Autumn 2019 / Festival Laurels
- Jury Prize
Winner: The Forgotten Recipe by Rene Strgar and Jose Prada – “This will be a short review because I don’t think there’s too much to say – this is a perfect documentary: informative, moving and memorable. I’ve thought of this short several times, both in terms of bread and the personal stories shared within it. Just about as perfect a documentary short can be.”
Nominees: Thebes Crossing by Frank Saliada – “A heartbreaking, political and romantic film which carries a great sense of loss and style.”
The Muse by Matthias Fuchez – “Jean Luc Godard’s Paris pictures (Breathless, All The Boys Are Called Patrick) can still be felt… and Fuchez’s take on it is grand, poetic and romantic!”
Timeless by Felice Antignani – “A well-balanced film with a variety of nicely designed elements: the acting is on point, the look of the film is great, so is the tone and the scenario’s unravelling.”
- Best Short Film Under $5,000
Winner: Seven Levels Deep by Pina Brutal – “It is a wild nightmare journey, and the use of budget is just jaw-dropping.”
Nominees:
Siargao’s Environmental Issues by Erwan Heussaff – “Informative and well designed, but mostly a fantastic use of budget.”
The Curtain by Rekut Altindag – “A sort of Chekov play plays out in this film, only with a flash of cinematic genre and tones which shift with the locales.”
Singing A Great Dream by Anna Stirr and Bhakta Syangtan – “Authentic and very economical with its presentation. Well designed and monies conscious.”
Lost Memories by Conor Barrow – “A beautifully crafted and very insular project. Its use of shadow, as well as the theme of reflection, is well thought out and visually presented in a very economical design.”
- Best Short Film Between $5,000 and $10,000
Winner: My Adventure by Roman Gregorička – “Beautifully shot with a great sense of how the film can capture the world the film is set within, its restrictions (both physical and psychological) and its respective cinematic values.”
Nominees:
Blue Widow by Vera Mark – “As genre-based films go, this modern gothic tale is mighty delicious.”
Quiet Carriage by Ben S. Hyland – “A comical mega farce with a top trump payoff.”
The Last Stub Master by Jonathan Gill – “The sense of genre, and the film’s own encapsulation of it (visually and in its narrative devices) is a fun affair of cinephilia as well as traditional character arcs.”
Memory Man by Christopher M Armstrong – “Shot with so much colour, style and awareness for genre that one can’t help but adore it all. A great viewing experience!”
- Best Short Film Over $10,000
Winner: Ruby Baby by Lee Mcqueen – “A robust character film with genuine care for the story it is telling. The locale of the film, which varies from dimly lit interiors to stark exteriors of the country provides a great visual clash for the film’s poignant ‘loss of innocence’ story. The tone of the film is consistent, and well rounded – actors and the crew (the cinematography and music especially) help string this picture together as a coherent venture. The director, who has found a great balance of comedy and dramatic intrigue, is an exciting one to watch, and bound to provide an even richer piece in a feature form.”
Nominees: Mimi Meets Books by Yih-Fen Chou – “A beautifully made animation short.”
Me Too Nice by Jamie Anderson – “A smart witty thing with an amusing relevance to today’s ‘post Me Too’ era.”
Little Men by Ayesha Adu – “A thoughtful film which uses its careful scale to provide a glimpse into the world of the 1980’s and its schooling tensions.”
- Best Feature Film Under $5,000
Best Feature Film Under $5,000
Winner: The Purple Dragon by Timothy A Coons – “This film’s look is just fantastic for its restrictive budget. It really goes to great lengths to establish some well-designed shots as well as a colour palette. The frankness of its topic, and creative filmic workaround some budget-based restrictions are really quite grand. The cast is also of note here – often shifting gears in terms of acting the part, as well as providing a well-rounded tone to the content. All in all – just a great micro-budget film.”
Nominee: Get All You Can Get by Peter Gilabert – “A claustrophobic affair full to the brim with character and comedy.”
- Best Feature Film Between $5,000 and $10,000
Not enough entries for this category.
- Best Feature Film Over $10,000
Not enough entries for this category.
Best Webseries
Not enough entries to run category.
- Best Direction
André Carvalho’s direction of The Great Parody – “Shocking, grainy and grimy. Tod Browning could have cooked this up!”
Nominees:
Vera Mark’s direction of Blue Widow – “A flavorful exploit is delivered with class here. Mark hits the nail on the head several times, seals the coffin and buries her audience in tone and texture.”
Frank Seliada’s direction of Thebes Crossing – “A distinct and soulful performance is brought out of the actors, the cinematography and the overall mechanics of this little film. The direction really sings it to life.”
Adva Reichman’s direction of Silhouette – “Reichman underplays her project’s potential for being overdramatic and overplayed. It is overall quite subdued and personal, like a Ken Loach film.”
Christopher Beech’s direction of Rock & Roll – “Beech juggles a variety show of comedy, drama and ghostly things. It’s reminiscent of Joe Dante and the whole ‘this isn’t real, right?’ tone.”
Joao Pedro Frazão’s direction of Lullaby – “Strange and bold. The film is a loud set piece of grand construction. Almost operatic.”
- Best Cinematography (Colour)
Winner: Ondrej Synak’s cinematography of My Adventure – “Carefully designed and beautifully executed, My Adventure is a photographic treat.”
Nominee: Adam Philip Goodnough’s cinematography of The Purple Dragon – “Varying in its style, but also consistently done, Goodnough’s cinematography is the oven this picture bakes in.”
David McIntyre and Tiarnan Hatchell’s cinematography of Lost Memories – “A stunning use of black occurs in Lost Memories.”
- Best Cinematography (Black and White)
Winner: Roan Lenihan’s cinematography of The Muse – “Careful with its use of black and white and crystal clear. It’s a great image to watch.”
Nominee:
Craig Berry’s cinematography of Rock & Roll – “A perfect gloomy image resides here.”
- Best Actor
Winner: Odd Roald Horjem in Zest for Life – “Frantically fantastic.”
Nominees:
Antonio Anzilotti De Nitto in Timeless – “Tough looking, but gooey on the inside – De Nitto nails his runaway with a great grave sense of who he is.”
John Asher in Me Too Nice – “Comical and fantastically physical in his ‘out of sorts’ performance.”
Gavan Demeurisse in The Purple Dragon – “Effortlessly cool on camera.”
Amit Shah in Quiet Carriage – “Comical and well rounded with his performance, Shah somewhat steals the audience away on this witty trip.”
Jordan John in Lovebirds – “John acts in his own script, and his performance is just pitch-perfect.”
- Best Actress
Winner: Sai Ma in Net – “Jingkun Liu’s film is beautiful, and is best when Sai Ma is on screen. It’s an effortless performance.”
Nominees:
Vicky Estelle Elia in The Purple Dragon – “Elia underplays her role, but in the best of ways. She’s never overdramatic, she’s physically present and finds interesting ways to play different simple dialogue scenes (like say Parker Posey does). It’s great.”
Nela Wagman in That Was Delicious – “A fantastic space is created around Wagman and her performance. The capturing of it, and the tense feeling it provides the film, is just fab.”
Sagan Rose in Silhouette – “A caring performance, well-tuned. The changing facial performances of Rose – the dancer, the daughter, the mother… these are all the skills of a performer using their face to express a great range of emotions.”
- Best Ensemble
Winners: The Cast of Memory Man – “The cast give it all. they’ve got They are fantastic.”
Nominees:
The Cast of Get All You Can Get – “A fun troupe of energetic performers bring this small insular script to life.”
The Cast of Lost Memories – “Delicate performances, very authentic.”
- Best Writing
Winner: Three In A Coffin by Eric L Hansen – “A comedic take on the classic subgenre. Quite great.”
Nominees:
Funeral by Marie Vandelannoote – “A classic character dive is delivered here. Bravo to the writer for creating it, and the cast for making it come alive.”
- Best Editing
Winner: Jon Pegg’s editing of Making Friends As The World Ends Part II – “The edit helps design a certain whimsy pace about the killing and survivors lives.”
Nominees:
Lawrence Murphy and Oscar Millar’s edit of Valuable – “The playful edit keeps the film rolling with a pace and tone that’s both experimental and enjoyable.”
- Best Score
Winner: The score of The Forgotten Recipe – “Moving, and great in its enhancement of the film short film.”
Nominee:
Pete Nickless’ score of Making Friends As The World Ends Part II – “The music helps really steady the pace and tone. Nickless’ score is the air of the production.”
- Best Period Piece
Not enough entries to run category.
- Best Genre Piece
Winner: Lovebirds by Emma Robson – “Creepy and wild as f**k. Fantastic.”
Nominees:
Mimi Meets Books by Yih-Fen Chou – “A beautifully made animation short.”
Forgotten Alive by Kiriakos Kotsinis – “Too complex to easy to digest, but a great understanding of genre and its benefits is really felt here. It is a genretastic film – a sort of neo noir.”
The Superfood by Michele Carter – “Carter propels a nightmare into existence with this animation. It’s the worst diner in the world… and the most fantastic use of animation for it! Watch out for the finale – it’s bursting to be seen.”
- Special Mention
Best Experimental Film: Priapus by Tomás Pérez Torrella – “Experimental, and somewhat reminiscent of the classic 2010 European art house ‘Le Quattro Volte’.”
Best Grading: Leo Dorian Stiebeling – “A fantastic understanding and look of colour is presented in Blue Widow.”
Best Standup: Gareth Brierley in Pitches – “A part of me believes that this performance would have made a better stage production… but it is, nonetheless, fun as a web series.”,
Music Video
Best Music Video
Winner: Together Now by Kevin Hindriks – “The world Hindriks creates is cinematic and dangerous.”
Nominees: Assam Skies by Tarunabh Dutta – “A world comes to life here – there’s character, story and a richness that is often lacking in music videos.”, Break, Break, Break by André Almeida Rodrigues – “An echo of Agnes Varda’s great La Pointe Courte can be felt here… intentional or not by the filmmakers, the connection in my eyes is a compliment.”
Best Music Video Cinematography
Winner: Daniel Murphy’s cinematography of Rngleader – “A sense of wonder fills this music video, and its images are the making of this discovery… it is a mystery, a noir of sorts.”
Nominees: Jordan Arabejo’s cinematography of Together Now – “Lush and beautiful.”, Jeffrey Palmer’s cinematography of Outsider – “The persona comes to life with this grainy gritty wonder of careful lighting choices.”, Owen Sheppard’s cinematography of Luvu – “Delicate and very conscious of its filmic ‘space’, full of mood.”
Best Music Video Editing
Winner: Claudio Zagarini’s editing of Intoxicated – “A wild edit keeps the beats rolling off the screen with a fast buzz.”
Nominees: Penny Lyon and Kevin Washburn’s editing of Get Out The Boat – “A creative juggernaut of fun.”, Iris Dutour’s editing of Overwhelm – “A retro pleasure centre.”
Special Mention
Aeons by John F. Thomas – “The use of technology and art is just fantastic.”
Man About Town by Deric Gochenauer – “Comical and like something out of the 90’s. Just plain fun!”
Nice Shoes by Jonathan Lawrence – “A spacey retro gem.”
Unproduced Script Competition
- Best Concept
Winner: The Six Stains On My Favourite White Jumper by Michael Walsh – “The Concept allows for a great design in the film’s arc as well as its short narrative. Comedic and witty filled.”
Nominees: My Dad’s a Sofa Athlete by Philippa Rae – “Animation scripts are rare, and most are about animals with funny names… this is a fun change of beat, and an interesting take on family dynamics for this particular genre of film.”
- Best Micro-Budget
Winner: Mouse by Daniel Cotter – “Though not exactly the cheapest, it is still very efficient with its economy and production value potentials, within its genre and plot.”
Nominees: Roberta by Stephen Cottage – “A fantastic twist on familiar genre ground.”
The Six Stains On My Favourite White Jumper by Michael Walsh – “A well rounded micro short. Very fun!”
- Best Character Arc
Winner: Molly Bling Bling by Juefang Zhang – “Someone should really just film this – it is great.”
Nominees: Fall In Love In A Day by Dina Chakeyeva – “The script syntax is an issue, as is some of the action descriptions (which are lacking at times)… but the characters and their journey is just fantastic.”
Paper Memories by Jean Maye – “There’s a great sense of space, intimacy and delicacy within this script.”
Phishing by Sam Berrill & Tom Turner – “A mad crazy lengthy thing full of character revelations and situational shifts. Quite great all in all.”
Secret Path by Rui Yao – “The protagonist’s overcoming of such a challenge is quite well built up to, and has a great pay off in its design.”
- Best Script Technique
Winner: Resq by Edward Hamel & Evan Morton – “The script is precise and has an easy ready-to-shoot feel about its polish.”
Nominees: The Need by Keith McCarthy – “Written with a fabulous classy understanding of script, its economy and style potential.”
- Special Mention
Best Period Piece: The Frontman by Alyon Lemeleva – “A distinct histrionic script. Quite enjoyable.”
Best Dialogue: Private Investigations by Brendan O’Connell – “The dialogue just pops right off the page with some fantastic style, character and boldness. Double Effs indeed!”
Best Adaptation: The Red Robe by Ruth Finnegan – “Though wild in some of its arrangement, the script carries a great sense of its original text and the textures of the world it is set in (time and period, that is).”