Congratulations to the IWFF 46 award winning films.
The festival has started off with an absolute bang! We had record crowds at our opening WildWalk parade and sunshine! The first two days have been full of sold-out shows, and exciting screenings.
Deep congratulations to the award recipients last night. We are so proud of every one of the 60 films representing our selections this year!
The results are below.
The 2023 IWFF trailer
46th International Wildlife Film Festival Announces Winners
The 46th International Wildlife Film Festival announced the winners of the 2023 event at the festival awards ceremony on Sunday night. One winner was selected in each of 12 categories with an additional jury award and the Chuck Jonkel Legacy Award for deserving recipients.
This year's jury was made up of Tailyr Irvine, Salish and Kootenai journalist and co-founder of Indigenous Photograph; Deia Schlosberg, Emmy-winning documentary producer and filmmaker (The Story of Plastic); and Andy Maser, Emmy-winning director and cinematographer (Great Bear Rainforest).
Best Short Short
HEART OF MAUI
Best Short
FLIGHTPATH
Best Feature
BIOCÊNTRICOS
Best Series
SECRETS OF THE ELEPHANTS SERIES
Best Student Film
JAWAI
Best Youth Program
KANGAROO VALLEY
Best New Vision
ALL OF OUR HEARTBEATS ARE CONNECTED THROUGH EXPLODING STARS
Best Living with Wildlife Program
PATH OF THE PANTHER
Best Animal Behavior Program
LION: THE RISE AND FALL OF THE MARSH PRIDE
Best Wildlife Conservation Program
HEART OF MAUI
Best Sustainable Planet
EARTHBOUND: NZAMBI MATEE
Best of Festival
EARTHBOUND: NZAMBI MATEE
Special Jury Award
Zacharia Mutai of the Ol Pejeta Conservancy
Jury Statement: Being a caregiver for any other being is already a monumental task, but when that other being is the last of its kind - the last of an entire species...the gravity of that charge is utterly inconceivable to all but a tiny handful of people. As the head rhino keeper [at Ol Petaja Conservancy], Mr. Mutai bears that burden on behalf of the entire human race, and as we saw in Remembering Sudan, he does so with a gentleness and grace that bestows dignity upon the precious individuals within his care. Zacharia, on behalf of the IWFF, thank you for your passion, your sacrifices, and your great strength.
The Chuck Jonkel Legacy Award
Roy O’Connor
IWFF Statement: The Chuck Jonkel Legacy Award was presented to Roy O’Connor for his steadfast belief in the festival for over 20 years. Roy’s tenure on the IWFF and Roxy Theater Board of Directors contributed to the IWFF’s legacy at the Roxy. Mr. O’Connor’s dedication to the festival mirrors his own values of working toward conserving wildlife and habitat and educating communities about those values through cinema.
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL!
More here: wildlifefilms.org/2023-winners
About IWFF
Founded in 1977 at the University of Montana, IWFF is the first and longest running event of its kind. The vision of the IWFF will always be to foster an engaged, enlightened community that finds itself through cinema, and helps the planet to heal. The mission of the International Wildlife Film Festival is to promote awareness, knowledge, and understanding of wildlife, habitat, people, and nature through excellence in film.
For more information visit wildlifefilms.org
See: facebook.com/InternationalWildlifeFilmFestival, twitter.com/IntlWldFilmFest & instagram.com/wildlifefilmfest |
