'Thirteen' scoops two major awards at Locarno

Holly Hunter has been awarded the Leopard for Best Actress (shared) at the Locarno Film Festival, for her role as the mother of a troubled teen in 'Thirteen'.
Director and co-writer Catherine Hardwicke also took an award - the Silver Leopard for best first or second feature.
Hardwicke, previously known as a prolific production designer and art director, premiered her debut feature at Sundance earlier this year. Set in Los Angeles, Evan Rachel Wood stars as teenager Tracy, an overachiever and excellent student who gets along well with her mother, played by Holly Hunter. However Tracy turns her life upside down in order to impress Evie (Nikki Reed), the coolest and most popular girl in school.
Fuelled with genuine adolescent energy, Tracy follows Evie's lead into the harsh realities of sex, drugs, and hard-edged adventure. Consumed with temptations and conflicting desires, Tracy loses her good-girl identity, greatly affecting her relationship with her mother.
Partly autobiographical, Thirteen was co-written by Hardwicke and her close family friend, Reed when she was still 13. Originally intending to write a teen comedy, the two ended up creating a hard-hitting drama exposing the contemporary teenage experience. Thirteen was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival, with Catherine Hardwicke taking home the Director's Award.
Thirteen opens in the UK and Ireland on December 5 through United International Pictures/Universal. The film opened in the US on Wednesday of last week to critical acclaim and strong box office of $139,860 from only 5 theatres.
(GB)