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61st Ann Arbor Film Festival announces 2023 awards

Credit: Doug Coombe

ANN ARBOR – The Ann Arbor Film Festival has announced its award-winning filmmakers for its 61st annual festival.

The films were selected by jurors Amir George and Christine Panushka and Koyo Yamashita.

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In total, $24,300 will be presented to filmmakers for the 2023 awards competitions.

“An award from the AAFF confers prestige and financial support; it can also qualify filmmakers for an Oscar nomination by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in the short film category,” reads an AAFF release. “Qualifying awards are the Ken Burns Award for Best of the Festival, the Chris Frayne Award for Best Animated Film, and the Lawrence Kasdan Award for Best Narrative Film.”

Here are this year’s award winners:

Ken Burns Award for Best of the Festival

Lawrence Kasdan Award for Best Narrative Film

Tom Berman Award for Most Promising Filmmaker

Kodak Cinematic Vision Award

Susan Dise Best Experimental Film

  • Eclipsis,” Tania Hernández Velasco

Best Documentary Film

The Barbara Aronofsky Latham Award for an Emerging Experimental Video Artist

Chris Frayne Award for Best Animated Film

Gil Omenn Art & Science Award

Prix DeVarti for Funniest Film

  • Diomysus,” Emily Elizabeth Morus-Jones

The Terri Schwartz Film Award for Parody and Satire

The Eileen Maitland Award

George Manupelli Founder’s Spirit Award

CameraMall Best Michigan Filmmaker Award

Lawther/Graff No Violence Award

Barbara Hammer Feminist Film Award

Best Experimental Animation Award

Leon Speakers Award for Best Sound Design

Martin Contreras and Keith Orr \aut\ FILM Award for Best LGBTQ Film

The No. 1 African Film Award

Peter Wilde Award for Most Technically Innovative Film

The Terri Schwartz Asian Film Award

UMCU Audience Award

Award for Best Music Video

Juror Award 1 / Best Analog Film

Juror Award 2

Juror Award 3

Juror Award 4

Juror Award 5

Juror Award 6

The film festival can be viewed online through March 29 at 11:59 p.m. For more information, visit www.aafilmfest.org.


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