Trieste 2019: Ghost Story EXTRA ORDINARY Leads Science + Fiction Awards

At the close of the 19th edition of the Trieste Science+Fiction Festival in Italy yesterday, Extra Ordinary (pictured above) received an award as the best European feature film, as chosen by an international jury. But that wasn't all.

The feature debut by directors Mike Ahern and Enda Loughman was also awarded the Stars' War - Web Critics Award, the Nocturno Nuove Visioni Award, and the Audience Award. That's quite an accomplishment! Here's how the festival described it:

"Mike Ahern and Enda Loughman present an unmissable romantic comedy with supernatural elements, skillfully playing with the traditional tropes of the possession genre. The result is a bubbly horror comedy unafraid to be politically incorrect."

Our own J Hurtado saw the film at SXSW in Austin, Texas, earlier this year, and in his review he noted: "This dark comic fantasy from Ireland absolutely wrecked the SXSW audience this week, who I don't think were quite prepared for the potent mix of broad splatstick comedy and the sweet coming-of-age story of a thirty something woman looking for meaning beyond teaching teenagers to parallel park."

Read all about the awards below in the official announcement from the festival, and watch the trailer for Extra Ordinary below that.

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Trieste - The 19th edition of the Trieste Science+Fiction Festival, the main science-fiction event in Italy, came to a close on Sunday, November 3rd with the closing ceremony held at the Politeama Rossetti.

THE TRIESTE SCIENCE+FICTION FESTIVAL 19th EDITION AWARD WINNERS

Asteroide Award
The Award is given to the best science fiction, horror or fantasy movie by emerging directors in the Neon | Competition section. The winner of the competition has been chosen by an international jury of world renowned movie professionals and experts of the fantastic genre. Members of the Asteroide award jury this year were Brian Yuzna, producer and director, Evrim Ersoy, journalist and creative director of the Austin, Texas Fantastic Fest and Alexandre O. Philippe, documentary film director.

TS+FF2019 Asteroide Award winner
"Aniara" by Pella Kågerman, Hugo Lilja (Sweden, 2018)

Motivation
It's a true science+fiction film with a strong environmental and existential message.
The Jury particularly liked the character of Mima (watch the film and you will understand!).

Synopsis
Our planet is done for: we have to move to Mars, and quick. Aniara is one of the ships taking Earth passengers to their new home, but it hits detritus and ends up off course. Soon their destiny is clear: drifting in space forever in an empty and cold universe.

Méliès d'argent Award - Feature Films
The competition is organized in collaboration with the Méliès International Festivals Federation (MIFF) and the award goes to the best European feature film. The winner of the competition has been chosen by an international jury of world renowned movie professionals and experts of the fantastic genre. Members of the Méliès d'argent jury this year were Fabio Frizzi, composer and orchestra leader, Lorenzo Ferrari Ardicini, CEO of CG Entertainment and Thierry Phlips, journalist and president of the Bruges Razor Reel Flanders Film Festival.

TS+FF2019 Méliès d'argent Award winner - Feature Films
"Extra Ordinary" by Mike Ahern, Enda Loughman (Ireland, Belgium, 2019)

Motivation
A delicious ghost story that owes a lot to a great cast, the script and the direction. An universal story that remains grounded in European and Irish culture and folklore. In the end it's a classic story reinvented with modern rhythm and style.

Synopsis
What a palaver having superpowers. People ask you to exorcise the bewitched toaster or free them from the ghosts hidden under the carpet. But Rose is docile and patient and ready to help everyone. If there's something more serious to face, like a possessed girl because of a pact with the devil by a rock singer, then she really cannot pull out. With stars like Will Forte and Maeve Higgins , he festival's comic relief is guaranteed.

Special Mention
A special mention to Marta Król, leading actress of "I am REN" for her outstanding talent to create empathy with the audience since the very beginning of the film, conveying great strenght to the film message.

Synopsis
What if one day you discover your wife is an android? And not working properly, either. You may lose everything you've got, everything you know.

Méliès d'argent Award - Short Films
The competition is organized in collaboration with the Méliès International Festivals Federation (MIFF) and the award goes to the best European short film. The winner of the competition is chosen by the theatre audience votes and also wins the nomination to the Méliès d'or annual competition.

TS+FF2019 Méliès d'argent Award winner - Short Films
"This Time Away" by Magali Barbé (UK, 2019)

Synopsis
Nigel is an elderly man living as a recluse, haunted by his past and memory of the family he once had... until an unexpected visitor arrives and disrupts his lonely routine.

Rai 4 Award
The award is given by the Rai 4 channel of Italian television, media partner of the 2019 Trieste Science+Fiction Festival, to one of the movies of the Neon section.

TS+FF2019 Rai 4 Award winner
"After Midnight" by Jeremy Gardner, Christian Stella (USA, 2019)

Motivation
An ironic and intelligent metaphor of the sentimental crisis of a young couple, in which the refined narrative plot leads the male protagonist into the labyrinth of an anguished loneliness and the experience of fear becomes monstrous and unsettling.

Synopsis
Hank and Abby are in love. BUT: one day she disappears in the air. And: there is a monstrous creature creeping out of the woods at night. The premise for a great science fiction story we will hear about for a long time are all there.

Stars' War - Web Critics Award
The award is given to the best debut film of the festival by nine web magazines: BadTaste, Blow Out, Cineblog, CineClandestino, CineLapsus, Cinematographe, Quinlan, Sentieri Selvaggi and Taxi Drivers.

TS+FF2019 Stars' War Award winner
"Extra Ordinary" by Mike Ahern, Enda Loughman (Ireland, Belgium, 2019)

Nocturno Nuove Visioni Award
The award is given to the most innovative movie for the genre film sector by Nocturno, the main Italian magazine in the genre movies field.

TS+FF2019 Nocturno Nuove Visioni Award winner
"Extra Ordinary" by Mike Ahern, Enda Loughman (Ireland, Belgium, 2019)

Motivation
A breath of fresh air in a genre often victim of repetitions and clichés. An almost miraculous balance between moments of great supernatural tension and loud laughter, Nocturno prize speak Irish!

CineLab Spazio Corto Award
The CineLab Spazio Corto Award is organized in collaboration with DAMS (Arts, Music and Entertainment department) of the Universities of Udine and Trieste. The award is given by a jury of students to the best Italian short film in the Spazio Italia | Spazio Corto section. The 2019 jury members are Leandro Urbani, Edoardo Vidiz, Riccardo Tonon, Ajad Noor and Luciano Ranaldi.

TS+FF2019 CineLab Spazio Corto Award winner
"N" by Iacopo Di Girolamo (Italy, UK, 2019)

Motivation
"N" succeeds in applying the philosophy of Stanislaw Lem to an expressionist form, not entering into contradiction with it, nor obtaining a parodic result, but maintaining themes and style, creating an original work. The construction of the soundtrack according to the assembly is truly remarkable.

Synopsis
An expressionist nightmare in which an inventor and his colleague test the Automaton, a machine able to create things from nothing. The machine works perfectly as long as the items it's asked to create start with the letter N... in German. The results of the test will be predictably catastrophic.

Audience Award
The award is chosen by the theatre audience among the movies of all sections except the classics.

TS+FF2019 Audience Award winner
"Extra Ordinary" by Mike Ahern, Enda Loughman (Ireland, Belgium, 2019)

Asteroide Life Achievement Award
The Trieste Science+Fiction Festival Life Achievement Award has been given since 2002 to the great masters of the fantastic genre.
TS+FF2019 Asteroide Life Achievement Award winner

Phil Tippett, twice Academy Award winner, master of special effects.