THE FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES THE AUDIENCE AWARDS FOR ITS 28TH EDITION

Montréal, Quebec / 07 August 2024 -- The 28th massive edition of The Fantasia International Film Festival came to a close on the eve of August 4th with the World Premiere of André Forcier's period dramedy ABABOUINÉ. With record attendance and sold-out screenings that rivaled the fest's pre-pandemic years, the long-running Canadian fest is proud to announce that it will return once again in 2025, from July 17 to August 3.

Having tabulated thousands of votes from its enthusiastic attendees, Fantasia is also very proud to announce its prestigious Audience Awards:

► BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE

Gold: BOOKWORM (Dir. Ant Timpson, New Zealand)

Silver:THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO (Dir. Mathieu Delaporte and Alexandre de la Patelière, France)

Bronze: RATS! (Dir. Maxwell Navelansky and Carl Fry, United States)

► BEST ASIAN FEATURE

Gold: A SAMURAI IN TIME (Dir. Junichi Yasuda, Japan)

Silver: TWILIGHT OF THE WARRIORS: WALLED IN (Dir. Soi Cheang, Hong Kong)

Bronze: PENALTY LOOP (Dir. Shinji Araki, Japan)

► BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

Gold: GHOST CAT ANZU (Dir. Yōko Kuno and Nobuhiro Yamashita, Japan)

Silver: THE MISSING (Dir. Carl Joseph Papa, The Philippines)

Bronze: MONONOKE THE MOVIE: PHANTOM IN THE RAIN (Dir. Kenji Nakamura, Japan)

► BEST INTERNATIONAL SHORT

Gold: FACES (Dir. Blake Simon, United States)

Silver: THE STREETLIGHT (Dir. Sophia Parella, United States)

Bronze: LES YEUX D’OLGA (Dir. Sarah Carlot Jaber, Belgium)

► BEST ASIAN SHORT

Gold: MEMORY (Dir. Jang Hawon, South Korea)

Silver: WANNA DIE WANNA KILL (Dir. Jeong Jaehee, South Korea)

Bronze: NIGHT FISHING (Dir. Byoung-gon Moon, South Korea)

► BEST ANIMATED SHORT

Gold: RUTHLESS BLADE (Dir. Bo Zhang, China)

Silver: LANTERN BLADE, EPISODE 3 (Dir. Ziqi Zhu, China)

Bronze: LES BÊTES (Dir. Michael Granberry, United States) and NUMBER 23. GIANT FISH (Dir. Si Seunghyun, South Korea)

► BEST CANADIAN FEATURE

Gold: SELF DRIVER (Dir. Michael Pierro)

Silver: THE SILENT PLANET (Dir. Jeffrey St. Jules)

Bronze: SCARED SHITLESS (Dir. Vivieno Caldinelli)

► BEST CANADIAN SHORT

Gold: THE SHITTY RIDE - (Dir. Cole Doran)

Silver: DIRTY BAD WRONG (Dir. Erica Orofino)

Bronze: BATH BOMB (Dir. Colin G. Cooper)

► BEST QUÉBEC FEATURE

Gold: KIDNAPPING INC. (Dir. Bruno Mourral)

Silver: JOUR DE CHASSE (Dir. Annick Blanc)

Bronze: ABABOUINÉ (Dir. André Forcier)

► BEST QUÉBEC SHORT

Gold: THE IMAGE SELLER (Dir. Donovan Richard)

Silver: MOURIR EN SILENCE (Dir. Émile Lavoie)

Bronze: Tie - RÉINSERTION (Dir. Youssef Harouj) and BRING BACK GUILLAUME (Dir. Kevin de Laval)

► BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Gold: VOIVOD : WE ARE CONNECTED (Dir. Felipe Belalcazar, Canada)

L’Écran Fantastique Award

THE BEAST WITHIN (Dir. Alexander J. Farrell, United Kingdom)

As part of the 2024 edition of the Fantasia International Film Festival, the L'Écran Fantastique award goes to The Beast Within, directed by Alexander J. Farrell. "The film stands out from the crowd thanks to its detailed direction (something increasingly rare in today's productions) and striking images, packed with detail and adding to the neo-Gothic atmosphere of the natural settings. It's a work of precision that deserves to be applauded and encouraged.” - Yves Rivard, L’ÉCRAN FANTASTIQUE

The 28th edition of the Fantasia International Film Festival was presented by Québecor in collaboration with Concordia University, and made possible by the financial contributions of Telefilm Canada, la Société́ de développement des entreprises culturelles (SODEC), le gouvernement du Québec, the city of Montréal, le Conseil des arts de Montréal, Tourisme Montréal, and the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC).

The festival would like to thank all its private partners, friends of the event, as well as official suppliers, venues, and all participating filmmakers, sales agents, and distributors for their invaluable support.