Winter 2016 – Official Selection

Festival Laurels (all categories + nomination laurel + special mention laurel)

Main Categories:

• Jury Prize

Feature Film Winner: The Trap by Fergus March (Facebook)

Jury Member, Ryan Ohm says:

Wonderfully blending horror, comedy, and drama, ‘The Trap’ is like mingling with a dozen strangers at a cocktail party and suddenly being thrown into a pit of madness. It’s like Scooby Doo on speed with a small dose of acid mixed in the middle somewhere. The characters at first feel a bit one noted, but quickly unravel as does the intensity. This is where things pick up and the film’s fuse is lit. Then, it slowly explodes more and more throughout. The coincidences feel so weird, but somehow natural. Director Fergus March has his hand in every moment, some so subtle you may not even pick up upon first viewing. A strange mix between a film to watch while drinking with friends or when home alone and awake at 3am, ‘The Trap’ truly excels in it’s originality and weird quirks.

Runner up: Capsule by Andrew Martin (Site, Facebook)

Short Film Winner: Lila & Valentin by Andrien Lhommedieu (Vimeo)

Jury Member, Ryan Ohm says:

 The opening imagery of the film immediately sets this wonderful tone that is indescribable. The best one could say is that it shows the feelings of a lifetime in merely seconds. Lila & Valentin throws your emotions around like most films are afraid to even attempt. The sound design and cinematography blend so smooth that they fight the acting and directing for the best aspects of the short. While it’s not hard to fall in love with both the lead actors, it’s difficult to watch the story unfold – as there’s an immediate connection between both of them, as well as between Lila, Valentin, and the viewer. It’s wonderfully orchestrated chaos, connected by one of the most universal and simple themes… love.

Runner up: The Sin of Those Who Love Us by Vasco de Oliveira (IMDb, Facebook)

— please note: Our jury voted independently to the selection committee.

• Best Feature Film made for less than $5,000

Winner: Grando Mission by Carlo Christian Spano (Site, Facebook)

Selection Committee Member says:

Documentary films are usually neglected by main competition bodies at film awards within independent film. And there is a reason for this, most of them rely to heavily on transferring information to the viewer, or explaining a particular issue. ‘Grando Mission’ did not do this, instead, it devised a narrative device cinematically, engaged its audience and provided a perspective we hadn’t experienced before within the medium of film.

Nominees: In Cube by Keir Siewert (Site, Facebook), The Trap by Fergus March (Facebook)

• Best Feature Film made for between $5,000-$10,000

Winner: Crossing that Bridge by Roger Nevares (Site)

Festival Director says:

Comical and unconventional, this 60 minute feature is reminiscent of the early American talkies – with ‘Crossing That Bridge’ its all spoken, its all on beat, and its all very easy to watch. What makes it extremely enjoyable though is its overall variety of tones, its almost retro approach to storytelling, and its unfamiliar crop of characters.

Nominees: Never Wait Again by Domino Rey (no link provided)

• Best Feature Film made for more than $10,000

Winner: Capsule by Andrew Martin (Site, Facebook)

Festival Director says:

‘Capsule’ is one hell of a retro film. It has the feeling of one of the early horror/sci-fi films of the 40’s and 50’s which relied on a handful of locations to deliver their story, where the real fear was evoked by the empathy and ethical interaction the audience had with the film’s content. With a strong script, a great lead performance, and some ingenuity by the director, the film passes by without any fault or flaw. As a filmmaker, I’m somewhat jealous of it.

Nominees: Escapes by Mercedes Gaspar (Site)

• Best Short Film made for less than $5,000

Winner: The Sin of Those Who Love Us by Vasco de Oliveira (IMDb, Facebook)

Festival Director says:

‘The Sin of Those Who Love Us’ is a fantastically tender project – carefully layered performances and an ‘epically’ size narrative drives the project from scene to scene. At times, it felt perhaps better suited to a feature length project, as the characters were so engaging and interesting. Reminiscent of Francois Ozon’s Le Refuge (2009), this short film will pin you down emotionally.

Nominees: A Place to Lay Your Head by Steven Look (Site), Temporary Discomfort by Simon Adegbenro (Facebook), Forbidden Love by Tom Luc Sahara (no links provided), Clean Break by Tim Butcher (Vimeo), Never Forget by Björn Lingner (Facebook)

• Best Short Film made for between $5,000-$10,000

Winner: Yours Accidentally by Steven Forrester (Site, Facebook, IMDb)

Festival Director says:

‘Yours Accidentally’ isn’t necessarily all that original in terms of its story or how it is delivered. However, it pretends we have never seen a story like this one ever before… and this is the big part of why it is such a great short film – Forrester’s direction breathes in a freshness to the material of chance encounter like no other. The style of the film, its lush colours and overall warmness make it worthy of more than a single viewing, which is a rare thing for short films.

Nominees: A Shadow of Dara by Kirill Proskura (Site, Facebook), Equal Measure by Michael Salmon (Production company’s Vimeo), Bohemian Like You by Michael Salmon (Production company’s Vimeo)

• Best Short Film made for more than $10,000

Winner: Two Wrongs by Simon Cade (Twitter)

Festival Director says:

In its short four minute time, ‘Two Wrongs’ whizzes by with emotion, gravitas and guts. Without any fat, be it in style or content, this short film is a lean offering of a filmic social education about the good and the bad which we can inflict on one another. Its tough, its smart and its engaging.

Nominees: Mousse by John Hellberg (Site), Lila & Valentin by Andrien Lhommedieu (Vimeo)

Other categories:

• Best Cinematography of the season

Winner: Felix Forrest’s cinematography in Capsule by (Site, Facebook)

Nominees: Chloé Hetzel’s cinematography in At the End of the Road (no links provided), Leandro Ferrao’s cinematography in Early Release (no links provided), Matt Vahey’s cinematography in Equal Measure (Production company’s Vimeo)

• Best Actor of the season

Winner: Daniel Foxsmith in Early Release (no link provided)

Nominees: Tim Butcher in Clean Break (Vimeo), Jack Myatt in Yours Accidentally (Site, Facebook), Jonny Spurling in A Shadow of Dara (Site, Facebook), Lloyd Sparsi in Bohemian Like You (Production company’s Vimeo), Angus McGruther in Temporary Discomfort (Facebook)

• Best Actress of the season

Winner: Huichi-Chiu in Escapes (Site)

Nominees: Raushanah Simmons in Inside Out (Vimeo), Judith Shoemaker in Temporary Discomfort (Facebook), Eva Sirp in Crossing that Bridge (Site)

• Best Score of the season

Winner: Pascal Langagne‘s score of Lila & Valentin (Facebook)

Nominees: Hugo de Chaire’s score of Capsule (Site, Facebook)

• Best Genre Piece of the season

Winner: Forbidden Love by Tom Luc Sahara (no links provided)

Nominees: A Shadow of Dara by Kirill Proskura (Site, Facebook), Temporary Discomfort by Simon Adegbenro (Facebook)

• Best Direction of the season

Winner: Capsule by Andrew Martin (Site, Facebook)

Nominees: Bohemian Like You by Michael Salmon (Production company’s Vimeo)

• Best Writing of the season

Winner: Bohemian Like You by Michael Salmon (Production company’s Vimeo)

Nominees: Temporary Discomfort by Simon Adegbenro (Facebook)

• Best Editing of the season

Winner: Alexandre Dinaut‘s editing of Lila & Valentin (Facebook)

Nominees: Rui Pinto’s editing of Early Release (no link provided)

• Special Mention

Adelmo by Gianluca Fedele (no links provided), Still Jonathon Bulter (no links provided), Open Mike by Tobias Erdmann (no link provided),

* Please note: some categories vary in number of nominations based on the quality and quantity of submissions. There is a maximum of five nominations and one win per category.