PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Judas Kiss came home from the Rhode Island International Film Festival with not one, but two awards, announced August 14, the festival’s closing day.
The festival jury awarded the film First Place in the Alternative Spirit category, while the Youth Jury gave Judas Kiss its Honorable Mention nod.
“These are two completely unexpected honors from one of the country’s most prestigious mainstream festivals,” said writer-producer Carlos Pedraza.
VOTE OF CONFIDENCE Meanwhile, director J.T. Tepnapa saw the awards as a return on RIIFF’s earlier investment in him. ”I won a screenwriting award there a few years ago,” he said. “Winning two awards now for my first feature is a real vote of confidence from the festival.”
Tepnapa won RIIFF’s award in its Barren Branches GLBT Screenplay Competition for his script, Outing Joey, which is actually mentioned in Judas Kiss.
Judas Kiss’ unit production manager, Tellier Killaby, was on hand for the film’s screening last Wednesday.
This year’s winners were named and honored at the festival’s annual Awards Ceremony at the Renaissance Providence Hotel’s Symphony Ballroom in downtown Providence, R.I.
The awards are all the more significant given the competition. This year, RIIFF received a record 4,537 submissions from filmmakers in more than 60 countries. After months of adjudication, RIIFF whittled down the pool to just over 200 films, with 18 world and 21 North American/United States premieres.
“It’s simply been an amazing year for us,” said George T. Marshall, RIIFF’s Executive Director. “We had films screening that came from all over the world, with many of the filmmakers in attendance.”
GOOD COMPANY Judas Kiss was in good company with the other films in the categories in which it won. The critically acclaimed drama, The Green, starring Cheyenne Jackson, won the grand prize, while the short film, All You Need is Love?, directed by K. Rocco Shields tied Judas Kiss for First Place for the Alternative Spirit Award.
The Youth Jury also gave nods to With Great Power: The Stan Lee Story for Best Documentary; Broken Kingdom for Best Feature, and Hollow for Best Short Film.
RIIFF’s awards were adjudicated by a prestigious jury that included film critics, cinema owners, arts administration and foundation professionals, film historians and TV producers, among others.
The Youth Jury is made up of a selected group of Rhode Island high school students who are entering their junior or senior year.
“It’s particularly meaningful to us that Judas Kiss resonated so well with students,” Pedraza said. “It asks questions about life choices and redemption that we wanted to appeal to many age groups.”
The Rhode Island International Film Festival (RIIFF) is New England’s largest and most prestigious festival, taking place August 9-14. It is ranked as a one of the Top 12 Film Festivals in the United States, and a world-class event.
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