2024 Oxford Film Festival
Award Winners
Winners Sunday Schedule
Narrative Feature Winner: 1:15 @ Donna Ruth Roberts Theater
A Song for Imogene
Narrative, Comedy, Sci-Fi/Horror, Family Friendly, and Foreign Language Shorts Winners: 1:15 @ Outrageous Kindness Theater
The Old Young Crow (Narrative Short)
Barely Breathing (Comedy Short)
Marbles (Sci-Fi/Horror)
Wider Than The Sky (Family Friendly)
Specter of Innocence (Foreign Language)
Documentary Feature Winner: 3:15 @ Donna Ruth Roberts Theater
The Blues Society (also playing at 6:45 in Selig Polyscope Theater)
LGBTQIA+ Winner: 3:15 @ Outrageous Kindness Theater
Panic Attack (LGBTQIA Short)
Student, Experimental, and Animation Winners: 4:30 @ Outrageous Kindness Theater
Living Reality (Experimental)
Knead (Student)
Slower Animals (Animation)
Mississippi Made Feature Winners: 5:15 @ Donna Ruth Roberts Theater
Rising Hope
Music Winners: 5:45 @ Outrageous Kindness Theater
Comfort Zone
Black Boy Cry
Mississippi Short Winners: 7:15 @ Donna Ruth Roberts Theater
The Chair at the Edge of the Woods (MS Narrative Short)
Please Ask For it (MS-Made Documentary Short)
Foreign Language Short
Specter of Innocence (France)
Mathis Tayssier
For its excellent musical score, creative storytelling using flashbacks, and original story idea. One of the jurist said: “The French film was by far my favorite. They paid great attention to the cinematography and the storyline was very intense.”
LGBTQIA+ and Student Shorts
LGBTQIA+
Panic Attack
Anthony Assad
“God, it was so good. Everyone should watch this.” The film is vulnerable, brave, triumphant, and much needed in our current political landscape.
Honorable Mention: Lee Baby
Music Video
Comfort Zone
Jason Affolder
“Awakening, eruption, transformation, and a climax, robotic, this reminds me of the 90s cult movie, Hardware set to music.”
Honorable Mention: The Odyssey of Cleve and Mike
Experimental Short
Living Reality
Philip Thompson
“This experimental narrative faithfully recreates the setting and tone of a 90’s era sitcom, only to turn it on its head with a character who, like most of us would, feels out of place in sitcom-land. The results is unsettling but also inspires empathy and self-reflection.”
Honorable Mention: Another Sinking Sun
Doc Shorts, Fest Forward, and Music Videos
Narrative Shorts
Narrative Short
The Old Young Crow
Liam LoPinto
“The Old Young Crow’s calm narration of a childhood memory was captivating. The creative and seamless blend of animation, cinematography and storytelling helped elevate this short to award-winning status.”
Honorable Mentions: Infraction
Family Friendly Short
Wider Than the Sky
Philip Taylor
“Storytelling through the use of cardboard cut out animation was very imaginative. The power to believe, to love, to hope is wider than the sky.”
Honorable Mentions: Lost in the Sky
Mississippi Made
MS Music Video
Black Boy Cry
Kira Cummings
“A young rapper tries to come to grips with his tumultuous reality. With engaging storytelling, one can still feel and understand the underlying context of the story, asking ‘why can’t this black boy cry,’ without the substance of being lost. The language is harsh, but not out of place for edgier rap styles.”
MS Doc Feature
Rising Hope
Theo Avgerinos
“An elegant tapestry of human experience, giving new context to so much of the baggage associated with the Deep South. With beautiful cinematography, it is a moving exploration of what can be from the people who believe it will be.”
Student Short
Knead
Kelsey Scult
“A passionate journal of self-discovery.” The film was creative, raw , and gives the viewer a peak into how a person’s craft can imitate the process of life.
Honorable Mention: Corndog
Animated Short
Slower Animals
John Christopher Kelley
“This movie is beautiful, sad and full of nostalgia. When animation really works it brings together creative moving images and immersive sound and a powerful concept. Slower Animals forces us to think about the places we’ve been and the people we’ve left behind, and it does so with intricate hand drawn animation, transportive full audioscapes and a thoughtful introspective narration. ”
Honorable Mention: Balthazar’s Dream
Doc Short & MS Made Doc Short
Please Ask for It
Allison Waid
“A colorful portrait of a man who spent his life shining a light on other artists and using his success to give back to his community, this intimate documentary aptly turns the spotlight on living but unsung Mississippi legend, Fox Caldwell, and his shrine to this blues in Holly Springs.”
Honorable Mentions: Hopefully and I’m (Not) You’re Negroni
Sci-Fi / Horror Short
MARBLES
Kyle Hatley
“Watching Marbles is like watching an acting masterclass. You are drawn in by every character’s story. You grieve, laugh, and cry alongside everyone in the support group.”
Honorable Mentions: TOOTH
Comedy Short
Barely Breathing
Derek Evans and Neal Reddy
“Who would have thought that an auto erotic asphyxiation support group could become the best of friends. The camaraderie and honesty through embarrassing episode earns this shot, the best comedy award.”
Honorable Mentions: One Happy Customer
MS Narrative Short
The Chair at the Edge of the Woods
Mary Charles Ramsey
“A smartly done, well-paced short that maintains a fresh level of suspense. The authentic and understated performance from the lead actor accents a subtlety found throughout the film. Who knew moving a chair could be so suspenseful?”
Doc Feature
Best Documentary Feature
The Blues Society
Augusta Palmer
“The Blues Society is an evocative reintroduction to the most important contributions of Memphis Country Blues to the fabric of American music. Using priceless archival footage and engaging interviews to provide depth and context, it transports the audience to 1960s Memphis, reflecting o the blurred lines between appreciation and appropriation and examining how we weigh intent against impact at the crossroads of race, culture and economics.”
Honorable Mention: No One Asked You
Narrative Feature
Best Narrative Feature
A Song for Imogene
Erika Arlee and Kristi Ray
“A Song for Imogene is a compelling story that cannot be denied. The acting, the cinematography, and the passion behind the story makes this project one that everyone should see.”
Honorable Mention: Hello Dankness
All award winners will be replayed at Malco Common located at 206 Commonwealth Blv. on Sunday , March 24.