Irish director John Crowley's (Intermission) ‘Boy A’ picked up four awards at the 19th Festival du Film Britannique de Dinard at the weekend including the Grand Prix Jury, the Hitchcock d'Or and the Grand Marnier award which scriptwriter Mark O’Rowe (Intermission) picked up for Best Screenplay. The Hearbeat Award went to Steve McQueen's ‘Hunger’.
The Channel Four/Cuba Pictures drama also won the Prix Kodak for Rob Hardy's cinematography and the Hitchcock d'Argent, awarded to the public's favourite film of the festival.
Crowley’s dark and powerful drama stars the BAFTA winning Andrew Garfield who having spent most of his life in prison for committing murder is faced with the hard task of reintegrating into society.
Titles that ‘Boy A’ was up against included two other Irish titles ‘Helen’ directed by Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor and the Irish filmed ‘The Escapist’ directed by Rupert Wyatt and co-produced by Dublin’s Parallel Film and London’s Picture Farm.
Crowley’s latest ‘Is There Anybody There?’ recently closed the 33rd Toronto Film Festival while O’Rowe is working on the Parallel Film’s production of 'Perrier’s Bounty' which stars Anne Marie Duff (Garage) and James McAvoy (Atonement).
The Cannes winning feature ‘Hunger’ which is released in Ireland on 31st October received the Heartbeat Award at the festival.
The Dinard Jury was Lambert Wilson (president), Rory McCann, Tara Fitzgerald, Lucy Russell, Aissa Maiga, Alice Taglioni, Arie Elmaleh and Valerie Kaprisky.
This year's surprise film was Michael Winterbottom's 'Genova' which was presented by Colin Firth, while Dinard closed with Shane Meadows 'Somers Town', was the closing night film.
