The Sitges Film Festival (Catalan: Festival Internacional de Cinema Fantàstic de Catalunya) is a Spanish film festival and one of the world's foremost international festivals specializing in fantasy and horror films. Established in 1968, the festival takes place every year, usually in early October, in the coastal town of Sitges, 34 kilometers West-South-West of the city of Barcelona, and is easily reachable by train.
Venues
The main venue of the Sitges Film Festival is the Auditori (Auditorium), located in the Hotel Melià Sitges (in the Port d'Aiguadolç area), which has a capacity of 1,384 seats. As of 2020, other venues are: Cine El Retiro (El Retiro Cinema), Cine Prado (Prado Cinema), Brigadoon - L'escorxador (a beautiful modernista building), Tramuntana (another cinema hall in Hotel Melià), Platja de Sant Sebastià (Sant Sebastià Beach), the emblematic Palau de Maricel (villa), Hort de Can Falç (Can Falç Garden) and Edifici Miramar (Miramar Building).[1]
Directors
The director of the festival since 2001 is Àngel Sala Corbí, who succeeded Roc Villas i Ventura (1999-2000), and Àlex Gorina i Macià (1994-1998) before him, etc.[2][3]
Awards
Since 1971 the festival has given awards to the best films, actors, and filmmakers.[4]
The Gorilla (Official Fantastic Section) are the festival's main awards. Award-winners are selected by an international jury. These awards are:[5][6]
Best Feature-Length Film
Best Director
Best Actor
Best Actress
Best Screenplay
Best Special Effects
Best Cinematography
Best Original Score
Special Jury Prize
Grand Audience Award for Best Motion Picture (Official Fantastic Selection)
Best Fantastic Genre Short Film
The festival also presents:
The José Luis Guarner Critics’ Award
Citizen Kane Award for the Best Debut Feature (Best New Director)
The Noves Visions (New Visions) Award
The Carnet Jove Jury Award (film selected by a youth jury)
The Grand Honorary Award (for Lifetime Achievement in Cinema)
The Anima't Awards for Best Animated Short and Feature Film
The Màquina del Temps (Time Machine) Award, given to individuals from the fantasy world film genre
The Midnight X-Treme Award, for the best motion picture from the special screenings (selected by the Carnet Jove Jury)