On reflection…
2022
With 6 days of events across 4 city centre venues, we were able to share over 130 short films & music videos across 15 screenings. We also hosted a number of networking and industry events, plus Q&A’s to our biggest audiences yet! It was a genuine pleasure to welcome you all to celebrate cinema here in the North East.
This was our 7th year of the festival and it is through you, the community of fantastic filmmakers and film lovers who continue to support us, that makes this event happen.
In 2022 we were overwhelmed with the outstanding selection of work submitted to us, and I wish we could have shared them all! The continued creativity and hard work we see in these films was truly inspiring. This year our winning films were:
- Art & Experimental – An Evening With Taglioni
- Music Video – Pit Pony: Supermarket
- Documentary – When I Die Let the Universe Burn
- Comedy – Metroland: Delivery Gulls
- Young, Emerging and Student – Rimi
- Animation – Candlelight
- Horror – Fishwife
- Drama – Bald
- Judges Recognition Award – Sliced Bread
- Audience Choice Award – Cuties
- North East Recognition Award – The Wilds
With Honourable Mentions to the teams behind Mortal, Born in Damascus, Close Knit, Better Than You, Toast, Doughnut and Checked Mates.
We’re immensely grateful to the University of Sunderland for supplying the cash prizes for our Young, Emerging and Student, Judges & Audience awards, plus Giggster for providing a £500 locations voucher for our North East Recognition winners.
I’d like to give a massive thank you to the staff at National Glass Centre, Sunderland City Hall, Pop Recs and EMPIRE Cinema Sunderland for kindly hosting our screenings and being so welcoming to us. My personal gratitude to the reviewers and festival assistants throughout this year’s event who helped keep everything ticking behind the scenes – Chris J Allan.
Thanks to our friends at Spark, The Crack, NARC and NE Volume for continually championing our events. This year we also hosted a gig from Lottie Willis, Eve Cole & Sara Leilah from the Young Musicians Project – huge credit to them for making that such a special night. And finally we’re incredibly thankful for the continued guidance and support from everyone at Sunderland City Council.