WINNERS SEASON: May 1, 2024 - September 30, 2024
ALL THE SUBMITTED WORKS BECAME WINNERS IN THE CATEGORIES
Dear winners of our film festival!

We cordially congratulate you on this outstanding victory! Your creations have become bright stars in the sky of art, inspiring and delighting the audience.

You have put your soul into your work, and it is impossible not to notice it. Your talents, amazing skills and boundless passion for cinema have made this festival truly unforgettable.

We wish you prosperity, new creative achievements and inspiration! Let your career develop and bring even more success, and each new project will be even more vivid and memorable than the previous one.

May the muse be with you, and creative ideas do not leave you for a moment!
-Best Feature Film-
OLMA DJON
Tomorrow if all goes well
Victoria Yakubov
Richard Anthony Dunford
OLMA DJON tells the journey of BOLOT, a father who, despite his efforts, doesn’t succeed to communicate with his daughter SHOLPAN (7) who refuses to speak, as a result of communication problems in their family: He is desperate when a Shaman Woman comes to help. Seduced by her gentle singing, he goes over the fence of his own yard. He finds himself in a snowy apple tree orchard, his secret garden, frozen for so many years. Following the singing shamanic voice, BOLOT crosses his own unconsciousness, he meets his ancestors and finally, his Mother who is waiting for him under the Apple Tree. This reconciliation gives him the capacity to communicate to his Daugher - Love.
GIO’S LIFE HAS BEEN A SERIES OF DISAPPOINTMENTS WHICH LITTLE BY LITTLE AFFECTED HIS MORALE, HIS HEALTH AND ABOVE ALL, HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH CINDY, HIS DAUGHTER. SO, WHEN GIO CALLS HER TO ANNOUNCE THAT HE IS GOING TO GET A HEART TRANSPLANT, CINDY HESITATES: THEY HAVE NOT SEEN EACH OTHER FOR FIVE YEARS. SHE NO LONGER BELONGS TO HIS WORLD. BUT FACING WITH WHAT COULD BE THIER LAST TRIP, SHE YIELDS AND AGREES TO JOIN HIM IN THE AMBULANCE.
Good Neighbours
A couple invite their somewhat peculiar new neighbours around for a welcome dinner party.
Jun Wang
ISOLATED PEOPLE

A pandemic suddenly came, Wang Yang lost her only relatives, she wanted to die, She was saved by the construction worker Jia Xiusheng. Wang Yang accidentally broke into the life of the construction worker Jia Xiusheng who is isolated by life, lies and fear brought more harm...
Rory Knox
Ghosting Society

Three men who can no longer face reality go live out in the wilderness of Texas.
Ivan Goldschmidt
Ryosuke Handa
PASSACAGLIA

A bus submerged at the bottom of the dam begins to move slowly. The dam was once a beautiful village where the bus was operated every day. The bus floated up to the ground and started to run around the forest.A strange tea party is held by the ghosts came from underwater.An original story , poetic depiction of a requiem for the lost landscapes. The music is composed and performed by Tohru Yamanaka (the director of Damb Type, a globally recognized performance group) and Saiko Fujii (a pianist based in the United States). The film also features dance scenes performed by three Ukrainian ballet dancers and the world-renowned Japanese dancer Emi Hariyama
Maria Lodovica Marini
IL MORSO DEL RAMARRO

A lively crime story set in the streets and palaces of a shiny and restless Liguria.
A vivid late-summer sunlight in Chiavari, a tidy and clean Ligurian city on the sea.
-Best Director Feature Film-
Tomorrow if all goes well
GIO’S LIFE HAS BEEN A SERIES OF DISAPPOINTMENTS WHICH LITTLE BY LITTLE AFFECTED HIS MORALE, HIS HEALTH AND ABOVE ALL, HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH CINDY, HIS DAUGHTER. SO, WHEN GIO CALLS HER TO ANNOUNCE THAT HE IS GOING TO GET A HEART TRANSPLANT, CINDY HESITATES: THEY HAVE NOT SEEN EACH OTHER FOR FIVE YEARS. SHE NO LONGER BELONGS TO HIS WORLD. BUT FACING WITH WHAT COULD BE THIER LAST TRIP, SHE YIELDS AND AGREES TO JOIN HIM IN THE AMBULANCE.
Rory Knox
Ghosting Society

Three men who can no longer face reality go live out in the wilderness of Texas.
Ivan Goldschmidt
Ran Levy-Yamamori
Bridging Troubled Waters

Whales and dolphins continue to be hunted in different parts of the world. The most well-known and visible of these hunts are the drive hunts that occur annually in Japan and the Faroe Islands. Ran Levy-Yamamori, an Israeli environmental educator and a film maker, arrived in the Faroe Islands to work with the children of the hunters.
-Best Editing Feature Film-
OLMA DJON
Tomorrow if all goes well
Victoria Yakubov
OLMA DJON tells the journey of BOLOT, a father who, despite his efforts, doesn’t succeed to communicate with his daughter SHOLPAN (7) who refuses to speak, as a result of communication problems in their family: He is desperate when a Shaman Woman comes to help. Seduced by her gentle singing, he goes over the fence of his own yard. He finds himself in a snowy apple tree orchard, his secret garden, frozen for so many years. Following the singing shamanic voice, BOLOT crosses his own unconsciousness, he meets his ancestors and finally, his Mother who is waiting for him under the Apple Tree. This reconciliation gives him the capacity to communicate to his Daugher - Love.
GIO’S LIFE HAS BEEN A SERIES OF DISAPPOINTMENTS WHICH LITTLE BY LITTLE AFFECTED HIS MORALE, HIS HEALTH AND ABOVE ALL, HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH CINDY, HIS DAUGHTER. SO, WHEN GIO CALLS HER TO ANNOUNCE THAT HE IS GOING TO GET A HEART TRANSPLANT, CINDY HESITATES: THEY HAVE NOT SEEN EACH OTHER FOR FIVE YEARS. SHE NO LONGER BELONGS TO HIS WORLD. BUT FACING WITH WHAT COULD BE THIER LAST TRIP, SHE YIELDS AND AGREES TO JOIN HIM IN THE AMBULANCE.
Ivan Goldschmidt
Ran Levy-Yamamori
Bridging Troubled Waters

Whales and dolphins continue to be hunted in different parts of the world. The most well-known and visible of these hunts are the drive hunts that occur annually in Japan and the Faroe Islands. Ran Levy-Yamamori, an Israeli environmental educator and a film maker, arrived in the Faroe Islands to work with the children of the hunters.
-Best Cinematography Feature Film-
OLMA DJON
Victoria Yakubov
OLMA DJON tells the journey of BOLOT, a father who, despite his efforts, doesn’t succeed to communicate with his daughter SHOLPAN (7) who refuses to speak, as a result of communication problems in their family: He is desperate when a Shaman Woman comes to help. Seduced by her gentle singing, he goes over the fence of his own yard. He finds himself in a snowy apple tree orchard, his secret garden, frozen for so many years. Following the singing shamanic voice, BOLOT crosses his own unconsciousness, he meets his ancestors and finally, his Mother who is waiting for him under the Apple Tree. This reconciliation gives him the capacity to communicate to his Daugher - Love.
Ran Levy-Yamamori
Bridging Troubled Waters

Whales and dolphins continue to be hunted in different parts of the world. The most well-known and visible of these hunts are the drive hunts that occur annually in Japan and the Faroe Islands. Ran Levy-Yamamori, an Israeli environmental educator and a film maker, arrived in the Faroe Islands to work with the children of the hunters.
-Best Short Film-
Donkeyland
A Texas Trilogy
Bahar Pars
Szilárd Demján, Gergő Bárdi
One day Indra starts to gear what's inside her head. The other voice of her stress to be a minority woman. Is it her or the others? and who is the Donkey?
Robert Tartell, a native of upstate New York, has been a longtime resident of Houston. Variously a farm hand, hotel kitchen dishwasher, factory worker, pilot, Army officer and practicing Family Practice Physician, he brings a wealth of experience to his writing, with an emphasis on comedy.
Live Bait
While fishing, the grandfather gives his grandson a speech about the closed world of the baits in a jar.
He is explaining in a few words how the bait in the jar stay alive. By strength or luck, just like us humans.
The little boy looks at the jar and listens to his grandfather in silence, seemingly unaffected, uninterested in the story.
However, when he arrives home, he makes a decision.
He does not want to accept a world in which either force or luck decides our fate.
Charlie Amstone
Icarian

Simon Shaw and his compatriot Isabella Hughes are the sole surviving members of an
outlaw gang after a train robbery goes awry. Their only hope now is to flee across the
barren wilderness before their injuries kill them or the Marshal does.
CAROLYN JENNIFER CORKINDALE
The Fork in the Road

The film mostly follows a boy who is escaping within himself. He is caught up in fantasies in the woodland that reflect the trials he faces in the real world. As these occur, there are glimpses of his parallel life in the real world, experiences of the boy who chose not to follow the path less travelled, but to return home to an uncomfortable situation. It is a coming of age fairy story that has some gripping episodes, where an audience will feel pity and fear for the survival of the twin protagonists and ultimately delight as all is resolved.
Robert Marshall Tartell
Jon Matthews
IN WAITING
A healthcare worker deals with relationship issues while caring for a dying patient in his San Diego home.
Joris Tobé
Frantic Attempts
A comic journey through a coaching weekend for personal growth. About fatherhood, a self-help book, a role play, a disastrous screaming exercise and our frantic search for answers which we may never really get.
A coaching weekend for personal growth, gifted by his girlfriend who, against all odds, turns out to be pregnant. It’s hard to imagine a more bewildering start to Mathias’ weekend. Reluctantly, he joins a group of struggling and self-absorbed Gen Z’s and their megalomaniac coach, Anne, in a large villa far away from anywhere. Despite the weekend starting with the spiritual hot air one would expect, a breakthrough becomes imminent.
Will Mathias find his long sought answers after all?
When coach Anne disappears, Mathias steps up to save the weekend and, perhaps, himself."
Richard H Lyford
The Scalpel
A mad doctor transforms into a monstrous killer and creates mayhem in a medical institute. (The Scalpel is a 1936 never-released film by then 19-year-old filmmaker, Richard Lyford with a score by Ed Hartman.)
Diane Panday
Métro, Boulot, Dodo...
Métro, Boulot, Dodo...
A single mother wrestles with the past and survival after a catastrophic global event.
Set against an apocalyptic background, it’s a story about loss, grief and personal devastation.
Larry Collicott
Chrissy
-Best Director Short Film-
Bitter Brownies
A Texas Trilogy
James Carman
Yeshaya Bagwell

In this dark comedy, a devious thief pilfers lunches from the company refrigerator. Staff employees are out for blood. Where will the food bandit strike next?!!!
Robert Tartell, a native of upstate New York, has been a longtime resident of Houston. Variously a farm hand, hotel kitchen dishwasher, factory worker, pilot, Army officer and practicing Family Practice Physician, he brings a wealth of experience to his writing, with an emphasis on comedy.
The Painting
Following the death of a prolific artist, two thieves work to steal his most prized work...and only one of them can succeed.
James Dubbeldam
Your Worst Enemy
In this gripping and fast-paced adventure, Mia stands alone facing the crashing waves of the ocean, contemplating a decision that could change her life forever. She grapples with her inner turmoil: to face her fears or to flee from them. Your Worst Enemy plunges viewers into a mind-bending journey across two parallel dimensions. In one, Mia confronts her deepest anxieties and in the other, she chooses the comfort of retreat. As these two realities unfold, Mia comes to realize that the greatest obstacle she must overcome is herself. The film explores the inner conflict that resonates within us all, revealing that often, our most formidable enemy is ourselves.
Robert Marshall Tartell
Joris Tobé
Frantic Attempts
A comic journey through a coaching weekend for personal growth. About fatherhood, a self-help book, a role play, a disastrous screaming exercise and our frantic search for answers which we may never really get.
A coaching weekend for personal growth, gifted by his girlfriend who, against all odds, turns out to be pregnant. It’s hard to imagine a more bewildering start to Mathias’ weekend. Reluctantly, he joins a group of struggling and self-absorbed Gen Z’s and their megalomaniac coach, Anne, in a large villa far away from anywhere. Despite the weekend starting with the spiritual hot air one would expect, a breakthrough becomes imminent.
Will Mathias find his long sought answers after all?
When coach Anne disappears, Mathias steps up to save the weekend and, perhaps, himself."
Richard H Lyford
The Scalpel
A mad doctor transforms into a monstrous killer and creates mayhem in a medical institute. (The Scalpel is a 1936 never-released film by then 19-year-old filmmaker, Richard Lyford with a score by Ed Hartman.)
Maddi Pearl Price
Whale Fall
Whale Fall follows four estranged siblings connected only by their mother. Morgan is the oldest daughter from a pregnancy when Mom was in college. She was given up for adoption but had little contact and knew just the idea of her mother. Gwen is the next oldest, a step-daughter from a previous relationship, Mom helped raise her from five and left when she was six. She is the maternal one of the group who arranges the dinner, or should we say feast, for all the siblings to come together and remember Mom. Cordelia is the closest child to mom and adopted. Lastly we have Trent, a product of an egg donation. Mom was a marine biologist who studied whales and the ocean ecosystem. She was adventurous, fun and a free spirit. She has only been gone for a month. Gwen in her grieving, tracked down all the siblings and invited them to dinner at her home. Whale Fall is what happens at dinner when the siblings are finally together processing the death of their mom and her impact on their lives.
-Best Editing Short Film-
The Fork in the Road
CAROLYN JENNIFER CORKINDALE
Yeshaya Bagwell
The film mostly follows a boy who is escaping within himself. He is caught up in fantasies in the woodland that reflect the trials he faces in the real world. As these occur, there are glimpses of his parallel life in the real world, experiences of the boy who chose not to follow the path less travelled, but to return home to an uncomfortable situation. It is a coming of age fairy story that has some gripping episodes, where an audience will feel pity and fear for the survival of the twin protagonists and ultimately delight as all is resolved.
The Painting
Following the death of a prolific artist, two thieves work to steal his most prized work...and only one of them can succeed.
Richard H Lyford
The Scalpel
A mad doctor transforms into a monstrous killer and creates mayhem in a medical institute. (The Scalpel is a 1936 never-released film by then 19-year-old filmmaker, Richard Lyford with a score by Ed Hartman.)
-Best Cinematography Short Film-
Imbroglio
Ian Sciacaluga
Szilárd Demján, Gergő Bárdi
“Imbroglio” is set in a timeless and imaginary Italian world and is a loving nod to the arch Hollywood and European film noirs of the forties and fifties.
Giorgio Gambetti is a Tax Inspector for the ‘Giustizia Tributaria’, whose profession of expiring frauds parallels a personal quest.. to hunt down the young libertine who has corrupted his wife, Maria.
Giorgio’s private search takes him to the underbelly of a city that knows his name only too well. His pride crushed (by having to confess his wife’s infidelity during his investigation), Giorgio concludes that there is no civil way out of his suffocating predicament – his “imbroglio”. So when he finally procures to confront the young love rival in a downtown café, he finds that there is no recourse but to take a life.
Live Bait
While fishing, the grandfather gives his grandson a speech about the closed world of the baits in a jar.
He is explaining in a few words how the bait in the jar stay alive. By strength or luck, just like us humans.
The little boy looks at the jar and listens to his grandfather in silence, seemingly unaffected, uninterested in the story.
However, when he arrives home, he makes a decision.
He does not want to accept a world in which either force or luck decides our fate.
Richard H Lyford
The Scalpel
A mad doctor transforms into a monstrous killer and creates mayhem in a medical institute. (The Scalpel is a 1936 never-released film by then 19-year-old filmmaker, Richard Lyford with a score by Ed Hartman.)
Bitter Brownies
James Carman

In this dark comedy, a devious thief pilfers lunches from the company refrigerator. Staff employees are out for blood. Where will the food bandit strike next?!!!
Yeshaya Bagwell
The Painting
Following the death of a prolific artist, two thieves work to steal his most prized work...and only one of them can succeed.
-Best Producer Short Film-
Richard H Lyford
The Scalpel
A mad doctor transforms into a monstrous killer and creates mayhem in a medical institute. (The Scalpel is a 1936 never-released film by then 19-year-old filmmaker, Richard Lyford with a score by Ed Hartman.)
Yeshaya Bagwell
The Painting
Following the death of a prolific artist, two thieves work to steal his most prized work...and only one of them can succeed.
James Dubbeldam
Your Worst Enemy
In this gripping and fast-paced adventure, Mia stands alone facing the crashing waves of the ocean, contemplating a decision that could change her life forever. She grapples with her inner turmoil: to face her fears or to flee from them. Your Worst Enemy plunges viewers into a mind-bending journey across two parallel dimensions. In one, Mia confronts her deepest anxieties and in the other, she chooses the comfort of retreat. As these two realities unfold, Mia comes to realize that the greatest obstacle she must overcome is herself. The film explores the inner conflict that resonates within us all, revealing that often, our most formidable enemy is ourselves.
-Best Feature Script-
FOOTSTEPS OF MY FATHER
The Grizzly
Erik V Wolter
Tommy M Anderson
When his German immigrant father faces deportation during WWII for alleged Nazi ties, an idealistic American teenager takes on the FBI and fights to keep the family together and clear his father’s name.
A 12-year-old boy is reunited on a fishing trip with a father he scarcely knows and has not seen for years. Their emotions collide as they work together to overcome their conflict and survive Grizzly bears.
Final Fire
Based in Madison, Wisconsin a firefighter is injured by a arsonist who had killed his friends in a fire. He joins the investigation team in order to bring the serial killer and arsonist to justice.
Lynn H. Elliott
Alta California
In 1780 California, a mixed-blood scout, violently torn from his tribe, struggles to return to his people.
Christian Pendered Zur
Cold Summer
An estranged father seeks to reconcile with his college-bound daughter during a trip to Italy’s northern mountains.
SID KRAMER
Ana Ingham
URGENT BEAUTY
Jim Norman
Heaven Sent Me
After he catches his wife cheating with his best friend, a devastated firefighter’s life is permanently changed when a guardian angel in the form of a beautiful woman saves his life and then takes over his life.
Harvey Goodman
Brave Rider
After a Pony Express rider is nearly killed saving the life of a Paiute Chief’s daughter, he is nurtured back to health by her tribe, falls in love, and hatches a plan to save them from imminent ruin.
Peter Gartner .
A Sense Of Security
A CIA agent is ordered to assassinate a scientist, but he begins to doubt the morality of his orders.
There are few Hollywood couples that can compare in electricity, in talent, and in mystery than Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy. Both of their lives led to them coming together and making magic. This is the story of how life prepared them for each other, how they loved, and how they lost.
Walt Alexander
Katherine and Spencer
Lena, a Russian Jewish woman who is a graduate student, leaves her religious husband and travels from Seattle to Jerusalem in search of forgotten manuscripts of a Russian writer. She fortuitously finds the writer's daughter, and they become close friends. Lena's husband resists divorcing her, and she struggles with the ambiguity of her situation, especially after she meets and falls in love with someone who is unlike her husband. Eventually she is transformed by the atmosphere of Jerusalem where she finds her own passion and purpose.
Irina Masinovsky
Stay With Me
-Best Short Script-
Heaven, Hell, and Me
Flames of Love
Armand Arekian
Linda Kampley
A young woman finds herself caught in a custody battle between an overzealous guardian angel and a reluctant demon who both wish to claim her soul.
A supernatural dramady surrounding a firefighter who battles the devil to save lost souls. To loose the battle he has join those souls.
The Color of the Evening Sky
A nurse in a busy chemotherapy office is fighting for her job and against the new overcontrolling supervisor when a patient , her life on the line, enters.
Livia June Claypool
Spilled Milk
A 1950s housewife gets pushed closer to the edge by her empty days and loveless marriage.
Ruth Finnegan
The mountain
As a conscientious objector, Lake Distract Rick, an internationally respected mountaineer,, refuses to fight in the First World War. As a result when he is invited to join the 1924 Everest expedition, his dream, a co-member, jealous, refuses to serve with him - “ a conshie” - and uses his contacts with The Times to stir feeling against him.
Tommy Anderson
Mario Luis Telles
Time
After trying their luck at rock and roll fame, 4 friends embark on a hilarious journey to get their fame and fortune.
-Best Author-
The Grizzly
Travis Michael Patten
A 12-year-old boy is reunited on a fishing trip with a father he scarcely knows and has not seen for years. Their emotions collide as they work together to overcome their conflict and survive Grizzly bears.
Haurvatat
Two sister roommates find one another through fantastical adventures with a barfly demigod with ties to their pasts.
SID KRAMER
Ana Ingham
URGENT BEAUTY
Peter Gartner .
A Sense Of Security
A CIA agent is ordered to assassinate a scientist, but he begins to doubt the morality of his orders.
Lena, a Russian Jewish woman who is a graduate student, leaves her religious husband and travels from Seattle to Jerusalem in search of forgotten manuscripts of a Russian writer. She fortuitously finds the writer's daughter, and they become close friends. Lena's husband resists divorcing her, and she struggles with the ambiguity of her situation, especially after she meets and falls in love with someone who is unlike her husband. Eventually she is transformed by the atmosphere of Jerusalem where she finds her own passion and purpose.
Irina Masinovsky
Stay With Me
-Best Original Screenplay-
MANITOUANA - When Time Stands Still
Sacajawea, The Windcatcher
Guido Maria GIORDANO
Peter Gartner .
Three siblings, Megan, Nicholas, and Brooke, think they are going on an uneventful family vacation. They couldn't be more wrong. They find themselves investigating the mysterious disappearance of their long lost great-great-uncle Jack.
(Adaptation of the novel "When Time Stands Still"
By Diane Martin)
Sacajawea, The Windcatcher, is a story that has never been told in a feature film, yet it is about a well-known icon of American history. In 1805, a kidnapped Shoshoni girl returns to her village with the help of white explorers, but disappointment and heartache force her to leave her people behind when destiny reveals another path. Sacajawea's life, as an abused Indigenous girl in 1805, is relevant for today - for her courageous journey brings hope to women of all ages around the world. This project honors the proud heritage, traditions and languages of Native American people, which has fascinated other cultures for generations. Throughout this adventurous story, it is Sacajawea's infinite spirit that heralds a message of Truth and Love for all people of the earth.
A Sense Of Security
A CIA agent is ordered to assassinate a scientist, but he begins to doubt the morality of his orders.
Livia June Claypool
Spilled Milk
A 1950s housewife gets pushed closer to the edge by her empty days and loveless marriage.
Eric Gerard Sollars, Michael David Sollars, Geoffrey Durand Sollars
MOUNT MORA
A family law attorney dukes it out with a highly experienced corporate attorney over the sale of cemetery grounds haunted by her sister.
Jane L. Fitzpatrick
Eric C. Jones
This is Nat King Cole
You know the voice. You know the music. But do you see the man? This is a true story. This is Nat King Cole. Nat King Cole has been a musical icon for decades. But many people didn't know that he was the Jackie Robinson of National Television. While shooting his Christmas Episode in 1957, Nat King Cole was crossroads in his career. He has problems getting sponsorships to keep his landmark variety show together, and an infidelity scandal rocks his family. He must navigate through the murk to make the right decision for his life and career. This jukebox bio-pic musical spotlights Nat King Cole music, whose life, employment, and scandals are in the framework of a TV Variety Show. But this time, this film will be LIVE AND IN LIVING COLOR. Will Nat keep his show from being canceled? Will he be able to achieve his American Dream and keep his family together? STAY TUNED and watch a family holiday event that is genuinely UNFORGETTABLE
-Best Feature Documentary-
From Zero to a Hundred
WHITE WOLVES – GHOSTS OF THE ARCTIC
Matteo Banfo
Hanspeter Aliesch, Zürich
“FROM ZERO TO A HUNDRED” is an inspirational feature-length film that explores the life-changing journey of high school students engaged in the Winners Circle Project. Throughout the course of a year, these students embark on an extraordinary endeavor: building a real race car from scratch. As the documentary unfolds, their unwavering spirit shines amidst adversity, including the unprecedented challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
From overcoming obstacles to achieving success, the film celebrates their journey of personal growth and highlights the transformative power of education, opportunity, and resilience.
At the very northern edge of Canada is Ellesmere Island, where the unforgiving Arctic winds tear through the tundra, dipping temperatures to 40 below zero. Running through this shifting sea of snow and ice is one of the most hardened predators on the planet, the Arctic Wolf. But as the spring melt approaches, these roaming hunters must adapt to being tethered parents as new additions to the pack have just been born.
With never-before-seen footage of wolf family life, Ghosts of the Arctic is a dramatic and touching story of loyalty, companionship and devotion. It’s an epic true tale that reveals the struggles and triumphs of a family working to survive in one of the last great wildernesses on Earth.
Stromboli – as long as the heart beats
For many villagers of Stromboli, the volcano is both its Soul, and at the same time, a monster. And for some of them, the view of the volcano, was the last of their lives.
Karl André Talbot
INactive, America's Silent Killer
This film sheds light on a world plagued by physical inactivity among both young and old.
In a world ensnared by the shackles of sedentary living, where the once vibrant rhythms of life have faded into a disheartening stillness, "Inactive" delves deep into the gripping tale of a physical inactivity pandemic. This thought-provoking film uncovers a haunting reality where children and adults alike have become prisoners of their own immobility, causing widespread health repercussions and a profound societal shift.
GEORGE GITTOES
No Bad Guys
Englewood in Southside Chicago began to be called Chiraq when there were more deaths reported there, annually, than US soldiers killed in the combined wars of Iraq and Afghanistan. George Gittoes who has spent the last 50 years covering wars as an artist, filmmaker and photographer turns his attention to the US and spends three years on May Block, the epicentre of gun violence. The situation gets too real when three of the characters are killed during filming. Between January and October 2021 there were 700-gun deaths and 3,766 wounding’s, doubling the casualty figures of 2018, when filming began.
Oliver Goetzl
ROOTS, DIASPORA & WAR
Phil Comeau
Singer Isabelle Cyr takes a fascinating journey in France to meet her Acadian cousins, whose ancestors were deported from Canada. During the journey, where past and present mingle with personal discoveries, she composes a song on identity and the sense of belonging.
Mekong Apocalypse
Michael Buckley
The Mekong River is the most productive in the world in terms of fish catch and supply of nutrient-rich sediment. It is the most important river in Asia. But all that is rapidly changing. This is a satirical personal take on ecosystem collapse along the mighty Mekong, with the biggest threat being Chinese megadams in Yunnan, SW China. Take a wild ride on the Mekong from Source to Sea: 'Mekong Apocalypse' explores the devastating downstream impact of China's megadams in Cambodia's Lake Tonle Sap and Vietnam's Mekong Delta. The filmmaker shot this on the run, getting undercover footage of megadams and illegal sand-dredging. Drawing inspiration from water puppetry theatre in Vietnam, this film features characters like a talking glacier in Tibet, waltzing fish in Laos, and a talking sunflower in Vietnam to get complex concepts across. With this slapstick approach, the film does tend to meander--like the Mekong herself. With its sly nod to Coppola's 'Apocalypse Now,' this is a documentary with strong elements of a mockumentary. Background music carries a stark message--as a number of tracks have been specially commissioned for the film. This film is part four of a series of films delving into serious ecosystem problems concerning the Tibetan plateau.
-Best Director Feature Documentary-
Vaklush
Silk Finds What he's Looking For
Nikolay Vasilev
Sean James Spencer
"Vaklush" is a documentary, filmed during the period of 1998 until 2022 and contains unseen archival footage from the life of the famous spiritual leader and Teacher Vaklush Tolev. The film is dedicated to the 100th anniversary of his birth and is a story about the life path and ideas of one of the most enigmatic personalities of Bulgaria.
Robert Silk sets out to sit in the desert for an entire day, watching the arc of the sun as it crosses the sky. Meditative and beautiful, but will it also become the newest endurance sport?
Grunt
Grunt transcends the boundaries of traditional war documentaries. Seamlessly blending raw footage with poignant reflections, director and producer Sean Spencer crafts an immersive experience that plunges viewers into the harrowing realities of combat through the eyes of Hector Bravo, a 19-year-old infantryman on the streets of Iraq.
Karl André Talbot
INactive, America's Silent Killer
This film sheds light on a world plagued by physical inactivity among both young and old.
In a world ensnared by the shackles of sedentary living, where the once vibrant rhythms of life have faded into a disheartening stillness, "Inactive" delves deep into the gripping tale of a physical inactivity pandemic. This thought-provoking film uncovers a haunting reality where children and adults alike have become prisoners of their own immobility, causing widespread health repercussions and a profound societal shift.
didier canaux
WALL OF DEATH GYPSY
In the south of France, a gypsy family’s fight for survival: The Wall of Death Gypsy is a matter of life and death for the members of its mechanical circus. Outcast, free souls, punks, constantly on the edge, playing with the dangers of their trade. They share their dreams, wanting to live a free existence whilst creating an extraordinary and timeless show…
Far from the sanitized digital pleasures of our time, a return to the poetry of reality.
Peter Wick
-Best Feature Documentary Cinematography-
Grunt
WHITE WOLVES – GHOSTS OF THE ARCTIC
Sean James Spencer
Hanspeter Aliesch, Zürich
Grunt transcends the boundaries of traditional war documentaries. Seamlessly blending raw footage with poignant reflections, director and producer Sean Spencer crafts an immersive experience that plunges viewers into the harrowing realities of combat through the eyes of Hector Bravo, a 19-year-old infantryman on the streets of Iraq.
At the very northern edge of Canada is Ellesmere Island, where the unforgiving Arctic winds tear through the tundra, dipping temperatures to 40 below zero. Running through this shifting sea of snow and ice is one of the most hardened predators on the planet, the Arctic Wolf. But as the spring melt approaches, these roaming hunters must adapt to being tethered parents as new additions to the pack have just been born.
With never-before-seen footage of wolf family life, Ghosts of the Arctic is a dramatic and touching story of loyalty, companionship and devotion. It’s an epic true tale that reveals the struggles and triumphs of a family working to survive in one of the last great wildernesses on Earth.
Stromboli – as long as the heart beats
For many villagers of Stromboli, the volcano is both its Soul, and at the same time, a monster. And for some of them, the view of the volcano, was the last of their lives.
Karl André Talbot
INactive, America's Silent Killer
This film sheds light on a world plagued by physical inactivity among both young and old.
In a world ensnared by the shackles of sedentary living, where the once vibrant rhythms of life have faded into a disheartening stillness, "Inactive" delves deep into the gripping tale of a physical inactivity pandemic. This thought-provoking film uncovers a haunting reality where children and adults alike have become prisoners of their own immobility, causing widespread health repercussions and a profound societal shift.
GEORGE GITTOES
No Bad Guys
Englewood in Southside Chicago began to be called Chiraq when there were more deaths reported there, annually, than US soldiers killed in the combined wars of Iraq and Afghanistan. George Gittoes who has spent the last 50 years covering wars as an artist, filmmaker and photographer turns his attention to the US and spends three years on May Block, the epicentre of gun violence. The situation gets too real when three of the characters are killed during filming. Between January and October 2021 there were 700-gun deaths and 3,766 wounding’s, doubling the casualty figures of 2018, when filming began.
Oliver Goetzl
Peter Wick
Silk Finds What he's Looking For
Robert Silk sets out to sit in the desert for an entire day, watching the arc of the sun as it crosses the sky. Meditative and beautiful, but will it also become the newest endurance sport?
-Best Feature Documentary Editing-
Grunt
Sean James Spencer
Grunt transcends the boundaries of traditional war documentaries. Seamlessly blending raw footage with poignant reflections, director and producer Sean Spencer crafts an immersive experience that plunges viewers into the harrowing realities of combat through the eyes of Hector Bravo, a 19-year-old infantryman on the streets of Iraq.
Peter Wick
Silk Finds What he's Looking For
Robert Silk sets out to sit in the desert for an entire day, watching the arc of the sun as it crosses the sky. Meditative and beautiful, but will it also become the newest endurance sport?
From Zero to a Hundred
Matteo Banfo
“FROM ZERO TO A HUNDRED” is an inspirational feature-length film that explores the life-changing journey of high school students engaged in the Winners Circle Project. Throughout the course of a year, these students embark on an extraordinary endeavor: building a real race car from scratch. As the documentary unfolds, their unwavering spirit shines amidst adversity, including the unprecedented challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
From overcoming obstacles to achieving success, the film celebrates their journey of personal growth and highlights the transformative power of education, opportunity, and resilience.
-Best Short Documentary-
Americans in Japan
Parenting Without Screens
Johnny Vonneumann
Mattia Cialoni
6 Americans travel to Japan, in Johnny Vonneumann's new documentary opera
"Parenting Without Screens" is a documentary presented by LUMA Creative Management in co-production with Popvision+, directed by Emmy award-winners Luis Luyando and Willy Martin. This compelling film delves into the debate over screen use and its impact on the development of children aged 0 to 6 years, blending scientific perspectives with real-life experiences of mothers who have chosen to raise their children without constant screen exposure. Through these stories and the expert insights of Carina Castro Fumero, a pediatric neuropsychologist, and Dr. Agustín Omar Rodríguez Belli, a neurologist, the documentary uncovers how early interactions with technology can influence childhood development.
My Neighbour is a Bear
A rare Marsican bear family wanders down from the Italian Apennines to the charming village of Villalago, in search of food in the local orchards. For most people this would be a cause for concern, but for the residents of Villalago it is a rather different situation.
The film tells the story of the determination of one woman to understand these bears, and gives an important lesson of the fragility of our connection with nature.
Päivi Kapiainen-Heiskanen
Man and an old mill
Finns love small and big rapids thinking that they are our inner landscape. This is a story of Puhinkoski mill and rapids that are a part of Lake Saimaa headwaters in Halmeniemi, Mäntyharju, in Lakeland Finland. The narrator Mr Eino Saloranta lived his childhood at the mill farm that provided his family with electricity and livelihood. Now the place has been abandoned for 50 years but it still draws nature lovers and nature photographers. This is a tribute to small nature treasures, lovely storytellers and sustainable living.
Douglas J. Corcoran
Dragonfly MP, The Pho Michael Story

A young man is taken too soon in New Orleans and becomes another minority unsolved statistic in 2016. However, a little good came from Michael's murder when a restaurant comes to life in Metairie, Louisiana to celebrate him.
Luis Luyando, Willy Martin
-Best Director Short Documentary-
Americans in Japan
Flat Out Food: Wild Rice
Johnny Vonneumann
6 Americans travel to Japan, in Johnny Vonneumann's new documentary opera
Jenn joins the wild rice harvest in Northwest Saskatchewan before sharing a meal that uses the ingredient in creative ways.
Adrian Halter
-Best Short Documentary Cinematography-
Flat Out Food: Wild Rice
Jenn joins the wild rice harvest in Northwest Saskatchewan before sharing a meal that uses the ingredient in creative ways.
Adrian Halter
-Best Short Documentary Editing-
Americans in Japan
Flat Out Food: Wild Rice
Johnny Vonneumann
6 Americans travel to Japan, in Johnny Vonneumann's new documentary opera
Jenn joins the wild rice harvest in Northwest Saskatchewan before sharing a meal that uses the ingredient in creative ways.
Douglas J. Corcoran
Dragonfly MP, The Pho Michael Story

A young man is taken too soon in New Orleans and becomes another minority unsolved statistic in 2016. However, a little good came from Michael's murder when a restaurant comes to life in Metairie, Louisiana to celebrate him.
Adrian Halter
-Best Feature Experimental Film-
Playground 2013-14
A Matter of Perspective
Erdogan Bulut
It is an exciting and at the same time calm film that lives from the power and strength of its painting. Spaces and times merge, the time we live in today is a playground of archaic and futuristic events. The calm flow of the images and the narratives of the deep sound layer of noises and sounds cyclically tell the story of our threatened world, our own countries and the individual.
The cycles of past and present provide interesting glimpses into various scenarios of potential futures and pose the question: how is a life in human dignity possible in our threatened world despite all the wars, oppression and destruction?

The lives of 10 people are crossing. In their encounters unexpected things come to light that shatter the protagonists' self-image and therefore their concept of their own life.
Filmed out of the point of view (POV) of the acting characters, "A Matter of Perspective" is an episodic film about human existence between the polarity of our freedom and the responsibilities of life.
Erdogan Bulut
Letter to Goya
Zur gemalten Bildebene enthält dieser Film einen Monolog E. Buluts und Filmmusik. Wenige Animationen und wenig Sprache akzentuieren die Erzählung. E. Bulut schildert in Bildern mit Musik und Geräuschen dem Künstler Goya die aktuelle Situation in unserer Welt: eine Gegend, in der die Sonne aufgeht, in der viele Sprachen und Kulturen ihren Anfang nahmen, ist in Chaos und Krieg versunken und droht ausgelöscht zu werden. Dunkelheit und Vergessen sind eingezogen. Auf anderen Kontinenten, auch dort wo die Sonne untergeht, sieht der Künstler ebenfalls kriegerische Entwicklungen, die das Leben gefährden.
Gerda Leopold
-Best Feature Director Experimental Film-
Playground 2013-14
Erdogan Bulut
It is an exciting and at the same time calm film that lives from the power and strength of its painting. Spaces and times merge, the time we live in today is a playground of archaic and futuristic events. The calm flow of the images and the narratives of the deep sound layer of noises and sounds cyclically tell the story of our threatened world, our own countries and the individual.
The cycles of past and present provide interesting glimpses into various scenarios of potential futures and pose the question: how is a life in human dignity possible in our threatened world despite all the wars, oppression and destruction?
-Best Short Experimental Film-
Passion
WHEN NANAY COMES HOME
Hyonok kim
Alberto Martín-Aragón
Mourning on lost beloved one is depicted by dance movements inspired by Italian Renaissance Paintings and sculpture Pieta. A woman is lamenting at the edge of madness, a man is supporting and watching over for not letting her be fallen.
A story about a young Filipino daughter coping with the Pandemic and the nurse pipeline from the Philippines.
PARALYSIS
A woman suffers from attacks of paralysis due to various traumas.
Sean Gregory Tansey
The Pathos of Hamlet
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, reveals his darkest fears, highest hopes, and innermost secrets. Three major soliloquy's taken from William Shakespeare's famous play. Starring Sean Gregory Tansey, as the young prince.
Frédéric Roussel
Migraine

It was a long time ago.
A terrible headache.
Such a one he could never forget.
But let him tell us how it happened...
Deborah Slater
Natalia Jezova
A POSTERIORI

The film A POSTERIORI (2023), 3 min., colour, sound.
A Posteriori (Latin, ‘from the later’) - knowledge derived from experience (Encyclopaedia Britannica/philosophy).
-Best Animation Film-
AD 1202
Letter to Goya
Tomislav Gregl
Henk Pringels
This animated short is based on the book “AD 1202“ by Frane Herenda and it depicts the real events of Crusaders siege of Iadera (Zadar) in the same year. Itʹs a fusion of real and fictional characters and events, filled with action and forbidden love games within the monastery walls. The short comes alive through stylised clay backgrounds and hand drawings.
Zur gemalten Bildebene enthält dieser Film einen Monolog E. Buluts und Filmmusik. Wenige Animationen und wenig Sprache akzentuieren die Erzählung. E. Bulut schildert in Bildern mit Musik und Geräuschen dem Künstler Goya die aktuelle Situation in unserer Welt: eine Gegend, in der die Sonne aufgeht, in der viele Sprachen und Kulturen ihren Anfang nahmen, ist in Chaos und Krieg versunken und droht ausgelöscht zu werden. Dunkelheit und Vergessen sind eingezogen. Auf anderen Kontinenten, auch dort wo die Sonne untergeht, sieht der Künstler ebenfalls kriegerische Entwicklungen, die das Leben gefährden.
Man in a Can
A man leaves an oasis and starts walking.
In the middle of the desert, he comes across this strange building and immediately, he addresses someone on the inside of the building: whether there's any need for airco, food, or maybe some music or television, there in that inhospitable part of the world? But the answer remains 'no'.
After fruitless inquiries, the man spends the night in the desert. The morning after, he realizes that, ultimately, there's only one possible decision to make.
All this is just a day dream of a guy on a beach, somewhere in Kenia. Slightly confused by his dream, he cannot but promise his girlfriend to come and swim with her on that first lovely day of the year.
Glenna Burmer, Gaby Breiter
Nanakorobi (Seven Falls)
A story by Glenna Burmer based on the Japanese saying Nanakorobi-Ya Oki, or fall seven times, but get back up the eighth. A little girl faces seven challenges to save an orphan who is lost in the snowy woods of Hokkaido.
Kejo Botan (alias Erdogan Bulut)
-Best Director Animation Film-
Lunar Power
Annastacia Lissette Henry-Ramos
Henk Pringels
Lunar Power is the story of a young awkward, Latina superhero, Amaya, trying to connect with her anti-social little cousin, Miguel, who only has time for his video game. Now in charge of taking Miguel to his new school, Amaya tries to connect with her cousin to no avail. Since he is more preoccupied with his new game unknowingly based on his cousin's alter ego, Lunar Power. Unfortunately for both of them, their seemingly simple walk to school is interrupted when a vicious monster from outer space crash lands in their city. Now separated Amaya tries to defeat the monster in time to take Miguel to school. While Miguel has to find his way through this unfamiliar city to avoid coming into harm's way. Now the two of them have to navigate this new disaster in order to find each other again.
Man in a Can
A man leaves an oasis and starts walking.
In the middle of the desert, he comes across this strange building and immediately, he addresses someone on the inside of the building: whether there's any need for airco, food, or maybe some music or television, there in that inhospitable part of the world? But the answer remains 'no'.
After fruitless inquiries, the man spends the night in the desert. The morning after, he realizes that, ultimately, there's only one possible decision to make.
All this is just a day dream of a guy on a beach, somewhere in Kenia. Slightly confused by his dream, he cannot but promise his girlfriend to come and swim with her on that first lovely day of the year.
-Best CGI & Visual Effects-
Hallucinations and Virginia Woolf
Joyce Garvey
True to the 'Stream of consciousness' style pioneered by Virginia Woolf, the film is a Fantasy Art Film which engenders its impact on the viewer, not by means of linear narrative or thematic content, but by visual and aesthetic experiences which are fluid: bizarre at times and hallucinatory as in Virginia Woolf's mind:
She sits among the stealthy:cross legged a bird’s beak nailed to her,speared by the sharp moment, her face a dazed futility: wild but tame; and still, the alarming wish…to be loved...
-Best Student Film-
The Sorrowful Clown
Joris Tobé
In a city where the rich and poor live within walking distance from one another, a middle-aged man is a tramp clown by profession. Reinhardt, a.k.a Nokkie die Nar, left the travelling circus years ago and now performs at upper class birthday parties as a way to provide for his ill daughter. They live in a tiny, broken down apartment, barely able to make ends meet but despite the circumstances they find themselves in, Reinhardt does whatever he can to fill his daughter’s life with beauty and magical wonder.
Frantic Attempts
A comic journey through a coaching weekend for personal growth. About fatherhood, a self-help book, a role play, a disastrous screaming exercise and our frantic search for answers which we may never really get.
Georgia Goddard
Research Experience Placement
Student Georgia describes the skills she developed during her very first experience in a research laboratory.
Edinburgh, Scotland.
2023.
Deolandre de Jager
-Best Director Student Film-
The Sorrowful Clown
Joris Tobé
In a city where the rich and poor live within walking distance from one another, a middle-aged man is a tramp clown by profession. Reinhardt, a.k.a Nokkie die Nar, left the travelling circus years ago and now performs at upper class birthday parties as a way to provide for his ill daughter. They live in a tiny, broken down apartment, barely able to make ends meet but despite the circumstances they find themselves in, Reinhardt does whatever he can to fill his daughter’s life with beauty and magical wonder.
Frantic Attempts
A comic journey through a coaching weekend for personal growth. About fatherhood, a self-help book, a role play, a disastrous screaming exercise and our frantic search for answers which we may never really get.
Georgia Goddard
Research Experience Placement
Student Georgia describes the skills she developed during her very first experience in a research laboratory.
Edinburgh, Scotland.
2023.
Deolandre de Jager
-Best TV or Streaming Series-
Dancing with Spies @GODDESS - 2023
Luca Centoni
Two, late Cold War lovers sadly depart in the chaos of 1989. Yet then cross paths during intricate 2014 Greenwich Village to Havana spy operation, which changes the course of the mission and their lives.
A & F - Amy & Fourth of July in NYC
Amy arrives with her mother Josephine in New York City. It is the Fourth of July 2024 and they spend 4 days in Manhattan showing the latest trends of the Big Apple. They will try new places where to have great drinks and even the only 3 Michelin stars vegan restaurant in the world. The spectacular fireworks sequences will let you live a unique experience directly from a boat on the Hudson river.
Francis Longworth Billingsley
-Best Pilot Episode-
Dancing with Spies @GODDESS - 2023
Two, late Cold War lovers sadly depart in the chaos of 1989. Yet then cross paths during intricate 2014 Greenwich Village to Havana spy operation, which changes the course of the mission and their lives.
Francis Longworth Billingsley
-Best Music Video-
PULSE
Roberto Serrini
The song is asking people, the actual and future generation ; what is their purpose of life? What is the roots of your life and love? Where are your roots? What is your goal?
As the TV shows? Glory, success, fame, building a perfect material life?
Is that how to define happiness?
All The Pretty Things

The rarest bike on the planet, 12 ultra luxury items, and a cast of real characters willing to die for them all. All The Pretty Things is what life looks like from inside your Instagram feed.
Itamar Isaak
Down The Rabbit Hole (Official Music Video)
The video depicts a young mathematician desperately trying to solve a complex equation based upon a new strain of mathematics known as ‘Soft Logics’ when the answer for which manifests itself as Alice herself.
The mathematician is then sent down the rabbit hole in pursuit of Alice to the backdrop of the track’s Bowie-inspired melodies and bountiful soundscapes of mind-bending wonder.
Yumi Sonoda
Itamar Isaak
"CLEARVIBE" (MUSIC VIDEO)
"CLEARVIBE" (Music Video) Directed by TCFilmz Performed by NRBARZ Track Produced By Hashaun Adderley
Rhonda Valerie Head, Gabriel Constant
Island Dreams
Beautiful San Pedro Belize - the land. the water, the people
Aric Johnson
Walk Into the Water
Walk into the Water responds to our turbulent world with a message about longing, courage, and hope. Song by electronic music pioneer BT, featuring lyrics and vocals by Nation of One. Shot entirely during the pandemic lockdown, and being continually chased away from locations by the worst wildfires in Colorado history, first-time director Aric Johnson overcomes impossible odds to deliver a haunting and beautiful music art piece.
-Best Music Video Editing-
Aric Johnson
Walk Into the Water
Walk into the Water responds to our turbulent world with a message about longing, courage, and hope. Song by electronic music pioneer BT, featuring lyrics and vocals by Nation of One. Shot entirely during the pandemic lockdown, and being continually chased away from locations by the worst wildfires in Colorado history, first-time director Aric Johnson overcomes impossible odds to deliver a haunting and beautiful music art piece.
-Best Music Video Cinematography-
Aric Johnson
Walk Into the Water
Walk into the Water responds to our turbulent world with a message about longing, courage, and hope. Song by electronic music pioneer BT, featuring lyrics and vocals by Nation of One. Shot entirely during the pandemic lockdown, and being continually chased away from locations by the worst wildfires in Colorado history, first-time director Aric Johnson overcomes impossible odds to deliver a haunting and beautiful music art piece.
-Best Sound Design-
PULSE
GEORGE GITTOES
The song is asking people, the actual and future generation ; what is their purpose of life? What is the roots of your life and love? Where are your roots? What is your goal?
As the TV shows? Glory, success, fame, building a perfect material life?
Is that how to define happiness?
No Bad Guys
Englewood in Southside Chicago began to be called Chiraq when there were more deaths reported there, annually, than US soldiers killed in the combined wars of Iraq and Afghanistan. George Gittoes who has spent the last 50 years covering wars as an artist, filmmaker and photographer turns his attention to the US and spends three years on May Block, the epicentre of gun violence. The situation gets too real when three of the characters are killed during filming. Between January and October 2021 there were 700-gun deaths and 3,766 wounding’s, doubling the casualty figures of 2018, when filming began.
Yumi Sonoda
-Best Original Score-
Bat Sheva (The Daughter of 7even)
GEORGE GITTOES
No Bad Guys
Englewood in Southside Chicago began to be called Chiraq when there were more deaths reported there, annually, than US soldiers killed in the combined wars of Iraq and Afghanistan. George Gittoes who has spent the last 50 years covering wars as an artist, filmmaker and photographer turns his attention to the US and spends three years on May Block, the epicentre of gun violence. The situation gets too real when three of the characters are killed during filming. Between January and October 2021 there were 700-gun deaths and 3,766 wounding’s, doubling the casualty figures of 2018, when filming began.
tomer george Cohen
-Best Original Song-
PULSE
GEORGE GITTOES
The song is asking people, the actual and future generation ; what is their purpose of life? What is the roots of your life and love? Where are your roots? What is your goal?
As the TV shows? Glory, success, fame, building a perfect material life?
Is that how to define happiness?
No Bad Guys
Englewood in Southside Chicago began to be called Chiraq when there were more deaths reported there, annually, than US soldiers killed in the combined wars of Iraq and Afghanistan. George Gittoes who has spent the last 50 years covering wars as an artist, filmmaker and photographer turns his attention to the US and spends three years on May Block, the epicentre of gun violence. The situation gets too real when three of the characters are killed during filming. Between January and October 2021 there were 700-gun deaths and 3,766 wounding’s, doubling the casualty figures of 2018, when filming began.
Yumi Sonoda
Aric Johnson
Walk Into the Water
Walk into the Water responds to our turbulent world with a message about longing, courage, and hope. Song by electronic music pioneer BT, featuring lyrics and vocals by Nation of One. Shot entirely during the pandemic lockdown, and being continually chased away from locations by the worst wildfires in Colorado history, first-time director Aric Johnson overcomes impossible odds to deliver a haunting and beautiful music art piece.
-Best LGBTQ-
Destroy Imagination
Colette Copeland
Ivan is a male student that has just been raped in his dorm room. This devastating incident has Ivan hanging on by a thread, and he fears that people will not believe he has been raped. All hope is shattered when monotone Detective Amy Beck has a cold, uncaring demeanor while interviewing him about the details of the rape. The brutality of the rape, and the complete lack of support, has Ivan feeling alone without hope as he makes his final decision to kill himself.
Ablution
This idea came to me in a dream two years ago during covid. What was unusual about this dream, was the level of detail that I remembered, including the entire synopsis and scene by scene shot list. I woke up and wrote down the dream verbatim. Initially, I resisted making the project, since I was conflicted about whether it was my story to tell. After reading the novel De-Transition, Baby by Torrey Peters about a young trans woman who transitions back into being a man, because he felt so unsafe and vulnerable as a woman, I felt compelled to bring the dream to life.
Chris Adam Abercrombie
Astrid Ovalles
Road of Bygones
The story of three very different women who embark on an adventure to retrieve the ashes of a figure from the past.
Road of Bygones is a story of humanity, discovery, and the hills and valleys of unique relationships between women.
Made on
Tilda