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Winners Summer 2021

Best TV Script


The Mâr Chronicles
The Mâr Chronicles

Writer: A. S. Templeton

Genre: Drama, Action, Sci-FI

Country: United States

Project Type: Television Script

Overview: A mythical creature raised as human must team up with a delusional federal agent and a motley crew of sentient species in order to save Earth from space alien invasion.

Best Student Director


A jag in the duplex system
A jag in the duplex system

Director/Writer: Valerie Knill

Producers: Valerie Knill, Juliana Pfeifer

Country: Germany

Project Type: Short, Drama

Overview: Heartache, cocaine and dreams: The chronicle of a one-night-stand.

Director Statement: We follow "Linda" and "René" during a club night in Berlin. Both are in life situations that do not meet their inner needs. They go to a party to feel free and to compensate what they otherwise miss. The concept behind it is to show the impact of the problematic life conditions through the protagonists' attempt to escape. They work as hidden forces that guide and steer the two through the night. It turns out that the problems of the two are caused by a person for whom they adjust their lives. After Linda and Rene get clear about it in the morning, both decide to continue the same. Behind the two people they follow is a concept of a lifestyle. For René, his dead father symbolizes the ideal of a diligent, successful worker. Linda's boyfriend embodies the archetype of an artist who denies the claims of society.

Best Feature Documentary


Jim Allison: Breakthrough

Director/Writer: Bill Haney

Producers: Bill Haney, Jennifer Pearce, Tim Disney

Country: United States

Project Type: Feature, Documentary

Overview: Today, Jim Allison is a name to be reckoned with throughout the scientific world, holding a 2018 Nobel Prize for discovering the immune system's role in defeating cancer. But for decades he waged a lonely war against the skepticism of the medical establishment and the resistance of Big Pharma. This is the astounding true story of one warm-hearted, stubborn man's visionary quest to find a cure for cancer. Narrated by Woody Harrelson.

Best Short, Best Art/Experimental, Best Thriller/Horror Short, Best Mobile Short, Best Director, Best Actor/Actress
Coronoia 21

Director/Writer/Producer: Robert Sigl

Key Cast "Haunted Man": Robert Sigl

Country: Germany

Project Type: Short

Overview: A man's descent into madness while isolated in a lengthy Corona lock-down.

Director Statement: CORONOIA 21 was shot entirely on a Samsung Galaxy S7 smartphone on a zero budget. Because we were only two to three people while filming we could spontaneously shoot and take advantage of the rare snowfall in Munich. Due to the very small time window during these kinds of snowfalls in our region we had to act promptly. In a professional production of a narrative film these "panoramic" wide shots of the nocturnal city wrapped in heavy (and real!) snow flurries including the actors acting in it would not have been possible.




Best Long Short, Best Edit
The Awakening

Director/Writer: Andrew Abbiw

Producers: Andrew Abbiw, Jennifer Aline

Key Cast "Eve": Jennifer Aline

Country: United Kingdom

Project Type: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Short

Overview: A woman suffering from insomnia seeks help from a sleep therapist to improve her way of life.

Director Statement: Fuelled by my passion for thought provoking storytelling, I am dedicated to creating art-house pieces that delve into the human psyche. Through character driven stories, I hope my content challenges your thoughts and invokes emotions that stay with you long after the credits roll.

Best Microfilm
Candle Wick

Director: Oliver Gallagher

Writers: Oliver Gallagher, Shauna Ludgate

Producer: Emmanouil Zervoudakis

Country: United Kingdom

Project Type: Animation, Student, Short

Overview: A candle threatened with being snuffed out by a leaky water pipe goes on a journey to save his home.

Director Statement: CandleWick is a film about a candle who goes on a journey to save his home.

Best Comedy Short
Sundays
Sundays

Writer: Jack Denyer

Directors: Jack Denyer, Niall Kerry

Producer: Sam Holmes

Country: United Kingdom

Project Type: Short

Overview: A comedy short about Sunday League football and men's mental health.

Best Animation Short
Encased

Director/Writer/Producer: Pablo G. Herrero

Composer: Pablo G. Herrero

Editor: Pablo G. Herrero

Country: Spain

Project Type: Animation, Short

Overview: Hope disappeared by hiding in the same box where the great human evils were. This is the story of how a child (Love), an old man (Time) and one who balances life and death (Hades) try to recover Hope with the help of an unexpected visitor.




Best Feature Director
"Four Motherless Children"

Directors: Ralph Isenberg, Joe De La Fuente

Writers: Ralph Isenberg, Joe De La Fuente

Producer: Ralph Isenberg

Country: United States

Project Type: Documentary, Feature

Overview: This film continues where the “Discovery of Santos”; the second documentary in the “El Gringo Schindler” series left off. The third movie tells the heartbreaking story of four children, all minors and citizens of the United States, forced to fend for themselves for eleven months while their mother found herself exiled in El Salvador for making a simple human error. The mother broke no immigration law but simply read an immigration form wrong. The fact that the mother had already been in the United States for seventeen years under “Temporary Protected Status” and her renewal for an additional year was already approved was completely ignored by the United States Government.

Director Statement: "It has been my humble honor to save one starfish at a time in hopes that humanity will one day cease to stumble upon a beach of starfish in need." Ralph Isenberg is El Gringo Schindler. "It is right. It is wrong. Then there is the right thing to do." unknown. "The rest is silence" William Shakespeare from Hamlet

Best Trailer/Teaser
Amarok
Amarok

Writer/Director: Shenaaz Suliman

Country: United Kingdom

Project Type: Animation, Student, Short

Overview: A curfew is imposed on a town in the far-North Canadian Arctic as a mysterious predator is feared to be on the loose.

Director Statement: Amarok is a teaser/trailer for a series I am developing about a First Nations police detective in the RCMP in Canada's far North.

Best Feature
REPENTANCE
REPENTANCE

Director/Writer: GNASSOUNOU KOFFI CHICO

Producer: MAMZAMBI ART VIDEO

Country: France

Project Type: Feature

Overview: LISE, IN HER TWENTIES, IS MADLY IN LOVE WITH BENJAMIN OF THE SAME AGE. BUT THE GUY HAS EYES ONLY FOR GLORIA. SHE PREFERS TO WAIT BEFORE MAKING UP HER MIND.ELISE AND BENJAMIN ARE PART OF THE GROUP OF 6 WHO REGULARLY CHALLENGE THE GROUP OF 5 YOUNG PEOPLE OF THE DISTRICT BY THE GOSPEL SONG. WHO WILL WIN THE GREAT COMPETITION OF THE GOSPEL SINGING BIENNIAL ORGANIZED BY THE TV CHANNEL LITEMOTIV? BENJAMIN HAS RECEIVED A VOCATION TO BECOME A PASTOR, HE IS COACHED BY THE VERY STRICT PASTOR G. AN UNEXPECTED EVENT IS GOING TO UPSET THE COMMUNITY. WHAT IF THE ANSWER IS FORGIVENESS AND REPENTANCE?

Director Biography: Chico Koffi GNASSOUNOU is originally from Togo. In France since 1987, he is married with Nadine and they have three children. After his secondary education in Togo in Africa, he left Togo for a life of adventure which led him to Ghana, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Niger, Benin, Nigeria and finally to France. He found work in a cleaning company where he climbed the ladder. He does not hesitate to do training on the side. He became the company's purchasing manager. He is also a storyteller, author and composer, choir director of a Gospel choir, pastor and actor. Since his childhood Chico Koffi GNASSOUNOU spent his free time inventing and writing stories, but it is in 2001 after a redundancy of the company where he worked that he was able to join the GRETA of Puy en Velay. He will leave with a certificate recognizing the training of: Polyvalent Technician in audiovisual and comes out straight after his first short film.

Best Feature Screenplay
Mr Frosty
Mr Frosty

Writer: Jonathan Glendening

Country: United Kingdom

Genres: Comedy, Family

Overview: TA naive young actor over-shadowed by his drama college rival and facing eviction, is forced to abandon his dreams and get 'a proper job'. How is he ever going to succeed as an actor, and get the girl if he's serving ice-cream to school-kids. A comedy about finding yourself and chasing the dream.

Writer Statement: Is it giving away too much to say that I once had to give up my dreams and become an ice-cream man?




Best Drama Short
Forty Years From Now

Director/Writer: John Manna

Producers: John Manna, Simon O'Keefe

Country: United States

Project Type: Drama, Comedy, Short

Overview: Forty years after graduation, three High School friends reunite to fulfill a pact to dig up a coffee can they buried containing predictions and secrets written by their younger selves. The contents spark revelations about their past, while potentially changing the course of their futures. This short, narrative film challenges the widely held belief that "you can never go back" while exploring tough questions of whether it's ever too late to chase a dream.

Director Statement: One advantage of being a first time director & writer later in life is my ability to infuse an appreciation for how fleeting life is, how important old friendships can be, and reflect on whether it's ever too late to chase a dream. **Spoiler Alert*** I am proof the answer is no, and without question, it is all about the journey. I am smart enough to surround myself with incredible talent, many of them are young up and coming artists, and collaborating with them has made this journey priceless for me.

Best Documentary Short

WOLF IN HIS BELLY

Director: OLUWASEYI THOMAS

Writer/Producer: MICHAEL HANCOCK

Country: United States

Project Type: Documentary, Short

Overview: A two-time cancer survivor reflects how the art of Aikido serves as a lifeline in processing mental and physical recovery

Director Biography: Oluwaseyi Thomas, “OT”, is deeply passionate about all things film. His major strength is his ability to think beyond ‘great visuals’, and managing teams in collaborative environments. As a Creative Director, he enjoys being an active part in the writing and pitch process, because he believes early understanding from pre-production is key for an effective DP. OT’s love for photography has greatly influenced his proficiency in both the world of motion pictures and still photography. Graduating from Full Sail University in Florida with a Bachelor's in Film and a Master's in Entertainment Business, he relishes working with inspiring people in collaborative environments, on narrative films, music videos, commercials, and branded content films.

Best Original Score
GEORGE FLOYD: SAY THEIR NAMES

Directors: Christopher R. Owens, Alyssa Dann

Producer: CESO ENTERPRISES, INC.

Music: Christopher R. Owens

Country: United States

Project Type: Experimental, Music Video, Short

Overview: When will the "last" time be the LAST time? Chris Oledude's single "George Floyd" has now been re-presented in the powerful video, "George Floyd: Say Their Names." America's struggle for equality and fairness throughout law enforcement parallels those struggles faced by minority groups in every society where the majority feels empowered to disregard civil and human rights. The powerful protests that erupted worldwide after George Floyd's murder in May, 2020, are celebrated here. The enduring power of Black women as determined healers of a torn community is celebrated here. The victims had names. We honor their lives by saying their names. The pressure for change must continue. No justice? No peace!

Director Statement: CHRISTOPHER R. OWENS: It is a tribute to her commitment and fortitude that Alyssa was able to complete her good work on her first 'professional' video while simultaneously starting her freshman year at Sarah Lawrence College during the COVID pandemic here in New York State. I don't know if I could have done that.

Director Statement: ALYSSA DANN: As we completed "George Floyd: Say Their Names," however, it became so clear that we had created something special -- more of a short film than a simple music video -- more of an "experience" than a "moment." When someone whispered the phrase "film festivals," we paused and agreed to explore some more. Wow! Neither Chris nor I had any idea that there was a world of music video and short film festivals where GEORGE FLOYD: SAY THEIR NAMES could be shared. Now, we are truly grateful for the opportunity to be part of these events.

Best Short Screenplay
Bingo
Bingo

Writer: Darren Haskins

Country: United States

Project Type: Short Script

Overview: Bingo Miller wakes up in a Los Angeles hospital from a two year coma to a world thats changed for egocentric social media influences. As he searches for authentic people he must keep his guard up before he is swallowed up by technology in la la land.

Writer Statement: If you don't try you don't know.