I'm sure you don't need reminding, but Gareth won our first 48 Hour Film Challenge back in 2008, now the rest of the world is starting to recognise this exciting new talent. It is also exciting to see a British sci-fi film get such recognition at a mainstream festival.

The Moët New Directors Award was deliberated by a Jury of three, and their citation read: “The very high standard of the competitors for the Moët New Director's Award made the selection process as difficult as it was pleasurable. There were, for all of the jurors, four stand-out films. We would like to give special mentions to NOTHING PERSONAL, SON OF BABYLON and WINTER’S BONE. And we give the award, which acknowledges both ability and potential, to MONSTERS and its maker Gareth Edwards, whose extraordinary talents we confidently expect to see a great deal more of in the years to come.”

SCI-FI-LONDON congratulates Gareth on his first major award as a director (he was previously given a TV BAFTA for special effects). SFL will continue to discover, encourage and support new British talent through its 48 Hour Film Challenge and the festival itself.