Justin Lerner’s coming of age story about a man with Down’s Syndrome, “Girlfriend,” won the jury award for best narrative feature and the “Best of the Fest” in the audience category at the 20th Woods Hole Film Festival. Also taking winning accolades was Laura Israel’s “Windfall,” taking the jury award for best documentary. The film centers on the rural town of Meredith, NY NY who grow increasingly alarmed as they discover the impacts that a proposed 400-foot high windmill farm could bring to their community.
“After 20 years it is still gratifying to promote the work of independent filmmakers who have wonderful stories to tell,” commented festival founder and Executive Director Judy Laster in a statement. “We were especially pleased this year to show the US festival premiere of Girlfriend, a film shot completely in Massachusetts and written and directed by a Massachusetts native.”
Woods Hole Film Festival winners with information provided by the festival.
Jury winners:
Jury Award for Best Narrative Feature: “Girlfriend” by Justin Lerner: A coming of age story shot entirely in Wayland, Massachusetts about a man with Down’s Syndrome that stars Evan Sneider, Jackson Rathbone, and Shannon Woodward.
Jury Award for Best Narrative Documentary: “Windfall” by Laura Israel, about the people in the rural town of Meredith, NY who grow increasingly alarmed as they discover the impacts that a proposed 400-foot high windmill farm could bring to their community.
Best Narrative Short: “Thief” by Julian Higgins, about an Iraqi goatherd whose childhood memories return when a mysterious stranger visits his isolated hut (USA).
Best Documentary Short: “The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement” by Robin Fryday and Gail Dolgin, which profiles an 85-year-old African American barber in Birmingham, Alabama, as he experiences the manifestation of the election of the first African American president (USA).
Best Animated Short: “Kidnap” by Sijia Luo, in which a chicken tells a highly imaginative story to explain his tardiness to school (USA).
The complete list of Audience Award winners includes:
Best of the Fest: “Girlfriend” by Justin Lerner (USA)
Best Narrative Feature, Comedy: “Calendar Girl” by Derek Lindeman (USA)
Best Narrative Feature, Dramatic: “As If I’m Not There” by Juanita Wilson (Ireland, Sweden, Macedonia)
Best Documentary Feature: “Circus Dreams” by Signe Taylor (USA)
Best Dramatic Short: “Thief” by Julian Higgins (USA)
Best Comedy Short: “Morning Copy” by Dan Martino (USA)
Best Documentary Short: “WildWater” by Anson Fogel (USA)
Best Animated Short: “Bait” by Michael Moore (USA)
[For more information, visit the festival’s website.
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