Cambria Film Festival: And the winners are ...

“Wild Prairie Rose” connected with a one-two punch at the Cambria Film Festival, walking away with both the jury and audience awards for Best Feature over the weekend.

Director Deborah LaVine accepted the awards Sunday night at the Hearst Castle Theater, as the festival wrapped up its four-day run. “Wild Prairie Rose,” set in the rural United States during the 1950s, focuses on the character of Rose Miller, who “falls in love with a deaf man and must decide if she has the courage to follow her heart, according to the IMDB website.

“There’s Always Tomorrow,” filmed in Abu Dhabi, won the Nancy Green Best of the Fest award. Director Shilpa Krishnan, Shukla was on hand Sunday to accept the award for the film, which centers on an Indian couple who reconnect after years apart.

In the Short Film category, “F.A.W.” won the Jury Award and “Beyond the Sea” took home the Audience Award. “F.A.W.,” a Spanish film, tells the story of a trio of lovers with an unusual twist.

“In every way — from the number of film entries to their quality to the enthusiastic crowds — the Cambria Film Festival has exceeded all of our expectations for its first year,” said Alan Fraser, co-founder of the festival with Green.

Fraser’s Love Story Project in the West Village and Cambria Center for the Arts, under Green’s direction until her recent retirement.

The festival, held at Cambria Center for the Arts, the Pewter Plough Playhouse and other North Coast venues, attracted about 40 independent features and short films from countries as diverse as England, India, Germany, Ireland, France, Australia and Spain.

This story was originally published February 12, 2018 at 9:57 AM with the headline "Cambria Film Festival: And the winners are ...."