SEATTLE – SIFF closed out its 50th Seattle International Film Festival on May 19, announcing the winners of the 2024 Golden Space Needle Audience and Juried Competition Awards. The 11-day festival, which began May 9, screened 261 films representing 84 countries/regions, including 92 narrative features, 47 documentaries, five archival films, two special tributes, two secret screenings, and 115 short films.
Photo Credit: SIFF, We Strangers
“Celebrating these filmmakers and honoring the incredible work they have gifted us over the last 11 days feels especially meaningful as we close out the 50th Seattle International Film Festival” said Beth Barrett, SIFF Artistic Director, “With over 300 filmmakers and thousands of patrons coming together around film, this is not just a marker of a momentous occasion for our Festival, but is a true beacon of a thriving film community in Seattle and around the world.”
62 of the feature films were created by first- or second-time filmmakers; 43% – almost half – were created by women or nonbinary filmmakers; 35% of filmmakers identify as a BIPOC director; and nearly 60% are currently without U.S. distribution and may not screen commercially in the United States.
Photo Credit: SIFF, A New Kind of Wilderness
The Festival holds two forms of competitions during its run, both juried and audience based. Juried competitions evaluate films selected by Festival programmers and represent the best in their category from all over the world. Winners are chosen by a carefully selected jury of industry professionals and film lovers.
SIFF holds five feature juried competition categories: The Official Competition, the New American Cinema Competition, the New Directors Competition, the Ibero-American Competition, and the Documentary Competition. The short film categories are: Live Action, Animation, and Documentary.
In addition to juried competitions, SIFF also hosts the Golden Space Needle Awards (GSNA). Films evaluated through the GSNAs are selected by all audience members through post-screening ballots. Categories for the GSNAs are Best Film, Best Documentary, Best Director, Best Performance, and Best Short Film.
The Golden Space Needle Award design has been created by artist Piper O’Neill since 2013. O’Neill is Principal & Creative Director of Idlewild Union, where each award is forged in glass by a team of artisan glassblowers. Inspired by the metamorphic process of a crystal formation, the design celebrates the creative cycle in its most innate and organic form.
GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD WINNERS
GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD WINNERSGOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST FILM
Sing Sing, directed by Greg Kwedar (USA)
First runner-up: Ghostlight, directed by Kelly O’Sullivan, Alex Thompson (USA)
Second runner-up: Bob Trevino Likes It, directed by Tracie Laymon (USA)
Third runner-up: Green Border, directed by Agnieszka Holland (Poland/USA/France/Czech Republic/Belgium/Germany/
Fourth runner-up: Red, White & Brass, directed by Damon Fepulea’i (Samoan) (New Zealand)
GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST DOCUMENTARY
Porcelain War, directed by Brendan Bellomo, Slava Leontyev (Ukraine/USA/Australia)
First runner-up: Black Box Diaries, directed by Shiori Ito (Japan/USA/United Kingdom)
Second runner-up: Sono Lino, directed by Jacob Patrick (USA)
Third runner-up: Luther: Never Too Much, directed by Dawn Porter (USA)
Fourth runner-up: The Ride Ahead, directed by Dan Habib, Samuel Habib (USA)
GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST DIRECTOR
Kelly O’Sullivan, Alex Thompson, Ghostlight (USA)
First runner-up: Sean Wang, Dìdi (弟弟)(USA)
Second runner-up: Pascal Plante, Red Rooms (Canada (Québec))
Third runner-up: Shiori Ito, Black Box Diaries (Japan/USA/United Kingdom)
Fourth runner-up: Shuchi Galati, Girls Will Be Girls (India/France/USA/Norway)
GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST PERFORMANCE
Keith Kupferer, Ghostlight (USA)
First runner-up: Barbie Ferreira, Bob Trevino Likes It (USA)
Second runner-up: Brigitte Hobmeier, Woodland (Austria)
Third runner-up: Holden-Mandrial Santos, Moloka’i Bound (USA)
Fourth runner-up: Katherine Mallen Kupferer, Ghostlight (USA)
GOLDEN SPACE NEEDLE AWARD – BEST SHORT FILM
Jellyfish and Lobster, directed by Yasmin Afifi (United Kingdom)
First runner-up: The Queen vs Texas, directed by Emil Lozada, Raemonn James (USA)
Second runner-up: Vakaraitaka, directed by Fenton Lutunatabua (Fijian) (Fiji)
Third runner-up: The Ugandan Quidditch Movement, directed by Ben Garfield (USA)
Fourth runner-up: Magic Candies, directed by Daisuke Nishio (Japan)
LENA SHARPE AWARD FOR PERSISTENCE OF VISION
Black Box Diaries, directed by Shiori Ito (Japan/USA/United Kingdom)
This award is given to the female director’s film that receives the most votes in public balloting at the Festival. Lena Sharpe was co-founder and managing director of Seattle’s Festival of Films by Women Directors and a KCTS-TV associate who died in a plane crash while on assignment. SIFF created this Award as a tribute to her efforts in bringing the work of women filmmakers to prominence.
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SIFF 2024 FEATURE COMPETITION AWARDS
SIFF confers five juried competition awards: SIFF Official Competition, Ibero-American Competition, New Directors Competition, New American Cinema Competition, and Documentary Competition. The winners in each juried competition receive $5,000 in cash.
SIFF 2024 OFFICIAL COMPETITION WINNER
The SIFF Official Competition Jury members were Carl Spence (Artistic Director of the Sonoma International Film Festival), Jannat Gargi (SVP of Documentaries for Westbrook Studios), and Ryland Aldrich (Producer at Point + Drop Productions and founder of the FYCit App).
GRAND JURY PRIZE
Gloria! | dir. Margherita Vicario (Italy)
JURY STATEMENT: We are pleased to give the Main Competition Grand Jury Prize to an exciting new voice in Cinema. For its fresh, inventive, and female take on a story that transcends its genre with a magical music-infused spirit, we the jury unanimously give this award to Margherita Vicario´s GLORIA!
SPECIAL JURY PRIZE for OUTSTANDING DOCUMENTARY
Sugarcane | dir. Julian Brave NoiseCat (Secwepemc Nation), Emily Kassie (USA)
JURY STATEMENT: We are proud to recognize Sugarcane with the Special Jury Prize for Outstanding Documentary. A film that tells an unflinching story that reframes and brings to light a history that was purposefully buried and hidden. The filmmaking is masterful, authentic, and engaging in how it tells an important story. It provides a window for audiences to feel empathy and understanding while at the same time providing space for healing, reconciliation and a positive framework for future generations.
2024 Entries:
All Shall Be Well (d: Ray Yeung, Hong Kong 2024)
Critical Zone (d: Ali Ahmadzadeh, Iran 2023)
Dìdi (弟弟) (d: Sean Wang, USA 2024)
Evil Does Not Exist (d: Ryûsuke Hamaguchi, Japan 2023)
Gloria! (d: Margherita Vicario, Italy 2024)
Love Machina (d: Peter Sillen, USA 2024)
Sugarcane (d: Julian Brave NoiseCat (Secwepemc Nation), Emily Kassie, USA 2024)
SIFF 2024 IBERO-AMERICAN COMPETITION
The SIFF Ibero-American Competition Jury members were Aitch Alberto (Film Writer/Director), Florangela Davila (Journalist), and Jason Ryle (International Programmer for TIFF and Producer).
GRAND JURY PRIZE
Through Rocks and Clouds | dir. Franco Garcia Becerra (Peru)
JURY STATEMENT: The award for Best Ibero-American film goes to the Peruvian-Chilean drama Through Rocks and Clouds, a cinematic beauty that connects us to a landscape, a people and a culture rarely seen in narrative work. The film’s acting is exquisite – particularly the young lead Feliciano, played by Alberth Merma – the cinematography is transportive, and the story is rich with humor and poignancy. Director Franco Garcia Becerra and his team expertly weave the cinematic elements together to create an unforgettable and uplifting story of a young Quechua boy, his beloved alpaca, and his unbridled hope to see Peru make it to the World Cup.
SPECIAL JURY MENTION
The Major Tones | dir. Ingrid Pokropek (Argentina)
JURY STATEMENT: The jury awards a Special Mention to The Major Tones directed by Ingrid Pokropek. The jury loved its sense of wonder and whimsy, and how the film crafts a unique and compelling coming of age story of a girl navigating adolescence, loss, and the vast city of Buenos Aires.
2024 Entries:
Holy Mother (d: Antonio Chavarrías, Spain 2024)
Igualada (d: Juan Mejía Botero, Colombia 2024)
The Major Tones (d: Ingrid Pokropek, Argentina 2023)
Memories of a Burning Body (d: Antonella Sudasassi Furniss, Costa Rica 2024)
The Quiet Maid (d: Miguel Faus, Spain 2023)
Saturn Return (d: Isaki Lacuesta, Pol Rodríguez, Spain 2024)
Sujo (d: Astrid Rondero, Fernanda Valadez, Mexico 2024)
Through Rocks and Clouds (d: Franco Garcia Becerra, Peru 2024)
Valentina or the Serenity (d: Ángeles Cruz (Ñuu savi), Mexico 2023)
SIFF 2024 NEW DIRECTORS COMPETITION
The SIFF New Directors Competition Jury members were Jacqueline Lyanga (Founder/Executive and Artistic Director, Global Cinematheque), Jourdain Searles (film critic, programmer, and performer), and Kathleen McInnis (Strategist / Producer).
GRAND JURY PRIZE
City of Wind | dir. Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir (Mongolia)
JURY STATEMENT: In this film the jury was struck by the strong confidence of a debut filmmaker who seamlessly moved between the modern and traditional worlds. Their ambitious storytelling perfectly married theme, performance and visual style to create a full and complex narrative vision. The jury would also like to single out the young lead actor whose work moved us with its mature and assured voice.
SPECIAL JURY MENTION
Young Hearts | dir. Anthony Schatteman (Belgium)
JURY STATEMENT: The jury would like to award a special mention to a story of young love that resonates with honesty, innocence, romance and emotional truth. The jury also celebrates the arrival of a new cinema star in the lead performance.
2024 Entries:
Àma Gloria (d: Marie Amachoukeli, France 2023)
The Burdened (d: Amr Gamal, Yemen 2023)
City of Wind (d: Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir, Mongolia 2023)
Excursion (d: Una Gunjak, Bosnia and Herzegovina 2023)
A Journey in Spring (d: Wang Ping-Wen, Peng Tzu-Hui, Taiwan 2023)
Solitude (d: Ninna Pálmadóttir, Iceland 2023)
Young Hearts (d: Anthony Schatteman, Belgium 2024)
SIFF 2024 NEW AMERICAN CINEMA COMPETITION
The SIFF New American Cinema Jury members were Jim Brunzell (Director of Festivals and Theatrical at Dark Star Pictures), Bill Guentzler (Senior Vice President of Acquisitions & Operations for Gravitas Ventures), and Ana Souza (Manager of Programming at Sundance, Director of Programming at the Sun Valley Film Festival and the Forum Producer for the Palm Springs International ShortFest).
GRAND JURY PRIZE
We Strangers | dir. Anu Valia (USA)
JURY STATEMENT: The New American Cinema jury was captivated by the surprising and unexpected journeys that each film took us on. One film we felt embodies the spirit of New American Cinema, for which, we’re thrilled to honor director Anu Valia and We Strangers as this year’s 2024 SIFF New American Cinema Competition winner.
2024 Entries:
The Black Sea (d: Crystal Moselle, Derrick B. Harden, Bulgaria 2024)
Bob Trevino Likes It (d: Tracie Laymon, USA 2024)
Moloka’i Bound (d: Alika Tengan (Kanaka Maoli), USA 2024)
Mountains (d: Monica Sorelle, USA 2023)
RATS! (d: Maxwell Nalevansky, Carl Fry, USA 2023)
We Strangers (d: Anu Valia, USA 2024)
SIFF 2024 DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION
The SIFF Documentary Jury members were Marcus Hu (Co-Founder and is Co-President of Strand Releasing), Shane Smith (Documentary Programmer at TVO), and T Bannister (Director of Programming for Reel 2 Real International Film Festival).
GRAND JURY PRIZE
A New Kind of Wilderness | dir. Silje Evensmo Jacobsen (Norway)
JURY STATEMENT: Following an unassuming family living a pastoral dream on a small farm in rural Norway, the Jury found the director navigated the flow of life that evokes a dreamy and ethereal essence, while remaining grounded in an intimate tragedy.
Captured in real time with affection and care, A New Kind of Wilderness chronicles the dynamics of a family that remains connected in the face of immense loss, helmed by a father who emotes a quiet confidence unafraid to share his emotional core with his children. For its sensitive portrayal of masculinity and its relation to mother nature as a force to be respected and reckoned, Silje Evensmo Jacobsen crafts an affecting portrait of a family in their deepest moment of love and connection.
SPECIAL JURY MENTION
The Ride Ahead | dir. Dan Habib, Samuel Habib (USA)
JURY STATEMENT: The Jury would like to give a special mention to the father and son team of The Ride Ahead for its unapologetic portrait of a young man driven to live his best life. A candid, humorous and insightful look at adulting while disabled, the audience is drawn into the lived-experience of Samuel Habib’s first steps toward independence and exploring his burgeoning desires, while navigating the intersecting identities of his friends and role models.
2024 Entries:
Fragments of a Life Loved (d: Chloé Barreau, Italy 2023)
Grasshopper Republic (d: Daniel McCabe, USA 2024)
Hollywoodgate (d: Ibrahim Nash’at, Germany 2023)
A New Kind of Wilderness (d: Silje Evensmo Jacobsen, Norway 2024)
Porcelain War (d: Brendan Bellomo, Slava Leontyev, Ukraine 2024)
The Ride Ahead (d: Dan Habib, Samuel Habib, USA 2024)
So This Is Christmas (d: Ken Wardrop, Ireland 2023)
So Unreal (d: Amanda Kramer, USA 2023)
WAVEMAKER AWARD: BEST FUTUREWAVE FEATURE (Youth Jury Prize)
Empire Waist | dir. Claire Ayoub
During our process as film critics for all of these amazing films that were submitted to us, we had an excellent time watching all of these amazing new films that so many talented people put their time and effort into. These techniques of cinematography that are used only elevated the amazingly written script that went alongside it. From the color schemes, to the inclusivity that shines throughout this film, there is so much to love. Once again on behalf of Edmonds Woodway High School, we were honored to have been part of this process in the selection of the Seattle International Film Festival and hope to once again be part of it next year! Thank you to all of these talented filmmakers and congratulations to Empire Waist for the Futurewave Film Award!
SIFF 2024 SHORT FILM JURY AWARDS
Every short film in the Seattle International Film Festival is eligible for both the Golden Space Needle Audience Award and the Grand Jury Prize. Our Shorts Competition jurors will choose winners in the Narrative, Animation, and Documentary categories. Each Grand Jury Prize winner will receive $2,500; winners may also qualify to enter their respective films in the Short Film category of the Academy Awards® for the concurrent season without a theatrical run.
The SIFF Short Film Juries were:
Narrative: Chase Burns (Journalist & Film Critic), Landon Zakheim (short film programmer for the Sundance Film Festival), Laura Jean Cronin (filmmaker)
Documentary / Animation: Chelsea Lupkin (filmmaker), Derek Edamura (filmmaker), and
Charles Poekel (filmmaker).
NARRATIVE SHORT
GRAND JURY PRIZE
The Shell Covered Ox | dir. Daniel Barosa
JURY STATEMENT: The jury would like to award Daniel Barosa’s The Shell Covered Ox the Grand Jury Prize for Best Live Action Short for its confident execution, grounded in its approach to magical realism. The film achieves a rare balancing act between the personal and the global, told with a bold, visual style that resonates.
SPECIAL JURY PRIZE
Essex Girls | dir. Yero Timi-Biu
JURY STATEMENT: The jury responded to how Yero Timi-Biu’s Essex Girls addressed the social dynamics of being a teen with subtlety and maturity, bolstered by sharp filmmaking and a strong central performance.
DOCUMENTARY SHORT
GRAND JURY PRIZE
The Waiting | dir. Voker Schlecht
JURY STATEMENT: What starts as an ecological investigation of frogs turns into a true-crime documentary about a pattern of unexplained mass amphibian deaths and disappearances. Through a combination of hand-drawn animation and voice recordings, Voker Schlecht’s The Waiting zeroes in on the implications of environmental impacts of even the smallest creatures and reminds us of the delicate balance of our planet.
ANIMATED SHORT
GRAND JURY PRIZE
Madeleine | dir. Raquel Sancinetti
JURY STATEMENT: An unlikely friendship between two women sixty-seven years apart, this unique hybrid live action documentary and stop-motion animation chronicles a heartwarming friendship that inspires hope in the face of mortality in Raquel Sancinetti’s Madeleine.
Beginning in 1976 with the annual Seattle International Film Festival, then expanding into year-round programming, SIFF is a 501c3 cultural arts organization whose mission is to create experiences that bring people together to discover extraordinary films from around the world. It is through the art of cinema that SIFF fosters a community that is more informed, aware and alive. In its four theaters, SIFF offers year-round screenings, Film Talks and a series of spotlight festivals throughout the year. SIFF also serves the community through educational programs and SIFF supports, a partnership program that hosts and provides technical support to a variety of special screenings and festivals.
