Mexican-American Film Takes Top Honor at Sheffield DocFest 2022

During the awards ceremony on the final day of Sheffield DocFest 2022, the best film award in the international competition was presented to Sansón and Me, directed by Rodrigo Reyes.

The documentary sees Reyes connect with Sansón, a Mexican migrant sentenced to life in prison. “The filmmaker chooses to explore a subject matter which is all too often invisible and neglected: the incarceration of immigrants in the U.S.,” said Emma Davie, Ike Nnaebue and Raymond Phathanavirangoon, members of the jury for the award.

They continued, “By collaborating with the young protagonist to find an innovative filmic language to evolve the socio-economic circumstances behind his desperation, the filmmaker allows us to empathize with a personal narrative beyond the law.”

Special mentions in the category were given to One Day in Ukraine (Ukraine, Poland, 2022), from Volodymyr Tykhyy, and After the End of the World (Lebanon, 2022), from Nadim Mishlawi.

The best first feature award was presented to Master of Light (U.S., Netherlands, 2022), from Rosa Ruth Boesten. The film follows artist George Anthony Morton, who, after a decade in prison, returns home to reconcile with his family and grapple with past traumas.

The jury, Roman Bondarchuk, Nainita Desai and Natasha Gadd, said, “The jury commends the film for its bold and fearless vision in creating an intimate portrait of artist George Anthony Morton and his personal and artistic journey to reconcile his past through his art. The documentary, like George’s paintings, is a fully rendered canvas, shining light on the shadows cast by systemic racism and the resulting intergenerational trauma by drawing on technical craft and lived experience to reveal deep personal, political and artistic histories.”

Special mention was given to Julie on Line (France, 2021) by Mia Ma.

Fawley (U.K., 2022) by Chu-Li Shewring and Adam Gutch, which explores the environs of the soon-to-be demolished Fawley Power Station, received the best short film award.

“This is a distinctive and beautifully crafted exploration of the intersection of nature, architecture and the human experience,” said the jury, Zeynep Güzel, Cherish Oteka and Saskia Wilson. “Bringing together the many voices involved in the landscape—power plant workers, bird watchers, local people and the creatures inhabiting the space—the film is a powerful poetic reflection on the psychological role of our surroundings and our symbiotic relationship with nature. It is fantastically detailed, from observing the beauty in the Brutalist architecture to the tiny minnows swimming in the shallows, the film connects the audience with a range of universal themes such as ‘power’ structures, preserving nature and the impact we leave on our environment.”

Calling Cabral (Guinea-Bissau, Portugal, Brazil, 2022) by Welket Bungué received special mention.

The Tim Hetherington award, which recognizes a film and filmmaker that best reflects the legacy of photojournalist and filmmaker Tim Hetherington, was presented to LYRA (U.K., 2021) by Alison Millar. Millar’s film provides an uncompromising portrait of Lyra McKee, the 29-year-old Northern Irish investigative journalist who was murdered by the New IRA.

“For its celebration of a short but hugely inspiring life and career, devoted to fearless and independent journalism, LGBTQIA+ equality and the rights and dignity of the disadvantaged, for the loving and painstaking craft of a film that celebrates a level of courage and selflessness in journalism which evokes that of Tim Hetherington, the jury is unanimous in offering the award to LYRA,” Elena Cosentino, Akuol de Mabior and Philippe Sands QC, the jury, said.

Special mention was given to The Territory (Brazil, Denmark, U.S., 2022) by Alex Pritz.

The Sound Voice Project, created by Hannah Conway (U.K., 2021), received the alternate realities award, which is given to the best innovative non-fiction work. The project is an installation exploring powerful stories of voice loss and identity that features immersive, surround-sound and audiovisual settings.

The jury, Dr. Rob Eagle, Shehani Fernando and Irini Papadimitriou, said, “This beautifully crafted installation packs an emotional punch and demonstrates the power of co-creation with long-term collaborators. Drawing on the firsthand experiences of people who have lost their voices, Hannah Conway manages to unite moving operatic compositions with a restrained use of triptych staging. The innovative format pushes the boundaries of how the medium of song can express stories about the resilience of the human condition.”

Special mention in the alternate realities competition was given to The Acquisitions Panel by Rachel Briscoe.

The youth jury award went to Alis (Colombia, Romania, Chile, 2022), from Nicolas van Hemelryck and Clare Weiskopf. The documentary sees teenagers in Colombia conjure up a classmate named Alis, who manifests their concerns and desire to break the cultural cycle of violence.

“Alis embodies our values as jurors, taking both a playful and deeply sensitive approach to contemporary youth culture,” said Emma Morgan-Bennett, Esme Haddrill Selman, Hannah Jackson, Mie Murasa and Xaymaca Awoyungbo, the jury, who curated a selection of seven films to be considered. “Like Clare’s and Nicolas’ observations of their subjects, this film is also a light face in a dark world.”

Four Journeys (Netherlands, China, 2021) by Louis Hothothot received special mention.

The Sheffield DocFest audience award for film went to A Bunch of Amateurs by Kim Hopkins, while the audience award for alternate realities went to Santa Barbara by Diana Markosian. Audiences cast their votes at cinemas and venues throughout the festival.

Three pitch sessions also took place over the course of the festival, giving emerging directors the chance to pitch their non-fiction projects to panels of judges.

The Whiskers Pitch, with a prize of £100,000 ($120,000) was awarded to Our Hoolocks co-directors Chinmoy Sonowal & Ragini Nath (Liminal Picture Production, India). The runner-up prize of £20,000 ($24,000) went to Re-Evaluation director Toby Bull (Snowstorm Productions, U.K.).

The Channel 4 First Cut Pitch was won by Ben Cheetham, securing a commission for a 60-minute film and one month of fully paid development and mentorship with an independent producer to further develop the idea or one put forward by the indie, paid for by Channel 4.

The winner of the BBC Three Northern Docs Pitch will be announced at a later date.