BY ANDRE SOARES, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA (CINEMA MINIMA)

PRESS RELEASE:

Jason van Genderen’s Mankind Is No Island – a 3 ½ minute film that was shot entirely on a cell phone – took home the top $20,000 prize last night at Tropfest NY, the world’s largest short film festival.

Thousands of New Yorkers turned out for the free, outdoor event to see the world premieres of eight short films. The films, which can now be viewed online at www.youtube.com/tropfest, were selected from more than 100 submissions from around the world. They spanned the spectrum from comedy to drama, and all include this year’s Tropfest Signature Item (TSI) – "sunflower."

A panel of luminaries, including Julianne Moore, Billy Crudup, bestselling author Malcolm Gladwell (The Tipping Point, Blink), actress Radha Mitchell (High Art), and producers Christine Vachon (Far From Heaven) and Bruna Papandrea (MILK) selected the night’s best film live in front of the massive crowd - as well as the Best Actor and Actress prizes, which were sponsored by Nicole Kidman.

In addition to receiving a $20,000 cash prize, sponsored by Citi, van Genderen will receive a First Look Feature Film Deal from GreeneStreet Films, one of New York’s leading production and financing companies, and two round- trip tickets to Australia, courtesy of Qantas Airlines. Mankind Is No Island uses found signage on the streets of New York and Sydney to tell a touching story from the very heart of two cities and was shot entirely on a cell phone. The entire budget for the film was $57.

"We are thrilled about the turnout and the crowd’s response to this year’s films", said Tropfest founder and director John Polson (Hide and Seek, Swimfan). "Jason’s film really exemplifies what Tropfest is all about – original, unforgettable storytelling."

The top acting prizes were awarded to Barbara Singer for the film Mrs. Jones and Jonathan Harford for TheWildflower. The crowd also picked Mankind Is No Island as its favorite film, via an SMS vote at the end of the screenings.

Previously presented as Tropfest@Tribeca in association with the Tribeca Film Festival, Tropfest NY 2008 marks the first time the free public outdoor festival was presented independently by Tropfest and Polson. Tropfest originated at the well-known Tropicana Café in Sydney in 1993. Over the past fifteen years, it has evolved into the "Olympics of Short Film" and into an Australian cultural phenomenon with the festival screening live via satellite to over 150,000 people in eight cities across the continent.

Tropfest NY’s sponsors include: Brookfield Properties, Qantas, Macquarie, Deloitte, Citi, Daily News, YouTube and NYmag.com.