The Danish Film Institute's documentary film award of 3,500 euros was presented to documentary filmmaker Steen Møller Rasmussen at the opening gala of the CPH:DOX documentary film festival, 8 November.The award jury – this year comprising Tue Steen Müller, former head of the European Documentary Network; Henning Camre, head of the European ThinkTank on European Film and Film Policy; and Agnete Dorph Stjernfelt, DFI's chief of press and communications – based their decision on the following grounds:• For more than 30 years, Rasmussen, stubbornly and persistently, has explored the boundaries of the documentary genre as an observant interpreter and a playful stage-manager, cameraman and photographer.• He, more than anyone, has conveyed his fascination with new, transgressive visual art. Always having a clear understanding with the characters he portrays, assuming their viewpoint, he wields camera and pen in surprising ways, with humour and respect.
• Impressively productive – film is his lifestyle – Rasmussen, in his highly personal, non-commercial and non-invasive manner, has exploited film’s technical and aesthetic potentials for expression, while never bowing to outside demands for duration or current trends, etc.
• Beyond directing, he has unfolded his talents as a publisher, exhibition organiser and, notably, as cinematographer on a wealth of Danish documentaries – very much like the artist for whom the award is named, Jørgen Roos, a director, cinematographer and photographer who was also a great art lover.
The Roos Award was established in 1995 for the purpose of rewarding outstanding efforts in documentary filmmaking.Past award-winners include Jørgen Roos, Ole Askman, Jørgen Leth, Sami Saif, Phie Ambo, Janus Billeskov Jansen, Jon Bang Carlsen, Jesper Jargil, Anne Wivel, Tue Steen Müller, Niels Pagh Andersen and Arne Bro.Steen Møller Rasmussen, a 1980 cinematography graduate of the National Film School of Denmark, has directed and shot a long line of films, including:
"In/Out the Flat No. 5" (1984) med Peter Bonde og Claus Carstensen."Tretten" (1989)"Fin de Beckett" (1991)"Manhattan CityScape" (1993)"Reading Lips" (1996) med Lawrence Weiner"The Place to Be" (1996)"Frederiksberg d. 8.9.1996" (1996)"Parachute Jump" (1999)"2000" (1999)"Elementernes Metafysik" (1996) med Per Aage Brandt"Lowell Celebrates Kerouac" (1998) med Lars Movin"Richard Winther - en undersøgelse" (1999)"Onkel Danny – portræt af en karma cowboy" (2002) med Lars Movin"Fotografi" (2006)"Words of Advice - William S. Burroughs on the Road" (2007) med Lars MovinDanish Film Institute (DFI)Agnete Dorph Stjernfelt, +45 3374 3505, agnetes@dfi.dk