We asked our Audience Awards community to submit their short dramatic films full of expression and spectacle, reversal and catharsis. Here are the top three jury selected winning films from our 2018 Dramatic Shorts Film Festival.
In the first place film, Killing Hope by Natacha Grangeon & Julia Retali, Anas al-Basha, 24, is not a simple Syrian citizen. In the heart of an Aleppo torn apart by civil war, his only weapon is his red nose and the smile of the children around him.
Killing Hope is a tribute to Anas, immortalizing his moments of humanity in one of the most troubled times in the Middle East. Anas dressed as a clown to escape reality, brighten up everyday life and to try to create laughter in a time of loss and sadness. Despite the symbolic and tragic significance of this story, there was little news coverage on it in the Middle East.
This film is a piece fiction and does not claim a documentary. We simply wish, with our sensitivity and our eyes, to highlight a man, his fight, and the children for whom he fought at the cost of his life.
In second place is The School Bag by Dheeraj Jindal. In a small town of Peshawar, Pakistan, Farooq has a simple demand for a new school bag on his birthday. But his mother, in spite of her love and affection seems to be unfazed by her child’s plea. Unknown to Farooq, there is something waiting for him.
The film did really well after coming on the web. We have gotten many messages from Pakistan thanking us and blessing us for our efforts. We have won 28 awards and screened at around 85 festivals in 27 countries including Festival De Cannes –Dheeraj Jindal
In the third place film, Mantra by Bence Sipos, a woman is assaulted by a man, but a mysterious stranger intervenes. Turns out, the stranger wants something too.
A huge thanks to our community of creatives and filmmakers who submitted to the 2018 Dramatic Shorts Film Festival, and hearty congratulations to all the winners! We look forward to seeing the top three films premiere at AudFest 2018! To stay up-to-date on our festival winners, visit: https://audnews.com/contests/winners
