Winners New Arrivals

Mario de la Torre Espinosa wins NPS New Arrivals Competition for online short films

Sunday January 27, the jury of the NPS New Arrivals Competition for online short films, organised by Duch public television network NPS and the International Film Festival Rotterdam, has announced that Chocolate with Churros (Chocolate con churros) by Mario de la Torre Espinosa (Spain) is the winner of the NPS New Arrivals Award 2008 (Euro 1,000). The online audience voted It Hurts by Hester Scheurwater (The Netherlands) to be their favorite.

The jury, consisting of Ms. Coco Schrijber (The Netherlands, filmmaker), Ms. Sietske Tjallingii (The Netherlands, filmmaker) and Mr. Michael Hannigan (Ireland, Director Cork Film Festival) about Chocolate con churros, a short film about the unconditional love between mother and father:

“Having considered the wide variety of styles and approaches in the New Arrivals selection, our discussion focused on two films, one a documentary with a fascinating subject, the other a compelling short drama.

After much discussion we decided to award a real short film, the five minute miniature Chocolate con churros by Mario de la Torre Espinosa from Spain.

We were greatly moved by this story of unconditional love and greatly admired the craft by which it was told – the unobtruvise camera work, the clear sense of direction, that there is not one unnecessary shot and, of course, the excellent acting.

Chocolate con churros evokes a real sense of drama and tells, with great purity, a much larger story. We look forward to the next project of this director.”

The NPS New Arrivals Competition is open to everyone who sends in a short film through www.cinema.nl/newarrivals. Eight monthly winners were screened January 27, 2008 within Short: As Long As It Takes, the short films section of the International Film Festival Rotterdam. After the screenings, the jury announced the winning film.