The American Film Institute (AFI) announced today the AFI Fest 2023 Grand Jury Award winners and Special Mentions. The Grand Jury Award winners for Live Action Short, Documentary Short and Animated Short will be eligible for the 96th Academy Awards. The jury was: BAFTA-winning and Emmy-nominated director and writer Sindha Agha, film critic Ryan Swen and writer, producer & film programmer Imani Davis.
“By smashing attendance records this year, AFI FEST proves the power of cinema to bring us together in difficult times,” said Bob Gazzale, AFI President and CEO. “For 37 years, AFI has been proud to bring the very best of world cinema to the heart of Hollywood, and we look forward to welcoming even more people to the movies next year.”
The Grand Jury Prize – Animated Short was awarded to Chutes by Los Angeles-based artist and animation filmmaker Kenzie Sutton (Harls, Somebody Take the Wheel; animator/painter on Loving Vincent). Making its premiere at AFI Fest, the stop-motion film depicts a young girl who struggles to be present in her life while navigating social constructs, capitalism and consumerism through the lens of childhood toys.
The Jury described Chutes as, “A delightful, bizarre rollercoaster of clever visual metaphors that deftly captures the interplay between social relationships and wanton materialism.”
Additional special mentions were awarded to:
Special Jury Mention for Stop Motion — The Miracle directed by Nienke Deutz
- Jury Statement: “Vivid construction of a unique, hilarious and unsettling world — this animation felt unlike anything we’d seen before and stuck with us.”
Special Jury Mention for 2D Animation — Miisufy directed by Liisi Grünberg
- Jury Statement: “It comes out of the gate swinging with its unique and distinct illustrations — it took us through a journey in its world.”
Learn more about AFI Fest at fest.afi.com.
