Westwood, CA: 6-26-05. At Sunday night's closing night film and awards presentation, “La Vie d’un Chien” won the Jury Prize for Best Narrative Short Film at the Los Angeles Film Festival. The film was Don Roos's “Happy Endings,” screening at the National Theatre. A huge place, and it was packed. The director and most of the cast were there, they enjoyed front-row seats for my barely coherent (and very short) acceptance speech. I started with “I'm stunned and amazed.” I was.

They handed me an award, but then they took it away from me, saying it had to be engraved. I hugged Lisa Kudrow, (she seemed fairly OK with it) but the batteries in my camera were dead, so we didn't get a picture. And I was told I won a Canon DV camera... but I guess that'll be shipped to me. I was thinking the whole thing had been a hallucination, but then I found a picture online (see left). They didn't identify the person with Lisa Kudrow but I'm fairly sure it's me.

Excerpt from the LAFF Press Release:

“It was our goal to recognize films that pushed outside the limits of tradition, while rewarding us on several levels simultaneously…visually, aurally, thematically, narratively and viscerally. Although there were an unusual number of films in this category that succeeded…including the stunning Tama Tü and the funny, imaginative, yet deeply authentic The Raftman’s Razor …one managed to also test the very concept of the moving picture, with a more than passing nod to Chris Marker's La Jeté:e, while being humorous, affecting, strange, beautiful and profound.” said the Shorts Competition Jury.

This award includes a Canon digital camera donated by Canon U.S.A.