This year’s Show Me Shorts, the biggest short film festival in Aotearoa, plays nationwide this month. Find out who took home their prestigious awards this year.
Show Me Shorts Film Festival returns to screens both big AND small next month (2 – 22 October) with their largest programme ever, made up of 75 short films and three music videos selected from every corner of the world. We even saw a few ourselves.
The full list of this year’s winners is below, including Department of Post Best NZ Film Daddy’s Girl (Kōtiro)– which also earned the Best Cinematography award for Fred Renata (whose storied career started on the camera crew of Merata Mita’s Mauri). “This intimate look inside a father-daughter relationship quickly establishes a touching rapport between the duo, blending family humour with affecting drama,” said Steve Newall.
All films can be seen playing as part of 11 collections of shorts, with eight collections playing in cinemas nationwide and three others available online for the duration of the festival (you can find out more about what’s in each collection of shorts here).
See also:
* All new films now playing in cinemas
* All new streaming movies & series
The 2020 winners are:
Department of Post Best NZ Film
Tweedie Waititi and Cian Elyse White for Daddy’s Girl (Kōtiro) (NZ)
Other nominees:
Jarl Devine, Robyn Grace and Rory MacGillycuddy for Oranges and Lemons (NZ)
Lissandra Leite and Robby Peters for Money Honey (NZ)
Best International Film
Erenik Beqiri, Olivier Berlemont, Émilie Dubois, Ermir Keta and Amantia Peza for The Van (France/Albania)
Other nominees:
Verona Meier, Lisa Brooke Hansen and Even Hafnor for Fun Factory (Norway)
Nicolas Mayer, Diego Robaldo and Manuel Tobar for Canelones (Italy)
Sanna Kultanen and Kirsikka Saari for Super Comfort (Finland)
DEGNZ Best Director
Isaac Knights-Washbourn for Money Honey (NZ)
Other nominees:
Hannah Marshall for Frankie Jean and the Morning Star (NZ)
Cian Elyse White for Daddy’s Girl (Kōtiro) (NZ)
Final Draft Best Screenplay
Kathryn Burnett and James Cunningham for Prickly Jam (NZ)
Other nominees:
Harry McNaughton for The Trick (NZ)
Finnius Teppett for Democracy (NZ)
DEGNZ Best Editor
Dylan Pharazyn for Career by Wax Chattels (NZ)
Other nominees:
Damian Golfinopoulos and Arielle Sullivan for We Rock! (NZ)
Annie Collins for Daddy’s Girl (Kōtiro) (NZ)
Panavision Best Cinematographer
Fred Renata for Daddy’s Girl (Kōtiro) (NZ)
Other nominees:
Simon Baumfield for Daniel (NZ)
Adam Luxton for Career by Wax Chattels (NZ)
Toi Whakaari Best Actor
Margaret Sydenham for Hot Chocolate (NZ)
Other nominees:
Akinehi Munroe for Money Honey (NZ)
Qiong Liu for Foods for Coping (NZ)
NZ on Air Best Music Video
Emma Mortimer and Dylan Pharazyn for Career by Wax Chattels
Other nominees:
Vision Thing for Summer Thing by Alae
Mikee Carpinter, Petra Cilbich, Charlotte Evans, Alexander Gandar, Chris Graham and Greg Page for Hit Me Where it Hurts by Alae
Further information from Show Me Shorts’ media release:
This is the second time Margaret Sydenham has won the Toi Whakaari Best Actor award. She also won this award in 2019 for her role in Hush. The new film Hot Chocolate is a tense drama directed by David Hay in which Margaret plays a young woman who discovers a dead body and tries to shield her young sister from this knowledge, while alerting authorities to the incident. David Fane, one of the jury members for the national section of the Show Me Shorts Awards, comments, “Margaret Sydenham gives a gut-wrenching, truth-soaked performance demonstrating skill and nuance.” Hot Chocolate screens as part of the Moments of Truth section of the programme.
A music video directed by Dylan Pharazyn won two of the awards. Career by Wax Chattels took out both NZ on Air Best Music video and DEGNZ Best Editor. The judges were impressed with the quirky take. “This is a wonderfully crafted and original story that thinks outside the box, providing an excellent and beautiful accompaniment to the music’s energy,” they say.
As Show Me Shorts is an Academy Awards-qualifying festival, the top two films are now qualified to enter the Oscars. Other prizes include $7,500 cash, $12,000 worth of camera gear rental from Panavision, $10,000 worth of post-production services from Department of Post, $5,000 of gear rental from Rubber Monkey, copies of Final Draft writing software, membership to DEGNZ, flowers from Enchanted Rose, certificates and engraved bronze winners’ brooches. The total prize pool is valued at more than $50,000.
In addition to the awards listed above, audience members can vote for the SAE People’s Choice Award during the festival, by completing the survey in cinemas or at www.showmeshorts.co.nz.
Other prizes include $7,500 cash, $12,000 worth of camera gear rental from Panavision, $5,000 of gear rental from Rubber Monkey, copies of Final Draft writing software, membership to DEGNZ, flowers from Enchanted Rose, certificates and engraved bronze winners’ brooches. The total prize pool is valued at more than $40,000.
The jury panels assembled for the 2020 Show Me Shorts awards included highly regarded screen industry practitioners:
Short Film Advisor Enrico Vannucci from Venice Film Festival
Artistic Director of London Short Film Festival Philp Ilson
Renowned local actor David Fane
Editor of Flicks Steve Newall
Head of Marketing for the NZ Film Commission Jasmin McSweeney
Successful local producer Michelle Bristow
Award winning screenwriter Nick Ward
