Makoto Shinkai's anime feature 5 Centimeters per Second: A Chain of Short Stories About Their Distance, which ADV is set to release in March, has won the Lancia Grand Prize at the 10th annual Future Film Festival, which just concluded in Bologna, Italy.  This year the Future Film Festival's competition, which has a dual focus on animation and special effects, featured ten films, five of which were live action and five animated.

In awarding the Grand Prize to Makoto Shinkai for  5 Centimeters per Second, the jury of Italian filmmakers noted his ability 'to combine poetry, art and technical skills with animation and new technologies and a touching, deep-rooted story.'

Michae Arias' Tekkonkinkreet, the first true anime feature film to be directed by an American, was also entered in the competition and it received 'Special Mention' for its 'interesting and original graphics' and for having an 'involving story with a non-rhetorical message.'  Tekkonkinkreet was the only film to be honored by the jury other than 5 Centimeters per Second.