The 2022 Palm Springs International ShortFest announced its festival winners Sunday night as part of the closing ceremonies for the week-long event at Camelot Theaters.
Prizes, including five Oscar-eligible ones, and cash prizes worth $25,000 were presented to winners selected from 300 short films in the official selection of the festival.
“Sierra,” an Estonian short film directed by Sander Joon about a father and son in a surreal world of motor racing, won the Greater Palm Springs CVB Best of the Festival Award – a $5,000 prize donated by the Greater Palm Springs Convention & Visitors Bureau and eligibility to submit “Sierra” to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for Oscar consideration.
Here are all the winners of the evening and the special mentions.
Best of Festival Award
The winner receives a $5,000 cash prize and Oscar eligibility.
- Winner: “Sierra” (Estonia), directed by Sander Joon
- Special mention: “The Great Abandonment” (India/UK), directed by Shirley Abraham
- Special mention: “The Voice Actress” (Japan/USA), directed by Anna Takayama.
Best Animated Short
The winner receives a $1,000 cash prize and Oscar eligibility.
- Winner: “The Cave” (South Korea), directed by Kim Jinman and Chon Jiyoung
- Special mention: “The Originals” (USA), directed by Christina Costantini, Alfie Kim Koetter
Best Documentary Short
The winner receives a $1,000 cash prize and Oscar eligibility.
- Winner: “The Sentence of Michael Thompson” (USA), directed by Kyle Thrash, Haley Elizabeth Anderson
- Special mention: “Haulout” (UK), directed by Evgenia Arbugaeva and Maxim Arbugaev
Best Live Action Short Film Over 15 Minutes
The winner receives a $1,000 cash prize and Oscar eligibility.
- Winner: “Further and Further” (Cambodia), directed by Polen Ly
- Special mention: “Makassar is a city for football fans” (Indonesia/France), directed by Khozy Rizal
Best Live Action Short 15 Minutes and Under
The winner receives a $1,000 cash prize and Oscar eligibility.
- Winner: “Les bons mots” (France), directed by Adrian Moyse Dullin
- Special mention: “Madhu” (India), directed by Tanmay Chowdhary, Tanvi Chowdhary
Best Student Animated Short
The winner receives a cash prize of $500
- Winner: “Tears of the Seine” (France), directed by Yanis Belaid, Eliott Benard, Nicolas Mayeur, Etienne Moulin, Hadrien Pinot, Lisa Vicente, Philippine Singer, Alice Letailleur
Best Student Documentary Short
The winner receives a cash prize of $500
- Winner: “La Prova” (Belgium), directed by Toni Isabella Valenzi
- Special mention: “Love, Dad” (Czech Republic/Slovakia), directed by Diana Cam Van Nguyen
Best International Student Short Film
The winner receives a cash prize of $500
- Winner: “Bug” (Israel), directed by Bar Cohen
- Special mention: “Stained Skin” (Germany), directed by Mandy Peterat and Adam Graf
Best American Student Short
The winner receives a cash prize of $500
- Winner: “Foreign Uncle” (USA/China), directed by Sining Xiang
Best International Short Film
The winner receives a cash prize of $1,000
- Winner: “Sideral,” (France/Brazil), directed by Carlos Segundo
- Special mention: “Some Kind of Intimacy” (UK/France), directed by Toby Bull
Best American Short Film
The winner receives a cash prize of $1,000
- Winner: “Act of God” (USA), directed by Spencer Cook and Parker Smith
- Special mention: “Chaperone” (USA), directed by Sam Max
Best Comedy Short
The winner receives a cash prize of $1,000
- Winner: “The Diamond” (Sweden), directed by Vedran Rupic
- Special mention: “Past Life” (USA), directed by Rose O’Shea
Best LGBT+ Short Film
The winner receives a cash prize of $1,000
- Winner: “High Jump” (Belgium), directed by Lennert Madou
- Special mention: “Lucky Fish” (USA), directed by Emily May Jampel
- Special mention: “Tank Fairy” (Taiwan/USA), directed by Erich Rettstadt
Best Midnight Short
The winner receives a cash prize of $1,000
- Winner: “Your Houseplants Are Screaming” (USA), directed by Benjamin Roberds
- Special mention: “Wild Card” (USA), directed by Tipper Newton
Mozaik Bridging the Borders Award
The winner receives a cash prize of $2,500
- Winner: “Freedom Swimmer” (Australia/France/UK/Hong Kong), directed by Olivia Martin-McGuire
- Special mention: “Breakpoint” (France), directed by Nicolas Panay
Local Jury Prize
The winner receives a cash prize of $1,000
- Winner: “BABYBANGZ” (USA/UK), directed by Juliana Kasumu
- Special mention: “El Carrito”, (USA), Zahida Pirani
Vimeo Staff Selection Awards
The winner receives a cash prize of $2,500
- Winner: “Waiting” (USA), directed by Michael T. Workman
Young Filmmakers Award
The winner receives a cash prize of $1,000
- Winner: “Lucky Fish” (USA), directed by Emily May Jampel
- Special mention: “Picture Day” (USA), directed by Kelly Pike
Shorties! Award
The winner receives a cash prize of $500
- Winner: “Cat and Moth” (Canada/UK), directed by India Barnardo
- Special mention: “Lost Brain” (Switzerland), directed by Isabelle Favez
Audience Award
Each winner receives a cash prize of $500. Awarded to the film that obtained the highest score on ballots submitted by the public in its respective category.
- Best Live Action Short Film: “You’re Dead Helen” (Belgium/France), directed by Michael Blanchart
- Best Animated Short: “The Fall” (Canada), directed by Desirae Witte
- Best Short Documentary: “The Sentence of Michael Thompson” (USA), directed by Kyle Thrash, Haley Elizabeth Anderson
- Best Student Short Film: “El Carrito” (USA), directed by Zahida Pirani.
Jonathan Horwitz is an editor for The Desert Sun. Contact him at [email protected] or @Writes_Jonathan.
