Sedona News – The Sedona International Film Festival proudly announced the 2025 award winners, celebrating outstanding achievements in independent film, screenwriting, and storytelling across multiple genres and categories. This year’s festival brought together visionary filmmakers and passionate audiences in one of the country’s most beautiful settings for cinema, culminating in a powerful celebration of creativity, community, and craft.
Directors’ Choice Awards
Short Films:
Best Short – Drama: The Last Ranger
Best Short – Comedy: Death Pays Flora a Visit
Best Short – Dramedy: Camping in Paradise
Best International Short: Hearts of Stone
Best Student Short: Neither Donkey Nor Horse
Best Humanitarian Short: Room Taken
The Lavender Award: Buscando Alma
Best Indie Spirit Short: Once More, Like Rain Man
Best Environmental Short: Two Breaths
Most Innovative Short: Stalled in Eight Etudes
Programmers’ Choice: Polemos
Documentary Shorts:
Best Documentary Short: Then Comes the Body
Best Environmental Documentary Short: Planetwalker
Most Inspirational Documentary Short: A Swim Lesson
Best Indie Spirit Documentary Short: We Exist in Memory
Documentary Features:
Best Documentary: Zurawski v Texas
Best International Documentary: Mistress Dispeller
Best Environmental Documentary: As the Tide Comes In
Most Inspirational Documentary: Into the Heart of the Mountain
Best Indie Spirit Documentary: A Photographic Memory
Best Non-Fiction Storytelling: Wishing on a Star
Best Investigative Documentary: Hacking Hate
Narrative Features:
Best Feature – Drama: Waltzing Matilda
Best Feature – Comedy: Bad Shabbos
Best International Feature: Amal
Best Humanitarian Feature: My Motherland
Best Indie Spirit Feature: Paper Flowers
Most Impactful Film: Shattered Ice
Most Inspirational Film: Sheepdog
Most Transformational Film: Lena and Vladimir
Best Ensemble Cast: Sweetwater
Screenplay Awards
Best TV Pilot Screenplay: American Import by Steven Shehori
Best Feature Screenplay: Float Me Up by Daniel Talbott
Best Short Screenplay: Phillip by Jaimy Rose
Special Recognition Awards
Marion Herrman Award for Excellence in Filmmaking: Resilient Man
Heart of the Festival Award: Michael Fallavollita
Festival Superstar Award: Chris Mixon
Audience Choice Awards
Best Short (TIE): A Guest in My Country and Belief
Best Student Short: Bat Boy
Best Animated Short: Tomorrow
Best Documentary Short: The Final Copy of Ilon Specht
Best Documentary Feature: Between the Mountain and the Sky
Best International Documentary Feature: Finding Musana
Best Feature Drama: Sheepdog
Best Feature Comedy: Do Us Part
Best International Film: Never Alone
Best of Fest Narrative: Sheepdog
Best of Fest Documentary: Blind AF
Special Awards
Outstanding Actor: Stephen Lang
Lifetime Achievement Award: Diane Baker
Career Achievement Award: Jeremy Piven
About the Sedona International Film Festival: The Sedona International Film Festival is one of the premier cultural events in the Southwest, celebrating the power of independent film to inform, inspire, and entertain. Recognized as one of the “25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World” by MovieMaker Magazine, the Festival brings together filmmakers, audiences, and industry professionals in the stunning red rock setting of Sedona, Arizona. With a commitment to year-round programming and a deep love for storytelling, SIFF continues to be a vibrant platform for cinematic excellence.
For more information about the Sedona International Film Festival and to view highlights or future submission guidelines, visit www.sedonafilmfestival.org. and to view highlights or future submission guidelines, visit www.sedonafilmfestival.org.
