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Emotional Closing of the 10th edition of FICM

Roberto Fiesco, producer and director, thanked all the institutions and people who worked at the festival, and welcomed all the invited guests and filmmakers who were present. In addition, he thanked each one of the jurors who reviewed the works from the different sections in competition.

The ceremony began with a visual tour of the most significant moments that took place during the nine days of the 10th edition of the festival. There were many recollections, experiences and memories.

Carlos Taibo, co-director of the MoreliaLAB workshop, spoke about this space for dialogue and training, and listed the winners. The IMCINE award for project development went to Mexican Carlos Pérez for Tamix; the Cinépolis prize for project development went to Uruguayan Pablo Martínez Pessi for Tus padres volverán; the Tribeca Film Insitute prize– the first time it is given– went to Fernando Domínguez for his Argentine project Los nombres propios and finally, the LaboDigital award went to Chilean producer, Paulina Obando, for Gringo Rojo.

Actress Tania López read the award act that each one of the winners of the Michoacán Section will receive: Pueblo silente, by Adrián Alfonso González Camarg, who won the Michoacán Short Film Screenplay Contest; Capítulo 2, by René Luis Rubio Garibay and Tiritas de papel, by Yadira Arellano Mendoza, who both received Special Mention, which consists of a diploma. Transmigration, by Mario E. Pizarro, won the I.SAT Special Award, consisting of a diploma, computer and an editing program. Epilepsia, by Salvador Tinajero Ponce, won the Michoacán Section.

Colombian actress Martina García read the act for the winners of the Short Film Section in which awards were given for animation, documentary and fiction categories. The winning short films will be screened in Cannes and could be nominated to represent Mexico in the Academy Awards.

The winning short films were: Special Mention for Aún nos queda el recuerdo / We Still Have the Memory by Mariano Rentería Garnica; the Studio 5 de Mayo Special Award for La Madre / The Mother by Ernesto Martínez; Best Animated Short Film was Las tardes de Tintico / Tintico's Afternoons by Alejandro García Caballero; the prize for Mexican Documentary Short to Paradero Norte / Transfer Station North by Daniel Ulacia and finally, the prize for Best Short Fiction Film to Para armar un helicóptero / To Put Together a Helicopter by Izabel Acevedo and produced by the CCC film school.

Actress Sophie Gómez read the act for the Mexican Documentary Section: The first prize to be given was a Honorable Mention for a Documentary By a Woman for La revolución de los alcatraces / Eurforsina's Revolution by Luciana Kaplan. The Muse sculpture was given by the Women in Film and Television Association for No hay lugar lejano / No Place Is Far Away by Michelle Ibaven.

In the Mexican Documentary Section, two films received Special Mention: Mitote by Eugenio Polvolsky, and Partes de una familia / Parts of a Family by Diego Gutiérrez. The award for Best Mexican Documentary went to Inori by director Pedro González Rubio who won the same category in 2005 with Toro negro, and in 2009 the Best Mexican Feature with Alamar.

Claudia Ramírez, a film and television actress, presented the Public's Award to the feature film in competition: I Hate Love by Humberto Hinojosa. "Thank you very much to the festival for inviting us," the director said. "There is nothing more encouraging when you write to discover that your story connects with the public. This is the starting point for the life of this film. Thank you all very much."

Stephanie Sigman, known for her interpretation in Miss Bala, presented the awards for Mexican Feature Film and invited Geraldine Chaplin to read the act and announce the winning film. Natalia Beristain was the winner with her film debut No quiero dormir sola / I Don't Want to Sleep Alone. "I want to thank the festival for creating this space for promoting Mexican cinema and for new filmmakers," she said. "I spoke with my crew about the films we saw here. They are features that challenge and inspire you. To be in competition with so many good films is awesome. I also thank everyone who accompanied me, especially Mariana Gajá and Adriana Roel, my actresses."

All the winners returned to the stage where a photograph was taken as a remembrance.

Alejandro Ramírez Magaña, president of FICM, recognized the work of all those who made this 10th edition of FICM possible. "To our special invited guests, sponsors and institutions, thank you for supporting us and seeing the festival grow in these 10 years," he said. "To our jury, the Cinépolis team and the festival staff, and to all the filmmakers that make FICM stay alive. We invite you next year, so that we begin a second decade of the festival."

Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas Batel, vice president of FICM, thanked Salvador Jara, director of the UMSNH, and the secretaries of culture and tourism of the state of Michoacán for attending.

Daniela Michel thanked the filmmakers again. "I'm very moved; I'm filled with joy that each year we have more people who come," she said. "To work for all of you is an honor. Thank you. I want to thank all of my staff for their titanic work. This festival would not be possible without you. And for all of the invited guests who traveled from far away, it is a pleasure to receive you. "Long live Mexican cinema! Thank you!" she said, ending the 10th edition of the Morelia International Film Festival.