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| Location | Vienna, Austria | 
|---|---|
| Website | vienna-film-festival | 
VIFF Vienna Independent Film Festival is an international film festival held annually in July in Vienna, capital of Austria. The festival focuses on independent cinema.
History
The Vienna Independent Film Festival was held for the first time on 4–7 July 2016 in the cinemas UCI Kinowelt Millenium City and CineCenter. The festival program consisted of 38 films from 14 countries in international competition. Opening film of the festival was God of Happiness by Dito Tsintsadze who won the Best Director award. Grand Prix of the festival – The Golden Sphinx – was awarded to the Konkani film Let's dance to the rhythm directed by Bardroy Barretto. Graham Streeter received the Best Feature Film award for his film Imperfect Sky. The award for Best Documentary Film was awarded to Violins of Hope: Strings of the Holocaust narrated by Adrien Brody and directed by Lance Shultz.
Winners

2023
[1] Grand Prix
- The Whirlpool — Directed by Denis Kryuchkov
 
Best Feature Film
- W — Directed by Anna Eriksson
 
Best Short Film Director
- Deirdre Lorenz — Return to New York
 
Best Feature Film
- Graham Streeter — Unfix
 
Best Original Screenplay
- 8-Ball — Original Screenplay by Adrien Marquet
 
Best Short Film
- Have a Nice Apocalypse — Directed by Dávid Géczy
 
Best Documentary Film
- My Two Lives — Directed by Sarita Gold
 
Best Experimental Film
- Little Planet 7406 — Directed by Goran Šporčić
 
Best Song
- Fearless — Music by J Edna Mae
 
Best Music Video
- Vampire — Directed by Persia White
 
Best Actor
- Wolfgang Cerny (The Whirlpool)
 
Best Art Direction
- An Occurrence — Directed by Dien Vo
 
Best Editing
- Touching Moon — Edited by Sophia Liu
 
Best Cinematography
- La Pietra — Cinematography by Michael Bradley
 
Best Film Score
- W — Film Score by Anna Eriksson
 
Best Unproduced Script
- Stay With Me — Written by Zsolt Pozsgai
 
2022
[2] Grand Prix
- Playing Through – directed by Balbinka Korzeniowska
 
Best Feature Film
- Playing Through – directed by Balbinka Korzeniowska
 
Best Director
- Balbinka Korzeniowska – Playing Through
 
Best Short Film
- Živa (The Death of the Goddess Živa) – directed by Nataša Stearns
 
Best Music video
- Frozen Heart – directed by Nina Guseva
 
Best Documentary Film
- Ballymanus – directed by Patrick Sharkey, Séan Doupe
 
Best Experimental Film
- Blue Delusion – directed by Guan Fang
 
Best Musical Film
- Big Boss – directed by Keke Palmer[3]
 
Best Comedy Film
- Hot Mess by Evelyne Tollman
 
Best Animated Film
- Me and My Winter Games-Perfect Holiday – directed by Haoling Lee, Ming Zhong, Zhe Zhang, Liwen Wang
 
Best Actress
- Julia Rae – Playing Through
 
Best Actor
- Brandon Sklenar – Futra Days
 
Best Supporting Actress
- Rosanna Arquette – Futra Days
 
Best Film Score
- Long Flat Balls “Broken Promises” – music by Zach Robinson
 
Best Song
- Molly’s Rainbow – by Katie Hardyman
 
Best Cinematography
- Other Side of the Mountain – directed by Markus Otz
 
Best Screenplay
- JIZO-Evangelist – written and directed by Tokoroten Nakamura
 
Best Art Direction
- The Violin and its Shadow – directed by Greg Babalas
 
Best Unproduced Script
- The Faerie Rings – written by Zina Brown
 
Honorary Mention for Social Impact
- Change of Course – directed by Andreas Ortner[4]
 
2020
Grand Prix
- Grand Cancan — Directed by Mikhail Kosyrev-Nesterov[5]
 
Best Feature Film
- Between Pain and Amen — Directed by Toma Enache
 
Best Director
- Great Poetry (Aleksandr Lungin)
 
Best Original Screenplay
- Laugh or Die — Original Screenplay by Heikki Kujanpää
 
Best Short Film
- To Her — Directed by Jacopo Ardolino
 
Best Documentary Film
- Armenia(s), Time for Artists — Directed by Anahit Dasseux Ter Mesropian and David Vital-Durand
 
Best Experimental Film
- Our Turn — Directed by Martiros Vartanov
 
Best Music Video
- Champagne Drag Queen — Directed by Anna Haslehner
 
Best Actor
- Martti Suosalo (Laugh or Die)
 
Best Supporting Actor
Best Cinematography
- Grand Cancan — Cinematography by Dmitriy Ulyukaev
 
2019
Grand Prix
- Doing Money — Directed by Lynsey Miller
 
Best Feature Film
- M — Directed by Anna Eriksson
 
Best Director
- Doing Money (Lynsey Miller)
 
Best Original Screenplay
- Murder on the Road to Kathmandu — Original Screenplay by Rupalee Verma
 
Best Short Film
- Dark like the Night. Karenina-2019 — Directed by Radda Novikova
 
Best Documentary Film
- Three Scenes of a Wedding — Directed by Jason Tovey
 
Best Experimental Film
- Fragmented Dreams — Directed by Tonatiuh Garcia
 
Best Music Video
- Theresa's Groove — Directed by Aleksey Igudesman
 
Best Actor
- Atul Kulkarni (Murder on the Road to Kathmandu)
 
Best Supporting Actor
- Konstantin Khabensky (Dark like the Night. Karenina-2019)
 
Best Art Direction
- The Lossen — Directed Colin Skevington
 
Best Cinematography
- M — Cinematography by Matti Pyykkö
 
Best Film Score
- Hinge — Film score by Diana Ringo
 
2018
Grand Prix
- I May Regret — Directed by Graham Streeter
 
Best Feature Film
- NO-ONE — Directed by Lev Prudkin, Vladimir Prudkin
 
Best Director
- I May Regret (Graham Streeter)
 
Best Original Screenplay
- Rosemarie — Original Screenplay by Adonis Floridis
 
Best Short Film
- Father of the Man — Directed by Tommy Creagh
 
Best Documentary Film
- Ballad of a Righteous Merchant — Directed by Herbert Golder
 
Best Experimental Film
- Ghosts on the Road to Camalt — Directed by Jason Tovey
 
Best Music Video
- The Sea — Directed by Hisanori Tsukuda
 
Best Actor
- Danny Glover (Buckout Road)
 
Best Cinematography
- NO-ONE — Cinematography by Ziv Berkovich, David Stragmeister
 
Special Jury Prize
- Krieg — Directed by Jeff Fry
 
2017
Grand Prix (The Golden Sphinx)
- Million Loves In Me — Directed by Sampson Yuen
 
Best Feature Film
- Platonov — Directed by Andreas Morell[6]
 
Best Director
Best Original Screenplay
- Million Loves in Me — Original Screenplay by John Yiu, Tiong Wooi LIM, Jeremy Tan
 
Best Short Film
- Forgiveness — Directed by Rima Irani
 
Best Documentary Film
- Chasing Stars — Directed by Markus Eichenberger
 - The Writer with No Hands — Directed by William Westaway
 
Best Experimental Film
- Je Suis Le Ténébreux — Directed by Rank Amateur, Christopher Chaplin
 
Best Music Video
- Nara - alt-J — Directed by Jasmin Selen Heinz
 
Best Actor
- John Yiu (Million Loves in Me)
 
Best Supporting Actor
- Babak Hamidian (Bodyguard)
 
Best Art Direction
- Bodyguard — Directed by Ebrahim Hatamikia
 
Best Cinematography
- Platonov — Cinematography by Felix Cramer
 
2016
Grand Prix (The Golden Sphinx)
Best Feature Film
- Imperfect Sky — Directed by Graham Streeter
 
Best Director
Best Original Screenplay
- The Closer — Original Screenplay by Eli Hershko & Isaac Broyn
 
Best Short Film
- After Truth — Directed by Nicolas Ehret
 
Best Animated Film
- “Parade” de Satie — Directed by Kōji Yamamura
 
Best Documentary Film
Best Experimental Film
- The Calling — Directed by Chris Boyd
 
Best Music Film
- Let's dance to the rhythm — Directed by Bardroy Barretto
 
Best Music Video
- Tiësto / The Chainsmokers - Split — Directed by Joe Zohar
 
Best Actor
- Blake Lewis (Imperfect Sky)
 
Best Supporting Actor
- Robert Berlin (The Closer)
 
Best Art Direction
- After Truth — Directed by Nicolas Ehret
 - Let's Dance to the Rhythm — Directed by Bardroy Barretto
 
Best Cinematography
- God of Happiness — Cinematography by Ralf M. Mendle
 
Director Graham Streeter and producer Alex Lebosq presenting their film "Imperfect Sky" at the VIFF 2016
Director Bardroy Barretto receiving his Grand Prix for the film "Let's dance to the Rhythm" at the VIFF 2016
Fashion designer La Hong Nhut and director Rima Irani at the VIFF 2017
Director Sarah Scherer presenting her film "Golden Shot" at the VIFF 2017
Actor John Yiu and producer Kenny Chan presenting their film "Million Loves in Me" at the VIFF 2017
Director Andreas Morell and cinematographer Felix Cramer presenting their film "Platonov" at the VIFF 2017
See also
References
- ↑ "VIFF 2023 Gewinner". Meinbezirk.
 - ↑ "Vienna Independent Film Festival 2022: The Complete Winners List". Indie Cinema Magazine.
 - ↑ "Keke Palmer wins major film award in Vienna". Official Black Magazine.
 - ↑ "Auszeichnung in Wien für Ortners Regiedebüt". MeinBezirk.
 - ↑ "Russian film wins Grand Prix at Vienna Film Festival". Russkiy Mir.>
 - ↑ "ZDF/3sat-Produktion "Platonow" mit drei Preisen ausgezeichnet". 3sat.
 - ↑ "Hatamikia's 'Bodyguard' Collects Three Awards at Austrian Festival". Financial Tribune.
 - ↑ "Iran's 'Bodyguard' wins top prizes at VIFF 2017". Mehr News Agency.
 - ↑ ""The Bodyguard" secures three awards at Vienna film festival". Tehran Times.
 - ↑ "'Violins of Hope: Strings of the Holocaust' Named VIFF 2016 Best Documentary". Ideastream.
 - ↑ "PBS to air local filmmaker's 'Violins of Hope' documentary". The Review.
 - ↑ "Violins of Hope". WMHT.
 
