LAFA Winners - May 2025

Best Picture

Freed - Jefferson Nali, Luciana Costa

Best Narrative Feature

Freed - Jefferson Nali, Luciana Costa

Best Narrative Short

Dysturbian Utopia - J'kari Calixte

Honorable Mention: Narrative Film

The Watcher - Sai Vivaswath Omkaram

Best Indie Feature

Freed - Jefferson Nali, Luciana Costa

Best Indie Short

BROKEN - Angelo Donzella, Maria Rosaria Scicchitano

Best Drama

Hibernation - Yinuo Li

Best AI Film

Flight - Marc Ruiz

Best Sci-Fi

Yours Interminably - Paolo Pagliacolo

Best Experimental Film

Proxy - Artem Skiy

Best Inspirational Film

The Child Within - Daniel Troia

Best Musical/Dance Film

Virtual Trading - Wei Ke Li

Best LGBTQ Film

Lost in San Francisco - Brett McCarl Thomas

Best Action Film

Blind Sided - Luis Valladares, Anis Cheurfa

Best Web/TV Pilot

Giggin' - Tom Claspill

Honorable Mention: Web/TV Pilot

The Drug Counselor - Crawford Banks

Best TV Series

Dating Positive (+) - Mustafa Mahdi, Indeya Dynice

Honorable Mention: TV Series

Chasing the Tide - Jay Kleberg, Chrissy Kleberg

Best Commercial

Break The Silence - Dax Phelan

Best Documentary

Jakarta Sinking - Andreas Bülow Hansen

Best Animation

Vibrantea - Emerson Tenney

Honorable Mention: Animation

Faith and the Christmas Star - Anne Trenning, Abby Davenport

Best Music Video

Thalias G Minor - Christina Mani, Yiannis Margetousakis

Honorable Mention: Music Video

Lights Out - Xinyue Wang

Best Student Film

UMBRA - Harrison Pfeiffer, Jay Heyman

Honorable Mention: Student Film

Reach for Me - Olivia Martinez-Prado

Best Microfilm

Flight - Marc Ruiz

Best Director

Dysturbian Utopia - J'kari Calixte

Best First Time Director (Feature)

Destiny's Race - Andrei Christian Bortica

Best First Time Director (Short)

Living With Grandma - Finise Avery

Best Young Filmmaker

Robbers - Kaitlyn Zilin Ip

Honorable Mention: Young Filmmaker

The Hometown of Chinese Paper - Heyuan Wei

Best Actor

The Caretaker - Ben Probert

Best Actress

The Caretaker - Mackenzie Larsen

Best Child Actor

Sideline - Allen Deng

Best Cinematography

Dysturbian Utopia - Jason Blount

Best Score

Faith and the Christmas Star - Anne Trenning

Inspiring Woman in a Film

Hibernation - Yang Yu

Best Original Story

In Case of Fire - Spencer Price Sherwin

Screenplay of the Month

The Lost Scout - Stephanie Parney, Nicholas Roy

Best Feature Screenplay

The Lost Scout - Stephanie Parney, Nicholas Roy

Honorable Mention: Feature Screenplay

Poseidon's Wrath - Victoria A. Mullen

Best Short Screenplay

Preying on Unicorns - Mac Bundick

Honorable Mention: Short Screenplay

The Silence Between Us - Devansh Saraf

Best Drama Screenplay

If I Killed a Man For You - Brian McGrath

Best Comedy Screenplay

Tomorrow's Dream - Justin Charles Gizzi

Best Horror Screenplay

The Clearing Eliza - Michael Losonczy

Best Action Screenplay

Tangerine - Kit Wilson

Best Sci-Fi Screenplay

Nowhere Man - Henry Sarwer-Foner

Best First Time Screenwriter (Feature)

String Lights - VP Boyle

Honorable Mention: First Time Screenwriter (Feature)

Macho Picchu - Noah Greenspan

Best First Time Screenwriter (Short)

Invasion of the Bobby Snatchers - Silvano Spagnuolo

Honorable Mention: First Time Screenwriter (Short)

Lost and Found - Joshua Kim

Best Television Script

Cafe Romeo - Alberto Diamante

Special Jury Award

Oliver, Again - Robert Benjamin

Freed Trailer

* Winners may order an official LAFA statuette

* Winners may order a review - FilmFreeway Gold members get $50 off