Hollywood producer Mr Chris Lee.

When asked how the winners were selected, Mr Lee, who recently served as Executive Producer on Tom Cruise's Valkyrie and who is on the AFFF jury panel for the first time, revealed that they tended to judge "on the curve" and there was a lot of "forgiveness" as they were looking at low-budget films made by first-time producers and directors.

"We were looking for someone who has a sense of telling a story, how you make it original and engaging.

"In the movie we liked best, Looking For Anne, there was not a moment in there I wasn't expecting. There were no cliches, there were many surprises and that's what made it special," said Mr Lee.

He also said that the film was emotional, moving and represented a cross-cultural mix.

As for choosing the best first-time female and male actors, who happened to be two child actors, Mr Lee explained: "We chose them because they gave great performances; they were very natural."

The two best actors awards went to actor Sriharsh Sharma Churai, 13, and actress Zoya S. Hasan, 10, for their roles in For Real.

"I wanted to cast kids who are very natural and they shouldn't have acted before, because they'll be influenced.

"Zoya stole my heart the first time I saw her and Sriharsh is a natural actor. I'm so proud of them for winning these two awards," said director Sona.

Supported by the Media Development Authority (MDA), the AFFF has managed to attract top film talents and international stars to be part of the festival. And according to Mr Lee, it seems like some of the films this year have the potential of making it big overseas.

"I think all the winners will have a future, particularly Looking For Anne, Superman of Malegaon and Addicted in Afghanistan," emphasised Mr Lee.