05 · 26 · 13

Amat Escalante, Best Director at Cannes 2013

The 66th edition of the Cannes Film Festival came to an end this afternoon and the winners were announced during the closing ceremony. After the impressive success of Carlos Reygadas in the past edition of the French festival, we are very proud to announce that the title of Best Director was once more awarded to a Mexican filmmaker: Amat Escalante for Heli. After receiving his award from American actor Forest Whitaker, the winner said: "I’d like to thank this jury for making this brave decision. It is a sign of hope for Mexico. Hopefully our suffering will come to an end very soon.”

Amat Escalante’s previous works, Sangre (screened at FICM 2005) and Los bastardos (Best Mexican Feature Film FICM 2008), premiered at the Un Certain Regard section of Cannes, which means that the director’s entire filmography has been screened at the Cannes Film Festival. The Best Director award for Heli is an homage to the filmmaker's exceptional talent and to the strength of his work. Described by the French critic Benoit Pavan as a “ruthless observer of his fellow citizens”, Amat Escalante is an exceptional Mexican author whose unique point of view is an invitation to follow his career closely. Congratulations on this extraordinary triumph!

This year, the coveted Palme d'Or went to La Vie d’Adele by Abdellatif Kechiche, a lesbian love story which caused great excitement after it’s first showing at Cannes. Another favorite of the critics, the most recent film by the Coen brothers, Inside Llewyn Davis, was awarded the Grand Prix. We are looking forward to the premiere of these films in Mexico, confident that they will be interesting cinematographic experiences.

Here is the complete list of winners of the 2013 Cannes Film Festival:

Feature Films:

• Palme d'Or: La Vie d’Adele / Blue is the Warmest Colour by Abdellatif Kechiche (France)
• Grand Prix: Inside Llewyn Davis by Joel and Ethan Coen (United States)
• Best Director: Amat Escalante, for Heli (Mexico)
• Jury Award: Soshite Chichi Ni Naru / Like Father, Like Son by Hirokazu Kore-eda (Japan)
• Best Actor: Bruce Dern, for Nebraska by Alexander Payne (United States)
• Best Actress: Bérénice Bejo, for Le passé / The Past by Asghar Farhadi (France)
• Best Screenplay: Tian Zhu Ding / A Touch of Sin by Jia Zhangke (China)
• Camera d'Or: Ilo Ilo by Anthony Chen (Singapur) – part of the Director's Fortnight

Short Films:

• Palme d'Or: Safe by Byounggon Moon (South Korea)
• Special Mention: Hvalfjordur / Whale Valley by Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson (Iceland, Denmark)
• Special Mention: 37º 4 S by Adriano Valerio (France)