Sundance Announces 2022 Award Winners

Since its opening day, on January 20th, the Sundance Film Festival has (virtually) screened 84 feature films and 59 short films.  The festival today announced via Twitter the award winners, both from audience votes as well as from their selected juries.  Last year’s award winners included films like CODA, Flee, Summer of Soul (…Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised), and Hive, amongst others.

Earlier, Sundance released the names of their jury members as well as the first award, handed out prior to the festival:

The jury for Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize (awarded to a film with a connection to science or technology) is Dr. Heather Berlin, Dr. Mandë Holford, PhD, Tenoch Huerta, Lydia Dean Pilcher, and Shawn Snyder. They deliberated in advance of the Festival and awarded the Prize to After Yang, directed by Kogonada.

This year’s jurors are: Chelsea Barnard, Marielle Heller, and Payman Maadi for U.S. Dramatic Competition; Garrett Bradley, Joan Churchill, and Peter Nicks for U.S. Documentary Competition; Andrew Haigh, Mohamed Hefzy, and La Frances Hui for World Cinema Dramatic Competition; and Emilie Bujès, Patrick Gaspard, and Dawn Porter for World Cinema Documentary Competition. Joey Soloway for the NEXT competition section. Penelope Bartlett, Kevin Jerome Everson, and Blackhorse Lowe jury the Short Film Program Competition.

The 2022 award winners (both audience and jury selected) are as follows:

U.S DRAMATIC COMPETITION

U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic goes to NANNY, directed by Nikyatu Jusu

Directing Award: U.S. Dramatic goes to Jamie Dack for PALM TREES AND POWER LINES

U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award: Uncompromising Artistic Vision goes to Bradley Rust Gray for BLOOD

U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award: Ensemble Cast goes to John Boyega, Michael Kenneth Williams, Nicole Beharie, Connie Britton, Olivia Washington, and Selenis Leyva for 892

The Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award: U.S. Dramatic goes to K.D. Dávila for EMERGENCY

U.S. DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION

U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Documentary goes to THE EXILES, directed by Ben Klein and Violet Columbus

Directing Award: U.S. Documentary goes to Reid Davenport for I DIDN’T SEE YOU THERE

U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award: Impact for Change goes to AFTERSHOCK, directed by Paula Eiselt and Tonya Lewis Lee

U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award: Creative Vision goes to DESCENDANT, directed by Margaret Brown

Jonathan Oppenheim Editing Award: U.S. Documentary goes to Erin Casper and Jocelyne Chaput for FIRE OF LOVE.

A still from Fire of Love by Sara Dosa, an official selection of the U.S. Documentary Competition at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.

AUDIENCE AWARDS

Festival Favourite Award (selected across all 84 features screening at Sundance) goes to NAVALNY, directed by Daniel Poher

U.S. Dramatic goes to CHA CHA REAL SMOOTH, directed by Cooper Raiff

U.S. Documentary goes to NAVALNY, directed by Daniel Roher

World Cinema Dramatic goes to GIRL PICTURE, directed by Alli Haapasalo

World Cinema Documentary goes to THE TERRITORY, directed by Alex Pritz

WORLD CINEMA DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION

World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary goes to ALL THAT BREATHES, directed by Shaunak SenWorld Cinema

Documentary Special Jury Award: Documentary Craft goes to THE TERRITORY, directed by Alex Pritz

World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award: Excellence in Verité Filmmaking goes to MIDWIVES, directed by Snow Hnin Ei Hlaing

Directing Award: World Cinema Documentary goes to Simon Lereng Wilmont for A HOUSE MADE OF SPLINTERS

Salik Rehman appears in All That Breathes by Shaunak Sen, an official selection of the World Cinema: Documentary Competition at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Kiterabbit Films

WORLD CINEMA DRAMATIC COMPETITION

World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic goes to UTAMA, directed by Alejandro Loayza Grisi

Directing Award: World Cinema Dramatic goes to Maryna Er Gorbach for KLONDIKE

World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award: Innovative Spirit goes to LEONOR WILL NEVER DIE, directed by Martika Ramirez Escobar

World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award: Acting goes to Teresa Sánchez for DOS ESTACIONES.

NEXT COMPETITION SECTION

The NEXT Innovator Award recognizes the most cutting-edge and forward-thinking film screened in the NEXT category and goes to FRAMING AGNES directed by Chase Joynt

Audience Award: NEXT category goes to FRAMING AGNES directed by Chase Joynt

Zachary Drucker appears in Framing Agnes by Chase Joynt, an official selection of the NEXT section at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Ava Benjamin Shorr

SHORT FILM PROGRAM COMPETITION

Short Film Grand Jury Prize presented by XRM Media goes to THE HEADHUNTER’S DAUGHTER, directed by Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan.

Short Film Special Jury Award: Screenwriting presented by XRM Media goes to Sara Driver for STRANGER THAN ROTTERDAM WITH SARA DRIVER

Short Film Special Jury Award: Ensemble Cast presented by XRM Media goes to Zélia Duncan, Bruna Linzmeyer, Camila Rocha, Clarissa Ribeiro, and Lorre Motta for A WILD PATIENCE HAS TAKEN ME HERE.

Short Film Jury Award: Animation presented by XRM Media goes to NIGHT BUS, directed by Joe Hsieh

Short Film Jury Award: Nonfiction presented by XRM Media goes to DISPLACED, directed by Samir Karahoda

Short Film Jury Award: International Fiction goes to WARSHA, directed by Dania Bdeir

Short Film Jury Award: U.S. Fiction presented by XRM Media goes to IF I GO WILL THEY MISS ME, directed by Walter Thompson-Hernández.

Award-winning films will re-screen over the course of this final weekend of the festival.  If you are in the U.S., you can head to the Sundance site to buy individual tickets to screenings (they are unfortunately still geo-locked elsewhere).