The 2023 edition of the Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival, the 35th edition in the event's history, took place from September 16 to 24, 2023 in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.[1]
The 2023 festival returned to a fully in-person model, following the partially-online hybrid festivals that took place from 2020 to 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] Following reduced attendance during the pandemic, the 2023 festival saw such a renewed surge of audience interest that its website briefly crashed on the Thursday before the festival opening.[3]
Awards
Award winners were announced on September 28.[4]
Award | Film | Filmmaker |
Audience Choice, Feature Film | The Old Oak | Ken Loach |
Audience Choice, Feature Film Runner-Up | Anatomy of a Fall (Anatomie d'un chute) | Justine Triet |
Audience Choice, Documentary | Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe | Robert McCallum |
Audience Choice, Documentary Runner Up | Swan Song | Chelsea McMullan |
Audience Choice, Short Film | Death to the Bikini! (À mort le bikini!) | Justine Gauthier |
Audience Choice, Short Film Runner Up | Lingering Pieces | Jacqueline Lamb |
Outstanding Canadian Feature | Seagrass | Meredith Hama-Brown |
Outstanding International Feature | The Royal Hotel | Kitty Green |
Outstanding Female-Led Feature Film | Smoke Sauna Sisterhood (Savvusanna sõsarad) | Anna Hints |
Cinema Indigenized Outstanding Talent | Aitamaako'tamisskapi Natosi: Before the Sun | Banchi Hanuse |
French-Language Feature Film | Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant) | Ariane Louis-Seize |
Inspiring Voices and Perspectives | Close to You | Dominic Savage |
Outstanding Short Film | I Promise You Paradise (Paradis) | Morad Mostafa |
Outstanding Animated Short Film | Return to Hairy Hill (Retour à Hairy Hill) | Daniel Gies |
Outstanding Northern Ontario Short Film | Walter's Room | Austin Lindsay |
Official selections
Gala Presentations
Special Presentations
Features Canada
Documentaries
English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
Adaptation | Jake Thomas | Canada |
Another Body | Sophie Compton, Reuben Hamlyn | United States |
The Last Stop: Canada's Lost Locomotive | Kaio Kathriner | Canada |
The Lebanese Burger Mafia | Omar Mouallem | Canada |
On the Adamant | Sur l'Adamant | Nicolas Philibert | France, Japan |
Rule of Two Walls | David Gutnik | Ukraine |
Smoke Sauna Sisterhood | Savvusanna sõsarad | Anna Hints | Estonia, France, Iceland |
Subterranean | Francois-Xavier "Fix" De Ruydts | Canada |
Total Trust | Jialing Zhang | Germany, Netherlands |
We Dare to Dream | Waad al-Kateab | United Kingdom |
World Cinema
In Full View: Crisis, Conflict, Conscience
Cinema Indigenized (Nishnaabek Dbaajmawaat)
Cinema 9 Prime Time
Late Night Frights
English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
Purgatory Jack | Brett M. Butler, Jason G. Butler | Canada |
Regular short film program
English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
Aves | Eli Snyder | United States |
Awakening: The First Day | Jos Diaz Contreras, Santiago Carrasquilla | United States |
Bang Bang | Piotr Skowronski | Canada |
Boat People | Thao Lam, Kjell Boersma | Canada |
Death to the Bikini! | À mort le bikini! | Justine Gauthier | Canada |
Echoes | Échos | Sophie B. Jacque | Canada |
The Girl with the Red Beret | Janet Perlman | Canada |
Harvey | Janice Nadeau | Canada |
Hello to Me in 100 Years | Wu-Ching Chang | Taiwan |
I Promise You Paradise | Paradis | Morad Mostafa | France, Egypt, Qatar |
IF | Didier Charette | Canada |
Invincible | Vincent René-Lortie | Canada |
The Late Set | Bren Patrick Burke | Canada |
Lingering Pieces | Jacqueline Lamb | Canada |
Mrs. Iran's Husband | Marjan Khosravi | Iran |
Our Males and Females | Ahmad Alyaseer | Jordan |
Portrait of a Cowboy | Devon Wycoff | United States |
Return to Hairy Hill | Retour à Hairy Hill | Daniel Gies | Canada |
The Riley Sisters | Julia Jackman | United Kingdom |
Stripper | Anthony Sneed | Canada |
Two Apples | Bahram Javahery | Canada |
Until You Die | Jusqu’à ce que tu meures | Florence Lafond | Canada |
Walter's Room | Austin Lindsay | Canada |
Yellow Dove Aftermath | Rony A. Abovitz | United States |
Zeb's Spider | Sophie Jarvis | Canada |
CTV Best in Shorts
The festival's dedicated competition for amateur short filmmakers from Northeastern Ontario.[5]
English title | Original title | Director(s) | Community |
A Bunch of Junk | Ian Johnson | Lively |
Go On and Bleed | J. Christian Hamilton | Sudbury |
I Know I Can Fly | Matt Steeves | Temagami |
Jerry Rigged | Derek Diorio | North Bay |
L'Orbit | Thomas Walton | Timmins |
My Authentic Self (A Journey with Art and Autism) | Stéphane Ostrander | Dowling |
Walter’s Room | Austin Lindsay | North Bay |
When Little Johnny Sleeps | Sabrina Wilson | Sudbury |
References
- ^ Clement Goh, "Cinéfest Sudbury marks 35 years with focus on comedy and vampires". CBC Northern Ontario, August 23, 2023.
- ^ "Cinéfest 2023 returning to fully in-person format". Sudbury.com, July 28, 2023.
- ^ Jim Moodie, "Sudbury's Cinefest festival experiencing a surge of interest". Sudbury Star, September 15, 2023.
- ^ "Cinéfest reveals 2023 award winners". Sudbury.com, September 28, 2023.
- ^ "Northern Ont. filmmakers showcasing shorts at Cinéfest". Sudbury.com, September 14, 2023.