM).

For Festival and Award photos go to the SILVERDOCS press room at: http://press.discovery.com/ekits/silverdocs2009/

2009 Sponsors. Founding Sponsor: Discovery Communications; Founding Sponsor – International Documentary Conference: Corporation for Public Broadcasting; Official Hotel: Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Silver Spring; Official Airline: American Airlines; Official Media: Comcast; Major Sponsors: Montgomery County Maryland, Team Group, Downtown Silver Spring, Jackie’s Restaurant

About SILVERDOCS

AFI-Discovery Channel SILVERDOCS Documentary Festival is an eight-day internationally recognized event that honors excellence in filmmaking, supports the diverse voices and free expression of independent storytellers and celebrates the power of documentary to improve our understanding of the world. Now in its seventh year, the festival runs June 15-22 at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in the Washington, DC area. The 2008 Festival featured 108 films from 63 countries presented to over 25,000 attendees, including the influential audiences of the nation’s capital and media professionals from around the world. The concurrent five-day SILVERDOCS International Documentary Conference presents thought-provoking presentations and engages a diverse group of over 1,000 filmmakers and industry leaders concerned with the future of non-fiction storytelling, production and distribution. For more information, go to SILVERDOCS.com.

About the American Film Institute

AFI is a national institute providing leadership in screen education and the recognition and celebration of excellence in the art of film, television and digital media. Additional information about AFI is available at AFI.com.

About Discovery Communications

Discovery Communications is the world’s number-one non-fiction media company reaching more than 1.5 billion cumulative subscribers in over 170 countries. Discovery empowers people to explore their world and satisfy their curiosity through 100-plus worldwide networks, led by Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Science Channel, Planet Green, Investigation Discovery and HD Theater, as well as leading consumer and educational products and services, and a diversified portfolio of digital media services including www.HowStuffWorks.com. Discovery Communications is owned by Discovery Holding Company (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB), Advance/Newhouse Communications and John S. Hendricks, Discovery's founder and chairman. For more information, please visit www.discoverycommunications.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:

Jody Arlington, SILVERDOCS

301.495.6759, jarlington@AFI.com

Tammy Shea, Discovery Communications

240.662.6506, Tammy_Shea@Discovery.com