The winners of juried and audience awards of the 4th Annual Mammoth Lakes Film Festival (MLFF) were announced at the Closing Night Award Ceremony at the Sierra Event Center in Mammoth Lakes on Sunday, May 27, 2018. The festival, held from May 23-27, screened over 70 films, including 63 in MLFF’s competition categories. Each of the festival winners received an Orson the Bear Award, handcrafted by Josh Slater of Bear in Mind Carvings located in Mammoth Lakes.

“This year’s festival exceeded our expectations on many levels. We welcomed more filmmakers, audience members, and media than in any of our other three years,” said Festival Director Shira Dubrovner. “Against the backdrop of our beautiful city, we were honored to host such an artistic collection of films that continues our commitment of bringing dynamic storytelling to our appreciative community.”

“The number of attending filmmakers from all over the world and the quality of their work, combined with the involvement of the Mammoth Lakes community, brought to life a series of scintillating events and thought-provoking discussions at this year’s festival,” said Festival Programmer Paul Sbrizzi.

“It has been my privilege to be a part of the Mammoth Lakes Film Festival since it’s conception,” said Documentary Features jury member Allison Amon (EVP Sales & Development, Bullitt). “The festival continues to grow both in scope and reputation, and it is incredibly inspiring to be here in the most beautiful landscape and surrounded by the creativity the festival attracts.”

The 2019 festival is slated for May 22 to 26, 2019.

The full list of Juried and Audience Awards is below:

Juried Awards

Jury Award for Best Narrative Feature, with a $1,000 cash prize, $10,000 Panavision Camera Rental Grant and $10,000 Light Iron Post Production Package, goes to My Name Is Myeisha.

Jury Award for Best International Feature, with a $500 cash prize, goes to Tower. A Bright Day.
Special Mention goes to writer, director, actor Thomas Aske Berg for his performance in Vidar the Vampire.

Jury Award for Best Documentary Feature, with a $1,000 cash prize, goes to White Tide.
Special Mention goes to Buddha.mov.

Jury Award for Best Narrative Short, with a $500 cash prize and $5,000 VER Rental Grant, goes to Shadow Animals.
Special Mentions go to Babies and In A Month.

Jury Award for Best Documentary Short, with a $500 cash prize, goes to David and The Kingdom.

Jury Award for Best Animation Short, with a $500 cash prize, goes to Cocoon, Cocoon.
Special Mention goes to Nevada.

Special Jury Award for Bravery, with a $500 cash prize, goes to Minding the Gap.

Audience Awards

Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature, with a $1,000 cash prize and $5,000 Panavision Camera Rental Grant, goes to Rock Steady Row.

Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature, with $1,000 cash prize, goes to Crime + Punishment.

Jury

Narrative Features Jury: Tim Rhys (MovieMaker Magazine), Nicole Sperling (Vanity Fair) and Rachel Winter (Producer).

Documentary Features Jury: Allison Amon (EVP Sales & Development, Bullitt), Lindsey Bahr (Associated Press) and Peter Baxter (Filmmaker; President/Co-Founder, Slamdance).

International Features Jury: Shalini Dore (Variety), Alonso Duralde (TheWrap) and Vincent Spano (Actor).

Shorts Jury: Ana Souza (Sundance Film Festival) and Scenery Samundra (Tru Thoughts, NTS Radio).