BUENOS AIRES -- Argentina's Mar del Plata film fest could lose it's A-grade status after screening local helmer Alejandro Agresti's "Valentin" in competition, despite warnings that it was ineligible.
The row has overshadowed the fest, which wrapped Saturday after awarding Brazil's Domingos de Oliveira the Golden Ombu for "Separaceos" (Breaking Up), about a married couple's crisis. He also netted actor honors.
Fiapf, the international producers' body that supervises A-level fests, disqualified "Valentin" at the beginning of the fest because the drama about a boy who dreams of becoming an astronaut had competed at Biarritz in September. According to Fiapf, films can screen only in one official competition.
Mar del Plata organizers agreed to the ruling then reversed the decision after pressure from Agresti and the state-run Instituto Nacional de Cine y Artes Audiovisuales (INCAA). They claim that the rules do not apply as Biarritz is not an A-grade fest.
Some 120,000 people flocked to see the 120 films at the event, up 50% from last year as a recovering economy and bargain prices of 85¢ a ticket buoyed interest.
Argentine helmer Damian Szifron's debut feature "El fondo del mar" (The Bottom of the Sea), a comedy about a jealous man who discovers his girlfriend is having an affair, won the audience award and scooped a prize for best film from Latin America and Spain. It also won the Fipresci Intl. Critics Jury and Signis awards for Latin American film.
Spain's Antonio Chavarrias netted director honors for "Volveras" (You'll be Back), while Zooey Deschanel picked up the actress award for her performance in U.S. director David Green's "All the Real Girls." David Ofek, Yossi Madmony and Lior Shefer, all of Israel, won best screenplay for "The Barbecue People."
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