Previous Editions: 18th

18th Mar del Plata International Cinema Festival - From 6 to 15 March, 2003, organized by the Cinema and Audio-Visual Arts National Institute, INCAA.

President: Jorge Coscia
Vice-president: Jorge Álvarez
Artistic Coordinator: Miguel Pereira
Executive Producer: Patricia Moro

Official Selection Jury

• Ventura Pons, President (director, Spain)
• Ulu Grosbard (director, USA)
• Suzana Amaral (director, Brazil)
• Pascal Bonitzer (actor, script writer and director, France)
• Deepa Mehta (script writer and director, India)
• Carlos Sorín (director, Argentina)

Official Awards

• Golden Ombú to Best Film: Separaçoes, by Domingos de Oliveira (Brazil)
  
• Silver Ombú to Best Director: Antonio Chavarrías, for Volverás (Spain-Mexico)
• Silver Ombú to Best Actor: Domingos de Oliveira, for Separaçoes, by D. de Oliveira (Brazil)
• Silver Ombú to Best Actress: Zooey Deschanel, for All The Real Girls, by David Gordon Green (USA)
• Silver Ombú to Best Script: David Ofek, Yossi Madmony and Lior Shefer, for Hamangalistim, by David Ofek and Yossi Madmony (Israel)
• Silver Ombú to Best Latin American Film: El fondo del mar, by Damián Szifron (Argentina)
• Jury’s Special Award: Valentín, by Alejandro Agresti (Argentina-Holland-France-Italy-Spain)
  Special Mentions:
  
• Tristán Ulloa, for Volverás, by Antonio Chavarría (Spain-Mexico). For his outstanding work in an extremely complex role.
  
• At kende sandheden, by Nils Malmros (Denmark)

Non-Official Awards

International Cinematographic Press Federation Jury, FIPRESCI
Carlos Brandao (Brazil), Gustavo Castagna (Argentina) and Gregory Valens (France)

• Best Film of the Offcial Competition: At kende sandheden, Nils Malmros (Denmark)
• Best Latin American Film: El fondo del mar, by Damián Szifron (Argentina)

World Catholic Association for Comunication (SIGNIS)  Jury
Guido Convents (Belgium), Carlos Ferraro (Argentina), Ricardo Randazzo (Argentina) and Bruno Stagnaro (Argentina)

• Best Film: Volverás, by A. Chavarrías (Spain-Mexico). For the complexity of the family relationships and the search of personal identity with accurate narrative style.
  Special Mentions:
  
• Bug, by Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi (USA). For presenting a perfect metaphor of the human actions and their consequences in the social nets, through a sensitive look of its characters.
• Past Perfect, by Daniel Maclvor (Canada). For the innovative usage of cinematographic resources in the narrative of a comunication and love story.

Argentinean Cinematographic Cronists Association (ACCA) Jury
Rómulo Berruti, Ricardo García Oliveri, Adolfo Martínez, Ricardo Randazzo and Pablo De Vita

• Best Film of the Official Competition: Bug, by Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi (USA)
  Special Mentions:
  
• At kende sandheden, by Nils Malmros (Denmark)
  
• Valentín, by Alejandro Agresti (Argentina-Holland-France-Italy-Spain)
• Best Short Film of the Section Scenes to Come: Treitum, by Javier Ruiz (Spain)
• Special Mention: Filthy, by Seth Pullin (Canada)

Argentinean Cinematographic Industry’s Trade Union (SICA) Jury
Lelia González (director assistant), Aldo Guglielmone (art director) and Carlos Jaureguialzo (director assistant and  director)

Roberto Tato Miller Award:

• Best Film of the Section Latin America XXI: La primera noche, by Luis Alberto Restrepo (Colombia)