Palme d’Or, Best Short Film: “Arena” by João Salaviza

The Palme d’Or for the Best Short Film was awarded to Arena by João Salaviza.

A Special Mention went to The Six Dollar Fifty Man by Mark Albiston and Louis Sutherland.

John Boorman, President of the Short Film Jury and the Cinefondation, and Kerry Washington opened the award giving at the closing ceremony tonight, with the Short Film Prize which went to João Salaviza: "Thank you to the Festival for allowing us to show our passion and love for cinema, thanks to the Jury for selecting this film and to my producer who can’t be here tonight, but she’s really happy. I think cinema is alive and this prize also belongs to the new generation and I share it with you guys."

At the Laureates’ Press Conference, João Salaviza added: "I come from a country where we make 8 or 10 long feature films a year, and 20 short films. We don’t actually have an industry. We have small budgets to do our films, so it’s great to understand that cinema is not only about money. It’s about your ideas and what you put in front of the camera. So it’s great to have this prize, for a very small budget feature."