[USFK Forums] Film on Megumi Yokota wins 2 more awards at U.S. film festivals [Kyodo]

[C. Y. Lee]

Uploaded by C. Y. Lee on Thursday, March 30, 2006

Film on Megumi Yokota wins 2 more awards at U.S. film festivals

Wednesday March 29, 1:07 PM

(Kyodo) _ A documentary film portraying the kidnapping of 13-year-old Japanese girl Megumi Yokota by North Korean agents has picked up two more awards in the United States.

"Abduction: The Megumi Yokota Story," directed by Chris Sheridan and Patty Kim, earned the Jury Prize for Best Documentary at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival and the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Omaha Film Festival.

The Jury Prize winners at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, one of the largest festivals of its kind in North America with a 24-year history, were announced at the closing night ceremonies on Thursday while the Audience Award at Omaha Film Festival in Nebraska, which just started its tradition this year, was presented Sunday.

"We're totally thrilled," said Sheridan along with co-director and wife Kim. "You couldn't get two more different cities yet we had a fantastic audience response in both, proving this film plays well in big cities and in the heartland," he said.
"The story simply touches people no matter where they're from," added Kim.

The awards mark the second and third accolades for the film. At the Slamdance Festival in January in Park City, Utah, the film took home the Audience Sparky Award for Best Documentary.

The 85-minute film follows the story of Megumi Yokota, a 13-year-old schoolgirl who disappeared on her way to school in 1977, and her family's struggle to bring her back.

The film has played to sold-out audiences in every city so far and received rave reviews from critics, according to Safari Media, a distributor of the film.

Cleveland's Plain Dealer called "Abduction" one of the top five films to see at the Cleveland International Film Festival, while Variety magazine called the film "exceptional."

The San Francisco Chronicle wrote that the persistence and determination by Megumi's family in their search for the girl are the heart of this affecting film.

"Abduction" will be screened at the Independent Film Festival of Boston, which is scheduled to open on April 22. The film will also make its debut in Canada on April 29 at the Hot Docs Film Festival in Toronto, the largest documentary film event in North America.

Jane Campion, the Oscar-wining director of "The Piano," is credited as the film's executive producer.

Megumi Yokota's whereabouts remain unknown. Pyongyang has said she killed herself in 1994 while being treated for depression, and during talks in Pyongyang in November 2004 it handed over cremated remains to Japan it claimed were hers.

But a DNA analysis in Japan found the remains were those of two unknown people. Japan has since demanded the return of Megumi Yokota and other abductees, while North Korea calls Japan's analysis a fabrication.

The abduction issue has been a barrier to Japan and North Korea normalizing diplomatic relations.

On March 3, Japan put Sin Guang Su, a former North Korean agent, and Choe Sung Chol, an active one, on an international wanted list over the alleged abductions of four Japanese citizens.

Sin is suspected of involvement in Megumi's abduction as well.


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