Dances With Films: LA has announced the winners of the 27th annual indie film festival, and they include Michael Groom’s Between the Lights, which won the grand jury prize winners for best narrative feature and Leon Lozano’s A Little Hope For Chicago, which won for best documentary feature.
The audience choice award winners included best narrative feature winner Ori Yardeni and Emil Ben Shimon’s The Man Who Saved the Internet With a Sunflower and best documentary feature winner Rebecca Corry’s Saving Jones.
Dances With Films’ industry choice awards went to Matthew Leutwyler’s Fight Like A Girl in the “Over 40 Minutes” category, and Peter Decherney’s Is It Because I’m A Girl in the “Under 40 Minutes” category.
Taking place in Hollywood, California from June 20-30, this year, 232 films were on the Dances With Films: LA lineup, 117 of which made their world, international, North American, or U.S. premieres. Three films announced distribution deals during the festival, including Etana Jacobsen’s Advanced Chemistry, Haroula Rose’s All Happy Families, and Verner Maldonado’s Best Man Dead Man.
“In our 27th year, we were struck by the awareness of how our DWF filmmaker family continues to grow exponentially with such an amazingly diverse array of talented artists. As this film festival continues to be dedicated to the mission of supporting them with a singular focus on celebrating and promoting truly independently produced films and projects, we also continue to be humbled seeing all of them form such a tight-knit community too,” said Dances With Films’ Founders Leslee Scallon and Michael Trent.
Dances With Films will return for its third New York City edition in December.
See the full winner’s list from the festival below.
2024 Dances With Films: LA Filmmaker Award Winners
Also Read: Dances With Films Founders on the Power of Expanding to New York City — and Beyond
GRAND JURY PRIZES
GRAND JURY – NARRATIVE FEATURES
BETWEEN THE LIGHTS
Director/Writer: Michael Groom
Producers: David Groom, Michael Groom
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
DREAMING OF YOU
Director/Writer: Jack McCafferty
Producers: Bridgett Greenberg, Jack McCafferty
TALLYWACKER
Director/Writer: Brendan Boogie
Producers: Jeremy Dubs, Chris Goodwin, Brendan Boogie
GRAND JURY – DOCUMENTARY FEATURES
A LITTLE HOPE FOR CHICAGO
Director: Leon Lozano
Writers: Kevin Nichols, Leon Lozano
Producers: Garrett E.B. Thompson, Kevin Nichols, Leon Lozano
HONORABLE MENTION:
SPYRAL
Director/Writer: Bill Guttentag
Producer: Jennifer Hutchins
GRAND JURY PRIZE – NARRATIVE SHORTS
BLACK SILK
Director/Writer: Patrick Michael
Producers: Patrick Michael, Josh Akin, Tiffany Gist Samuel Skeen
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
KOI
Director/Writer: Taige Shi
Producer: Tianyu Yang
THE RUNT
Director/Writer: Christy Stratton
Story by: Christy Stratton, Mark Norberg
Producers: Katrina Rotondo, Daniela Inés Calvo and Christy Stratton
INDUSTRY CHOICE AWARDS
INDUSTRY CHOICE AWARDS (UNDER 40′)
IS IT BECAUSE I’M A GIRL
Director: Peter Decherney
Producer: Peter Gitau
INDUSTRY CHOICE AWARDS (OVER 40′)
FIGHT LIKE A GIRL
Director/Writer: Matthew Leutwyler
Producers: Anton Laines, Innocent Munyeshuri, Yvette Gayle Serge Ibaka
FEVER PITCH SHORT SCRIPT CHALLENGE
WINNER: JUDAS KISS by Sean Cage
RUNNER UP (TIE)
IN THE POCKET by Antjuan Ward
MERRY CHRISTMAS, COLONEL SHOUP by Ed Lawrence Robinson
AUDIENCE AWARDS
COMPETITION (NARRATIVE) FEATURE AUDIENCE AWARD
THE MAN WHO SAVED THE INTERNET WITH A SUNFLOWER
Directors: Ori Yardeni, Emil Ben Shimon
Writers: Oren Safdie, Izhar Har-Lev, Ori Yardeni
Producers: Kobi Hoffmann, Zehava Shekel
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE AUDIENCE AWARD
SAVING JONES
Director/Writer: Rebecca Corry
Producer: Stand Up For Pits Foundation with Angel Forever
FUSION FEATURE AUDIENCE AWARD
THE DISINVITED
Director: Devin Lawrence
Writers: Devin Lawrence, Matthew Mourgides
Producer: Matthew Mourgides
DOWNBEAT AUDIENCE AWARD
BED BY 9
Director: Christian Klein
Writer: Max Castillo
Producer: Olivia Isabel Comas
DANCES WITH KIDZ PRO AUDIENCE AWARD
SURVIVED BY
Director/Writer: K.D. Chalk
Producers: Nicole Crespo, Pinar Binay
PILOTS AUDIENCE AWARD
EXPOSED
Directors: Reece Melber, Rachel Othon
Writer: Hannah Merritt
Producer: Sina Crenshaw
COMPETITION (NARRATIVE) SHORTS AUDIENCE AWARD
I APPROVE THIS MESSAGE
Director: Craig Newman
Writer: Michael Barringer
Producers: Craig Newman, Michael Barringer
DOCUMENTARY SHORTS AUDIENCE AWARD
EL REGRESO
Director: Samantha Ramirez-Hererra
Producer: Sam Bathrick
FUSION SHORTS AUDIENCE AWARD
PUPPY LOVE
Director: Daniel Rashid
Writers: Daniel Rashid, Elizabeth Valenti
Producers: Reilly Anspaugh, Daniel Rashid, Elizabeth Valenti
Main Image: A still from A Little Hope for Chicago courtesy of Dances With Films: LA
