CineKink Film Festival Award Winners Announced

NEW YORK—Rounding out multiple days of screenings and parties in its eighth annual appearance, organizers for CineKink NYC/2011 announced the recipients of awards in a range of categories during the film festival's closing celebrations held Sunday, March 6. "We seemed to really hit our stride this season," said CineKink co-founder and director Lisa Vandever, as she presented the awards. "The audience response has been amazing and we're so pleased with the films we were able to present. I did not envy this year's jurors whatsoever." Audience Choice Awards were given to Indietro (Vivian Darkbloom) for Best Narrative Feature and to Kink Crusaders (Mike Skiff) for Best Documentary Feature. The choice awards were determined by audience ballot just following each eligible film's screening during the festival. In the shorts competition, juried festival awards went to Cactus (Anna Treiman) for Best Dramatic Short, Piss (Bette Bentley) for Best Camedy Short, Butterfly Caught (Joshua Bewig) for Best Experimental Short and to Love, Hugs and Kisses, Sissy Stephanie (Mrs. G) for Best Documentary Short. Honorable Best Mention awards were presented to Turning Japanese (Paul Bickel) and Love Hotel: Room 33 (Erika Lust). Determining the shorts awards, CineKink jurors this year included Rick Vaicius, director of the Flyway Film Festival, along with Viviane Tang, ring-leader of the sex blog "Viviane's Sex Carnival," and Bill Woods, a film festival programmer and curator of the New Filmmakers series at Anthology Film Archives. The second annual CineKink "Bring It!" award, determined by audience ballot during a presentation of excerpts showcasing current adult cinema, went to Tristan Taormino's Rough Sex II (Tristan Taormino). The CineKink Tribute, recognizing extraordinary depictions of kink and sex-positivity in mainstream film and television, was presented to The Kids are Alright (Lisa Cholodenko/Focus Features) for its "stance that sex, love and desire are complicated matters, deserving our compassion and a good dose of humor." Honorable mentions for the CineKink Tribute went to the films Going the Distance (Nanette Burstein/New Line Cinema and Warner Bros Pictures) and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (Edgar Wright/Universal Studios), and to the television series' Caprica (SyFy) and Modern Family (ABC). Works eligible for consideration this year were those released or aired in the United States from January 1 until December 31, 2010. Making its eighth annual run March 1-6, 2011, CineKink NYC featured a specially selected program of films and videos that celebrate and explore a wide diversity of sexuality. Billing itself as "the kinky film festival," the event is dedicated to the recognition and encouragement of sex-positive and kink-friendly depictions in film and television. With offerings drawn from both Hollywood and beyond, works presented at CineKink NYC ranged from documentary to drama, comedy to experimental, mildly spicy to quite explicit - and everything in between. Sponsors of CineKink NYC/2011 included KinkyMedical.net, National Coalition for Sexual Freedom, njoy and Tied Up Events, along with Pleasure Salon, Salacious Magazine and Scarleteen. Selections from CineKink NYC will be featured in a traveling version of the festival, slated to appear in various cities throughout the coming year. For more information, visit http://www.cinekink.com/ * * * * * CINEKINK NYC/2011 - DETAILED AWARD INFORMATION "CINEKINK CHOICE" - AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARDS CineKink Choice awards, which go to feature-length works in competition during the festival, were determined by audience balloting at the close of each eligible work's screening. The 2011 award winners are: CineKink Choice Award for Best Narrative Feature: Indietro (Vivian Darkbloom, 2010, USA, 63 minutes) CineKink Choice Award for Best Documentary Feature: Kink Crusaders (Mike Skiff, 2010, USA, 74 minutes) "CINEKINK BEST" - JURY AWARD FOR BEST SHORTS CineKink Best awards, which go to short works in competition during the festival, were determined by jury deliberation and ranking.  The 2011 award winners are: CineKink Best Dramatic Short: Cactus (Anna Treiman, 2009, Denmark, 30 minutes) CineKink Best Comedy Short: Piss (Vincent Peone & Bette Bentley, 2010, USA, 7 minutes) CineKink Best Experimental Short: Butterfly Caught (Joshua Bewig, 2010, USA, 7 minutes) CineKink Best Documentary Short: Love, Hugs and Kisses, Sissy Stephanie (Mrs G, 2010, USA, 12 minutes) CineKink Honorable Best Mentions: Turning Japanese (Paul Bickel, 2009, USA, 20 minutes) Love Hotel: Room 33 (Erika Lust, 201o, Spain, 4 minutes) "BRING IT!" - Adult Industry Showcase Award The CineKink "Bring It!" award is determined by audience ballot during a presentation of excerpts showcasing recent adult cinema. Tristan Taormino's Rough Sex II (Tristan Taormino, 2010, USA, excerpt) "CINEKINK TRIBUTE" - Festival Award for Extraordinary Depiction of Kink and Sex-Positivity in Mainstream Film/Television. Works eligible for consideration this year were those released or aired in the United States from January 1 through December 31, 2010. The Kids Are Alright (released by Focus Features; dir. Lisa Cholodenko ) Honorable Mentions: Caprica (SyFy) Going The Distance (New Line Cinema & Warner Bros/dir. Nanette Burstein) Modern Family (ABC) Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (Universal/dir. Edgar Wright)