25th Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival announces award winners and attendance

ST. LOUIS - Nov. 16, 2016 - PRLog -- The 25th Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival (SLIFF), which kicked off on Nov. 3, concluded on Nov. 13. Total attendance was 23,443.

SLIFF screened 419 films: 111 narrative features, 73 documentary features, and 235 shorts. The fest also featured 15 special-event programs, including four free master classes and the closing-night party. This year's festival has 72 countries represented. The fest hosted more than 200 filmmakers and related guests, including Lifetime Achievement Award honorees Charles Burnett, Jerry Lewis, Gordon Quinn, and Kim Tucci, Women in Film Award honorees Karen Allen and Kimberly Steward, and Charles Guggenheim Cinema St. Louis Award honorees Brian Hohlfeld and Marlon West.

SLIFF announced the winners of its juried and audience-award competitions at the closing-night party at Urban Chestnut's Grove Brewery and Bierhall on the evening of Nov. 13. The following awards were presented:

Shorts Awards

Juries choose the winners of seven awards from among the shorts in competition. The SLIFF shorts competition is officially sanctioned by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, making the winners in the Best of Fest, Best Animated, Best Live Action, and Best Documentary categories eligible to submit for Oscar ® consideration. The 2016 winners:

Documentary Short Honorable Mentions: "Urban Cowboys" directed by Paweł Ziemilski and "The Diver" directed by Esteban Arrangoiz

Best Documentary Short: "The Mute's House" directed by Tamar Kay

Local Short Honorable Mention: "Black Brunch" directed by Dennis Desai

Best Local Short: "Talk Radio" directed by Jay Kanzler

Best Short Short: "Women's Christmas Night" directed by Oonagh Kearney

Best International Short: "Home" directed by Daniel Mulloy

Animated Short Honorable Mention: "Lilou" directed by Rawan Rahim

Best Animated Short: "The Itching" directed by Dianne Bellino

Best Live-Action Short: "Litterbugs" directed by Peter Stanley-Ward

Best of Fest: "Speechless" directed by Robin Polak

Interfaith Awards

Juries gives Interfaith Awards to both a documentary and a narrative, choosing from among 10 competition films (five in each category), which were selected for their artistic merit; contribution to the

understanding of the human condition; and recognition of ethical, social, and spiritual values. The 2016 winners:

Best Documentary Feature: "Bogdan's Journey" directed by Michal Jaskulski & Lawrence Loewinger

Best Narrative Feature: "Apprentice" directed by Junfeng Boo

Midrash Award

Midrash St. Louis engages myriad aspects of American culture — hot topics, deep subjects, music, arts, and film — and seeks to give and receive commentary on the subjects and issues that matter to people in St. Louis and that form and shape our views and lives. The Midrash St. Louis Film Award celebrates St. Louis-related films of honesty and artistry that portray the need or the hope for reconciliation or redemption. These are among the most powerful and worthy themes that films should explore. Eligible work for the Midrash St. Louis Film Award includes feature and short films largely shot in St. Louis or directed by filmmakers with strong local ties. The award comes with a cash prize of $500. The 2016 winner:

"Gentlemen of Vision" directed by Jim Kirchherr & Frank Popper

St. Louis Film Critics Association Joe Pollack and Joe Williams Awards

In conjunction with the St. Louis Film Critics organization, SLIFF holds juried competitions for documentary and narrative features. The awards are named in honor of the late St. Louis Post-Dispatch

critics Joe Pollack (narrative) and Joe Williams (documentary). The winners are picked by two juries composed of St. Louis film critics. SLIFF chose eight films to compete in each category. The 2016 winners:

Best Documentary Feature: "A Family Affair" directed by Tom Fassaert

Best Narrative Feature: " Celestial Camel " directed by Yuriy Feting

New Filmmakers Forum Emerging Director Award (The Bobbie)

The New Filmmakers Forum (NFF) annually presents the Emerging Director Award. Since its inception, NFF was co-curated by Bobbie Lautenschlager. Bobbie died in the summer of 2012, and SLIFF honors her memory by nicknaming the NFF Emerging Director Award as the Bobbie. Five works by first-time feature filmmakers competed for the prize, which includes a $500 cash award. The 2016 winners:

Technical Brilliance Award: "The Wedding Party" directed by Thane Economou

Emerging Director Award ("The Bobbie"): "To Keep the Light" directed by Erica Fae

Best of Fest Audience Choice Awards

Audience voting determines the winner of three awards from among the films in competition. The 2016 winners:

Leon Award for Best Documentary Film: "Nana" directed by Serena Dykman

TV5MONDE Award for Best International Film: "The Fencer" directed by Klaus Härö

Best Film: "Tim Timmerman, Hope of America" directed by Cameron Sawyer

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