A massive thank you to everyone who participated in the Toronto Lift-Off Film Festival 2020. 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 Short Film
(next screening with Lift-Off in Toronto 2021)
MagRalen
Dir. Maryam Zarei
Synopsis: A family of four live in a wrecking yard in Iran, suburban or Tehran. Mother and father both work at the same yard, dismantling and wrecking old cars. The two kids, a twelve year boy (Nima) and a four year girl (Tara), spend their time playing around the yard, and specially in an old emptied car which they have painted and decorated for themselves. Both kids are interested in driving and F1 races (Tara mispronouncing Maclaren F1 team Magralen), learning this from their dad who is a big fan of the sport, so they spend most of their days practicing imagined driving in the playing car. Supporting her little blind sister, Nima is always behind the wheel, explaining the imaginary outside view for Tara, and at the same time making car sounds and noises as if it really is moving.
Best Short Film
(next screening with Lift-Off in Toronto 2021)
INHALE
Dir. Brian Chambers
Synopsis: INHALE documents the emotional journey of the Chappell family and how their daughter’s struggle with Cystic Fibrosis have helped them to live in the moment..
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.
Sockeye Salmon. Red fish
Dirs. Dmitriy Shpilenok , Vladislav Grishin
Synopsis: Sockeye, a species of wild salmon, is born in Kamchatkan waters and spends its entire life in the Pacific Ocean. Only once does it return to fresh waters - to give offspring, start the circle of life, and die. It is an inexhaustible resource that feeds billions of people on the planet, restored every year! But soon, we may find ourselves facing the unimaginable: humans will exhaust the inexhaustible!
Nominated for Best Feature Documentary
Crunch
Dir. Liukaidi Peng
Synopsis: Crunch” is a sci-fi comedy 3D animation. The story starts with the morning of a little, short guy named Bob who just starts working in the space agency. When watching the spaceship launching, Bob is hit by a mysterious lightning and starts to grow bigger. But there seems no way to stop...
Nominated for Best Animation
Punch it!
Dir. Perrier Olivier
Synopsis: Tom, a young skater, roams with its board in an outer-urban environment. He penetrates into a carnival closed to the public and stops in front of a punchball in working order. He gets hooked and after several fruitless attempts typing of all his strengths then manages to activate the jackpot
Nominated for Best Art Direction
MagRalen
Dir. Maryam Zarei
Synopsis: A family of four live in a wrecking yard in Iran, suburban or Tehran. Mother and father both work at the same yard, dismantling and wrecking old cars. The two kids, a twelve year boy (Nima) and a four year girl (Tara), spend their time playing around the yard, and specially in an old emptied car which they have painted and decorated for themselves. Both kids are interested in driving and F1 races (Tara mispronouncing Maclaren F1 team Magralen), learning this from their dad who is a big fan of the sport, so they spend most of their days practicing imagined driving in the playing car.
Nominated for Best Cinematography
Audience Chioce
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. This event is LIVE and due to take place on Thursday 8th October.
Avernus
Dir. Simon Ross
Synopsis: Successful businessman and golden boy, Jack Wells, is unscrupulous, immoral and will stop at nothing to get what he wants. Along the way he has made many enemies – and today they’re out for revenge!
Suryalila - Six Years in Search of Sanity
Dir. Lisa Dunn
Synopsis: Vidya Heisel is an inspiring entrepreneur and visionary with big dreams. The film follows her rocky and fascinating journey to create Suryalila, an unsurpassed centre for yoga in the heart of the Andalusian countryside, the development of which presents her with some ethically difficult choices between her business and her values.
(strictly) for the birds
Dir. Tess Degenstein
Synopsis: A look at the absurdity and alienation of contemporary life through a magic realist lens. Our lead, Tessa, lives in a world where apps can perform literal magic, humans can be animals, and exorcisms are an uber ride away.
Stay Hidden
Dir. James Owen
Synopsis: A diabetic boy struggles to survive in a post-covid apocalyptic world, after running out of insulin.