The first Liverpool Film Festival draws to a close.

On the 10th to the 12th November, hundreds of cinema goers indulged in a weekend of independent film at the Picturehouse at FACT, for the inaugural year of the Liverpool Film Festival. Filmmakers travelled in from every corner of the globe to represent their features to Liverpool movie lovers.

The opening night saw the UK premiere screening of the Documentary You’ll Never Walk Alone and Liverpool fans were in full voice during an in-depth Q and A with the director Andre Schaefer and contributors George Sephton, Damian Kanavagh and Freda Kelly. Throughout the weekend many more filmmakers and directors attended the screenings to take part in question and answer sessions with the audiences.

Highlights over the course of the festival included The Minister, a raucous Italian comedy which took away four awards for Best Actor, Director and Feature as well as the Film of the Festival, and award winning Keepers of the Magic, with contributions from legendary cinematographers including Vittorio Storaro, Bruno Delbonnel, Cesar Charlone, Philippe Rouselot, Roger Deakins, John Seal and Gordon Willis. Local filmmakers were also represented with the World Premiere of The Desolate One by Liverpool’s own Daniel Boocock.

Neil Jeram-Croft, Operations Director for LIVIFF says: “It has been great to see the turn out from audiences for this inaugural festival and the feedback has been amazing. Liverpool is such a vibrant and cultural city and this festival is only going to grow.  Hosting the festival at the Picturehouse FACT was a perfect fit for us and they have really helped to promote the festival and look after the visiting filmmakers. We are already planning on how to make the festival bigger and better for 2018, watch this space!”

As part of the festival a panel judged the best movies across all genres. The full list of award winners from LIVIFF 2017 are as follows:

Best Experimental Film - #MEAT
Best Music Video – Omut
Best Student Film - I am Dyslexic
Best Animation - I am Dyslexic
Best Actor - Fortunato Cerlino (The Minister)
Best Actress - Nastassja Tanner (Hide and Seek)
Best International Short - Son
Best UK Short - The Desolate One
Best Documentary - You'll Never Walk Alone
Best Feature - The Minister
Best Director - Giorgio Amato (The Minister)
Film of the Festival - The Minister

LIVIFF 2017 Non- Commissioned Screenplay Finalists

Killer Whales (R-4)
By Alan Lambert
U.S.A
An obnoxious promoter forms a tribute band of a sixties “Folk Dixieland” group but is murdered before they can perform in an upcoming battle of the bands competition. Eight musicians are suspects now, but why kill their manager just a week before a possible huge payday?

Vault
By Uwe Matthias
GERMANY
Set in the near future. After the state of California is hit by a seemingly natural disaster and separated from mainland U.S.A, survivors must rebuild their lives and uncover the truth behind the biggest earthquake in human history.

Resurrection Time Conspiracy
By James Carroll
U.S.A
A research project by the Institute of Higher Learning employs Ram Goldstein and the greatest minds across the world to create a matter transfer machine for what turns out to be a scientific discovery of corruption and terrorism.

The Winner is…
VAULT by Uwe Matthias