The 34th annual Seattle Film Festival closed on Sunday after running for 25 days. This year’s edition of the festival saw almost 200 feature films from 69 countries screened and more than 70,000 ballots cast by the audiences.
Here are all the winners:
AUDIENCE AWARDS
Best Film
“Cherry Blossoms — Hanami,” directed by Doris Dörrie (Germany)
Best Documentary
“The Wrecking Crew,” directed by Denny Tedesco (USA)
Best Director
Amin Matalqa, for “Captain Abu Raed” (Jordan)
Best Actor
Alan Rickman, for “Bottle Shock” (USA)
Best Actress
Jessica Chastain, for “Jolene” (USA)
Best Short Film
“Felix,” directed by Andreas Utta (Germany)
Lena Sharpe Award (for a film by a female director)
“Frozen River,” directed by Courtney Hunt (USA)
JURY AWARDS
New American Cinema
Grand Jury Prize
“Em,” directed by Tony Barbieri (USA)
Jury Statement: “In ‘Em,’ writer-director Tony Barbieri tackles the timely and original subject of love and mental illness, with the help of his two excellent leads, Stef Willen and Nathan Wetherington. It’s a sweet, sad, scary movie that feels completely contemporary.”
Special Jury Prize
“The Bluetooth Virgin,” directed by Russell Brown (USA)
Jury Statement: “The Special Jury Prize is awarded to ‘The Bluetooth Virgin’ and writer-director Russell Brown for his fresh and squirmy script.”
New Directors Showcase
Grand Jury Prize
“Everything is Fine,” directed by Yves-Christian Fournier (Canada)
Jury Statement: “The New Directors Showcase Prize for director of a first or second feature goes to Yves-Christian Fournier from Quebec, Canada, and his film ‘Everything is Fine,’ for its skillful avoidance of the nihilistic clichés in its treatment of contemporary youth. The jury would also like to commend the outstanding performance of Marie Turgeon in the role of the mother.”
Special Jury Prize
“Mermaid,” directed by Anna Melikyan (Russia)
Jury Statement: “The jury would also like to award a special mention to ‘Mermaid’ by Anna Melikyan from Russia for its entertaining portrait of Russia and its growing pains as it transitions into a capitalist society.”
Documentary Competition
Grand Jury Prize
“Derek,” directed by Isaac Julien (UK)
Jury Statement: “The Grand Jury Prize is awarded to Isaac Julien’s ‘Derek’ for the strength of both the subject and the filmmaking.”
Special Jury Prizes
“Combalion,” directed by Raphaël Mathié (France)
Jury statement: ” … for its artistic integrity and visually arresting composition.”
“Accelerating America,” directed by Timothy Hotchner (USA)
Jury statement: ” … for capturing the inspiration of the subject and the humanistic heart of the film.”
Short Film Jury Awards
Documentary Grand Jury Prize
” ‘Self Portrait With Cows Going Home’ and Other Works: A Portrait of Sylvia Plachy,” directed by Rebecca Dreyfus (USA)
Documentary Special Jury Prize
“The Ladies,” directed by Christina Voros (USA)
Animation Grand Jury Prize
“The Pearce Sisters,” directed by Luis Cook (UK)
Animation Special Jury Prize
“Home,” directed by Kim Slate (USA)
Narrative Grand Jury Prize
“Rewind,” directed by Atul Taishete (India)
Narrative Special Jury Prizes
“Walnut,” directed by Amy Gebhardt (Australia)
“Dog Altogether,” directed by Paddy Considine (UK)
“A Mate,” directed by Teemu Nikki (Finland)
“New Boy,” directed by Steph Green (Ireland)
Honorable Mentions
for Inventive Filmmaking
“Introduction to Lucid Dreaming,” directed by John Grigsby (USA)
“On the Assassination of the President,” directed by Adam Keker (USA)
FutureWave Jury Award
Grand Jury Prize
“Disorder,” directed by Rose McAleese
Honorable Mention
“4th Floor,” directed by Misami Kubo
“Driving to the New Age: American Automobiles and You,” directed by Meng Mao, Eli Shalcross, Charlie Shelton and Matt Yaggy
“New Perspective,” directed by Dave Riff
Official Selection and
MyFestival Feature Film Winner
“Perfect Sport,” directed by Anthony O’Brien
Official Selection and
MyFestival Short Film Winner
“Robbie’s Withdrawal,” directed by John Burish
MyFestival Special
Recognition Awards
“Eternal City,” directed by Jason Goodman
“Hot Wind: America’s Fallout Casualties,” directed by Kirsten Alaqidy