After Sun, directed by Charlotte Wells, won the Grand Prix at the 48th American Film Festival in Deauville, France. It is a moving film regarding a father’s vacation relationship with his 11-year-old daughter.
This work of fiction won the most important prize at the festival, succeeding the film “Down with the King” directed by Diego Ungaro, which won it last year.
The films of unknown directors dominated the list of works that competed for the award this year, as they numbered eight out of the 13 that were included in the competition.
After Sun is the first feature film directed by Charlotte Wells, who was born in 1987 in Scotland and lives in New York. Wells, in a speech shown in the video at the Grand Festival Hall, expressed her pride in winning the award.
This highly personal film is regarding a summer vacation spent in the late 1990s by an Englishman in his thirties, played by Paul Mescal (particularly known in “Normal People”) with his 11-year-old daughter (played by Frankie Curio) on the Turkish coast.
The film begins with scenes of joy and smiles, then gradually the features of loss and pain appear on this divorced man who captures with the video camera moments of happiness with the vibrant Sophie.
The jury prize was awarded to two films: “War Pony,” in which directors Gina Gammell and Riley Keough delve into the world of Native Americans, and “Palm Trees and Power Lines,” in which director Jamie Duck deals with adolescence.
