Audience Award Winners: Best Feature Film: HIDDEN WOUNDS Best Short Form Short Film: RANGERS OF THE ULAAN TAIGA Best Long Form Short Film: CONDUCTING LIFE Best Student Film: UYGHUR DOLANS
Best Direction: SANCTUARY OF HER Best Society Film: TOMARO Best Cinematography: THE OTHER SIDE OF WRONG Best Sound & Music: LIFE AFTER DEATH? – SUBHASH CHANDRA BOSE Best Adventure Film: RAISING GLOBAL CITIZENS Best Environmental Film: ECRICC: ADDRESSING CLIMATE EMERGENCY Best Nature Film: BUZZ Pollen Nation
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THE OTHER SIDE OF WRONG, 1hr. 42min., Austria
Directed by Boštjan Slatenšek 1991 – A small battle of the Slovenian war of independence and the long quest for international justice.
Florence Hartmann, a French journalist, author and ex spokesperson to Carla Del Ponte, chief prosecutor of the International criminal court for the ex Yugoslavia, travels to Holmec…
Audience Award Winners: Best Feature Film: OUR VOICE NOW Best Short Form Short Film: REFUGIO Best Long Form Short Film: NEVER ASK WHY Best Environmental Film: ISLE OF RUM Best Sports Film: BLEED FOR ME: ART OF THE DEATHMATCH Best Political Film: GRADUALLY, THEN SUDDENLY: THE BANKRUPTCY OF DETROIT Best Sound & Music: TO SPEAK IS TO LIVE – FREED FROM STUTTERING Best Cinematography: MAN FIRE CLAY Best Human Interest Film: IN BLOOM Best Direction: THE END OF BLINDNESS
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GRADUALLY, THEN SUDDENLY: THE BANKRUPTCY OF DETROIT
Directed by Sam Katz, James McGovern Once heralded as the spirit of American manufacturing, music and democracy, Detroit descended into disrepair and insolvency over five decades culminating in the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history in 2013. Gradually, Then Suddenly is the story of one city’s climb…
Audience Award Winners: Best Short Form Short Film: SPOONS Best Long Form Short Film: THE HOUSE WITH ONE MAN Best Slapsick: NIGHTMARE AT CAMP BLOODBATH
Best Dark Comedy: THE THIRD Best Performances: NUCLEAR LA Best Direction: FLEECED Best Cinematography: BROCA Best Sound & Music: VADGEVERTISING Best Animation: HEY TOBY HEY OWEN: THIS IS NOT SPONSORED BY VALVOLINE
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THE THIRD, 4min., USA, Comedy
Directed by Jonathan Kehoe Making friends is hard.
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NIGHTMARE AT CAMP BLOODBATH, 6min., USA, Comedy
Directed by Dylan Arnow After discovering their lodge totaled by a neighboring camp, two counselors are stalked and prayed upon by the local legend Terrance Fisher in his slapstick parody
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Audience Award Winners: Best Film: ATARAXIA Best Cinematography: THE AFTERMATH Best Direction: MISLEAD Best Performances: WONDER WHEEL
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THE AFTERMATH, 7min., USA, Poem
Directed by LaChelle Joy Hunt LaChelle Hunt’s “The Aftermath”, is a moody Common Era drama atop the windy seaside hills of Point Reyes. Evelyn arrives in California in 1912 after traveling across America to pursue her dreams once shared with another. She deals with being alone on this journey and looks through her darkness to find a new light.
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WONDER WHEEL, 11min., USA, Drama
Directed by Caleb John Cushing A couple goes on a date at an amusement park.
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Audience Award Winners: Best Film: XPENDABLE Best Documentary: THE LOVE SONGS OF OEDIPUS REX
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THE LOVE SONGS OF OEDIPUS REX, 21min., Canada, Documentary
Directed by Luke Sargent Documentary about musician Benjamin Hackman (The Holy Gasp) processing personal loss and heartbreak, through creating a massive concept album.
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XPENDABLE, 30min., USA, Crime
Directed by Walter Ernest Haussner 1957. Two crime organizations. Two people sent in to avert a war. Who will walk away?
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Audience Award Winners: Best Film: THE LAST PICTURE Best Direction: THE DEAD THAT LIVE Best Performances: PIT & PENDULUM
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THE LAST PICTURE, 9min., Drama/Horror Directed by Ally May When two strangers come into her diner, a waitress suspects things are not as they appear and she learns to regret her inaction.
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THE DEAD THAT LIVE, 9min., USA, Drama/Horror Directed by Mark Oguschewitz A lonely zombie must fight for his life during the zombie apocalypse.
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PIT & PENDULUM, 27min., Canada, Drama/Horror Directed by J. Aldric Gaudet It is the terrorizing story of a person sentenced to death who becomes the plaything of their jailers. They are sent walking through a dark room in hopes they will fall into a pit. When that doesn’t happen they are tied down on a table to watch the painfully slow descent of a swinging pendulum with a sharp-edged blade aimed at their stomach. Escaping from the blade did not mean freedom. The walls of the dungeon grow blistering hot first, then squeeze together to push them to the brink of the pit, before being saved at the very last second.
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Audience Award Winners: Best Short Film: WHITE FEMALE Best Direction: NEIN FRIENDS Best Cinematography: MASK Best Performances: BEING X IN AMERICA Best Sound & Music: 50 ML Best Drama Documentary: 1 OUT OF 8
Best Animation: MY WOMEN SEE GHOSTS
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MASK, 15min., USA, Drama
Directed by Peter Jang When a combat veteran tries to escape his PTSD by working out at a boxing gym, a confrontation with a mysterious man amplifies his worst fears.
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YELLOW STAR, 18min., Ukraine, Drama/History
Directed by Skobun Skobun 1941. A small Ukrainian town occupied by German troops, where the Nazis organized the Ghetto. Nearby lives the family of janitor Peter, who works in the Ghetto and has unlimited access there. Peter’s son, Mykolka, constantly takes food out of the house, which the family lacks so much. The father beats the son, but it does not affect the boy’s actions: he humbly accepts the frequent punishments and is silent about his motivation.
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THE WESTERWALD SECRET, 19min., Germany, Drama
Directed by Karl Bruchhäuser A father and son tale. The fifty year old, cranky Hajo lives with his grown-up, beloved son Hasso deep in the forrest of Westerwald, where he is ever since struggling to shield them from the temptations and distractions of the outside world. Their living is made by his incidental sellings of the deceased grandfather’s paintings. Underneath the strong bond between father and son, which seems to have shaped the boy Hasso into a living copy of himself, Hajo, however, has no idea how far advanced and consequent the escape plans of his only living relative already are.
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50 ML, 8min., USA, Drama
Directed by Vanessa Powers A young man struggles with his sobriety while he and his wife host a holiday dinner with her dysfunctional family.
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WHITE FEMALE, 10min., USA, Drama
Directed by Sarah Falkiner “Two childhood friends realize their lifelong connection was much more fragile than either imagined.”
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NEIN FRIENDS, 14min., USA, Drama
Directed by Lily Micheline Kaplan A college junior’s patience, courage, and perception are challenged at a surprise birthday dinner, attended by an assortment of nine odd guests, but nein friends.
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FROZEN LOVE, 10min., Canada, Drama
Directed by Sebastien Begin A father is tormented by guilt, when he accidentally loses his only daughter to a car accident. He will reluctantly accept help from her daughter’s mother. But during their time together, the two will rediscover the love that once united them in life.
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BEING X IN AMERICA, 11min., USA, Drama
Directed by Malik J. Ali, Chozy Aiyub Ahmad (Arab American) tries to help Chris (African American) in solving a complex equation of being in America.
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1 OUT OF 8, 5min., USA, Documentary
Directed by Jacqueline Kennedy ‘1 Out of 8’ explores the challenges Sias faces while working in Construction. The short highlights a woman in construction, working extremely hard to break barriers and stereotypes in NYC and in the construction business. Over 20 years she has been working to challenge new heights.
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MY WOMEN SEE GHOSTS, 14min., USA
Directed by Delaney McCallum A young woman investigates her relationship to her female family’s disposition for the supernatural.
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Audience Award Winners: Best Short Film: REALITY CHECK Best Performances: TOGETHER Best Direction: BLOODLINE Best Cinematography: ANJELA Best Student Film: I’M A GIRL
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I’M A GIRL, 15min., USA, Drama
Directed by Kelli Neal A young girl’s relationship with her father becomes tense when she begins to experience life as a woman.
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TOGETHER, 9min., USA, Drama
Directed by Sean L. Restivo After the recent death of her mother, Alex is left with the responsibility of taking care of her brother, Jakob. After Jakob starts a fight at school. Alex makes a potentially fatal decision, that puts her in a conflict with the Questioner, a manifestation of her guilt.
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REALITY CHECK, 24min., Spain, Fantasy/Drama
Directed by Sandro Hernández Ortiz Reality Check follows Salvador, a young patient suffering from delusional disorder, who during one of his therapy sessions starts experiencing dangerous levels of reality distortion that make him question everything in his life.
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ANJELA, 16min., Bulgaria, Documentary/Animation
Directed by Vilma Kartalska Anjela Pencheva has suffered from Cerebral Palsy since birth, but the difficult diagnosis has never broken her spirit and has turned her into a writer, an actress and a dancer. Through her work and with her computer generated voice, she participates in various initiatives for the rights of the people with disabilities and inspires everyone who has met her.
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BLOODLINE, 12min., Croatia, Crime/Drama
Directed by Silvio Jesenkovic An orphaned young man, Darko, seeks to avenge his parents murder. He is raised in the underworld and becomes an expert assassin, but over the years the moral weight of the work bears down upon him and he begins to question himself and the direction his life is taking. He is ultimately forced to make a violent choice between his family, his revenge and his identity.
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SANKOFA CHICAGO, 68min., USA, Documentary Directed by Vanessa Page Wright A documentary that reflects upon the importance of learning black history in order to shape a better future for our young black citizens, starting with Chicago.
Vanessa Page Wright, M.A. is a former Talent Agent turned Filmmaker with a lifelong vision to create documentaries that preserve Black legacies via multifaceted historical storytelling. Through an empathetic, candid lens, she also aims to critically analyze race, culture, and identity within the Black community. Currently, she serves as the Founding Director of Tellers Untold and an Adjunct Professor at Columbia College Chicago.
Vanessa’s most recent creative venture is the award-winning documentary SANKOFA CHICAGO, which was sponsored by the Illinois Arts Council. Since its debut, this film has already received numerous awards, including “Best Educational Film” from Cannes World Film Festival (June 2021), the “Outstanding Achievement Award” from the Black Swan International Film Festival, and “Best Educational Film” from Druk International Film Festival (October 2021). This quickly earned success inspired her to turn SANKOFA CHICAGO into a full-blown docuseries.
Presently in the pre-production stage, SANKOFA CHICAGO: THE UNTOLD sheds light on curriculum-based education for the Social Sciences and History in the Chicago Public School District as well as their integration of Black history and other ethnic group’s histories.
When it comes to giving back to the Black community and serving as role model for the youth (her two sons especially), Vanessa’s determination is boundless. That being said, she is also the behind-the-scenes Creator, Director, Writer, and Cinematographer of a web-series called Your Kid Professors that provides children with a fun and engaging way to learn more about Black history.
Prior to that, Vanessa Page Wright was the Director of a documentary thesis project called Big Ten Athletes. Another multi-award-winning film that also aired on an ABC affiliate station, it featured prominent former NFL and NBA athletes from The Ohio State University.
