(L-R) Sara Kiener’s “The Shawl,” Anna Anderson and Gabriella Canal’s “No Man’s Land” and David Janove’s “I Love Your Guts” each took home an award at the 2021 Florida Film Festival. (Photos courtesy the Florida Film Festival)
ORLANDO | A documentary about a lesbian community, an animated film about two Steve Nicks-loving bears and a live action short about two girls working graveyard shift at a fast food restaurant took home prizes at the 30th annual Florida Film Festival.
The Florida Film Festival, which screened 164 films April 9-22 at the Enzian Theater in Maitland, is one of the few Oscar-qualifying festivals in the world in all three shorts categories — Animated Short Film, Live Action Short Film and Documentary Short Subject — meaning festival winners automatically qualify for consideration in those categories for next year’s Academy Awards.
During the event, Matthew Curtis was recognized for his 25 years as the programming director of Enzian and the Florida Film Festival by having the festival’s short film audience award renamed to the Matthew Curtis Audience Award for Best Short Film.
“Matthew’s passion for film, dedication to the festival, and stalwart commitment to the vision that ‘Film is Art’ has made him instrumental in shaping the Florida Film Festival and what it means to the community,” said Elizabeth Mukherjee, Enzian’s managing director and founding family member, in a press release. “FFF wouldn’t be what it is without him, and this award will remind generations to come of his impactful contribution.”
The newly named Matthew Curtis Audience Award for Best Short Film was awarded to the film “No Man’s Land,” a documentary short about a lesbian community founded in rural Alabama in the 1970s. The film, directed by Anna Andersen and Gabriella Canal, made its world premiere at this year’s festival.
“This festival means so much to me having grown up in the area and it was truly a special experience to be able to share our film with you all,” said Canal in a video acceptance speech.
“This was our world premiere,” Andersen added, “and we couldn’t have asked for a better group to support us and make our dreams come true.”
The animated film, “The Shawl,” went on to win the Grand Jury Award for Best Animated Short. “The Shawl,” directed by Sara Kiener, tells the story of boyfriends Shane and Dusty, two Stevie Nicks-loving bears who discuss their relationship and a magical concert moment involving the original shawl from the “Stand Back” video. The animated short made its Florida premiere at this year’s festival.
“Wow, I’m so honored and so thrilled,” said Kiener in her filmed speech. “You know, you make a movie and you pour your heart into it for years and years and years, and then the whole world shuts down. So, the fact that … many of you got to see this film in person and embrace it with your heart means the world to me.”
The Special Jury Award for Exceptional Narrative Filmmaking went to director David Janove’s dark comedy, “I Love Your Guts,” a live action short about two girls working overnight at a fast food restaurant while dealing their relationship, a poorly-timed kiss and a drunk patron who turns violent.
“This is such an incredible recognition,” said Janove in his speech video. “This is the capper to the journey that ‘I Love Your Guts’ has been on and I can’t think of a better way for it to have ended.”
The full list of the 2021 Florida Film Festival’s winners are below.
Shorts
Grand Jury Award for Best Animated Short – “The Shawl” (Dir. Sara Kiener)
Grand Jury Award for Best Documentary Short – “When We Were Bullies” (Dir. Jay Rosenblatt)
Grand Jury Award for Best Narrative Short – “Please Hold” (Dir. Kristen “KD” Dávila)
Special Jury Award for Exceptional Narrative Filmmaking – “I Love Your Guts” (Dir. David Janove)
Audience Award for Best Midnight Short – “Stuck” (Dir. David Mikalson)
Matthew Curtis Audience Award for Best Short Film – “No Man’s Land” (Dirs. Anna Andersen and Gabriella Canal)
Documentary Features
Grand Jury Award for Best Documentary Feature – “The Last Out” (Dirs. Michael Gassert and Sami Khan)
Special Jury Award for Non-Fiction Storytelling – “Two Gods” (Dir. Zeshawn Ali)
Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature – “Holy Frit” (Dir. Justin Monroe)
Narrative Features
Grand Jury Award for Best Narrative Feature – “Materna” (Dir. David Gutnik)
Special Jury Award for Persistence of Vision – Kelley Kali for “I’m Fine (Thanks for Asking)” (Dirs. Kelley Kali and Angelique Molina)
Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature – “I’m Fine (Thanks for Asking)” (Dirs. Kelley Kali and Angelique Molina)
International
Audience Award for Best International Feature – “Riders of Justice” (Dir. Anders Thomas Jensen)
Audience Award for Best International Short – “Masel Tov Cocktail” (Dirs. Arkadij Khaet and Mickey Paatzsch)
