Photos: Urbanworld Film Festival
NEW YORK, NY (November 6, 2023) – The 27th Annual Urbanworld® Film Festival (www.urbanworld.org), along with prestige partner Warner Bros. Discovery and founding partner HBO, announced the 2023 award winners for the best narrative feature, documentary feature, documentary short, young creator, narrative short (U.S. and World Cinema), animated short, experimental, screenplay, as well as the New York Women in Film and Television awards for best female director, feature and short; as it closed its festival Monday.
The nation’s largest competitive multicultural film festival screened 73 official selections, 7 spotlight screenings, 3 spotlight conversations, and featured 5 Urbanworld Innovation sessions and 4 original screenplay finalists.
The 2023 Urbanworld Film Festival winners are:
BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE (U.S.) – Frybread Face and Me – Directed by Billy Luther
THE JURY:
Darcy Heusel – VP of Audience Engagement and Impact, NEON
Efuru Flowers – Founder and CEO, Flourishing Films
Sue Ellen Chitnuya – Filmmaker and Academy Member
BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE (WORLD) – Sira – Directed by Apolline Traoré
Honorable Mention: Inky Pinky Ponky – Directed by Damon Fepulea’i and Ramon TeWake
THE JURY:
Darcy Heusel – VP of Audience Engagement and Impact, NEON
Efuru Flowers – Founder and CEO, Flourishing Films
Sue Ellen Chitnuya – Filmmaker and Academy Member
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE – Brief Tender Light – Directed by Arthur Musah; Presented by ESPN Films
THE JURY:
Jackie Glover – Emmy-Winning Executive Producer
Leslie Fields-Cruz – Executive Director, Black Public Media
Sarah Eshaghian – Coordinator, HBO
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT – Slice – Directed by Zaire Love
Honorable Mention – Things Long Left Unsaid – Directed by Antonia Thornton
THE JURY:
Jackie Glover – Executive Producer
Leslie Fields-Cruz – Executive Director, Black Public Media
Sarah Eshaghian – Coordinator, HBO
BEST YOUNG CREATOR – The Old Young Crow – Directed by Liam LoPinto
Honorable Mention – Shallots and Garlic – Directed by Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto
Presented by The Walt Disney Studios
THE JURY:
Ramona Wright – Founder and CEO, WrightOne Media Group
Phillip Domfeh – Senior Manager, Disney+ Launchpad
Julian Newman – Founder and CEO, Culture Creative
Will Schnable – Programs Manager Equity and Inclusion, Warner Bros. Discovery
BEST NARRATIVE SHORT (U.S.) – Spaceship – Directed by Jorge G. Camarena
Honorable Mention – Jerome – Directed by Gianfranco Fernández-Ruiz; Death and Ramen – Directed by Tiger Ji
THE JURY:
Amanda Ross – Director, TV Programming DEI, NBCUniversal
Kecia Cole – Director, Fiction, BRIC
Kierna Mayo – Writer, Editor, and Media Executive
Marquis Daisy – Producer, ESPN Films
BEST NARRATIVE SHORT (WORLD) – Yellow – Directed by Elham Ehsas
THE JURY:
Tamara McCaw – Chief Civic Program Officer, The Shed
Ivonne Cotorruelo – Film Programmer
Amy Andrieux – Executive Director, Chief Curator, Mocada
BEST ANIMATION SHORT – Tomato Kitchen – Directory by Junyi Xiao
Honorable Mention – Lil Ruby – Directed by Bartek Kik
THE JURY:
Ramona Wright – Founder and CEO, WrightOne Media Group
Phillip Domfeh – Senior Manager, Disney+ Launchpad
Julian Newman – Founder and CEO, Culture Creative
Will Schnable – Programs Manager Equity and Inclusion, Warner Bros. Discovery
BEST EXPERIMENTAL FILM – Quiet As It’s Kept – Directed by Ja’Tovia M. Gary
THE JURY:
Tamara McCaw – Chief Civic Program Officer, The Shed
Ivonne Cotorruelo – Film Programmer
Amy Andrieux – Executive Director, Chief Curator, Mocada
BEST SCREENPLAY – Long Live AJ – Written by Marvin Van Buren
Honorable Mention – The Washroom – Written by Elie El Choufany and Omar Al Dakheel
THE JURY:
Tracey Moore – EP, The Spirited Actor Podcast (iHeart Radio); Celebrity Acting Coach
Sonja Perryman – Writer, Producer, Actress
Joshua Sanchez – Screenwriter + Member of Writers Guild of America, East
Jenny Mayer – Screenwriter, Playwright + Member of Writers Guild of America, East
URBANWORLD AUDIENCE AWARD BEST SHORT – Homing – Directed by Ricardo Varona
URBANWORLD AUDIENCE AWARD BEST FEATURE – Brief Tender Light – Directed by Arthur Musah
NYWIFT AWARD for BEST FEMALE DIRECTOR, US NARRATIVE FEATURE
Sira – Directed by Apolline Traoré
Presented by New York Women In Film & Television
NYWIFT AWARD for BEST FEMALE DIRECTOR, US NARRATIVE SHORT
Lunch Box – Directed by Anne Hu
Reunion – Directed by Zainab Jah
Presented by New York Women In Film & Television
THE JURY:
Katie Chambers, NYWIFT Senior Director of Community & Public Relations
Cynthia Lopez, NYWIFT CEO
Gretchen McGowan, NYWIFT Board
Amenya Makuku, NYWIFT Board
Emelyn Stuart, NYWIFT Board
Follow Urbanworld on Instagram at @urbanworldff, or on Facebook at Facebook.com/Urbanworld.Film.Festivals. Visit urbanworld.org for tickets and screening times. |
