“The Black Sea” directed by Crystal Moselle and Derrick B. Harden, was named Best Narrative Feature, while Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie’s “Sugarcane” earned the Best Documentary Feature award at the 55th Nashville Film Festival (NashFilm).
Other top awards went to “Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted,’ directed by Isaac Gale and Ryan Olson, for Best Music Documentary honors, and Titus Kaphar’s “Exhibiting Forgiveness” received the Best New Directors Feature.
Additionally, in the shorts categories, “Dreams Like Paper Boats,” directed by Samuel Suffren, was named Best Narrative Short, “Shotplayer,” directed by Sam Shainberg, received the Best Documentary Short award and “Wander to Wonder,” directed by Nina Gantz, was named Best Animated Short.
Additionally, “A Man Called Hurt: The Life and Music of Mississippi John Hurt,” directed by Jamison Stalworth and Alex Oliver, was awarded Best Tennessee Feature, and “First Night,” directed by Haneol Lee, received Best Tennessee Short.
Winners of the Short Documentary, Short Narrative and Short Animation competitions qualify for Academy Award consideration.
Screenplay Competition winners include: A.D. Smith’s “R.E.G.G.I.N.” named Best Drama Feature Script; Elizabeth Baquet’s “Bass Champs” and Jason Kaleko’s “Edgeplay” earned Best Comedy and Best Horror Feature Script honors, respectively; the Best Tennessee Writer was awarded to Phillip Charles for “I Am;” and additional honors for scripts were awarded in categories including Best Short Script, Best Half Hour Pilot Script and Best Hour Pilot Script.
“We are so proud to celebrate the incredible accomplishments of the filmmakers and screenwriters at the 55th Nashville Film Festival,” said Jason Padgitt, executive director of NashFilm. “It’s inspiring to experience such a vibrant collection of people and stories that are shaping and enriching our city’s cultural landscape.”
The 55th Nashville Film Festival continues through Wednesday, September 25, with screenings of the award-winning films in a “Best of the Fest” series.
This year’s event closes at the historic Belcourt Theatre with Jeff Dupre’s “This is a Film About the Black Keys,” a deep dive into band members Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney’s journey from a jamming session in a basement in Akron, Oh., to rock ’n’ roll super-stardom.
The 55th Nashville Film Festival winners are as follows:
Best Narrative Feature: THE BLACK SEA | Dir. Crystal Moselle, Derrick B. Harden
Best Documentary Feature: SUGARCANE | Dir. Julian Brave NoiseCat, Emily Kassie
Best Music Documentary Feature: SWAMP DOGG GETS HIS POOL PAINTED | Dir. Isaac Gale, Ryan Olson
Best New Directors Feature: EXHIBITING FORGIVENESS | Dir. Titus Kaphar
Best Tennessee Feature: A MAN CALLED HURT: THE LIFE AND MUSIC OF MISSISSIPPI JOHN HURT | Dir. Jamison Stalworth, Alex Oliver
Best Narrative Short: DREAMS LIKE PAPER BOATS | Dir. Samuel Suffren
Best Documentary Short: SHOTPLAYER | Dir. Sam Shainberg
Best Animated Short: WANDER TO WONDER | Dir. Nina Gantz
Best ‘Edge’ Short: MAST-DEL | Dir. Maryam Tafakory
Best Graveyard Shift Short: UNIVERSE 25 | Dir. David Tappan
Best Tennessee Short: FIRST NIGHT | Dir. Haneol Lee
Best Tennessee Student Short: WHAT SCARES A DINOSAUR | Dir. Tanner McAfee
Best NextGen Student Short: DON’T YOU DARE FILM ME NOW | Dir. Cade Featherstone
Best Music Video: CHAPPELL ROAN – CASUAL | Dir. Hadley Hillel
Best Episodic: NEO-DOME | Created by Matt Pfeffer and Mark Pfeffer
The Nashville Film Festival Screenplay Competition winners are as follow:
Best Drama Feature Script: R.E.G.G.I.N. | Written by A.D. Smith
Best Comedy Feature Script: BASS CHAMPS | Written by Elizabeth Baquet
Best Horror Feature Script: EDGEPLAY | Written by Jason Kaleko
Best Genre Feature Script: THE MOST MARVELOUS MAN IN THE WORLD | Written by Khris Burton and Colin Scott
Best Short Script: HOOD | Dir. Dante Desmond
Best Half Hour Pilot Script: ANDI LAKE HAS THINGS TO DO | Written by Teri Elam
Best Hour Pilot Script: DISPLACEMENT | Written by Toby Marks
Best Tennessee Writer: I AM | Written by Phillip Charles