2023 Calgary International Film Festival

Last updated
2023 Calgary International Film Festival
Opening filmGeoff McFetridge: Drawing a Life by Dan Covert
Closing film Hey, Viktor! by Cody Lightning
Location Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Founded2000
Festival dateSeptember 21–October 1, 2023
Website ciffcalgary.ca
Calgary International Film Festival
2024
2022

The 2023 edition of the Calgary International Film Festival , the 24th edition in the event's history, took place from September 21 to October 1, 2023 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. [1]

Contents

The festival opened with Geoff McFetridge: Drawing a Life, a documentary film by Dan Covert about Calgary-born artist Geoff McFetridge, and closed with Cody Lightning's comedy film Hey, Viktor! . [2]

Awards

In 2023, the festival introduced a new CA$5,000 juried prize for Best Canadian Narrative Feature sponsored by Air Canada, as a complement to its existing RBC Emerging Artist Award for first-time Canadian filmmakers. New filmmakers remained eligible for the RBC Award, while Canadian films by more established directors were eligible for the Air Canada award. [3]

Juried award winners were announced on September 25, [4] with audience-voted award winners announced at the conclusion of the festival. [5]

AwardFilmFilmmaker
Audience Choice Alberta FeatureTales from the RezColin Ahnahktsipiitaa Van Loon, Trevor Solway
Audience Choice Canadian Narrative Feature Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant) Ariane Louis-Seize
Audience Choice Canadian Documentary Feature Summer Qamp Jen Markowitz
Audience Choice International Narrative Feature The Persian Version Maryam Keshavarz
Audience Choice International Documentary FeatureGeoff McFetridge: Drawing a LifeDan Covert
Audience Choice Late ShiftThe PuppetmanBrandon Christensen
Audience Choice Generation Next Aitamaako'tamisskapi Natosi: Before the Sun Banchi Hanuse
Audience Choice Music on ScreenImmediate FamilyDenny Tedesco
Audience Choice Special Presentations The Old Oak Ken Loach
Audience Choice Alberta ShortMONSTR Tank Standing Buffalo
Audience Choice Narrative ShortDead Cat (Chat mort)Annie-Claude Caron, Danick Audet
Audience Choice Animated ShortNinety-Five SensesJerusha Hess, Jared Hess
Audience Choice Documentary ShortJack and SamJordan Matthew Horowitz
Air Canada Canadian Narrative Feature Suze Dane Clark, Linsey Stewart
Air Canada Canadian Narrative Feature, Special Jury Citation Charlie Gillespie (performance)
RBC Emerging Canadian Artist Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant) Ariane Louis-Seize
RBC Emerging Canadian Artist, Special Jury Citation Asog Seán Devlin
Hey, Viktor! Cody Lightning
DGC Canadian Documentary Feature Swan Song Chelsea McMullan
DGC Canadian Documentary Feature, Special Jury Citation Summer Qamp Jen Markowitz
International Narrative Feature Animalia (Parmi nous) Sofia Alaoui
International Narrative Feature, Special Jury Citation Close to You Elliot Page (performance)
20,000 Species of Bees (20.000 especies de abejas) Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren (direction)
International Documentary FeatureBetween the RainsMoses Thuranira, Andrew H. Brown
Short Film Grand Jury PrizePalm SundayWes Andre Goodrich
Devon Bolton Memorial AwardMONSTR Tank Standing Buffalo
Youth by Youth Canada Short Film AwardOperation CarlSandra Hurd
Live Action Short Film Death to the Bikini! (À mort le bikini!)Justine Gauthier
Animated Short FilmBoat People Thao Lam, Kjell Boersma
Documentary Short Film The Last Repair Shop Ben Proudfoot, Kris Bowers
Student Short FilmSimoneAisha Amin

Official selections

Canadian Narrative Competition

English titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Production country
Asog Seán Devlin Canada
Fitting In Molly McGlynn
Float Sherren Lee
Hey, Viktor! Cody Lightning
Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant Ariane Louis-Seize
I Don't Know Who You Are M. H. Murray
I Used to Be Funny Ally Pankiw
In Flames Zarrar Kahn
My Animal Jacqueline Castel
The Queen of My Dreams Fawzia Mirza
Red Rooms Les Chambres rouges Pascal Plante
Richelieu Pier-Philippe Chevigny
Solo Sophie Dupuis
Suze Dane Clark, Linsey Stewart
Wild Goat Surf Caitlyn Sponheimer

Canadian Documentary Competition

English titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Production country
Aitamaako'tamisskapi Natosi: Before the Sun Banchi Hanuse Canada
Close the DivideTom Acton
Cover Your EarsSean Patrick Shaul
Cynara Sherien Barsoum
I Lost My Mom J'ai placé ma mère Denys Desjardins
I'm Just Here for the Riot Kathleen Jayme, Asia Youngman
Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe Robert McCallum
SubterraneanFrancois-Xavier De Ruydts
Summer Qamp Jen Markowitz
Swan Song Chelsea McMullan
UnsyncableMegan Wennberg
We Will Be BraveChrisann Hessing

International Narrative Competition

English titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Production country
20,000 Species of Bees 20.000 especies de abejas Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren Spain
Animalia Parmi nous Sofia Alaoui Morocco, France, Qatar
Benji's HourGabriel KahaneUnited States
Blaga's Lessons Urotcite na BlagaStefan KomanderevBulgaria, Germany
Close to You Dominic Savage Canada, United Kingdom
ElahaMilena AboyanGermany
MartínezLorena PadillaMexico
The Mattachine Family Andy VallentineUnited States
The Other WidowהפילגשMaayan RyppFrance, Israel
The Persian Version Maryam Keshavarz Turkey, United States
Riley Benjamin Howard United States
Tótem Lila Avilés Mexico, Denmark, France

International Documentary Competition

English titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Production country
Between the RainsMoses Thuranira, Andrew H. BrownKenya, United Kingdom
Break the GameJane M. WagnerUnited States
Fantastic Machine Axel Danielson, Maximilien Van AertryckDenmark, Sweden
Four Daughters بنات ألفة Kaouther Ben Hania France, Tunisia, Germany, Saudi Arabia
Going Varsity in MariachiAlejandra Vasquez, Sam OsbornUnited States
Great Photo, Lovely Life Amanda Mustard, Rachel Beth AndersonUnited States
JesszillaEmily SheskinUnited States
On the Adamant Sur l'Adamant Nicolas Philibert France, Japan
Silver Dollar Road Raoul Peck United States
Smoke Sauna Sisterhood Savvusanna sõsaradAnna HintsEstonia, France, Iceland
Werner Herzog: Radical DreamerThomas von SteinaeckerGermany, United Kingdom
You Can Call Me Bill Alexandre O. Philippe United States

Features not in competition

English titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Production country
About Dry Grasses Kuru Otlar Üstüne Nuri Bilge Ceylan Turkey, France, Germany, Sweden
Anatomy of a Fall Anatomie d'une chute Justine Triet France
The Animal Kingdom Le Règne animal Thomas Cailley France
Big BoysCorey ShermanUnited States
La Chimera Alice Rohrwacher Italy, France, Switzerland
The Delinquents Los delincuentes Rodrigo Moreno Argentina, Brazil, Luxembourg, Chile
A Difficult Year Une année difficile Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache France
DropRamin Eshraghi-YazdiCanada
Dumb Money Craig Gillespie United States
Evil Does Not Exist 悪は存在しない Ryûsuke Hamaguchi Japan
Fallen Leaves Kuolleet lehdet Aki Kaurismäki Finland, Germany
FaultlineAnna CooleyCanada
Hailey Rose Sandi SomersCanada
How to Have Sex Molly Manning Walker United Kingdom
How We Ended UsGrant HarveyCanada
If Only I Could Hibernate Баавгай болохсон, Baavgai BolohsonZoljargal PurevdashMongolia
Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell Bên trong vỏ kén vàngPhạm Thiên ÂnVietnam, Singapore, France, Spain
Isle of HopeDamian RomayUnited States
Jericho Ridge Will Gilbey United Kingdom
Kidnapped Rapito Marco Bellocchio Italy, France, Germany
Little Brother Sheridan O'DonnellUnited States
A Little Prayer Angus MacLachlan United States
MayhemFarang Xavier Gens France, Thailand
Monster 怪物 Hirokazu Kore-eda Japan
The Old Oak Ken Loach United Kingdom, France, Belgium
Peak SeasonSteven Kanter, Henry LoevnerUnited States
Perfect Days Wim Wenders Japan, Germany
The Pot-au-Feu La Passion de Dodin Bouffant Tran Anh Hung France
The Promised Land Bastarden Nikolaj Arcel Denmark, Germany, Sweden
The PuppetmanBrandon ChristensenUnited States
Robot Dreams Pablo Berger Spain, France
Romi Robert Cuffley Canada
The Royal Hotel Kitty Green Australia, United Kingdom
The Sacrifice Game Jenn WexlerUnited States
Seven Veils Atom Egoyan Canada
Sleep Jason YuSouth Korea
The Teachers' Lounge Das LehrerzimmerIlker ÇatakGermany
The Ties That BindJames ReckseidlerCanada
Tótem Lila Avilés Mexico, Denmark, France
Vincent Must Die Vincent doit mourirStéphan CastangFrance, Belgium
When Evil Lurks Cuando acecha la maldadDemián RugnaArgentina

Documentaries not in competition

English titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Production country
Anselm Anselm – Das Rauschen der Zeit Wim Wenders Germany
Geoff McFetridge: Drawing a LifeDan CovertUnited States
Immediate FamilyDenny TedescoUnited States
Joan Baez: I Am a Noise Miri Navasky, Maeve O'Boyle, Karen O'ConnorUnited States
Kiss the FutureNenad Cicin-SainBosnia and Herzegovina, United States, Ireland
The Lebanese Burger Mafia Omar Mouallem Canada
Patria y Vida: The Power of MusicBeatriz LuengoSpain
They Shot the Piano Player Dispararon al pianista Fernando Trueba, Javier Mariscal Spain, France, Netherlands
The Stones & Brian Jones Nick Broomfield United Kingdom
Without Leaving Anyone BehindSylvester NdumbiCanada

Episodic

English titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Production country
Tales from the RezTrevor Solway, Colin Ahnahktsipiitaa Van LoonCanada
Telling Our Story Kim O'Bomsawin Canada

Shorts

English titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Production country
27 Flóra Anna Buda France, Hungary
6 Minutes per Kilometre6 minutes/kmCatherine BoivinCanada
At LastResmiye EmirTurkey
Basri and Salma in a Never-Ending ComedyBasri & Salma Dalam Komedi Yang Terus BerputarKhozy RizalIndonesia
Beauty VisaKate He, Simeon HuUnited States
Between Earth & SkyAndrew NadkarniUnited States
Blond Night Nuit blonde Gabrielle Demers Canada
Boat People Thao Lam, Kjell Boersma Canada
The BreakthroughDaniel SinclairUnited States
CalfJamie O'RourkeIreland
Catherine & MichaelKathy FuscoUnited States
Chemical SomniaScott PortingaleCanada
Christopher at Sea Tom CJ BrownFrance
Closing Dynasty Lloyd Lee Choi United States
Coaching While BlackAlex EskandarkhahCanada
Coddle No MoreNicholas BentgenUnited States
ConvictionBruce Thomas MillerCanada
Counter ClockwiseRoman ShipleyCanada
Dead CatChat mortAnnie-Claude Caron, Danick AudetCanada
Death & RamenTiger JiUnited States
Death to the Bikini! À mort le bikini!Justine GauthierCanada
DetourKargo ChenHong Kong
Dicks That I LikeJohanna GustinGermany
Don't Come In...YetIsaac ElliottAustralia
EevaLucija Mrzljak, Morten TšinakovCroatia, Estonia
The Family PortraitLea VidakovicCroatia, France, Serbia
The Firefighter's BallLe Bal des pompoersBaptiste DrapeauFrance
FishmongerNeil FerronUnited States
The GatewayKamala Parel-NuttallCanada
The Girl with the Red Beret Janet Perlman Canada
Go for GoldJohn TorresCanada
GrillJade Hærem AksnesNorway
Hide Your CrazyAustin KaseUnited States
High End DyingHelen LiuCanada
HiraethEmma McDonaldCanada
Hit Man: Secrets of LiesElias PlagianosUnited States
HooksLes crochetsCharles PariséCanada
Human ResourcesRessources humainesTrinidad Plass, Titouan Tillier, Isaac WenzekFrance
I Have No Tears and I Must CryLuis Fernando PuenteUnited States
In the HeatSam ChouCanada
It's a Date Nadia Parfan Ukraine
Jack and SamJordan Matthew HorowitzUnited States
Jinn JulianJae SterlingCanada
The Key to the Heart of TimeMJ HansenCanada
A Kind of TestamentStephen VuilleminFrance
KolajGülce Besen DilekGermany
KonpaAl'Ikens PlancherUnited States
Lo-Tech RealityGuillermo Garcia LopezSpain
Losing BlueLeanne AllisonCanada
Making Money in Manitou, ManitobaAustin LadouceurCanada
MineEsabella StricklandCanada
Monstr Tank Standing Buffalo Canada
My Eyes Are Up HereNathan MorrisUnited Kingdom
Mystic TigerMarc Martínez JordánSpain
Nai Nai & Wai Po: Grandma & GrandmaSean WangUnited States
NianMichelle KrusiecUnited States
Ninety-Five SensesJerusha Hess, Jared HessUnited States
No More KîyâmLese SkidmoreCanada
Noodles ForeverMcKinley CarlinUnited States
OkemJoshua OkwuosaNigeria, United States
Old Dragon ManDouglas CookCanada
Only YouJames David DuricCanada
Operation CarlSandra Rachel HurdCanada
The Orchestra Chuck BuiltChristopher StoudtUnited States
OvertimeJenny Lee-GilmoreCanada
Pacific BellSandrine BéchadeCanada
Palm SumdayWes Andre GoodrichUnited States
Piece by PieceReza RasouliAustria
PoofMargaret MillerUnited States
Power SignalOscar BoysonUnited States
Pussy LoveLinda KraussGermany
Rise of Afrobeats in the PrairiesFahad SuleimanCanada
SalopicaSerenella Sol, Callum McCormackCanada
Shadow Brother SundayAlden EhrenreichUnited States
SimoneAisha AminUnited States
Soleil de nuitFernando Lopez Escriva, Maria Camila AriasCanada
The SoupJohn TorresCanada
The Sperm BankMargaux SusiUnited States
Suzy Makes CupcakesJayson TherrienCanada
The Syrian CosmonautCharles Emir RichardsTurkey
Third WheelKevin HaefelinJapan, Switzerland
TinyRitchie Hemphill, Ryan HachéCanada
Two One TwoShira AvniQuebec
Unveiled TraditionsLili Yas TayefiCanada
Wave RiderDustin ChokCanada
Well Wishes My Love, Your LoveGabriel Gabriel GarbleMalaysia, Sweden
White AntShalini AdnaniIndia, United Kingdom
YellowbirdTsvetelina Zdraveva, Jerred NorthUnited States
ZipAva Maria SafaiCanada

Special Experiences

English titleOriginal titleDirector(s)Production country
Heartland
Special gala screening of episode #250
Dean BennettCanada
How to Fail as a Popstar
with Q&A and musical performance by Vivek Shraya
Vanessa MatsuiCanada
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
with new live score by Chad VanGaalen
Wallace Worsley United States
Smoke Signals
retrospective screening linked to competition title Hey, Viktor!
Chris Eyre United States

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