BEST FILM
The Forgotten Flame | Canada | 2022 | 02’
Director: Derek Lamoureux
Cast: Janice Israeloff, Michael Smith
Synopsis: “The Forgotten Flame” is a short about the caregivers who work tirelessly for their loved ones with Alzheimer’s disease. Caregiver burnout is often as prevalent and debilitating as the disease itself, yet rarely given the same attention and focus on how to manage it. In researching, we found that caregiver burnout is a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion that is only compounded with the helpless feeling of being trapped. This film’s goal is to raise awareness and is dedicated to the caretakers of family members with dementia.
BEST DIRECTOR
Gut Instinct | Australia | 2022 | 09’
Director: Stuart Edgeworth
Writer: Stuart Edgeworth
Producer: Alexandra Patrick-Dunn
Cast: Charlotte Friels
Synopsis: Cold, alone and time is running out…A young woman wakes to find herself waist deep in ice and cuffed in place. She doesn’t know how she got there, but she knows she needs to get out. Fast. Struggling to break free, it becomes clear that the situation she’s in is more complicated than first appears, but escape might be just within reach…
BEST SCREENPLAY
Suspect | United States | 2021 | 12’
Director: David masters
Writer: David masters
Producers: Malcolm Duncan, Fabien Colas
Cast: John Charles Nagy, Josh Futcher, Wayne Allen
Synopsis: Leon Delgado finds himself the main suspect in a mysterious investigation into crimes against the state. Can he convince the investigators that he is in fact Sonny Valentine and that they have the wrong guy.
BEST LEADING ACTRESS
Gut Instinct | Australia | 2022 | 09’
Actress: Charlotte Friels
Director: Stuart Edgeworth
Writer: Stuart Edgeworth
Producer: Alexandra Patrick-Dunn
Cast: Charlotte Friels
Synopsis: Cold, alone and time is running out…A young woman wakes to find herself waist deep in ice and cuffed in place. She doesn’t know how she got there, but she knows she needs to get out. Fast. Struggling to break free, it becomes clear that the situation she’s in is more complicated than first appears, but escape might be just within reach…
BEST LEADING ACTOR
Suspect | United States | 2021 | 12’
Actor: John Charles Nagy
Director: David masters
Writer: David masters
Producers: Malcolm Duncan, Fabien Colas
Cast: John Charles Nagy, Josh Futcher, Wayne Allen
Synopsis: Leon Delgado finds himself the main suspect in a mysterious investigation into crimes against the state. Can he convince the investigators that he is in fact Sonny Valentine and that they have the wrong guy.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
DARK DREAMS | United States | 2022 | 03’
Cinematographer: Nicola De Prato
Director: Nicola De Prato
Producers: Nicola De Prato, Dino Sardella
Cast: Nicola De Prato
Synopsis: Cole Elliott, Sarah Polednak
Synopsis: “A tormented soul is lost chasing his dream in a deserted city. But his dream is someone else’s nightmare”
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Gut Instinct | Australia | 2022 | 09’
Production Designer: Kelsey Lee
Director: Stuart Edgeworth
Writer: Stuart Edgeworth
Producer: Alexandra Patrick-Dunn
Cast: Charlotte Friels
Synopsis: Cold, alone and time is running out…A young woman wakes to find herself waist deep in ice and cuffed in place. She doesn’t know how she got there, but she knows she needs to get out. Fast. Struggling to break free, it becomes clear that the situation she’s in is more complicated than first appears, but escape might be just within reach…
BEST EDITING
The Forgotten Flame | Canada | 2022 | 02’
Director: Derek Lamoureux
Cast: Janice Israeloff, Michael Smith
Synopsis: “The Forgotten Flame” is a short about the caregivers who work tirelessly for their loved ones with Alzheimer’s disease. Caregiver burnout is often as prevalent and debilitating as the disease itself, yet rarely given the same attention and focus on how to manage it. In researching, we found that caregiver burnout is a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion that is only compounded with the helpless feeling of being trapped. This film’s goal is to raise awareness and is dedicated to the caretakers of family members with dementia.
BEST NARRATIVE
Final Touches | Canada | 2021 | 05’
Director: Corey Malone
Writer: Corey Malone
Producers: Corey Malone, David Van Dyke, Justine Peterson
Cast: Jessamine Salas, Corey Malone, Shenadoah Adams, Adam Muxlow, Melvin Medici
Synopsis: A Make Up Artist is pushed to the edge when she has to deal with a misogynistic crew.
BEST COMEDY
Chopsticks | China | 2022 | 08’
Directors: Fanbo Zheng, Weiyang Chen
Writers: Xinyan Qian, Weiyang Chen
Producer: Shihan Lu
Cast: Ryan Chiu, Ko Han Lai, Karen Zheng, Lydia Li, Lan Zhong
Synopsis: A man is promised a new world when his friend invites him to an authentic Asian Restaurant, where the various use of Chopsticks plays a culturally shocking role in his mind-blowing dining experience.
BEST DRAMA
Frank & Emmet | United States | 2021 | 13’
Direcor: Carlos F. Puertolas
Writer: Carlos F. Puertolas
Producers: Carlos F. Puertolas, Bryan Dimas, Jonathan Coria
Cast: Paul Eiding, Brian Michael Jones, Arabella Grant
Synopsis: “Frank & Emmet” tells the story of two life-long friends and show-business partners who, after weeks of drifting apart, sit together to have a much-needed conversation. Their friendly dialogue takes a turn when they address head-on the one thing they’ve never talked about: One of them is a puppet. Starring Paul Eiding (Ben 10, The Incredibles 2), Brian Michael Jones (Mank, Muppets Most Wanted), and Arabella Grant (Fuller House, Timeless). With original music from singer-songwriter Kyler England (Grey’s Anatomy) and Emmy-nominated composer Tony Morales (Elena of Avalor, Bloodline).
BEST SHORT FANTASY/SCI-FI
RELATIVITY | France | 2021 | 07’
Directors: Jules Rebuffat, Hugo Astesano, Guillaume Hulot, Loic Remy, Loic Ciaux, Benjamin Matthys
Writer: Jules Rebuffat
Producer: ArtFX
Cast: Gregory Defleur, Sophia Vesna, Thierry Caumel
Synopsis: Adams is the first astronaut to approach lightspeed. Boarding the spaceship Myriss, he experiments regularly in order to analyze how such a speed will affect living organisms until an exceptional event happens and changes everything.
BEST THRILLER/MYSTERY
DARK DREAMS | United States | 2022 | 03’
Director: Nicola De Prato
Producers: Nicola De Prato, Dino Sardella
Cast: Nicola De Prato
Synopsis: Cole Elliott, Sarah Polednak
Synopsis: “A tormented soul is lost chasing his dream in a deserted city. But his dream is someone else’s nightmare”
BEST DANCE/MUSICAL
Toporzeł | Poland | 2019 | 09’
Director: Iwona Pasińska
Writer: Iwona Pasińska
Producers: Polski Teatr Tańca
Cast: Kacper Bożek , Jerzy Kaźmierczak, Zbigniew Kocięba , Dominik Kupka, Paweł Malicki, Michał Przybyła , Adrian Radwański
Synopsis: TOPORZEŁ Beautiful mountain landscapes, from which the figures of dancers grow, rocks, bushes, the severity of nature and its strength, everything intertwines with each other, thus emphasizing the strong bonds between nature and man. This was the set of the latest film project of the Polish Dance Theatre entitled Toporzeł. The project was inspired by sculptures by Stanisław Szukalski. In the works of this artist, who causes strong emotions, the motif of the human body appears; one can see muscle tension, movement, gesture and expression. The sculpture is made of earth, of nature, of which man is a part – this was the interpretive code of the project. The Toporzeł project could not have been created anywhere else than in the Izerskie Mountains in the “Stanisław” quartz mine in Szklarska Poręba. The Karkonosze and Izerskie Mountains hide secrets, they are a place where magic mixes with reality, where the history of the legendary Mountain Spirit is still alive. The film and the accompanying album are further elements building the story of the Polish Dance Theatre. We hope that apart from the beauty and aesthetics of the presented shots, you will see the Spirit of Dance Theatre in these materials.
BEST STUDENT
RELATIVITY | France | 2021 | 07’
Directors: Jules Rebuffat, Hugo Astesano, Guillaume Hulot, Loic Remy, Loic Ciaux, Benjamin Matthys
Writer: Jules Rebuffat
Producer: ArtFX
Cast: Gregory Defleur, Sophia Vesna, Thierry Caumel
Synopsis: Adams is the first astronaut to approach lightspeed. Boarding the spaceship Myriss, he experiments regularly in order to analyze how such a speed will affect living organisms until an exceptional event happens and changes everything.
BEST YOUNG DIRECTOR
RELATIVITY | France | 2021 | 07’
Directors: Jules Rebuffat, Hugo Astesano, Guillaume Hulot, Loic Remy, Loic Ciaux, Benjamin Matthys
Writer: Jules Rebuffat
Producer: ArtFX
Cast: Gregory Defleur, Sophia Vesna, Thierry Caumel
Synopsis: Adams is the first astronaut to approach lightspeed. Boarding the spaceship Myriss, he experiments regularly in order to analyze how such a speed will affect living organisms until an exceptional event happens and changes everything.
BEST ANIMATION
In The Upper Room | Austria | 2022 | 09’
Director: Alexander Gratzer
Writer: Alexander Gratzer
Producer: József FÜLÖP
Synopsis: Every season a young mole visits his blind grandfather, who lives deep underground in a comfortably decorated burrow. As the two grow older their relationship becomes more intense and important questions arise.
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Visiting Ben Shemen | New Zealand | 2022 | 17’
Director: Miriam Harris
Producer: Miriam Harris
Cast: Chava Almagor, Pnina Aviram, Stella Harris
Synopsis: In 1946, three young Jewish teenagers met at the Ben Shemen school, in Palestine. Each had been traumatised by the Holocaust and World War II. These women, now in their late eighties – one of whom is the director’s mother – recount the ways in which Ben Shemen offered a healing and soul-nourishing refuge, through its humane outlook and the privileging of creativity. Mixed-media and an animated sketchbook aesthetic, together with the collaging of fragments of music and sound, accompany their retrieval of memories, and the director’s efforts to understand their experiences.
BEST EXPERIMENTAL
Black Dog | Australia | 2022 | 12’
Director: Cameron Manion
Writer: Cameron Manion
Producer: Cameron Manion
Cast: Emma Jensen, Lousie Wildman, Tony Driese
Synopsis: A family deals with grief in different ways.
BEST MUSIC VIDEO
BUGZY MALONE x EMILE SANDE – WELCOME TO THE HOOD | United Kingdom | 2021 | 05’
Director: KC LOCKE
Producer: JOE VICKERS
Cast: BUGZY MALONE, EMILE SANDE
BEST MINI SHORT
Wildflowers | Czech Republic | 2021 | 03’
Directors: Denisa Novakova, Mikulas Pejcha
Writer: Denisa Novakova
Cast: Anna Rehorkova, Ester Gracerova
Synopsis: Unease preserved in four apartment walls. An endeavor of creating a life at parquet floors may seem silly but point to one who has never tried. But some bridges cannot be built and at the end of the day, the best what we can do is let ourselves be carried away by the water. Open the doors we always close to concentrate, and go out. When flowers don’t bloom we never blame them, we change their environment instead. Why it should be different when it’s us not feeling good?
BEST MOBILE PHONE SHORT
So it goes. | United States | 2021 | 06’
Director: MJ Kielbus
Writer: MJ Kielbus
Cast: Jess Thurber, Randy Pituk, Jonaz McMillan, Toby Fitch, Renca Dunn, Michelle Mansfield-Hom
Synopsis: A long-shot short observing three separate incidents up close at home, which spiral out of control as time passes by.
BEST NO/LOW BUDGET
That’ll do | United Kingdom | 2022 | 05’
Director: Adam Klosowski
Writer: Adam Klosowski
Producer: Adam Klosowski
Cast: Adam Klosowski
Synopsis: An artist battles a writer’s block.
BEST SERIES (WEB/TV)
SmallTown Outsiders | Pilot | United States | 2022 | 21’
Director: Michael Hill
Writer: Michael Hill
Producers: Michael Hill, Tracy Hill, Bobby Hill
Cast: Gabriel Hill, Spencer Yang, Peyton Eliot, Ethan Melendez, Carlos Manuel Cadena, Troy Dorsey, Mandi Lutz, Sherry Wright, Sky Bradford
Synopsis: SmallTown Outsiders is a Thriller/Sci-fi set in 1988. In this small town, a group of youth stumble upon a radio frequency which unveils a secret extra terrestrial anomaly right under their noses.
BEST COMMERCIAL/AD/TVC
Dungeons and Dragons: Play Your way. | United States | 2022 | 02’
Director: Taylor Garrett
Writer: Stephanie Blackham
Producers: Alex Mcbride, Savannah Butler
Cast: Jason Conforto, Amaris Glamaris, Lee Liston, Grant Holmes, Noelle Goble, Rosana Chavez, Stephen Stubbs, Whit Johnson
BEST STOP-MOTION/TIME-LAPSE
Into The Mountains | Greece | 2022 | 05’
Director: Christopher Anagnostopoulos
Synopsis: A short non-narrative, experimental timelapse documentary film, capturing the beauty of the mountains of Epirus, Greece.