(From left:) "No More Wings" director Abraham Adeyemi, "“-Ship: A Visual Poem” director Terrance Daye
“-Ship: A Visual Poem,” director Terrance Daye’s timely short about identity and masculinity in the Black community, won the Industry Award at TheWrap’s ShortList Film Festival on Thursday.
“-Ship” director Terrance Daye gives virtual acceptance speech for Industry Award
“-Ship: A Visual Poem” tells the story of a Black boy who learns contradicting lessons of manhood and masculinity on the day of his cousin’s funeral.
Terrance Daye’s “-Ship” while lyrical, non-linear, and richly poetic in approach, retains an underlying coherence to its storytelling that is clear in its point of view and lasting in its emotional impact,” a jury of industry veterans and award-winning filmmakers said in a statement. “Terrance has real storytelling chops,” added jury member, Oscar- and Emmy Award-Winning director, Roger Ross Williams.
Abraham Adeyemi’s “No More Wings,” a short that explores the importance of community and gentrification’s impact on it as two childhood friends catch up at their favorite chicken shop in South London, was named the Audience Award winner at the ShortList Film Festival virtual awards ceremony on Thursday.
“No More Wings” director Abraham Adeyemi gives virtual acceptance speech for Audience Award
“Welcome Back” a short inspired by real-life events of a mother and daughter who are deported back to Venezuela and must find a way to escape to a nearby town in Colombia, won the top prize in the student competition for University of Southern California student Tiffany Kontoyiannis. Her film received the most votes in an online poll.
“Welcome Back” director Tiffany Kontoyiannis gives virtual acceptance speech for the Student Award
Also Read: ShortList 2020: '-Ship' Director Explores Black Masculinity by Asking 'How Do We Heal?' (Video)
The ceremony on Thursday featured panel discussions with the filmmakers and jury members moderated by Sharon Waxman, editor-in-chief of TheWrap and Steve Pond, awards editor for TheWrap.
Also Read: ShortList 2020: 'No More Wings' Explores the Meaning of Home Over a Plate of Chicken
The 12 films in the main competition were a mix of foreign language, drama, comedy, documentary and animation created by filmmakers from around the globe.
The four student films from top colleges and universities listed in TheWrap’s ranking of film schools included filmmakers who studied at University of Southern California (USC), University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNSCA) and Chapman University.
This year’s jury members include Topic vice president of originals Gena Konstantinakos, Sundance Film Festival film programmer Dilcia Barrera, 30WEST executive Trevor Groth, Academy award-winning director and former ShortList Film Festival winner Gabriel Osorio and Oscar and Emmy award-winning director Roger Ross Williams.
The ShortList Film Festival is presented with the generous support of Heineken, Topic and the Los Angeles Film School.
