"Saints and Soldiers," a locally produced World War II drama, has taken home the grand prize from this year's Heartland Film Festival, an Indianapolis-based event that showcases "life-affirming" films.
In addition to the Crystal Heart Award, which is given to the most popular dramatic feature at the festival, the film also took home a $50,000 prize.
The film was directed by Ryan Little ("Out of Step") and follows five U.S. Army soldiers who are trapped behind enemy lines during the 1944 Battle of the Bulge.
According to co-screenwriter Geoffrey Panos, the film is based on the real-life experiences of some of the survivors of the Malmedy Massacre, in which 61 American soldiers were murdered by SS troops. (And one of the characters is LDS.)
"Obviously, (the LDS character) is not necessarily the focus of our film. His story is just one of the subplots," Panos told the Deseret Morning News.
Also, the movie is surprisingly "grown-up and realistic" in its depiction of the soldier's experiences, according to Panos. "I'm just glad that it was so well-received there. This is a really big honor."
"Saints and Soldiers" has also been screened at a variety of other festivals, including Telluride and Sacramento, where it also won audiences awards. The film will continue to play the festival circuit throughout the rest of this year and is expected to play in Utah theaters early next year.
The Heartland Film Festival, now in its 12th year, includes studio-produced features in its programming, but organizers say the real focus is to recognize and honor "filmmakers whose work explore the human journey by artistically expressing hope and respect for the positive values of life."
This is not the first time a Utah feature has won honors at the festival. Local filmmaker Blair Treu has won the Crystal Heart Award twice, with "Little Secrets" in 2001 and "Just Like Dad" in 1995. Other local films that have won Heartland Film Festival awards include Gregory Haynes' "Cowboys and Angels" in 2001 and Bill Shira's short film "A Truce With Death" in 1993.
In 1999, Little won a student award at the Heartland Festival for his short, "The Last Good War."
E-MAIL: jeff@desnews.com