- WINNER -
scenario
Written & Directed by Kazunori Miura
Kazunori Miura is a film director and writer living in Tokyo, Japan.
He has directed commercials and branded content for clients such as Toyota, LEXUS, Honda, Subaru, Microsoft, Shiseido, Canon, Cisco, and so on.
Kazunori’s directorial debut short film, scenario, earned Best Actress at Ashiya International Art&Film Festival, Grand Prix at Wakayama (Kisssh-Kissssssh) Film Festival, with screenings at Hokkaido International Film Festival, Fukui Ekimae Film Festival, and Ueda Jyokamachi Film Festival(Japan).
- FINALISTS -
Object of Desire
Written & Directed by Naomi Trantu
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The Cockroach
Written & Directed by Mary Pat Bentel
During high school and college, Mary Pat worked full-time as a manager at Contempo and Gap in Chicago. She applied to Hot Topic, but alas, they went with someone more goth. She’s been in leadership roles since she was 14, and believe it or not, All She Really Needed to Know About Filmmaking, She Learned in Retail. Not exactly, but surprisingly a lot is applicable! For example: keep your issues off the floor, give positive feedback before negative, and don’t let anyone steal shit.
Despite majoring in Directing at Columbia College Chicago, Mary Pat almost immediately transitioned into the self-preserving role of Producer when she moved to Los Angeles after learning literally everyone wanted to direct.
Right before the pandemic, an accident shattered Mary Pat’s arm and changed her life. She took notes between surgeries as a survival tactic, and the script for her directorial debut, The Cockroach, emerged. Since starting its festival run in summer 2024, the short film has won several awards at Oscar-qualifying festivals including the Audience Award at Austin Film Festival (where it was also nominated for the Grand Jury Prize), Best Drama at LA Shorts, and Best Editing at HollyShorts.
After supporting emerging directors for over a decade, Mary Pat is excited to be in the chair herself. She’s genre-agnostic, but gravitates toward raw stories submerged in the messy layers of womanhood. She loves the funny/sad/sad/funny and hopes to experiment with magical realism and psychological horror in her future work.
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The Stairs
Written & Directed by Jessica Aquila Cymerman
Jessica is a film and theatre director, producer, and writer from Los Angeles. She splits her time between California, Ireland, and Canada, and holds EU, American, and Canadian citizenship.
Film credits include the shorts One More Line, The Stairs, King Killer, The Mad Ones, and The Den
The Den (2022): Winner “Best Director” Vesuvius Int’l Film Festival; Official selection: Seattle Film Festival, Austin FF, Sarasota FF, Tall Grass FF, Albuquerque FF, and many more. The Stairs finished its festival circuit in 2024: Winner of the “Humanitarian Award,” “Best Child Actor,” and “Best Costume Design” at the Idyllwild Film Festival, “Best Female Director” Stockholm Short Fest; Jury Award Nominee for Best Narrative Short at the Rome International FF; Official selection Dances with Films, Poppy Jasper Int. FF, Garden State FF, Irish Film Fest, SOHO International FF, Albuquerque FF, Mallorca Evolution FF, Queens World FF, and Manhattan FF.
In 2017, she co-founded the Theatre company, Untold Wants in Dublin (now world-traveling), where she continues to direct and produce contemporary theatre.
Theatre directing credits include TH IR DS (world premiere, LEP), Hedda Gabler (Hollywood Fringe), Julie: After Strindberg (North American premiere), The Pillowman, Gruesome Playground Injuries, Cock, The Human Ear (North American premiere), Reasons to be Pretty (all for Untold Wants Theatre, co-artistic director); The Gift, Strange Relations (staged readings, IAMA Theatre, LA), Ted and the Right to Die (RCS, Glasgow); Il Cambiale di Matrimonio (Raucous Rossini, Glasgow); The Seagull: A Musical Adaptation (co-writer, Original Production, RCS); Urinetown The Musical; Reefer Madness! The Musical and The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? (Sarah Lawrence).
She holds a BA from Sarah Lawrence College and an MA in Directing from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow, with training from Shakespeare’s Globe, UK.
World’s Lamest Teacher
Written & Directed by Casey Floyd
Casey Floyd is a writer and director from Galveston, Texas and living in Little Rock, Arkansas.
He came to filmmaking the long way after spending time in journalism, sports media, corporate marketing, and five years as a high school teacher. He now serves as a Lecturer in the Film department of The University of Central Arkansas.
His MFA thesis film, World’s Lamest Teacher, is based on his experiences in public education and is currently on its festival run.
In between working and writing, you’ll find Casey doing what he loves most: playing pattycake with his daughter Ada, in endless pursuit of making her laugh.
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