Good News in Sri Lanka

At the Vesak 2010 film fest in Sri Lanka, short film Good News by Kris Mergan and Geert Vandenbroele received the ‘Light of Asia’ Award for best animated film. Director Kris Mergan was handed the award personally by Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The International Buddhist Film Festival, which took place from 28-31 May, had to postpone its awards ceremony due to severe weather conditions. Finally, in late June, the winners were announced and were able to receive their prizes from the president of Sri Lanka. The award also means that Good News will get a screening on a local channel in Sri Lanka.

According to director Kris Mergan, the crew ‘received a princely welcome' and the film was well received by the public, critics and fellow directors alike at the festival. In Sri Lanka, the event was headline news, which meant the directors received considerable media attention. Afterwards the filmmakers expressed their satisfaction that the film had made such an impression at the festival, 'confirming that the film’s non-linear narrative style and underlying message can be appreciated by a wider audience’.

‘Vesak’ is the most important annual religious festival in Buddhism and celebrates the birth, enlightenment and parinibbana, or final nirvana, of Gautama Buddha in May.

In the film, Lion Angel takes a radical decision. He steals a fire engine and locks himself up together with the Virgin Mary, the only one who seems to understand him. A suspicious fire in the chapel leads them to the centre of the earth. Good News is a production of Mergans Telewerk and was supported by the Flemish Audiovisual Fund.