Outfest 2009 awards: Audience award for “Chef’s Special,” grand jury prize for “Mississippi Damned”

Outfest 2009 wraps tonight after a wonderful 11-day run.

I saw 18 films with audiences (and another handful on DVD) and am leaving to see Eating Out 3: All You Can Eat in just a little while and that will be my finale due to family obligations tonight. Yesterday’s Glee event was fabulous and so the Spanish comedy Chef’s Special – my favorite movie of the festival.

Speaking of Chef’s Special, the Nacho G. Velilla directed film was a lot of people’s fave because it won the Audience Award for Outstanding Dramatic Feature film, it was just announced.

Other audience award winners included another one of my absolute favorites: Awakening which won the Audience Award for outstanding dramatic short film. It was directed by Christian Tafdrup.

The Outfest 2009 Audience Award for Outstanding Documentary Short Film went to Get Happy, directed by Mark Payne.

Other audience awards:  Outstanding Soundtrack: We are the Mods;  Outstanding Documentary Feature Film: Edie & Thea: A Very Long Engagement directed by Greta Olafsdottir & Susan Muska;  Outstanding First U.S. Dramatic Feature Film: We Are the Mods, directed by E.E. Cassidy.

Special Programming Awards: Special Programming Award for Freedom went to On These Shoulders We Stand directed by Glenne McElhinney; Special Programming Award for Artistic Achievement: Greek Pete directed by Andrew Haigh; Special Programming Award for Emerging Talent: George O’Donnell for College Boys Live.

Jury Awards: Outstanding Documentary Short Film: First and Loveliss directed by Shaun Kadlec & Deb Tullman; Outstanding Dramatic Short Film: The Bath directed by Lee Mi-rang; Outstanding Documentary Feature Film: Off and Running directed by Nicole Opper.

Outstanding U.S. Dramatic Feature Film: Mississippi Damned (directed by Tina Mabry)

Outstanding International Dramatic Feature Film: The Man Who Loved Yngve (directed by Stian Kristiansen)

Outstanding Actress in a Feature Film: Laura Harring in Drool.

Outstanding Actor in a Feature Film: Derrick L. Middleton in Rivers Wash Over Me.

Outstanding Screenwriting: E.E. Cassidy for We Are the Mods.