The newcomer film award eDward III, a project of the state initiative hessen media, was presented this year by jury chairman Douglas Trumbull, one of the really big names on the visual effects scene ("Blade Runner", "2001- A Space Odyssey").
The "late lounge" audience prize was handed over by hr presenter Roberto Cappelluti to Ralf Kopp from Darmstadt for his spot "Denk anders - Think different". Once again this year Hesse TV's cult broadcast "late lounge" presented the eDward spots after the show for a week, and its viewers voted on the Internet.
Winners and finalists below.

Respekt


Of
Sven Eppmann, Dortmund

Contents: A man in a wheelchair in an almost empty apartment. Gloomy surroundings - semi-darkness, long shadows, dried-out flowers. A soundtrack of melancholy piano music. Male voice-over: "You feel empty and useless - there's nothing more humiliating..." The man in the wheelchair rolls slowly towards the window. A sudden dramatic cut; the music changes. Flashback. Fast edits, heavy guitar sounds. The same man and other wheelchair users playing basketball in a sports hall. The game is fast and serious. Voice-over: "...than to get thrashed in the final." End dissolve: "Disabled people deserve respect - not pity."

The Jury: "A strong concept with a surprising twist that exposes stereotypical expectations by telling what turns out to be an everyday story about a man whose defeat is not his disability. The film is cleverly structured and evokes a powerful atmosphere to achieve its aim. It takes a clear position against prejudice, and does so with considerable authority. It has been very successfully realised - camera, editing and sound design all highlight the unexpected change of viewpoint. But above all the claim 'Respect not Pity' is true, and is very effectively communicated."

Blind Vertrauen

Of
Marc O. Seng und Marc Achenbach, Ludwigsburg

Contents: A speeding car, an open landscape, dusty roads. At the wheel, a cool young man with a three-day beard and sunglasses. An experienced driver, taking the curves and turnings like a sportsman, aided by an electronic navigating system whose female voice informs him of his next turning and remaining distances. The system functions so exactly that it guides the driver directly to his front door. The car brakes suddenly to a halt just in front of a row of steps leading up to the entrance. The car door opens and the first thing that emerges is the tip of a white cane. The driver gets out and with the help of the cane mounts the steps to the door.

The Jury: "A man enjoying his life with a disability that no longer is one. An as yet impossible situation - a blind driver - is optimistically evoked through dynamic sound and image design. The story is well told and hopeful. A highly professional spot."

Blindness

Of
Ralph Etter, Zürich

Contents: Do we see what we see? We (who can see) place our trust in visual images. But what if there are none? At the beginning of the spot the screen is black, but the sounds imply that the scene is taking place in a saloon. A babble of voices, music. Suddenly the atmosphere changes. Footsteps, doors slam, a shot is fired. Fade in - not to the scene we imagined, but to a sound-effects technician evoking the events and their setting purely through noises. End dissolve: "What about you?"

The Jury: "An illusion is created with sparse means and filmic flair. The viewer is confronted with his/her own prejudgement - 'seeing is believing' - and by the idea that vision is not the only way to see the world. The film surprises and amuses, and its success lies in its pared-down aesthetic realisation."

"..."

Of
Bruno Forzani, Menton (B)

Klotz am Bein

Of
Katrin Schlitt, Hamburg
Kunststudentin, Hochschule f. bildende Künste, Hamburg

 ^{Finalist 8}

Menschen wie Du und ich?

Of
Pascal Chavel, Nürnberg
Freiberuflicher Kameraassistent

 ^{Finalist 9}

Sychronised Swimming for Users of Wheelchairs

Of
Team Klask, Odense (DK)
Nichlas Dahl Jensen
Pernille Møller Jensen
Maria Jøstad
Jonas Grau Thomsen
BjØrn Riber Jensen
Stephanie Askholm
Charlotte Rasmussen
Mike Nielsen
Louise Haldbo Balslev
Tine Fensteen Madsen

 ^{Finalist 10}

Wünsche

Of
Lars Rau,
Oliver Fietz,
Holger Sandtner
Freischaffende Künstler aus Gießen

 ^{Platz 1}

Vertrauen

Of
Claus Winter, Nürnberg
Designer

Technology
Final Cut Pro, Maya 3.0

Contents: The scene is a static situation in everyday surroundings. There is no change, no dynamic. The animation moves with and around the camera, which appears to be observing something - us? The atmosphere is somewhat oppressive, immediately evoking surveillance. The image then zooms toward the camera, and the final shot is a close-up of what would normally be the manufacturer's logo, which instead reads "Vertrauen" ("Trust").

The Jury: "Control, trust, desire - hugely varied and acute conflicts and positions are communicated by means of the most sparing, but at the same time highly precise, means. Making a mechanical - and excellently computer-animated - surveillance instrument into a protagonist with human desires achieves a remarkable effect: we observe a non-human observer expressing human desires in minimal nuances. A film also taking a political position. A computer animation with an almost spiritual dimension, it makes a lasting impression on the viewer. Pure technical elegance. Less is more."

 ^{Platz 2}

Hell-Muth

Of
Leif Arne Petersen, Elstal

Technology
Discreet Edit 6.0, After Effekts, Maya 4.0, Discreet Combustion 2.0, Photoshop, Boujou

Contents: Real film combined with the 3-D animation of the bust of a singing devil. Hell Mut, the singing sound-devil, warbles his favourite song - "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas" - in playback. The record gets stuck, the devil is annoyed.

The Jury: "Highly entertaining, technically outstanding and in its realisation artistic in every detail, this is a clever and convincing film. A computer animation of high standard, with esprit and a love of detail. The viewer only finds out incidentally that this is a promotional tape for an animation class, whose quality the film reflects so well that it must surely inspire every animator to want to take part."

 ^{Platz 3}

Gemini

Of
Héléne Cattet, Paris

Technology
Adobe Premiere, Adobe After Effects

Contents: A human mirror. A naked, dark-skinned man in front of a white background, and a naked white-skinned man in front of a black background. The film contrasts their reflecting movements. Their palms touch in the final image.

The Jury: "An important matter of concern is communicated by a clear graphic composition, both in and embodying black and white. Human equality in formally equal but at the same time opposite images. The message is transported with urgency but without obtrusiveness. The split-screen technique is applied and transcended meaningfully."

 ^{Finalist 4}

Click and Cut

Of
Andrej Gontcharov, Twistringen
Schüler

Technology
Adobe Premiere, Photoshop

 ^{Finalist 5}

Done with Milk

Of
Daniel Struppat-Yuhlmann, Elstal

Technology
AVID Media Composer, Softimage XSI

 ^{Finalist 6}

Of
Sascha Langer, Offenbach
Studium der Visuellen Kommunikation, HfG Offenbach

Technology
AVID, Softimage, After Effects

 ^{Finalist 7}

 ^{Finalist 8}

Taeterprofil

Of
Saskia Benger
Studentin der Mediengestaltung an der Bauhaus-Universität Weimar

Technology
AVID Xpress, Discreet Flint

 ^{Finalist 9}

 ^{Finalist 10}