Thank you to all the filmmakers who participated in the July edition of the First-Time Filmmaker Sessions!
The festival platformed hundreds of films, each project worthy of recognition and celebration. We want to extend a giant thank you to everyone who took part and a special congratulations to all the incredible talent that went into making these projects.
First-Time Filmmaker Sessions is designed to be the entry into the Lift-Off Global Network. A platform for the avant-garde, FT Sessions isn't about selecting the 'best' or most 'commercial' projects; it is about providing a screening opportunity for everyone, connecting these new and emerging voices with new audiences. An option we hope highlights and educates each month!
Jury's Overall Winner
Tegkang
Director/Writer: Josh Nawan
Writer: Sky Khor
Producers: Lyn Nasihin, Jason Chong
Country of Origin: Malaysia
Genre: Drama
Synopsis: The peace and quiet of a secluded highland village are broken when a long-kept secret guarded by the whole community is unwittingly exposed by an outsider.
Season Award #15 Shortlist: Best First-Time Filmmaker
Audience Choice Winners
Chapman Speaks
Director/Writer/Producer: Ryan C. Smith, J. A. Corwin Stauff
Country of Origin: United States
Synopsis:
Chester Chapman--the host of America's #1 news talk show "Chapman Speaks"--faces censorship from the new authoritarian government that his show helped inspire.
Our Brown Skin on these Islands
Director/Writer: MARIAM AMAANA MAHIR
Producers: Rafhan Shareef, Aiman Latheef
Country of Origin: Maldives
Synopsis:
An exploration of colourism in the Island nation of Maldives by a dance student. Movement leads a difficult conversation about skin colour privilege
Dark Side
Director: Katie Austin
Writer/Producer: Kylie brady
Country of Origin: United States
Synopsis:
A troubled dancer who is struggling with her mental health unexpectedly comes face to face with her inner critic.
My Last Haiku
Director/Writer: Brian Diaz
Country of Origin: United States
Synopsis:
A man named Enzo reads a letter from his best friend named Jacob.
The Vision
Director/Writer: Hariprasath Rajan
Producer: Paramount Hotel Dubai
Country of Origin: United Arab Emirates
Synopsis:
Set in a luxurious hotel, ‘The Vision’ unfolds a gripping narrative as a butler takes drastic action by kidnapping a guest's child for a bizarre demand. When a skilled negotiator intervenes, uncovering hidden truths and deceit, the film transforms into a suspenseful journey that challenges perceptions and unravels a complex web of secrets transforming the entire plot.
The Vivid Memory
Director/Writer/Producer: Kamran Moshkzad
Country of Origin: Iran, Islamic Republic of
Synopsis:
This film is a surrealistic interpretation of the memories that come to mind after our pets have died. It is an effort to deal with the loss of our pets using a new psychological approach called narrative therapy.
Combustion
Director/Writer: Mathilde Raynaud
Producer: MAL Production
Country of Origin: France
Synopsis:
A young woman meets a priest and decides to put his faith on trial. Who's she ? What fire burns through her veins ?
SOMOS UNO
Director/Writer/Producer: Ghabi S Dias
Country of Origin: Brazil
Synopsis:
Ana está trabalhando em um editorial de moda como modelo fotográfica no Mercado Municipal de Campo Grande. Ela posa em diferentes locais, até chegar na banca de suas parentas e surpreender a todos.
Sal
Director/Writer: Larissa dos Anjos Leão Larissa Leão
Producer: Emanuelle Rezende Porto Emanuelle Porto
Country of Origin: Brazil
Synopsis:
Escrito e dirigido por Larissa Leão, mostra o despertar de Rosana, uma idosa que depois de sofrer a vida inteira com seu cônjuge, viúva, experimenta o sabor da vida.
The Wheel of Life
Director/Producer: Ivelin Iliev
Country of Origin: Bulgaria
Synopsis:
The "Wheel of Life" mural created around 1650 can be found in the "Nativity" church in the village of Arbanasi. It describes the life path of the vain person. We met with historians, researchers and the mural artist who recreated the mural to find answers to how relevant its messages are today. And the most important question - do we suffer from a lack of faith?
Flower in the Darkness
Director/Writer/Producer: Liuk Park
Country of Origin: Korea, Republic of
Synopsis:
Flower in the darkness portrays the main character Ji-yeon’s trauma evolving through art, music and a lily flower. Ji-yeon draws Ruwon as a lily flower in darkness. Could she be expressing herself or Ruwon? Whilst the lily flower means hope and comfort, can someone truly escape their darkness?
What in the world is that?
Director/Writer/Producer: Teboho Michael Moreki
Country of Origin: South Africa
Synopsis:
A boy must channel his inner strength to overcome a burden that has been holding him down.
Reptilians
Director/Writer/Producer: Amir Mehdi Tavakolian
Country of Origin: Iran, Islamic Republic of
Synopsis:
The film is likened to the war between the East and the West, and an American soldier and the second series an Eastern soldier who sees a bloody handprint in the bathroom of the barracks, and by touching it, he sees the Second World War up to today's wars, but The soldier is a slave due to his lack of vision, and he is brainwashed and a victim of his inner thoughts in the war corridor, and this chain continues forever.
Apocalypsis
Directors: Nicolas Sanabria, Emmanuel Alcalá, Andrés Llanezas
Country of Origin: Argentina
Synopsis:
In the summer of 1994, in a small pasture in Argentina, a group of children gather to play soccer under the warm sun of the siesta hour. However, what begins as another day of fun will soon become a memory.
SHAMEFUL
Director/Writer/Producer: Courtney Lee Black
Country of Origin: United States
The Kiss
Director/Writer/Producer: Diego José Antonio Lentini
Country of Origin: Argentina
Synopsis:
The night joins two strangers and their beast-like passion.
The Untranslatable Forest
Director/Writer/Producer: Ivan Miguel
Director/Writer: Andy Camou
Country of Origin: United States
Synopsis:
A journey through a surreal airport where nature and untranslatable words unexpectedly reveal on the way.
A Ghost I've Met Before
Director/Writer/Producer: Dan Xie
Country of Origin: Canada
Synopsis:
A struggling teen makes a new friend who just happens be very similar him. Over time, his perception of life is changed by this influence.
Raging, Jobless and More Raging
Director/Writer: Tommie Russell
Writer/Producer: Diego H. Gonzalez
Producer: Rebecca Uhr
Country of Origin: United Kingdom
Synopsis:
Young William goes for a job interview, however, his anger problems are pushed to their limits thanks to the unprofessional interviewer driving him to insanity.
The Search
Director/Writer/Producer: Aydin Kutlu
Country of Origin: Turkey
Synopsis:
A young man who embarks on a spiritual journey becomes confused by the different ideas he encounters about God.
Pitch Blank
Director/Writer/Animation: Alice Guerrini
Country of Origin: Italy
Synopsis:
When the desire of making something truly personal becomes imperative an artist fights with their shadow to get out of their comfort zone and finally put their heart in a canvas.
The Morning Silence
Director/Writer/Producer: Yassine Belkadhi
Country of Origin: Germany
Synopsis:
In "The Morning Silence ", a couple sits at the breakfast table. Everything seems normal, but his iron silence and her bruises hint at a dark secret.
Lift-Off Season Awards #15
The Lift-Off Season Awards is an annual event that celebrates the very best of indie film. Following each Lift-Off film festival, films that have excelled in their respective category are short listed for a Season Awards Nomination. At the end of the year, once all the 12 city-based festival have taken place, the shortlisted nominated films are reviewed again by the jury and Official Nominations are designated. Click here for more information about the Lift-Off Season Awards.