And How Miserable is the Home of Evil by Saleh Kashefi and Friends on the Outside by Annabel Moodie take jury prizes.
The 17th annual celebration of short film finished last night with the awards ceremony, following a packed five day programme of events across the city.
Glasgow Film Festival 2024 finished its 17th edition in style last night, as it announced the winners of its two prestigious annual competitions plus the coveted Scottish and International Audience Awards, chosen by GSFF24 festival goers.
The Scottish Short Film Award honours inspiration and innovation in new Scottish cinema, and saw 20 new films compete. Named in honour of the legendary Scottish filmmaker, the Bill Douglas Award for International Short Film promotes cinematic storytelling that places sound and image centre stage. This year includes twenty eight documentary, animation, fiction and experimental shorts from Haiti, Sudan, Kosovo, Brazil, Egypt, Thailand, and across the world were in competition.
Scottish Short Film Award
The GSFF24 Scottish Short Film Award, sponsored by Blazing Griffin, awarded by a jury consisting of Jason Anderson, international short film programmer at Toronto International Film Festival and programme director at Aspen Shortsfest; Niels Putman, artistic director of Kortfilm.be, co-founder/chief editor of Talking Shorts and freelance curator; and Glasgow-based screenwriter/director Raisah Ahmed. It was won by Annabel Moodie for Friends on the Outside. Annabel Moodie receives a cash prize of £1500.
The jury said: “The jury is very happy to acknowledge a film that both impressed us for its inventive and kinetic visual style and moved us for its sensitivity and empathy. We were also struck by the sophistication and intelligence with which the film elicits wider questions about the conditions facing incarcerated people in this country without ever losing sight of the very vivid and very human subject at the film’s core. The jury is pleased to give the Scottish Short Film Award to Friends on the Outside by Annabel Moodie.”
The jury gave a special mention to Blackwool directed by Eubha Akilade.
The jury said: “A first time writer/director giving us a story about a community that we rarely see represented on screen in Scotland. (But that’s changing! We’re changing it!) We felt that this film has a confidence to it that came through both in performance and storytelling and tackled the subject matter with the nuance it required. Contained in its storytelling but impactful in its message, it’s a vital Scottish story that makes us very excited to see what the writer/director does next. The jury would like to give a special mention to Blackwool by Eubha Akilade.”
Bill Douglas Award for International Short Film
The GSFF24 Bill Douglas Award for International Short Film was decided by a jury including Céline Roustan, programmer and film critic for SXSW and Short of the Week; Jonathan Ali, programming director at Third Horizon Film Festival and programme consultant for Locarno Open Doors, Alchemy Film & Arts, and others; and Randa Maroufi, the subject of our filmmaker focus. It was won by Saleh Kashefi for And How Miserable is the Home of Evil. Saleh Kashefi receives a cash prize of £1000.
The jury said: “Simple, yet clever and deeply effective, this film makes as powerful a gesture cinema can make in speaking truth to power. The Bill Douglas Award for International Short Film goes to And How Miserable Is The Home Of Evil directed by Saleh Kashefi”
International Audience Award
The GSFF24 International Audience Award, sponsored by ShortsTV+ and chosen by festival goers, was won by Nina Gantz for Wander to Wonder. Nina Gantz receives a cash prize of £1000.
Jade Tan, Director of Programming for ShortsTV, said “As the main global media company entirely dedicated to short films, we are always looking for the next generation of filmmakers and GSFF is one of the top destinations to engage with talent as the film curation that the organisation does for the audience attending is amazing. We are very proud sponsors of the International Audience Award because giving the audience that cinematic experience is at the heart and soul of everything that we do at ShortsTV.”
“Scotland is thriving in creativity and has a growing pool of content creation and filmmaking talent, and the city of Glasgow is probably one of the greatest’s hubs of this emerging talent in the UK. This is why we were decided to support this award and it has been overwhelming to see how many excellent films were submitted to this competition” said Ian Carrasco-Szulc, VP EMEA of ShortsTV.
Scottish Audience Award
The GSFF24 Scottish Audience Award, sponsored by Savalas and chosen by festival goers, was won by Jagoda Tłok for Care. Jagoda Tłok receives an in-kind prize of studio time.
The Young Scottish Filmmaker Prize went to Mouth by Guy Woods and The House of Culture by Becky Miková. The Young Scottish Filmmaker Prize is delivered in partnership with Glasgow Film Festival, Glasgow Film, Eden Court, supported by BFI Film Academy, National Lottery funding and designed in consultation with Short Circuit and GMAC Film.
GSFF24 ran from 20 – 24 March at GFT, CCA and Civic House with a packed programme including an opening night gala screening of Bill Douglas Unseen Super 8, live-scored early short films from Bill Douglas, rediscovered work by Mexican feminist group Cine Mujer and experimental reappropriation of archive footage by Jyoti Mistry; a retrospective screening and installation by Moroccan filmmaker Randa Maroufi, complemented by contemporary Moroccan artist films; a portmanteau film portrait of Govanhill and its communities; and Towards Liberation, a thematic strand in defiance of oppression, with live performance by British-Palestinian sound artist Kareem Samara and screenings at HMP & YOI Polmont.
Matt Lloyd, Festival Director, said: “Thank you to the juries for their bold choices of challenging unique visions, and our audience for their thoughtful critical eye. This has been a very special edition of the festival for many reasons, and I will treasure the conversations that took place for a long time.”
Glasgow Life Chair, Bailie Annette Christie, said: “Glasgow’s internationally renowned film festivals are testament to our city’s great love of cinema, and through the years these much-loved events have contributed so much to the worldwide reputation Glasgow has earned as an important focal point for the film and TV industries, and an outstanding destination for cultural events.
Showcasing the very best in cinema shorts from Scotland and all over the world, this year’s Glasgow Short Film Festival attracted a wide range of audiences and highlighted – through a dynamic and diverse programme – the wealth of innovative creative talent across the genre. The prestigious awards announced, as the curtain came down on the festival, rightly recognise and celebrate that. Our congratulations go to the winners who are inspiring new generations of film-makers, and to the GSFF team on delivering such a successful 17th edition of the festival, and another great Glasgow event celebrating cinema excellence.”
Photo credits:
GSFF24 Opening Night. Photo by Ingrid Muir.
Still from Friends on the Outside by Annabel Moodie.
Still from Blackwool by Eubha Akilade.
Still from And How Miserable Is The Home Of Evil directed by Saleh Kashefi.
Still from Care by Jagoda Tłok.