Sony Future Filmmaker Awards announces 2024 shortlist
Skwigly
Creo have announced the shortlist for the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards 2024. The shortlist of 30 filmmakers across six categories are awarded the unique experience of attending a week of special events at the Sony Pictures Studios lot in Los Angeles, including a workshop program providing unparalleled access behind-the-scenes of the industry and culminating in the Awards ceremony on May 30, 2024 where the six category winners, chosen by a selection of expert judges, are announced.
Established by Creo and sponsored by Sony, the sophomore edition of the major annual awards program for short films provides a gateway for the development of exceptional cinematic talent and sets out to elevate voices with an original perspective on storytelling. This year’s shortlist was chosen from over 8,400 films by more than 5,000 filmmakers across 148 countries and territories submitted across six categories: Fiction, Non-
Representing a truly global perspective on filmmaking, the shortlist includes films from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, Egypt, Estonia, Germany, Ghana, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, South Africa, Thailand, the United Kingdom, Uruguay, and the United States.
Working from a longlist of commended submissions, the 30 shortlisted filmmakers were chosen by Emmy-award winning cinematographer Robert Primes ASC and celebrated Australian filmmaker Unjoo Moon. At the second stage of the judging process, judges Michael Barker and Tom Bernard, Co-Founders and Co-Presidents of Sony Pictures Classics (Call Me By Your Name, The Father, Whiplash); Rob Hardy ASC, BSC, BAFTA award-winning cinematographer (Mission: Impossible – Fallout, Ex-Machina, Civil War); Kate Reid BSC, acclaimed British cinematographer (Game of Thrones, Great Expectations, Silo) will choose this year’s category winners, awarding creative excellence and original approaches to narrative. Both stages of the judging process are chaired by award-winning director Justin Chadwick (Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, The Other Boleyn Girl, Tulip Fever).
New to this year’s program, the Animation category embraces filmmakers using stop-motion, motion graphics, computer animation, drawn-on-film, rotoscoping, experimental animation, and additional available techniques. The films and filmmakers comprising the Animation category of this year’s shortlist are:
Eva Louise Hall (USA), Mira – A struggling accordionist busker gets more than she bargained for when her desire to get noticed attracts the attention of a mysterious and enticing competitor.
Radheya Jegatheva (Australia), Bird Drone – A lonely seagull looking for love struggles to accept that its newfound object of affection is a human-operated drone with a limited battery life.
Lisa Kenney (UK), Mum’s Spaghetti – MC mastermind Poppy and her beatboxing border terrier Snoop are the new kids in town – and they’re ready to make their reputation known.
Kyle Novak (Czech Republic), Ángulos de la Hora (Hour Angle) – After their flight is grounded, two strangers agree to an anonymous tryst as their new travel plans are arranged.
Paul Robinson (USA), Resource:Full
The 30 shortlisted filmmakers will be flown to Los Angeles to attend a comprehensive four-day workshop program at the Sony Pictures Studios lot in Culver City from May 28 – 31, 2024, culminating in a black-tie Awards ceremony on May 30, 2024. Held at the Cary Grant Theater and hosted by Entertainment Tonight’s Denny Directo, during the ceremony the six category winners will be announced, receiving a range of cash prizes and equipment. This immersive experience provides filmmakers with a one-of-a-kind opportunity to connect with fellow filmmakers and leaders in the field of cinema, and to gain exclusive access behind-the-scenes of the industry, with workshops led by Sony Pictures executives, and covering a range of topics from keynotes by major cinematographers, screenings and Q&A sessions, to insights into working with talent agencies and using cutting-edge technologies, to film scoring and music rights.
Justin Chadwick, award-winning theater, television and film director and Chair of the Jury, says:
The level of submission and the international scope of new voices shortlisted for the Awards is thrilling. Across the 30 chosen filmmakers the perspectives told are manifold and captivating, charged with a passion and authenticity. I am delighted to once again lead this selection of filmmaking; a vision of storytelling and cinematic ingenuity and an aperture into the filmmakers who shall make up the future of our industry.
Scott Gray, Founder and CEO, Creo, says:
With a staggering 8,400 films submitted this year, the caliber of entries received for this second edition of the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards and the shortlist of filmmakers selected express the exceptional, global stories set to be showcased at this year’s event. We are grateful to Sony for providing this incredible opportunity for emerging filmmakers, and we extend our gratitude to our esteemed panel of judges for their invaluable expertise and insight in selecting the shortlist to join us in Los Angeles this May.
For the full list of categories and shortlisted filmmakers visit sonyfuturefilmmakerawards.com