Explore the winners of the Montreal Independent Film Festival

The Montreal Independent Film Festival, held both seasonally and annually, is a hybrid event featuring bi-annual film screenings at Montreal's Cinema du Parc and online showcases via the Montreal Independent Film magazine for all seasonal nominees across various genres. This seasonal competition has gained popularity among indie filmmakers and artists worldwide. Twice a year, the annual screenings at Cinema du Parc are offered free to the public, fostering support for indie cinema and linking Montreal's film enthusiasts with international and Canadian independent filmmakers from diverse genres. Annually, the programming committee carefully chooses films and script projects from a large pool of submissions, nominating artists for different competition categories that offer awards and honorable mentions in fields such as acting, directing, cinematography, screenwriting, editing, music video, experimental cinema, animation, student film, and more. The festival also honors films addressing human rights, environmental, and social issues worldwide. It is our pleasure to announce the winners and honorable mentions of the seasonal festival.

The winners are as follows:

Best Narrative Feature

People

Directors: Maciej Ślesicki & Filip Hillesland

Best Narrative Short

Deserter

Director: Anthony von Seck

Best Debut Short

WHAT DOESN'T KILL (make's you ugly)

Director: Noam Vardi

Best Feature Documentary

AFTER - Poetry Destroys Silence

Director: Richard Kroehling

Best Short Documentary

Walk Alone

Director: Camille Kuang

Best Director & Best Cinematography

Gunner

Director: Dimitri Logothetis

Best Independent Film

When the East is in the House/Zentral Gelegen

Director: Marcel Andre Heizmann

Best Horror

Manor of Darkness

Director: Blake Ridder

Best Comedy

The Lies We Tell Ourselves

Director: Saara Lamberg

Best Animation

Eldritch Karaoke

Director: Joe Loftus

Best Science Fiction

Above the Salt

Director: Phillip Crum

Best Web Series/TV Pilot

Fairytale Fallout

Director: Adam Henry Garcia

Best Experimental

The Woman And The Cross

Director: Arno Oehri

Best Environmental

OFF THE MARK

Director: Wera Uschakowa

Best Female Director

Shalborne

Director: Caroline Corrie

Honorable Mention Female Director

Aline Lino

Desert Duet Harmony

Best Human Rights

Unredeemable

Director: Harold DeVasten

Best First-Time Filmmaker

Kangaroo Island

Director: Timothy David

Best Student Film

Nymphs on Granite Rock

Director: Persephone Dunn

Best LGBTQ

Sueño

Director: Raul Martin Romero

Best Music Video

REDEMPTION

Director: Ciril Tscheligi

Best Thriller

Abel Ernest Tembo's Suspect

Director: Abel Ernest Tembo

Honorable Mention Thriller

Three

Director: Nayla Al Khaja

Best Canadian Indie

Home Free

Director: Avi Ronn Federgreen

Honorable Mention Canadian Feature

Village Keeper

Director: Karen Chapman

Best Actor of the season

Lance Kinsey

The Paper Bag Plan

Best Actress of the season

Margaux GIRARD

Nos Monstres

Best Composer of the season

Peter Golub

Saffron Robe

Best Unproduced Feature Script

Vegas Christ

Marko Sakren

Honorable Mention Feature Script

The Red Zone

Writer: Terry Luke Podnar

Best Unproduced Short Script

Free Martin

Writers: Scott Thompson & Hayes Hart-Thompson

Honorable Mention Short Script

The Weight of Air

Writer: Jingyu Liu