Contact: Wesley Strackbein, 210-340-5250 ext. 222, wesley@visionforum.org

SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Feb. 12, 2013 /Christian Newswire/ -- More than 1,800 participants from around the world were on hand in the Alamo City for the presentation of the Jubilee Awards during closing ceremonies at the 8th Annual San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival (SAICFF), held at the Lila Cockrell Theatre in downtown San Antonio last Saturday night. An additional 5,000-plus registered users tuned in via the web to watch the free live broadcast of the event.

Click here for videos and images from the awards ceremony, as well as more details on the winning films.

The 'Best of Festival' Jubilee Award -- with its $101,000 cash prize -- went to The Dropbox, a 72-minute documentary directed by 22-year-old Brian Ivie that chronicles the loving sacrifice of a Korean Pastor named Lee Jong-rak who built a wooden hatch on the side of his house in 2009 to collect disabled, unwanted babies. Ivie heard about Pastor Jong-rak's efforts through a Los Angeles Times article and was determined to document the pastor's story in the hopes of bringing him support.

Ivie, who came to Christ while producing The Dropbox, shared these pointed words upon receiving the SAICFF's grand prize: ". . . I deified movies for 21 years of my life, and I made them my god, and it failed me. I'm done with that story. I'm done with that idol. And I promise in the fear of God that I will steward this investment, because I would rather tell the plainest truth with $100,000 than the most sophisticated technological lie with ten million dollars or one hundred million dollars." The film was also honored with 'Best Sanctity of Life' Award earlier during the ceremony.

The top honor in the 'Best Feature Film' category went to Return to the Hiding Place. The film -- directed by Peter Spence and produced by his daughter Petra Pearce -- is set in Holland during WWII and follows Corrie ten Boom's army of untrained teenagers as they navigate a deadly labyrinth of challenges to rescue the Jewish people. Return to the Hiding Place also garnered the Audience Choice Award and was runner-up for 'Best of Festival.'

The Pink Room, a gripping expose of the sex slavery of young girls in Cambodia, garnered the 'Best Documentary' Award.

The 'Best Short Film' Award was given to Useless, an 11-minute film based on Philemon 1:10-11. Written and directed by Brandon Adams, the film short previously won 'Best Film' at the 168 Project.

In winning 'Best Short Film' at the SAICFF, the film's director automatically received a $250,000 opportunity to produce a feature film with Echolight Studios who sponsored this Jubilee Award category.

Bobby Downs, President of Echolight, explained their vision in partnering with the SAICFF for this commendation before passing the baton to special guest Sen. Rick Santorum, who presented the award on Echolight's behalf: "It is my honor to be here with Echolight," Santorum remarked. "I'm excited about them and what they're doing, trying to nurture and build, to create a real powerful portal for this industry."

Kevin Sizemore, one of the two lead actors in Useless, received the award on behalf of Brandon Adams, who directed the film, but who was unable to attend due to the recent birth of his son.

The 'Best Promotional Media' Award went to The Lamplighter Guild, a 5-minute film that explains the vision of this one-week art school founded by Mark Hamby in which students learn the elements of radio theater production, including voice acting, sound design, script writing, music composition, and more from experts in the industry.

The Founding Fathers App took home the top honor in the 'Best Commercial Advertisement' category. The 60-second spot promotes the Founding Fathers Project, a series of interactive iPad books allowing viewers to interact with and learn about each of the founding fathers. The goal is to teach American children who these great men were and what they did. The film was written, directed, and produced by Preston Cone, Daniel Walsh, and Jeremiah Warren.

Nathaniel and Jonathan Johnson received the 'Young Filmmakers' Award for Joseph in Egypt III, a 15-minute film that is the final chapter in their Joseph in Egypt Trilogy, which is told through Lego Stop Motion Animation.

The 'Best Original Score' Award was given to The Lost Medallion, a feature film starring Alex Kendrick in which his character, Daniel Anderson, visits a foster home to drop off some donations and is quickly roped into telling the kids a story which transitions into a heart-racing adventure of Billy Stone and Allie. These two teenage friends uncover a long-lost medallion and then accidentally wish themselves back in time as part of an exciting adventure. The Lost Medallion was also the runner-up for 'Best Feature Film.'

Other winners included Ru: Water is Life, which garnered the runner-up award in the 'Best Documentary' category; and Static, which took second place for 'Best Short Film.' Runner-up for 'Best Sanctity of Life' went to Birth Control: How Did We Get Here; and Indescribable was tapped for second place in the 'Best Original Score' category. Mobile Mayhem took the runner-up award for 'Young Filmmaker' Award. The 'Best Treatment' Award went to Fire and Forgiveness, with Sola Fide getting the second-place nod in this category.

For the first time ever, the SAICFF broadcast its Jubilee Awards Ceremony live online. Watch the full video archive from the ceremony by clicking here.

To schedule interviews with SAICFF founder Doug Phillips and for all other press inquiries related to the festival, contact Wesley Strackbein by e-mail at wesley@visionforum.org or by phone at (210) 340-5250, ext. 222.