The 2010 Festival Winners Announced
We proudly announce the winners for 2010 festival! See the list!

Ann Walker, Executive Director of the Festival said, “We’re all so delighted by the outpouring of community support both before and during the festival. To see everyone enjoying the work we’ve done over the past year made these three days really special.”

Visiting filmmakers felt the same way. Sarah Olson of Tapped raved about the hospitality provided by local innkeepers and added, “In the past year I‘ve been to dozens of film festivals, and this one is the best organized of them all.  And the people! Everyone here is so warm and great! My fiancée and I are even considering getting married here.” After the Festival Richard and Zareen Levien of Immersion commented, “You guys certainly know how to put on a great show!  This must be one of the most filmmaker-friendly festivals in the world. We both felt very loved and honored from the moment we arrived to the moment we (sadly) left.

There were many sold out houses this year, including the three screenings of the narrative shorts program, Lost and Found. This emphasized for audiences the importance of buying tickets early. The venues all featured greatly improved audio and video equipment, thanks to new tech sponsor Tweetshare.

Audiences were deeply moved by Music By Prudence, giving it a sustained standing ovation that overwhelmed Oscar-winning director Roger Ross Williams. Between the Folds awed film-goers with its singularly stunning portrayal of the melding of art and science of origami creations.

Winners of the Audience Choice Awards were announced at the Volunteer Wrap Party following the Sunday showing of The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls. Demonstrating how high quality and competitive many of the films were, the result was an unprecedented three-way tie between 65 Red Roses, Between the Folds and Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers.

To call the 2010 Mendocino Film Festival a success is almost an understatement. The festival moved to a new level, giving the audiences and filmmakers an enlightening and fun experience that will be remembered for years to come.

The 2010 Mendocino Film Festival:
Dazzling Films in a Unique Setting
2010 film selections and special events! See the complete list!

This year includes screenings of two Academy Award^® winning films with their directors in attendance. This includes the Best Feature Documentary Award winner The Cove, portraying the dramatic and dangerous battle to save the dolphins of Taiji, Japan, as well as Music by Prudence, Best Documentary Short winner, chronicling the inspiring story of disabled Zimbabwean singer-songwriter Prudence Mabhena.

Haskell Wexler, winner of the Festival’s 2010 Albert Maysles Award for Excellence in Documentary Filmmaking, will appear to share memories and conversation in an intimate setting. Pentagon Papers hero Daniel Ellsberg (subject of Oscar^® nominated The Most Dangerous Man in America) and life-long peace activist Wavy Gravy (featured in the documentary Saint Misbehavin') will unite for magic and freewheeling conversation to complement showings of the films featuring their stories. 

"Unique" is the word for The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls, bringing New Zealanders Lynda and Jools Topp and their kooky Kiwi sense of humor, political potency and country music style to dazzled audiences. The film's producer and both Topps will appear in person.

Other Festival features include:

I Hear What You See: The Old-Time World of Kenny Hall, telling the story of this influential mandolinist who was born blind, followed by a live concert featuring local musicians. The Films for Our Future category features Tapped, an unflinching investigation of the big business of bottled water; The Horse Boy, the touching tale of parents seeking healing for their autistic son which takes them to Outer Mongolia; and No Impact Man, about the sometimes humorous effort of one Manhattan man to reduce his carbon footprint while married to a latte guzzling shopoholic. The Films on the Arts category highlights the stunning film Between the Folds on the art and science of origami; The Great Contemporary Art Bubble, investigating the world of high finance, greed and auction manipulation in the contemporary art world; and Art:21, a series of profiles of outstanding artists of this century.