A massive thank you to everyone who participated in the Los Angeles Lift-Off Film Festival 2021. It's been absolutely fantastic having so many filmmakers involved and seeing the global support for true indie film...
The judges' votes have been counted and added to the audience's feedback. Huge congratulations to the filmmakers who screened with us! A special well done to the following films...
Festival Winners
Best Film
(next screening with Lift-Off in Los Angeles 2022)
COSMOTO
Dir. ROBIN MELLOR
Synopsis: Cosmoto steps inside the mind of three Zambian anti-poaching scouts, a visceral deep dive into the psyche of those who put their lives on the line to battle for the future of our environment.
Best Film
(next screening with Lift-Off in Los Angeles 2022)
MAXX SPEED
Dir. Danny Irizarry
Synopsis: A young athlete confronts the broken relationship with his father while revisiting his childhood fantasies, he must also face the truth about who he really is and what it means to be a hero.
Best Film
(next screening with Lift-Off in Los Angeles 2022)
In Spite of You
Dir. Kevin Rodengen
Synopsis: Eager to know more about her lover's girlfriend, a young woman begins to spy on her competition, taking us inside her inner turmoil and a painful addiction to unrequited love.
Season Award Nominations
The Lift-Off Season Awards is an annual event which celebrates the very best of indie film. Following each Lift-Off film festival, films which have excelled in their respective category are nominated and invited to attend the prestigious Lift-Off Season Awards, culminating at the end of the Lift-Off season. Click here for more information about the Lift-Off Season Awards.
Meet You at the Light
Dir. Alexander Farah
Synopsis: A bittersweet and heartfelt portrait of a young woman and her diabetic dad, performed by Ishaval Gill and her (real-life) father Kamaldevinder Gill.
Nominated for Best Music Video
COSMOTO
Dir. ROBIN MELLOR
Synopsis: Cosmoto steps inside the mind of three Zambian anti-poaching scouts, a visceral deep dive into the psyche of those who put their lives on the line to battle for the future of our environment.
Nominated for Best Short Documentary
Incident at School
Dir. Jacob Thomas Pilgaard
Synopsis: A shooting at a university—played out for 24 terrifying minutes—in a single unbroken close-up of a young woman hiding in an auditorium.
Nominated for Best Screenplay
Audience Choice
The Audience Choice award is given to the filmmakers whose film received the most votes during the festival. The filmmakers will be invited to join us on the Lift-Off YouTube channel for a directors commentary roundtable. Join in the conversation as we delve deeper into each film.
Phantom Pain
Dir. Henry James
Synopsis: When we grieve, we grieve alone. What does this dark forest of emotional isolation do to someone who unknowingly had it all - comfort, companionship, stability - and lost it?
REM
Dir. Jason M Johnson
Synopsis: Chelsey holds a secret from her boyfriend in which she must confess in the hopes that he will truly accept her for who she is.
A Guide To Being An Earthling
Dir. L.E. Woods
Synopsis: Determined to save his species, an extraterrestrial, Lebron, lands on Earth, hoping the human race may have the answer to what he's looking for. During his studies, he encounters an unexpected partner and discovers what it really means to be human.
Rattle-Can
Dir. Alexander Raye Pimentel
Synopsis: A reclusive college student finds social media fame as a disguised street artist who reveals his story through vandalism.