YIDFF: Past Festivals: '91

YIDFF ’91

October 7–13

International Competition: 15 outstanding films were screened, selected from entries from around the world.
Jurors’ Films: 11 films were screened.
Special Invitation Films: 6 films were screened.
The Asia Program: This was composed of 3 parts.
1) 21 films and videos from Asia were screened;
2) Film critics, filmmakers, and the general public discussed the theme “Creativity vs. Objectivity: Aesthetics and Activism in Documentary Filmmaking” in the Asia Symposium;
3) The Asia Conference for Promoting Asian Cinema (ACPAC) took place, where Asian delegates deliberated on the methods of promoting Asian cinema within Asia itself.
The Post-war Flourishing of Japanese Documentary: 42 films from the period right after World War II until 1960 were screened.
Media Wars: Then & Now: A look back on documentaries made during World War II to examine their lesson on the world today, 50 years after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Films from Japan and USA were screened, and experts in the field were invited to give talks. The program looked closely at how stereotypes and preconceptions were made through films and other media of the time. 41 films were screened.
Japanese Films Panorama Theater: 17 titles by 7 young filmmakers who represent the contemporary Japanese scene were screened. Coordinated by Yamagata’s citizen volunteer group, YIDFF Network.

Prizes for the International Competition: The Robert and Frances Flaherty Prize (The Grand Prize):
Stubborn Dreams Dir: Szobolits Béla / HUNGARY

The Mayor’s Prize (Prize of Excellence):
Locked Up Time Dir: Sybille Schönemann / GERMANY

Runner-up Prize:
American Dream Dir: Barbara Kopple / USA
Once There Were Seven Simeons Dir: Herz Frank, Vladimir Eisner / USSR

Special Prize:
Canticle of the Stones Dir: Michel Khleifi / BELGIUM

Prize for Encouragement:
Children of Mini-Japan Dir: Chalam Bennurakar / INDIA
Citizens’ Prize: Children of Mini-Japan Dir: Chalam Bennurakar / INDIA