Queens World Film Festival Winners

Queens World reveres innovation and craftsmanship in filmmakers and seeks to recognize and encourage filmmakers who display leadership within the film community.

The Festival names winners in all categories along with recognition through ‘Founder’s Choice’ and ‘Best of the Fest’ awards. Recognition is also given to filmmakers via the Lois Webber Award and other specialty awards given to filmmakers who are forging new pathways within their medium.

See the Nominees

BEST FEMALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
Ruah Uhlman in Power

BEST MALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
Ryan C. Wilson in Ray Of Sunshine

BEST FEMALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Greta Fernandez in Unicorns

BEST FEMALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Sarah Bitar in Stockade

BEST MALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Seth Blackstone in Bubbler

BEST ENSEMBLE – NARRATIVE SHORT
A Shattering – Jan Jalenak

Winner of Complimentary 4 month membership with Inktip: Where Everyone goes for scripts and writers.

BEST SCREENPLAY – NARRATIVE SHORT
Unthinkable Conversations by Emma Richardson

BEST SCREENPLAY – NARRATIVE FEATURE
An Extraordinary Affair by Benjamin Orifici

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Every Day After – Neal Broffman

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – NARRATIVE SHORT
Coda – Marcell Lobenwein

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – NARRATIVE FEATURE
The Enchanted Lake – Davide Piazzolla

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – SHORT
Rotten Blood
Special mention for Cinematography for Rabin Acharya

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – FEATURE
I Want To Live On Mars

BEST ANIMATION
Las Nogas by Catya Plate

BEST FAMILY FRIENDLY
Passenger Seat by Neha Gautam

BEST WEB SERIES
Dose: Episode 1 Psilocybin “Ghost In The Mushroom” by Peter P. Clark

BEST LGBTQ – SHORT
Build Me Through The Image by Paula Hung

BEST LGBTQ – FEATURE
Unicorns by Alex Lora

BEST EXPERIMENTAL
Who To Love by Giorgio Testi

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE IN EXPERIMENTAL FILMMAKING
How To Fill The Unfillable Hole Inside You by Dave Canning

FOUNDER’S CHOICE IN EXPERIMENTAL FILMMAKING
…In Darkness, There Is Light by Daniel Maldonado & Mike Vernusky

FOUNDER’S CHOICE IN EXPERIMENTAL FILMMAKING
Always, Already by Ken Sackheim

BEST DIRECTOR – DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Álvaro Hernández Blanco for Still Here

BEST DIRECTOR – DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Antonio Tibaldi for Gorgona

BEST DIRECTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
Cara Yeates for Gone Before Your Eyes

BEST DIRECTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Martin Drop for No Tomorrow

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Love Letters by Greta L. Schiller

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Second Chances by Farzin Farzaneh
Read the Review of Second Chances

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE IN DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKING
Monica Strambini for Chutzpah – Something About Modesty and Shame

BEST SHORT SHORT (Under 5 Minutes)
In My House by Daniel Sole & Zackary Centrella

BEST FIRST FEATURE
Underground Orange by Michael Tyler Jackson

BEST NARRATIVE SHORT
Jade by Robert Manning Jr.

BEST INTERNATIONAL NARRATIVE FEATURE
Kampon (Surrogate) by King Palisoc

BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE
Stockade by Eric Mcginty

FOUNDER’S CHOICE
Manu by Shridhar [Samar] Niraula

BEST OF THE FEST
No Tomorrow – Martin Drop

AUTEUR AWARD
Rafael Escolar for Hebe

See the Nominees

BEST STORIES OF HEALING FILM
The Wind Girl by Dana Karim

BEST ANIMATED SHORT
Boys Clap, Girls Dance by Dena Springer

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
The Success of Love by Oliverio Pablo

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN STOP MOTION
Noah Rogers for JOE

BEST LGBTQIA+ SHORT
Let’s Do This Again Sometime by Petrus van Staden

OUTSTANDING DANCE FILMS
Wo by Jiemin Yang
Due North by Chantal Caron

BEST COMEDY SHORT
Amber by Sashia Dumont

BEST INTERNATIONAL NARRATIVE SHORT
Back into your Arms by Behrad Sahebgharani

BEST EXPERIMENTAL
Lessons on Life and Death by Lionel R. Jeffries

BEST NARRATIVE SHORT SHORT
To Be Honest by John Robert Hammerer

OUTSTANDING NARRATIVE SHORTS
BLUE FiRE by Nick Ronan
How She Didn’t Die by Antonio Tibaldi

OUTSTANDING ACTOR MALE NARRATIVE SHORT
Nicolas Calero in The Game by Aldo Vassallo
Raz Fritz and Ryan Emilio Molina in The Valley of the Moon by Luca Massimiliano Pizzoleo

BEST ACTOR FEMALE NARRATIVE SHORT
Olivia Baglivi in Suelta (Loose) by Javier Pereira

BEST ACTOR MALE NARRATIVE FEATURE
Alexander Khachatryan in It’s Spring by Roman Musheghyan

BEST ACTOR FEMALE NARRATIVE FEATURE
Ali Edwards in august at twenty two by Timothy Zwica

BEST ENSEMBLE
Ellie by Fernando Bonelli

Winner of Complimentary 4 month membership with Inktip: Where Everyone goes for scripts and writers.

BEST SCREENPLAY – NARRATIVE SHORT
North Star by PJ Palmer

BEST SCREENPLAY – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Song of the Fly by Michele Pagano

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – DOCUMENTARY SHORT
SILENT NIGHT by Barbara Medajska

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – NARRATIVE SHORT
Sauerdogs by Guillermo de Oliveira

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Charm Circle by Nira Burstein

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Met Mes by Sam de Jong

BEST DIRECTOR – DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Jiale Hu for Songs for you, Always

OUTSTANDING DIRECTORS – NARRATIVE SHORT
Alexander Spenser for By Way of Water
Marc Acito for MAD / WOMAN

BEST DIRECTOR – DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Thomas Edward Keith for How Does it Feel to be a Problem?

BEST DIRECTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Shiv C Shetty for Maali

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Ripples Under the Skin by Farha Khatun

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
The Prediction Of Extreme Events by David Ruf

QUEENS WORLD AUTEUR CINEMA AWARD
TRAP by Anthony Edward Curry

BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE
It’s Spring by Roman Musheghyan

QUEENS WORLD SPECIAL AWARD FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE
Real Fur by Taimoor Choudhry

QUEENS WORLD TRUTH SEEKER
Hate Crime in Howard Beach by Stephen J Woods and Eric Notar

BEST OF THE FEST
The Instinct by Juboraj Shamim

FOUNDERS’ CHOICE
MAD / WOMAN by Marc Acito

Best Narrative Short Short
To Be Honest by John Robert Hammerer*

Filmmaker of the Year
Rachel Koteen for Take the Ice*

See the Nominees

BEST FIRST FEATURE
Love Happens by Liza Rafael

BEST ANIMATION
The Girl with the Rivet Gun by Anne de Mare, Kristen Kelly

BEST FAMILY FRIENDLY
Roberto by Carmen Córdoba González

BEST EXPERIMENTAL
Lilies by Joni Renee Whitworth

BEST LGBTQ – SHORT
Doesn’t Fall Far by Joshua Michael Payne

BEST LGBTQ – FEATURE
Lust Life Love by Stephanie Sellars, Benjamin Feuer

BEST SHORT SHORT (UNDER 5 Minutes)
The Doors by Woraphan Klawklat

BEST FEMALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
Eve Austin in Confidant by  Debra Markowitz

BEST FEMALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Lisa Ludwig in Mother’s Day by Travis Carlson

BEST MALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
Ethan Itzkow in High Score by Serena Ryen & Ethan Itzkow

BEST MALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Taylor Olson in Bone Cage by Taylor Olson – TIE!
Joel Bernard in Mouse by Adam Engel – TIE!

BEST ENSEMBLE – NARRATIVE SHORT
Orquesta Los Bengalas (The Flares) by David Valero Simón

BEST ENSEMBLE – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Shellfish by Hunter Hopewell

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – NARRATIVE SHORT
Fire by Daniele Martinis

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Externo (External) by Jonathan Taub, Leandro Taub

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – DOCUMENTARY SHORT
From the Ground Up by Trent Zulkiewicz and Will Brenninkmeyer

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Last Call: The Shutdown of NYC Bars by Johnny Sweet

BEST SCREENPLAY – NARRATIVE SHORT
Family History by Mark J. Parker

BEST SCREENPLAY – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Latay (Battered Husband) by Ralston Gonzales Jover

BEST DIRECTOR – DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Super by Callie Rose Hanau

BEST DIRECTOR – DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Gosia@Tomek by Christine Jezior

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
El Monstruo Invisible (The Invisible Monster) by Guillermo Fesser Perez de Petinto, Javier Fesser Perez de Petinto

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
The Forbidden Strings by Hasan Noori

BEST DIRECTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
Following… by Karla Lulic

BEST DIRECTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Basenji by Ian Scott Clement

BEST COMEDY SHORT
The Dump by Neil Holland

BEST WEB CONTENT
Rockaway by Andrea Ashton

BEST INTEGRATION OF MUSIC AND DANCE
Faces by Charly Wenzel

BEST BLAME IT ON THE PANDEMIC
Henrietta by Jessy Holtermann

BEST NARRATIVE SHORT
My Mother Went with the Cows by Maria José Ibarra Valdez

BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE
Bone Cage by Taylor Olson

QUEENS WORLD SPECIAL AWARD FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE
SURVIVING THE SILENCE: The Untold Story Of Two Women In Love Who Helped Change Military Policy by Cindy Abel

QUEENS WORLD TRUTH SEEKER: FEATURE FILM
Ultraviolence by Ken Fero

QUEENS WORLD TRUTH SEEKER: SHORT FILM
Before I Die by Iker Esteibarlanda

POETIC CINEMA SPECIAL JURY PRIZE
Ama’ara – The Song of the Whales by Sebastian Jobst

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION DESIGN – FEATURE FILM
1618 by Luis Ismael

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION DESIGN – SHORT FILM
The Secret Walls by Anne Charrin, Lise Charrin, Aude Charrin, Jean-Marie Gatin

BEST OF FEST
Mother’s Day by Travis Carlson

FOUNDERS CHOICE – NARRATIVE
Basenji by Ian Scott Clement

FOUNDERS CHOICE – DOCUMENTARY
All In My Power by Chandler Clarke

AUTEUR CINEMA AWARD
Externo by Jonathan Taub and Leandro Taub

EMERGING ARTIST
JULIAN GREEN – Elsagate by Julian Green

BEST SPECIAL EFFECTS
When Fire Flies by Das Fuerst

AUDIENCE AWARD NARRATIVE FEATURE
Mouse by Adam Engel

AUDIENCE AWARD DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Walk with Frank by Ryan Mayers and Matt Mayers

THE LOIS WEBER PIONEER AWARD
Catya Plate

QUEENS WORLD TRAILBLAZER
Opal Hope Bennett

See the Nominees

EMERGING ARTISTS
Bubby & Them by Hazel Katz, Je’Jae Daniels

BEST FIRST FEATURE
Ghoul Catchers by Joseph Voce, Thomas Finn

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE BEST STUDENT FILM
Paper Boats by Gonzalo Guajardo-Fajardo

BEST ANIMATION
Embraces & Touch of Skin by Sara Koppel

BEST FAMILY FRIENDLY
Lost Treasure of the Valley by Robert Husted

BEST EXPERIMENTAL SHORT
Metamorphosis by Fernanda Parrado

BEST EXPERIMENTAL FEATURE
Dia 1 by Rafael Escolar

BEST LGBTQ SHORT
Wonder by Javier Molina

BEST SHORT SHORT
Hard Shadow by Neda Khanifar

OUTSTANDING FEMALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
About Colonia by Ralph Salazar
Dragonfly by Angela Wong Carbone

BEST FEMALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Zalinia/Outline by Veronika Povalyaeva

BEST MALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
Extended Stay by Drew Starkey

BEST MALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Chakkar by Avon Raj Upreti

BEST ENSEMBLE – NARRATIVE FEATURE
The Good Day by Juo Hae

BEST ENSEMBLE – NARRATIVE SHORT
The Fever by José María Flores Miranda

OUTSTANDING CINEMATOGRAPHY – NARRATIVE SHORT
Kiko’s Saints by Manuel Marmier
Dragon Song by David McClister

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – NARRATIVE FEATURE
In The Land of Lost Angels by Bishrel Mashbat

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Tofino is a Place by Ryan Struck

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Path of the Daff by Michael Piscitelli

BEST SCREENPLAY – NARRATIVE SHORT AND INKTIP MEMBERSHIP
Kept by Amber Viera and Patricia Lundy

BEST SCREENPLAY – NARRATIVE FEATURE AND INKTIP MEMBERSHIP
Seneca by Armando Riesco

BEST DIRECTOR – DOCUMENTARY SHORT
The Return by Jon Fish

BEST DIRECTOR – DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Siqueiros: Walls of Passion by Lorena Manríquez, Miguel Picker

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Grandpa Fire by Alfonso O Donnell Gonzalez de Castejon

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
The Last Sermon by Jack Baxter & Fran Strauss-Baxter

BEST DIRECTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
Troublemaker by Olive Nwosu

BEST DIRECTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Exit 5 by Khaled Nadershah

BEST COMEDY SHORT
Sixteen Thousand Dollars by Symone Baptiste

OUTSTANDING SPECIAL EFFECTS
The Creeper’s Curse by Blake Rice
Look Further by Sergio Lodolce

BEST COMEDY FEATURE
I Wrote This For You by Jason Zavaleta

BEST NARRATIVE SHORT
The Turner Exhibit by Mathew Gregory Bainbridge

BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE
The Rabbits’ House by Valeria Selinger

BEST OF FEST
Zalinia/Outline by Vadim Dubrovitskiy

THE YASUJIRŌ OZU CINEMA AWARD
Gold Star by Paul Frankl

QUEENS WORLD FILM FESTIVAL GODDARD CINEMA AWARD
Let Them Have Their Way by Dien Vo

QUEENS WORLD FILM FESTIVAL AWARD FOR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
Hanged by Roqiye Tavakoli

LOIS WEBER PIONEER AWARD
Pamela Falkenberg & Jack Cochran

QUEENS WORLD FILM FESTIVAL TRUTH SEEKER
Jack Baxter & Fran Strauss-Baxter for The Last Sermon

QUEENS WORLD AUTEUR CINEMA AWARD
Sourpuss by Conrad Stojak

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION NARRATIVE FEATURE
Gutman’s Alternative by Aleksandrs Mirskis

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION NARRATIVE SHORT
The Lepers by JD Ganz

BEST OF THE BOROUGH
The Taxidermist by Natalie Johnson

POETIC CINEMA SPECIAL JURY PRIZE
Pepper by Jayil Pak

FOUNDER’S CHOICE
The Factory by Max Chicco

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
Sammy Sayed for Deeply Absurd lucidity

BEST ANIMATION
My Moon by Eusong Lee

BEST EXPERIMENTAL
The Widow by Eva Depoorter

BEST LGBTQ SHORT
Marguerite by Marianne Farley

BEST SHORT SHORT
Welcome to the Ball by Adam Vincent Wright

EMERGING FILMMAKERS
Jingjing Tian for Cowboy Joe
Adonis Williams for Civic Mind
Catalina Jordan Alvarez for Mune

HUMANITARIAN AWARD
Ginger by James C Boratyn

FEMALE ACTOR SHORT
Paola Bontempi in Mask of Sanity by Fran Casanova

FEMALE ACTOR FEATURE
Kim So Min in The Gift of Love by Gyu-min Gim

MALE ACTOR SHORT
Jesse James Keitel in Like Glass by Andrew K. Meyer

MALE ACTOR FEATURE
Joe Martyn Ricke in Palace by Andrew Paul Davis

ENSEMBLE NARRATIVE SHORT
Like Glass by Andrew K. Meyer

ENSEMBLE NARRATIVE FEATURE
Rag Doll by Bailey Kobe

LOIS WEBER PIONEER AWARD
Christina Raia for her tireless work for the Indie Film Community

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY SHORT (A TIE)
Angels Guard Thee by Robert Higgins, Patrick McGivney
Seventy by Ong Jiage

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY FEATURE
Bad Bad Winter by Olga Korotko

BEST FAMILY FRIENDLY
Miikshi the Meek Sheep in the Cosmic Potato by Lindsay Lee, Justin T. Lee

SPECIAL JURY AWARD: FOSTERING AND PRESERVING ORAL HISTORY
The Little Fish and The Crockadile by Stefanie Plattner

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY DOC SHORT
The Swimmer by Thomas Beug

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY DOC FEATURE
Harvest Season by Bernardo Ruiz

BEST SCREENPLAY NARRATIVE SHORT
The Apologizers by Yasu Suzuki

BEST SCREENPLAY NARRATIVE FEATURE
Rag Doll by Bailey Kobe

INKTIP MEMBERSHIPS
Adonis Williams and Galia Barkol

BEST DIRECTOR DOC SHORT
For a Better Life by Yasmin Mistry

BEST DIRECTOR DOC FEATURE
Quiet Storm by Johnny Sweet

BEST DOC SHORT
Born in Gambia by Natxo Leuza

BEST DOC FEATURE
The Sweetest Land by Jeffrey Teitler

SPECIAL JURY AWARD: WORLD SOCIAL JUSTICE
Abby Ginsberg And Ken Schnieder for Then They Came For Us

SPECIAL JURY AWARD BEST FIRST FEATURE
Pamela by Kate Mclane

SPECIAL JURY AWARD BROOKLYN FIREPROOF STAGES PRODUCTION PACKAGE
Jean Goto and Adam Lim for Andlife

BEST DIRECTOR NARRATIVE SHORT
Heimlich by Lisanne Sartor

BEST DIRECTOR NARRATIVE FEATURE
Rag Doll by Bailey Kobe

BEST COMEDY SHORT
Best Wishes by Kevin Etherson

BEST COMEDY FEATURE
Poor Greg Drowning by Jeffrey Scott Collins

BEST NARRATIVE SHORT
Tsar Bomba by Oskar Rosetti

BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE
Bad Bad Winter by Olga Korotko

FOUNDER’S CHOICE
Dot – Marie Jones for Rag Doll

‘Best OF’ and ‘Honorable Mention’ are awarded in all categories along with Screenplay awards, Best Actor, Founder’s Choice, Best of the Fest and three one-year memberships to InkTip.

EMERGING FILMMAKER
Lionel Jeffries for Missionaries
Orges Bakalli for My Name is Somebody
Travis Wood for Kayla in A1
Eva Depoorter for Belgiak
Richa Rudola for Fresh Blood
Ambarien Alqadar for Ayesha

BEST FIRST FEATURE
The Magic Bomb by Randy Gordon-Gatica

BEST STUDENT FILM
The Devil’s Rose by Hannah Delta Butkus

BEST ANIMATION
Panic Attack by Eileen O’meara
Honorable Mention
Our Wonderful Nature – The Common Chameleon by Tomer Eshed

BEST FAMILY FRIENDLY
Do You Want to Buy Some Cookies? by Tomas Griffin

BEST EXPERIMENTAL FILM
Atomic Mother by L.E. Salas

BEST LGBTQ SHORT
Fragments 83 by Richard Millen
Honorable Mention
Pria by Yudho Aditya
Cal & V by Timothy Offor

BEST SHORT SHORT
The Call by Trina Michelle
Honorable Mention
The Stage by Cory Bowles

BEST FEMALE ACTOR-NARRATIVE SHORT
Sadie Fong Dame in Speak by John Appleton
Honorable Mention
Reecha Sharma in Silver Bangles by Roshan Bikram

BEST FEMALE ACTOR- NARRATIVE FEATURE
Magdalena Combes Tillard in Dalia by Rafael Escolar
Honorable Mention
Adelina Amosco in The Fever and the Fret by Cath Gulick

BEST MALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
Daniel Martin Berkey in The Last Visit by Mark Glauburg
Honorable Mention
Andre M. Hennicke in The Peculiar Abilities of Mr. Mahler by Paul Philipp

BEST MALE ACTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Mark Phelan in Besides These Walls by Jules Bishop

BEST ENSEMBLE – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Knowing Nothing Cold by Jeff Kao
Honorable Mention
The the Flame by Alex Webb

BEST ENSEMBLE – NARRATIVE SHORT
Paradise Cove by Jack Flynn & Charlotte Lobdell
Honorable Mention
No Kissing by Jacob L Seltzer

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – NARRATIVE SHORT
A Long Way Home by Iber Deari
Honorable Mention
(Out)caste by Shilpi Shikha Agrawal
Blackmoor by James Lewis
Silver Bangles by Roshan Bikram Thakuri

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Day Six by Juan Pablo Arroyo Abraham

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – DOCUMENTARY SHORT
OME: Tales from a Vanishing Homeland by Raul Paz Pastrana

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Thy Father’s Chair by Antonio Tibaldi, Alex Lora
Honorable Mention
Light by Suela Bako, Yllka Gjollesha

BEST SCREENPLAY – NARRATIVE SHORT
Bricklayer’s Poet by Gino Cafarelli
Honorable Mention
Holy Week by Charlotte Istel

BEST SCREENPLAY – NARRATIVE FEATURE
To the Flame by Alex Webb
Honorable Mention
Yesterday Last Year by Jeff Hanley

BEST DIRECTOR – DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Decoding Darkmatter by Crystal Waterton

BEST DIRECTOR – DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Zois by Bujar Alimani

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Teddy Roosevelt and Fracking by Pam Falkenberg, Jack Cochran

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Nothing Changes: Art for Hank’s Sake by Matthew Kaplowitz
Honorable Mention
Open Land – Meeting John Abercrombie by Arno Oehri

BEST DIRECTOR – NARRATIVE SHORT
Miracle Maker by Kate Marks
Honorable Mention
Nevada by Javier Kühn

BEST DIRECTOR – NARRATIVE FEATURE
Restraint by Adam Cushman
Honorable Mention
The Fever and the Fret by Cath Gulick

BEST COMEDY SHORT
Handle with Care by Michael Mercadante
Honorable Mention
Honey by Pedro Moreno del Oso

BEST COMEDY FEATURE
Starlit by Andrea Ocampo

KODAK AWARD $1,000
Clayton Dean Smith by Clayton Dean Smith
Off Track Betty by Clayton Dean Smith

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE – WORLD SOCIAL IMPACT
Sacrificial Virgins by Andi Reiss

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE – POETIC CINEMA
On the Endless Road by Siu Pham

BEST NARRATIVE SHORT
Miracle Maker by Kate Marks
Honorable Mention
Cal & V by Timothy Offor
Fresh Blood by Richa Rudola
Something in the Darkness by Fran Casanova
(Out)caste by Shilpi Shikha Agrawal

FOUNDERS CHOICE – OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE
Richard Stables in Wedgetail by Greg Blakey

BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE
Besides These Walls by Jules Bishop

BEST OF THE FEST
Dalia by Rafael Escolar

See the Nominees

BEST ANIMATION
Chicka, Die Hündin Im Ghetto (Chicka, the Dog from the Ghetto) by Sandra Schießl

BEST FAMILY FRIENDLY
Dillzilla: Titan of Terror! by Elizabeth Pasieczny

BEST LGBTQ
Mariposas (Butterflies) by Angel Villaverde
Honorable Mention:
To Have You Here by Jen Ackerman

BEST FEMALE ACTOR NARRATIVE SHORT
Julie Kline in The Girl On the Mat by Robert Butler

BEST FEMALE ACTOR NARRATIVE FEATURE
Ai Ai delas Alas in Area by Louie Ignacio
Honorable Mention:
Dorothea Hagena in Mann im Spagat – Pace, Cowboy, Pace by Timo Jacobs

BEST MALE ACTOR NARRATIVE SHORT
Paolo Graziosi in Amore Grande (A Big Love) by Max Chicco
Honorable Mention:
Christopher Dylan Whites in Ways by Alex Lora

BEST MALE ACTOR NARRATIVE FEATURE
Pierre Walters in The Red Effect by Jordan Miller
Honorable Mention:
Brian Smolensky in Searching for Fortune by Joseph Matarrese

BEST ENSEMBLE NARRATIVE FEATURE
Scumbag by Mars Roberge

BEST ENSEMBLE NARRATIVE SHORT
Fata Morgana by Jon Keng
Honorable Mention: Brian Mickler by Michael Taylor Jackson

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY NARRATIVE SHORT
Andrea C. Vannucci for Io Non Devo
Honorable Mention:
Yorgos Karvelas for Limbo
Vahid Buoteh for Building No. 13

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY NARRATIVE FEATURE
Amin Oussar for Pawo
Honorable Mention: Dominik Friebel for Mann Im Spaga – Pace, Cowboy, Pace

EMERGING FILMMAKER
Pat Campo for Swiss Cheez Brain

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Doug Leconte for Fire of the Final Days

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Luise Schröder for Valentina

BEST SCREENPLAY NARRATIVE SHORT
Robert Joseph Butler & Lucie Gillipsie for The Girl on the Mat
Honorable Mention:
Debra Markowitz for By Blood

BEST SCREENPLAY NARRATIVE FEATURE
Brian Smolensky for Searching for Fortune

BEST DIRECTOR DOCUMENTARY SHORT
The Margaret Lambert Story by Nina Horowitz

BEST DIRECTOR DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
The Bullish Farmer by Ken Marsolais

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Dutee by Vanessa Hudson

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Valentina by Maximilian Feldmann
Honorable Mention:
Undocumented by Patricia Shih

BEST DIRECTOR NARRATIVE SHORT
The Suitor by Alvaro Congosto

BEST DIRECTOR NARRATIVE FEATURE
Lotte by Julius Schultheiß

BEST NARRATIVE SHORT SHORT
The Last Tip by Patrick Chen

BEST NARRATIVE SHORT
After School by Alec Tibaldi
Honorable Mention:
Rabie Chetw (Wintery Spring) by Mohamed Kamel
The Surface by Jordan Berger

BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE
Pawo by Marvin Litwak & Sonam Tseten

AUDIENCE AWARD NARRATIVE FEATURE
Adam Green’s Aladdin

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE: WORLD SOCIAL IMPACT
Positive Hell

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE: MUMBLECORE VÉRITÉ
Children of Hip Hop

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE: SARDONIC LAMPOON
Cake

SPECIAL JURY PRIZE: MOST OUTRAGEOUS COMEDY
Tight Pants

FOUNDERS CHOICE: FEATURE
Tarde en el Abismo (Afternoon at the Abyss)

FOUNDERS CHOICE: DOCUMENTARY
Between Neighborhoods

FOUNDERS CHOICE: SHORT
Amore Grande (A Big Love)

BEST ANIMATION
Lima by Afshin Roshanbakht & Vahid Jafari
Honorable Mention
The Stressful Adventures of Boxhead & Roundhead by Elliot Cowan

BEST FAMILY FRIENDLY
Mr. Ready by John Galvin

BEST LGBTQ
Life’s a Drag by Robin Royce Queree
Honorable Mention
Die Ballade Von Ella Plummhoff (The Ballad of Ella Plummhoff) by Barbara Kronenberg

BEST ACTRESS IN A SHORT
Marisa Vitali in Grace by Chris Ordal
Honorable Mention
Belén Rueda in Broken Basket by Roberto Ruiz Céspedes

BEST ACTRESS IN A FEATURE
Sareh Bayat in Oblivion Season by Abbas Rafei
Honorable Mention
Jennifer Gegan for Desire in New York by Ed Ziari

BEST ACTOR IN A SHORT
Calvin Smith for Better Man by Amelia Mathews
Honorable Mention
Joseph A. Halsey for Junkie Heaven by Steve Sage Goldberg

BEST ACTOR IN A FEATURE
Timothy Neil Williams in Read Me by Fred Zara
Honorable Mention
Marcus Carl Franklin in But Not for Me by Ryan Carmichael

BEST ENSEMBLE
Piper De Palma, Ali Aroyan, Roxane Depardieu for Ride or Die by Alec Tibaldi
Honorable Mention
The Blood in Our Veins by Mateo Marquez

BEST SHORT COMEDY
RSVP by Nicolas Billon
Honorable Mention
Mother of the Week by Lee Davis

BEST FEATURE COMEDY
Dirty Beautiful by Tim Bartell

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY IN A SHORT
Yana Karin for City of Dreams
Honorable Mention
Dhawal Deepak Mangrulkar for Quira

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY IN A FEATURE
Dipankar Sikder/Rabin Acharya for Dying Candle
Honorable Mention
John Defazio for She Sings to the Stars

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY IN A DOCUMENTARY
Gerardo Puglia for God Knows Where I Am

SPECIAL PRIZE FOR MOTION GRAPHICS
Eddy Falconer for Hoppla!!!!!

SPECIAL PRIZE FOR FIRST FEATURE
Nothing Serious by John Appleton

SPECIAL PRIZE FOR SOCIAL IMPACT IN DOCUMENTARY
Julio of Jackson Heights by Richard Shpuntoff

AUDIENCE AWARD: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Saving Jamaica Bay by David Sigal

AUDIENCE AWARD NARRATIVE FEATURE
Pop Meets the Void by William Cusick

BEST SHORT DOCUMENTARY DIRECTOR
With Love by Christopher Ludgate
Honorable Mention
Last Day of the House by Lourdes de los Santos

BEST FEATURE DOCUMENTARY DIRECTOR
God Knows Where I Am by Todd & Jedd Wider

BEST SHORT DOCUMENTARY
In the Hollow by Austin Bunnr
Honorable Mention
Reviving Nepal Bhasa by Sam Shakya

BEST FEATURE DOCUMENTARY
Maria, My Friend by Kirsi Mattila
Honorable Mention
I am Haiti by Raúl de la Fuente

BEST SHORT NARRATIVE DIRECTOR
Queen Kong by Monica Lisa Stambrini
Honorable Mention
A Gringo Honeymoon by Alexandra Debricon

BEST FEATURE NARRATIVE DIRECTOR
She Sings to the Stars by Jennifer Corcoran

BEST SHORT NARRATIVE
A Warm Spell by Toshimichi Saito
Honorable Mentions
Unhappy Endings by Steven Benson & Wayne Benson
Tom in America by Flavio Alves
A Gringo Honeymoon by Alexandra Debricon

BEST FEATURE NARRATIVE
H.O.M.E. by Daniel Maldonado
Honorable Mention
The Inquisition of Camilo Sanz by John Marco Lopez

SPECIAL PRIZE FOR WORLD SOCIAL IMPACT
Oblivion Season by Abbas Rafei

FOUNDERS CHOICE FOR SHORT FILM
Alles Wird Gut (Everything Will Be Ok) by Patrick Vollrath

FOUNDERS CHOICE FEATURE FILM
She Sings to the Stars by Jennifer Corcoran

BEST OF THE FEST
Pop Meets the Void by William Cusick

Best LGBT Short
ROXANNE by Paul Frankl

Best Comedy Short
DIWALI DREAM GARAGE by Johnny Pik
Honorable Mention: THE SHED by Brian Mcgleenon

Best Animation
DIRTY LAUNDRY DAY by Jamil Lahham

Best Actress In A Narrative Short
Miranda Wilson for BENEATH WATER

Best Actor In A Narrative Short
Tomas Pozzi for MARIONETA CIEGA (BLIND PUPPET)

Best Actress In A Narrative Feature
Nicole Hayden for THE PARK BENCH

Best Actor In A Narrative Feature
Ricardo Pinto for EL MAL TRATO (MALTREATMENT)

Best Ensemble
EULOGY by Don Capria

Emerging Filmmaker
Ralph Sepe for THE HIGH
Alexandra Jackman, Mike Jackman for A TEEN’S GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING AND COMMUNICATING WITH PEOPLE WITH AUTISM

Best Cinematography In A Narrative Short
LILY IN THE GRINDER by Michael Morgenstern

Best Cinematography In Narrative Feature
ADAGIO by Rafael Escolar

Best Director Documentary Short
Antonio Tibaldi & Àlex Lora Cercós for GODKA CIRKA (HOLE IN THE SKY)

Best Director Documentary Feature
Werner Schweizer for VERLIEBTE FEINDE (ENEMIES IN LOVE)
Honorable Mention: Rebecca Kenyon for SOMETHING YOU CAN CALL HOME

Best Director Narrative Short
Lisa Melodia for BIG GIRL
Honorable Mention: Max Chan for OUR BLOOD

Best Director Narrative Feature
Rafael Escolar for ADAGIO
Honorable Mention: Daniel Vivanco for EL MALTRATO (MALTREATMENT)

Community Award
Lydia Darly and Patrick Xi Hao Chen

Best Documentary Short
GASPER & SON by Hannah Jayanti, Jen G. Pywell, Miguel A. Rodriguez
Honorable Mention: COMIC BOOK HEAVEN by E.j. Mcleavey-Fisher

Best Documentary Feature
WOMEN OF 69’ UNBOXED by Peter Barton
Honorable Mention: TRUTH HAS FALLEN by Sheila M. Sofian

New Voices
MILLENNIAL by Colin Shields and Frank Anderson

Best Narrative Short
CARRY ON by Yatao Li, China
BORDER TRAFFICKING by Peter Rautek
Honorable Mention: ABRIENDO PUERTAS (OPENING DOORS) by Tomás Bases

QWFF 2015 Filmmaker Award
Rachel Mason for THE LIVES OF HAMILTON FISH

Cinema Of Cruelty
DEATH DRIVE by L.E. Salas

Best Narrative Feature
THE PARK BENCH by Ann LeSchander

Audience Award
THE DRIFTER by Craig Calamis

Founder’s Choice
ORIGINAL I.Q. TESTER by Alan Arrivée

FOUNDERS CHOICE
RECURSION by Sam Buntrock

Audience Award
THE HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT by Henry Barrial

Best Narrative Feature
TU SERAS UN HOMME by Benoit Cohen

Best Director Narrative Feature
Henry Barrial for THE HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT
Honorable Mention
Joseph Israel Laban for NUWEBE

Best Domestic Documentary Feature
FREELOAD by Daniel Skaggs
Honorable Mention
FORGIVE US by Anthony Haden-West

Best Int’l Documentary Feature
KATIA by Anna Shishova

Best Director Documentary Feature
Becca Roth for ONE: A STORY OF LOVE AND EQUALITY

Best Domestic Narrative Short
RECURSION by Sam Buntrock
Honorable Mention
PERFECT DAY

Best Int’l Narrative Short
THE NAKED LEADING THE BLIND by Wim Vanacker
Honorable Mention
HESHTJE by Bekim Guri

Best Director Narrative Short
Alex Lora for SOLO SOY SOLOMON

Best Domestic Documentary Short
JAIPUR MAHOUTI by Deborah Harse
Honorable Mention
BENEATH THE TREES by Iker Esteibarlanda

Best Int’l Documentary Short
CRISALIDA by Alonso Estrella, de Rothschild, Mendez Gonzalez, Costa Cantal

Best LGBT Feature Documentary
A SELF MADE MAN by Lori Petchers

Best LGBT Short
SHIFT by Juan Carlos Zaldivar

Best Actor Male Feature
Robert Nolan in MOURNING HAS BROKEN by Brett Butler & Jason Butler

Best Actor Male Short
Rob McClure in RECURSION by Sam Buntrock
Honorable Mention
Kevin Thomas Costiganin KILLER byMichael Turney

Best Actor Female Feature
Tina Holmes in BUOY by Steven Doughton
Honorable Mention
Victoria Murdoch in UNHAPPY HAPPY by Rob Shaw

Best Actor Female Short
Marina Kovalskya for ISTORIYA M.

Best Cinematography Narrative Feature
SILENCIO by Luis Camara

Best Cinematography Documentary
KATIA by Anna Shishova

Best Cinematography Short
UNFOLD by Steven Daly

Best Unique Vision
HOMOSTRATUS by Siu Pham

Best Emerging Filmmaker
Hena Ashraf for SMALL DELIGHTS
Sebastian Rea for LONE PROPHET

Best Animation
MY ART IS NOT DEAD by Savannah Steiner
Honorable Mention
DAY 6011 by Raf Wathion

Perseverance Award
THE GRAND HOTEL

Best LGBT Short Film
A SON by Andre Gaumond from Canada

Best Animation
PLANET UTERO by Faiyaz Jafri from USA

Best Short Documentary
MOTORBIKE MIDWIFE by Masumi Higashi from UK/Ghana

Best Feature Documentary
FROM QUEENS TO CAIRO by Sherif Sadek from USA

Best Narrative Short
POLLICINO by Cristiano Anania from Italy

Best Narrative Feature
UOMO by Rafael Escolar from Argentina

Audience Award
MIKEY BOY by Christopher Berkenkamp from USA

Emerging Filmmaker
ANDREW CANNIZZARO for A GIRL AND HER GUARDIAN from USA

Best Actress
JUDITH ROBERTS for MY DAY from USA

Best Actor
HEIKO PINKOWSKI for HEAVY GIRLS from Germany

Founders’ Choice
WELCOME TO NOWHERE (BULLET HOLE ROAD) by William Cusick from USA
LONELY EROS by Ellen Andries from Belgium

2013 HONORABLE MENTION

Documentary
RETURN TO THE SEA by Genevieve McGill from Ireland

Narrative Short
SILENT RIVER by Anca Miruna Lazarescu, David Lindner from Romania
LE TETTE DI UNA DICIOTTENNE by Luca Gennari from Italy
OF GUILT AND GRIEF by Tom Van Den Broek from England
HEADS UP by Alex Merkin, Robert Krakovski from USA

BEST OF FESTIVAL
QUEEN by Adam Rose

Founders Choice
CAN’T DANCE by Richard Uhlig

The Directors Prize
MR BRICKS by Travis Campbell

Best Actor-Male
RYAN EGGOLD for QUEEN

Best Actor-Female
MARLYN MASON for MODEL RULES

Best Narrative Feature
DAVID DIXON IS DEAD by David Dixon

Best Documentary Feature
FAMBUL TOK by Sara Terry

Best Documentary Short
THE WORD NEVER MENTIONED by Elliot Bassman

Best Int’l Documentary Feature
THE SISTERHOOD by Roger Horn

Best Narrative Short
EASY STREET by Russell Greene

Best LGBT
COFFEE & PIE by Douglas Horn

Best Animation
SOMETHING LEFT, SOMETHING TAKEN by Max Porter & Ru Kuwahata

Best Young Filmmaker
BENJAMIN TRAN for DUALITY

Emerging Filmmaker
ELLIOT LOBELL for ANDREW, STORY OF A CLOSET MONSTER

Best Going Rogue
CHRONICLES OF A PROFESSIONAL EULOGIST by Sarah Jane Lapp

Audience Award – Narrative Feature
THE MONKEY GANG by Montaigne P. “Logic” Massac

“Woody”
EMMANUELLE IN WONDERLAND by Rolfe Kanefsky

2012 HONORABLE MENTIONS

Narrative Feature
THE DUCK HUNTER by Egidio Vernonesi

Documentary Feature
MAKING MISTAKES by Hiroshi Sunairi

Documentary Short
THE ART OF REMEMBRANCE by Raúl Paz Pastrana
THE MAKING OF LIBERTY JAYNE by Charles W. Davidson

Int’l Documentary Feature
PROJECTING THE BODY by Walter McIntosh

Narrative Short
THERE IS NO GOODBYE by Pablo Bullejos
SWEET by Iván Ruiz Flores
STAYED FOR by Devereux Milburn

LGBT
SLATE by Eric La Barr
THE PERFECT MAN by Rubén Prieto

Going Rogue
ETHEREAL CHRYSALIS by Syl Disjonk

Animation
HELLO BAMBI by Faiyaz Jafri

Young Filmmaker
ANY THOUGHTS? by Evan Berger
IMPETUOUS by Tanner Cusumano

BEST OF FESTIVAL
ASHES by Ajay Naidu

Founders Choice
THE ECLIPSE OF TAREGNA by Rakesh Chaudhary

Best Actor-Male
SURENDRA RAJAN for THE ECLIPSE OF TAREGNA

Best Actor-Female
APHRODITE NIKOLOVSKI for THE SPIRIT OF ISABEL

Best Narrative Feature
THE GADARENE SWINE by Brian Smolensky

Best Documentary Feature
SHEPHERDS OF HELMAND by Gary Mortensen

Best Documentary Short
VERA KLEMENT: BLUNT EDGE by Wonjung Bae

Best Int’l Documentary Feature
HAULING by Sean Walsh

Best Narrative Short
WYLDFLOWER by Justin K. Staley

Best Animation
DRAT by Farin Farzaneh

Best Young Filmmaker
MICHAEL CUSUMANO for AMANDA

Best Going Rogue
PERSONAL REVOLTS by Eddy Falconer

Audience Award – Narrative Feature
MAGGIE MARVEL by Dan Brennan

Audience Award – Documentary
DJ ROB SWIFT by Rodolfo Duran