2010 Commitment Grant Recipient Update: Mbambu and the Mountains of the Moon
In October of 2010, as part of the inaugural Commitment Grant program, Mountainfilm awarded five individuals with a $5,000 grant and a MacBook Pro computer for film and photography projects. Two of the projects were featured in the 2010 festival (Mbambu and the Mountains of the Moon and the gallery show from Paul Colangelo entitled Sacred Headwaters) and the other three (Terra Blight, Soul of the Sea and Paradox Valley) are still deep in production and post-production stages. As we prepare to announce the recipients of the second annual Commitment Grant next month, we'll be posting a series of updates on last years' winners.
Our second update comes from Natasa Muntean, who with her husband Lucian directed the film Mbambu and the Mountains of the Moon. Natasa and Lucian recently moved from their native Serbia to Norway to continue pursuing their career in film.
"Since its North American premiere at Mountainfilm in Telluride in May, Mbambu and the Mountains of the Moon has been touring film festivals around the world. Some of the festival selections include three wonderful festivals in Italy: Ischia Film Festival, Film Festival della Lessinia and Asolo International Art Festival, a very important international festival of films related to the topics of art; Mbambu and the Mountains of the Moon is also the finalist in the “Best Film by Adults About or for Youth“ category at the Auburn International Film Festival for Children and Young Adults, Sydney, Australia and the finalist in the “Best Documentary” category at the biggest and most important children and youth film festival in Africa LOLA KENYA SCREEN.
"Mbambuand the Mountains of the Moon will start airing on ARTE France & Germany from September 2011, the premier European culture channel that aims to promote quality programming especially in areas of culture and the arts.
"Mbambu and the Mountains of the Moon is the recipient of the TOURA D’OR 2010 Berlin award that every other year gives recognition to film and TV productions that promote socially responsible, environmentally compatible and sustainable tourism. TOURA D’OR acknowledges films that manage to emotionally familiarise the audience with a different country and its people; that reduce anxieties, dispel stereotypes and prejudices and encourage people to get closer to what they may consider as strange."
