Festival REGARD Winners Announced

Slowly coming down from cloud nine after the sweet success of REGARD's 25th indoor and outdoor edition, the Saguenay International Short Film Festival organization and the four juries unveiled the festival's competition winners. Today, the talent of Quebec, Canadian and international filmmakers is being recognised with a total of 11 prizes and three mentions. Their masterpieces will be available on the REGARD online platform until June 27.

Official competition jury

The official competition jury (Sophie Dupuis, Manon Barbeau, Miss Me, Caroline Monnet and Céline Roustan) was given the difficult task of choosing five winners from among the 55 short films in official competition. Presented by the Saguenay Film Commision, the Grand Prize goes to the film Free Fall by director Emmanuel Tenenbaum (France).

"A powerful film that forces the viewer to become involved in its narrative, to the point the viewer is actually hoping for the worst in order to benefit the protagonist. It is a confrontational film that makes us think."

The official competition jury

The Canadian Grand Prix, presented by the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi and MTL Grandé, is awarded to Annie St-Pierre (Quebec) and her film Les Grandes Claques.

"We have chosen to reward the film Les grandes claques for its sensitivity and its quality of production; for its immediate and extraordinary capacity to immerse the viewer into a moment of time, and for its characters who moved us to tears."

- The official competition jury

The Jury Prize, offered by Spira and Strateolab, goes to the short film White Eye by Tomer Shushan (Israel).

In the Best Animated Film category, presented by Rodéo Fx, Belgium's Pieter Coudyzer's short film The Passerby wins the race.

Finally, the five members of the official competition jury award the prize for Best Documentary, presented by CRAVE, to the film Joe Buffalo by Amar Chebib (British Columbia).

FIPRESCI and AQCC juries

The FIPRESCI International Critics' Prize, presented by Outpost MTL and SLA location, recognizing the best Canadian short film in official competition, goes to Y'a pas d'heure pour les femmes by Sarra El Abed (Quebec). A special mention also goes out to the film Benjamin, Benny, Ben by Paul Shkordoff (Ontario). This year, the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) jury included Jihane Bougrine, cultural journalist and film critic for VH Magazine; Inge Coolsaet, Belgian critic and translator; and Pat Mullen, vice-president of the Toronto Film Critics Association.

The jury of Quebec critics (AQCC) was made up of professionals Alexandre Blasquez, Jérôme Michaud and Claire Valade. They award the Prix de la critique québécoise AQCC, in collaboration with Lussier & Khouzam, to Maalbeek by Ismaël Joffroy Chandoutis (France). The short film Night of the Living Dicks by Ilja Rautsi (Finland / Denmark) receives a special mention.

Parallel competition jury

Rewarding an independent Quebec film made without financial assistance, the Shoot No Matter What! prize, offered by Unis Tv, Spira and the Consulat général de France à Québec, is this year awarded to the short documentary L'Expiration by Joris Cottin. A special mention is given to Sarah Tardif's film, Demain encore.

The AMERICANA Prize, presented by Roméo & Fils, rewards an emerging filmmaker from one of the three Americas. This year, the award goes to the director Fernando Criollo (Peru) and his short film Cumbres y cenizas.

Finally, director Katerine Martineau is awarded best prize in the 100% Regional section for her film Les filles ne marchent pas seules la nuit. The prize is presented by Hydro-Québec, Gagnon Frères, the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television, La Bande sonimage and PEAK, visual and sound experience.

The parallel jury was composed of Julie Rousson, programmer and professional meetings' coordinator at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival; Sébastien Simon, director, editor, teacher and programmer for the Busan International Short Film Festival; and Paul Landriau, programmer and co-founder of the festival Plein (s) Ecran (s).

Best Youth Film Award

The prize for the best children's film, presented by Hydro-Québec, is decided by classes registered with REGARD's school section. Deliberations took place earlier this winter. Each participating group voted for their favourite film from a program of approximately 45 short films. Simone Giampaolo's film Only a Child is the big winner with more than 19,000 students voting for it across Quebec.

REGARD online

To see the 155 short films in the lineup, including all the winning films, for the small sum of $30, the REGARD online platform is available until June 27. REGARD is pushing the boundaries of geography this year, establishing itself in the living rooms of film aficionados across the country. It's the perfect opportunity for your own in-house festival!

The Audience Award

On this online platform, it is possible to vote for your favourite film from the Shoot No Matter What! program! as well as all those in official competition. Just go to the page of the movie you like and click the thumbs up sign! The short film with the most votes will be awarded the Unis Tv (web) Audience Award, presented by Unis Tv and Post-Moderne, and the Audience Award presented by Nutrinor. REGARD will announce the winning two films on its Facebook page on June 28.

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