2016 Festival Award Winners

Opening Night

An opening-night slate of films from across the festival, with a red carpet.

I’ve Got a Bad Feeling About This

• No Evil — Mike Gan (USA)
• Zaar — Ibrahim Nada (USA)
• The Unforgiven — Jason Piccioni (USA)
• Kaddish! — Emeline Castaneda (France)
• Trapped — LT Chang (USA)
• The Lost Soul — Livi Zheng (USA)
• Son — Cyrus Neshvad (Luxembourg)
• Committed — Geoffrey Campbell (USA)

Blame It on My Youth

• The Lot — Russell Blanchard (USA)
• The Firefly Girls — Katie Micay (USA)
• From Here — Adam Finley (USA)
• Touch — Noel Harris (Canada)
• Quetzal — Irene Marco (UK)

A Day in the Life

• Mdudu Boy — Ella Smith (UK)
• The Clue — Judie Feenstra (USA)
• Grandpa’s Visit — Yung-chin Hsu (USA)
• The Light in the Afternoon — David Steiner (France)
• Bernie and Rebecca — Melissa Kent (USA)

It’s Complicated

• I Won’t Miss You — Bernard Badion (USA)
• Love is Blind — Sabine Crossen (France)
• Gorilla — Tibo Pinsard (France)
• Agata — Alberta Molajoni (Italy)
• A Hero in All of Us — Travis Lupher (USA)

The World Beyond

• Youth — Brett Marty (USA)
• They Watch — Andre LeBlanc (USA)
• Cradle — David Holechek (USA)
• Blood and Steel — Geoff O’Rourke (Australia)
• Might — Emil Sallinen (Finland)
• Green Light — Seongmin Kim (South Korea)

It’s a Hard DOC’s Life, Vol. One

• Crescite — Will Agee (USA)
• Patrolling Sandy Hook — Caroline Clark, Kelly Quinn (USA)
• Riding the Highline — Kai Carlson-Wee, Anders Carlson-Wee (USA)
• The Pamoja Project — Audrey Emerson (USA)
• Gooogle — Chris Lee (USA)

World Cinema: Family Matters

• Swimming Lessons — Tommy Naess (Norway)
• Colt 13 — Luke McKay (Australia)
• The Immaculate Misconception — Michael Geoghegan (UK)
• Thanks for Dancing — Henrik Martin Dahlsbakken (Norway)
• Between Heaven & Hell — Søren Grau (Denmark)

Meet the Filmmakers, Vol. One

A panel and screening with festival filmmakers.

Make ‘Em Laugh

• Mulva Lends a Hand — Thom Harp (USA)
• Bingo — Patrick Schoenmaker (Netherlands)
• Rated — John Fortson (USA)
• The Shvitzing — Max Rissman (USA)
• The Third Date — Herman Karlsson (Finland)
• Wifey Redux — Robert McKeon (USA)
• My Best Friend is Stuck on the Ceiling — Matt Vesely (Australia)

Beyond Midnight

• The Witching Hour — Riley Geis (USA)
• Kookie — Justin Harding (Canada)
• The Babysitter Murders — Ryan Spindell (USA)
• Shop of Eternal Life — Yizhou Xu (China)
• The Light Thief — Eva Daoud (Spain)

Dark & Stormy Night

• Black Swell — Jake Honig (USA)
• Roads Ahead — Florian Jochum (Germany)
• Hold Back — Steffen Geypens (Belgium)
• Eliza — Mikko Löppönen (Finland)
• Camping with Ada — Ina Lerner Grevstad (Norway)
• Hidden — Farzad Ostovarzadeh (USA)

It’s a Hard DOC’s Life, Vol. Two

• Mining Poems or Odes — Callum Rice (UK)
• Quadrilyzed — Chris Bartkowski (USA)
• Harley — March Mercanti (USA)
• Soy Chingon aka I’m a Badass — Nic Santana (USA)
• Return to Zanskar — Daniel Bull, Bryan Liptzin (UK)

Kids and Family

• Lost in Spring — Fred Leao Prado Wall (UK)
• Moom — Robert Kondo, Daisuke ‘Dice’ Tsutsumi (Japan)
• Mermaids on Mars — Jon V Peters (USA)
• Cat’s Inner Circle — Katherine Chung (USA)
• Toys — Amanda Quaid (USA)
• Taking Flight — Brandon Oldenburg (USA)
• Polka Dot — Cynthia Pepper (USA)
• Two Worlds — Andy Lefton (USA)

Musically Inclined

• Silence — Dejan Mrkic (Australia)
• I/MPerfect — Roxy Shih (USA)
• Riding the Highline — Kai Carlson-Wee, Anders Carlson-Wee (USA)
• Jon & the Wolf — Ryan Maples (USA)
• Parent Teacher – The Musical — Austin Michael (USA)
• Country Pie — AJ (UK)

The Ink & Paint Club

• Moom — Robert Kondo, Daisuke ‘Dice’ Tsutsumi (Japan)
• Aeon — Derek O’Dell (USA)
• All the World’s A Stage — Hannes Rall (Germany)
• Green Light — Seongmin Kim (South Korea)
• Bingo — Patrick Schoenmaker (Netherlands)
• Cat’s Inner Circle — Katherine Chung (USA)
• Sisters — David Chontos (USA)
• Toys — Amanda Quaid (USA)
• Two Worlds — Andy Lefton (USA)
• Stardust Echoes — Kevin Molina-Ortiz (USA)
• Taking Flight — Brandon Oldenburg (USA)
• Borrowed Time — Lou Hamou-Lhadj, Andrew Coats (USA)

Meet the Filmmakers, Vol. Two

A panel and screening with festival filmmakers.

The Human Experience

• 833 — Vijay D. Varu (UK)
• The Whole World — Julián Quintanilla (Spain)
• Stella Amore — Cristina Puccinelli (Italy)
• Sweet Talk — Luciano Arturo Glavina (Brazil)
• Taking Flight — Brandon Oldenburg (USA)
• I/M Perfect — Roxy Shih (USA)

The Innocent Few

• Out of the Village — Jonathan Stein (USA)
• Quetzal — Irene Marco (UK)
• Mdudu Boy — Ella Smith (UK)
• Son — Cyrus Neshvad (Luxembourg)
• Zaar — Ibrahim Nada (USA)

Guest of Honor: Special Event

A conversation with Guest of Honor James Gunn, recipient of The Visionary Award.

The Road Less Traveled

• Mine — Nick Dixon (USA)
• Occupied — Christen R. Carter (USA)
• Jamie & Jonathan — Kyle C. Mumford (USA)
• Step 9 — Leonora Pitts (USA)
• Wrong Number — Ernesto Rivera-Machuca (Mexico)
• Twinsburg — Joe Garrity (USA)
• Isla Traena — Freddy Syborn (UK)

Return to the World Beyond

• Beautiful Dreamer — David Gaddie (USA)
• Eden — Brodin Plett (USA)
• Clockmaker’s Dream — Cashell Horgan (Ireland)
• Dryad — Thomas Vernay (France)

Kaiser Presents: Special Event

A special screening presented by Kaiser.

Short Filmmaking Panel

A panel discussion on short filmmaking.

NorCal Filmmakers Showcase

• Dreams We Share — Evan Weidenkeller (USA)
• Mermaids on Mars — Jon V Peters (USA)
• The Fetch — Cheryl Isaacson (USA)
• Cat’s Inner Circle — Katherine Chung (USA)
• Crescite — Will Agee (USA)
• Youth — Brett Marty (USA)

Timeless

• The Suitor — Alvaro Congosto (USA)
• The Catcher — Jamie Brindle (USA)
• About a Boy Who Ate an Oakwood Chair — Pieter Goethais (Belgium)
• The Book Club — Bauke Brouwer (South Africa)
• Gorilla — Tibo Pinsard (France)

World Cinema

• The Perfect Day — Ignacio Redondo (Spain)
• 3xLove — Olga Chajdas (Poland)
• It’s Drizzling — Lien Chien Hung (Taiwan)
• 3000 — Antonis Tsonis (Australia)
• Granatë — Ornela Peka (UK)

Closing Night Screening

Award-winning films from the weekend.

3-Day Film Challenge

Films from the 3-Day Film Challenge.