Indie Memphis Film Festival: Award winners announced
“Black Ice,” a documentary about a group of aspiring young ice climbers who travel from the Memphis Rox climbing gym in the Soulsville neighborhood to the frozen mountains of Montana, was named the best local feature during a Tuesday night awards ceremony that essentially concluded the 24th annual Indie Memphis Film Festival.
The Best Narrative Feature award went to “Queen of Glory,” a tale of Ghanaian-american life in the Bronx by triple-threat writer-director-star Nana Mensah. The Best Documentary Feature honor went to Nadia Szold’s “Larry Flynt for President,” which chronicles the pornography mogul and free speech absolutist’s quixotic 1984 run for the White House.
The “Vision Award” — established “to honor those who have made a permanent impact” on the festival and the local film community — went to Memphis writer-director-actor and arts benefactor Mark Jones, whose films, such as 2012’s “Tennessee Queer,” probe, with often humorous effect, the tension that occurs when so-called traditional religious and sexual values are challenged in the South.
“For me, Memphis filmmaking and tonight’s recipient are synonymous,” said cinematographer Ryan Earl Parker, who presented the award to Jones.
“I feel like Joan Crawford getting the Oscar when she was at home in 1946,” responded Jones, speaking from his house via Zoom; the reference was to Crawford’s famous Best Actress Academy Award win for “Mildred Pierce,” which the screen legend accepted — in a classic diva move — while lounging in bed, supposedly recovering from the flu.
More than 20 awards and filmmaking grants were presented during the “virtual” awards show, which was presented live online from the Black Lodge movie rental-and-live entertainment venue, with audiences watching on their home screens and winners (sometimes
accompanied by children or pets) joining the action via remote Zoom links. (As evidence that this Memphis festival has gone international, Shorts category juror Martha Kunda checked in from London, while Narrative Feature juror Bandamlak Yimenu joined from Ethiopia). The pandemic precautions represented a repeat of last year’s arrangement, although the festival itself — a celebration of international, national and local film culture that began Oct. 20 and concluded Oct. 25 — was a mix of traditional theatrical screening and streaming options.
The Black Lodge setting was appropriate: Produced by longtime Indie Memphis associate May Todd, the awards show alternated the doling out of prizes with filmed comedy skits on the theme of “Twindie Peaks,” directed by local filmmaker Josh Cannon (Black Lodge is named for a mysterious location in that David Lynch series). Local
actor and self-described “creative entrepreneur” Princeton James served as the show’s host, sometimes joined by new Indie Memphis Executive Director Knox Shelton.
Here are this year’s Indie Memphis award winners. Film competition awards were chosen by juries consisting of critics, filmmakers, festival programmers and other film professionals from across the country, while “festival awards” were chosen by Indie Memphis staff. The festival was presented by Duncan-williams Inc.
Indie Memphis film competition awards:
h Best Narrative Feature: “Queen of Glory,” by Nana Mensah.
h Best Documentary Feature: “Larry Flynt for President,” by Nadia Szold.
h Best Departures (experimental) Feature: “Ste. Anne,” by Rhayne Vermette.
h Best Sounds (music movie) Feature : “Poly Styrene: I Am a Cliché,” by Celeste Bell and Paul Sng.
h Best Narrative Short: “Cousins,” by Mandy Marcus.
h Best Documentary Short: “You Can’t Stop Spirit,” by Vashni Korin.
h Best Departures Short: “A Few Things I’m Beginning to Understand,” by Xenia Matthews.
h Best National Music Video: Nîm’s “Hideaway” directed by Etienne Fu-le Saulnier. h Best Poster Design: “Juju Stories.” h Duncan-williams Best Screenplay Award: “The Pill,” by Franco Clarke.
h Best Hometowner (films produced in Memphis and Shelby County) Feature: “Black Ice,” by Zachary Barr and Peter Mortimer.
h Best Hometowner Narrative Short: “The Devil Will Run,” by Noah Glenn.
h Best Hometowner Documentary Short: “Nuestra,” by Aaron Baggett and Jordan Danelz.
h Best Hometowner Music Video: Don Lifted’s “Brain Fluid,” directed by Nubia Yasin and Josh Cannon.
Indie Memphis festival awards:
h Ron Tibbett Excellence in Filmmaking Award: Yasmine Mathurin, “One of Ours.”
h Craig Brewer Emerging Filmmaker Award: Andrew Infante, “Ferny & Luca.”
h Soul of Southern Film Award: Lawrence Matthews, “The Hub.”
h Indie Award (awarded to a significant local film crew member): cinematographer, camera operator Jason Thibodeaux. h Vision Award: Mark Jones. h Best After Dark Short (for eerie/ dark/uncanny films): “I’m So Sorry,” by Chester Vincent Toye.
Indiegrants
(awards worth $15,000 in cash and in-kind services, to help filmmakers complete specific projects): h Jessica Chaney, “I Am.” h Emmanuel Amido, “Soil and Clay.”