‘Hunger’ has won the Gold Hugo for Best Film at the 44th annual Chicago International Film Festival while it’s lead Michael Fassbender was awarded the Silver Hugo Award for Best Actor.
Directed by Steve McQueen and funded by Northern Ireland Screen, the film about a hunger strike in Northern Ireland's HM Prison Maze in 1981 was singled out by the festival jury Saturday for its "uncompromisingly disturbing story of the courage to fight for one's belief.”
Fassbender was awarded “for his self-sacrificing performance exemplifying the ideal of “being” rather than “acting.”
The festival, which began Oct. 16, concludes Wednesday 29 October.
Other international winners at the festival included ‘Tokyo Sonata’ directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa which won The Silver Hugo – Grand Jury Prize, Preity Zinta who won the Silver Hugo for best actress for ‘Heaven on Earth’ and The Silver Hugo Award for best screenplay was awarded to Italian mafia film ‘Gomorrah’.
In the Docufest Competition the Gold Hugo for Best Documentary was awarded to ’Valentino: The Last Emperor ‘ (USA), directed by Matt Tyrnauer based on the famous Italian fashion designer, while the Silver Hugo for best doc went to ‘Anvil! The Story of Anvil’ (USA).
The festival, which opened with a gala red-carpet screening of ‘The Brothers Bloom’, saw director Mike Leigh presented with a Career Achievement Award the screening of his film, ‘Happy Go-Lucky’; actor Sidney Poitier (Blackboard Jungle) was presented with a Gold Hugo Lifetime Achievement Award; and Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls) was presented with an Artistic Achievement Award during the 12th Annual Black Perspectives Tribute. On the closing night actor Viggo Mortensen (The Lord of the Rings) will be presented with a Career Achievement Award as well as The Audience Choice Award being announced.
'Hunger' is released in Irish cinemas on 30 October 2008
