Movies Watch & Listen

AIFF 2024 WINNERS

AIFF 2024 WINNERS official release

We’re down to the last few days of the fantastic festival, and amidst all the screenings, workshops and panels the #AIFF team held ceremonies to present the 2024 Atlantic International Film Festival awards. What follows is the official press release announcing the AIFF 2024 winners…

PRESS RELEASE

(Halifax, NS) – The 44th edition of the Atlantic International Film Festival (AIFF) is pleased to announce its 2024 AIFF Atlantic Award winners.

Best Atlantic Short Documentary
Presented by 902 Post, the winner of this award will receive $1,500 in-kind support from 902 Post, $1000 in-kind from Sunbelt, $500 cash prize and membership from DOC Atlantic. 
Winner: welima’q
Directed by shalan joudry

Best Atlantic Short Documentary welima’q

Best Atlantic Short Animation
Presented by the Atlantic International Film Festival, the winner of this award will receive a $500 cash prize from the Atlantic International Film Festival and a complimentary 2025 AIFF Festival Pass. 
Winner: BLOODY MESS
Directed by Megan Wennberg

Best Atlantic Short Animation BLOODY MESS(1)

Best Atlantic Short
Presented by 902 Post and Sunbelt Rentals, the winner of this award will receive $1,500 in-kind from 902 Post and $10,000 in-kind from Sunbelt Rentals.
Winner: PEARLS
Directed by Mike Simms

Best Atlantic Short PEARLS

Joan Orenstein Award for Outstanding Performance
Presented by Sky Talent Group, the winner of this award will receive a $1,000 cash prize. 
Winner: Mary-Colin Chisholm, THE KITCHEN SINK

WINNER Mary-Colin Chisholm, THE KITCHEN SINK

David Renton Award for Outstanding Performance
Presented by Sky Talent Group, the winner of this award will receive a $1,000 cash prize.
Winner: Sean Dalton, SKEET
Honourable Mention: Polly Gallant-McLean, MONICA’S NEWS

Best Atlantic Editor
Presented by Canadian Cinema Editors, the winner of this award will receive a $500 cash prize and a one-year membership to Canadian Cinema Editors.
Winner: Kim McTaggart, MONICA’S NEWS

Best Atlantic Editor Winner Kim McTaggart, MONICA’S NEWS

Best Atlantic Original Score 
Winner: Siobhan Martin, LAKEVIEW

Best Atlantic Original Score Winner Siobhan Martin, LAKEVIEW

Best Atlantic Cinematographer
Winner: Nigel Markham, SKEET

Best Atlantic Cinematographer
Winner: Nigel Markham, SKEET

The Michael Weir Award for Best Atlantic Screenwriter
Winner: Melanie OatesSWEET ANGEL BABY

The Michael Weir Award for Best Atlantic Screenwriter
Winner: Melanie Oates, SWEET ANGEL BABY

DGC Award for Best Atlantic Documentary 
Presented by the Directors Guild of Canada, the winner of this award will receive a $2,000 cash prize
Winner: SEGURIDAD
Directed by Tamara Segura

Winner: SEGURIDAD
Directed by Tamara Segura

DGC Award for Best Atlantic Director 
Presented by the Director’s Guild of Canada, the winner of this award will receive a $2,000 cash prize.
Winner: Jason Buxton, SHARP CORNER

DGC Award for Best Atlantic Director Winner Jason Buxton, SHARP CORNER

The Gordon Parsons Award for Best Atlantic Feature
Presented by the Atlantic International Film Festival, the winner of this award will receive a $2,000 cash prize. 
Winner: SHARP CORNER
Directed by Jason Buxton
Produced by Paul Barkin, Marc Tetreault, Jason Levangie

Best Atlantic Feature Winner_ SHARP CORNER

The Atlantic International Film Festival is proud to be offering a free public screening of multiple award-winning film SHARP CORNER to celebrate its win for The Gordon Parsons Award for Best Atlantic Feature. This encore screening will take place on Wednesday, September 18, 5:15PM at Cineplex Park Lane, with director Jason Buxton in attendance for a Q&A.

All AIFF Atlantic Award winners were selected by Atlantic Short Film jury members Claire Peace-McConnell, Stewart Young, and Desmond Simon, and Atlantic Feature Film jury members Deanne Foley, Noah Pink, and Victoria Dabbs.

Claire Peace-McConnell is Head of Public Relations and Canadian Content Development at VVS where she is responsible for identifying and acquiring Canadian projects for distribution and development, and for overseeing the strategy for all VVS releases in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Recent Canadian releases include Christian Sparkes’ AIFF 2023 award-winning The King Tide.
 
Desmond Simon, hailing from Elsipogtog First Nation, living in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Simon’s Indigenous production company brings captivating visual narratives to life, while championing cultural representation on screen. His recent documentaryMitata – Grandfather screened at AIFF 2023, where it won the award for Best Atlantic Cinematographer.
 
Stewart Young is an independent producer/creative consultant based in Halifax. He worked for 37 years with CBC in daily journalism, music programming, and documentaries for all platforms. He held many leadership roles within CBC, including Executive Producer of numerous regional and national programs. He continues to focus on program development, creative collaboration and mentorship.
 
Deanne Foley is an award-winning Canadian feature film & TV director/writer, best known for the critically acclaimed feature film AN AUDIENCE OF CHAIRS and as a director on SON OF A CRITCH and HUDSON & REX. Deanne was awarded BMO Artist of the Year by Arts NL in 2015 and the 2020 WAVE award for Vision & Leadership by Women in Film Television-Atlantic.
 
Noah Pink is a writer and director born and raised in Halifax. Pink got his start directing music videos for East Coast musicians Rich Aucoin, Hey Rosetta! and Old Man Luedecke. His most recent film EDEN, directed by Ron Howard and starring Jude Law, Ana De Armas, Sydney Sweeney, Vanessa Kirby and Daniel Brühl, premiered at TIFF in 2024. TETRIS, which Pink wrote on spec, premiered at SXSW in 2023 and was released by Apple, and GENIUS, a series starring Geoffrey Rush, was Emmy-nominated for Outstanding Limited Series. Pink is currently developing KOJAK with Vin Diesel and Universal Studios. 
 
Victoria Dabbs is a lead producer at one of New Zealand’s top production companies, Firefly Films. Victoria co-produced Ant Timpson’s award-winning BOOKWORM (2024), starring Elijah Wood and Michael Smiley, and is in pre-production on Nathalie Boltt’s debut feature HOLY DAYS. Previously, Victoria line produced films and TV series across Europe, Asia, and Australasia. She is currently in development on the NZ/Scottish co-production television series, Nocturnal.

Prizes were generously provided by our partners and supporters. Visit atlanticfilmfestival.ca for all the #AIFF2024 details.

While you’re here give a listen to our 2024 Atlantic International Film Festival Special edition of SEA AND BE SCENE… And HEARD featuring this year’s winner for Best Screenplay – Melanie Oates. LISTEN

Atlantic International Film Festival 2024 podcast

About the author

Stephanie Beaumont

Storyteller/Creative Director/Producer/Host/Writer/Marketer/Designer/Dreamer/Coffee Lover/Movie Maniac/Red Sox Fan

Add Comment

Click here to post a comment

Leave a Reply

CHECK THIS OUT…

CHESTER RACE WEEK

Chester Race Week

“We reached out to Stephanie just a few weeks before Chester Race Week, hoping she could help us with our social media, and she jumped right in. She came up with some very creative reels and produced content that was polished, professional, and fun, elevating our online presence. She brought great energy and enthusiasm, knew exactly what we needed, and exceeded our expectations. Stephanie was a real pleasure to work with, and we’re so grateful for the excellent work she delivered for Race Week.”

Kim Johnson

Chester Race Week

Got Your Back Apparel

“Launching a brand comes with hundreds of boxes to tick, and Stephanie helped us focus on what truly mattered. She didn’t feel like a consultant — she felt like an owner, fully invested and growing the company right alongside us. From marketing and promotions to our online shop and in-person markets, she brought clarity, momentum, and confidence at every step. Her passion, attention to detail, and genuine belief in what we were building made all the difference. I highly recommend working with her!”

Donald Ferguson

President, Owner Got Your Back Apparel
ROCK THE FIDDLE

Rock the Fiddle

“We were thinking about launching our inaugural festival when we realized we had no social media, or even a website. We figured we would have to delay our launch to get it sorted. We contacted Stephanie Beaumont and within 24 hours we had full social media presence, a landing page and the structure for our website, and she even created our graphic branding which will live on as our permanent festival brand. More impressive than that, within 5 days under Stephanie’s social media management, we had over 1000 followers on our event page. We contracted Stephanie to manage our social media leading up to our event and she was a rock star! We simply couldn’t have done it without her.”

Stephen Antle

Co-Creator/Co-Producer, Rock the Fiddle Events

South Shore Tourism Cooperative

“It was a true pleasure working with Stephanie to create visitsouthshore.ca. Stephanie’s unique ability to weave business details into stories creates a picture in the mind of the would-be travel that has them standing on Nova Scotia’s South Shore while still seated at home planning their visit.

Stephanie writes with enthusiasm and delight that can be felt in each word she puts on the page. When the task at hand is to create not only the want to travel but to ensure the destination is chosen as THE spot to travel to, Stephanie’s ability to create an emotional connection and to elicit memories was a perfect fit.

Stephanie’s level of understanding allows her to look at the site from the visitor, the organization and the businesses being represented points of view. She kept us focused on our concept while ensuring the fun flag was always waving!

Stephanie was a true joy to work with and we appreciate the continued relationship! We can’t imagine telling Nova Scotia’s South Shore story without her.”

Stephanie Miller Vincent

South Shore Tourism Cooperative

Lunenburg Board of Trade

“Working with Stephanie on our Shop Local campaign was an absolute dream! She was full of creative ideas, professional guidance, and the work she did was always, always top-notch.

She answered every silly question I had and really took the time to explain the why’s behind everything and make sure I understood the process. We now have a fully formed marketing campaign that can be easily rolled out in future years thanks to Stephanie’s fantastic work.

In addition to the quality work she produces, she’s also got a wonderful, enthusiastic personality and is a blast to work with! – I’d absolutely recommend her to anyone looking for help with a variety of marketing and design needs –  and I hope to be able to work with her again in the future.”

Renea Babineau

Executive Director, Lunenburg Board of Trade

The Year Round Vegetable Gardener

“Jumping from radio and writing into TV was both fun and easy with the experienced guidance of Stephanie from Rae of Hope Productions.

She crafted a high-quality pilot that received rave reviews from gardeners across Canada and the US who tuned in to hone their gardening skills. She’s professional, creative, knowledgeable, and most of all, enthusiastic, which made me comfortable every step of the way.”

Niki Jabbour

Wharf Rat Rally Association

“Stephanie was wonderful to work with – full of exuberance, yet professional and focused. Her preparation ahead of time made filming easy and enjoyable, and the end result was loved by our whole Board of Directors.

With her guidance and expertise, the entire project ran on time, on budget, and with no stress at all.

Thank you, Stephanie!”

Laura Simmons

Wharf Rat Rally Association

Tourism Chester

“Stephanie led the Tourism Chester program for us for a little over two years helping us build it from the ground up.

She was a great addition to the team, bringing an incredible amount of energy and creativity to the role and was always coming up with new and innovative ideas to expand the program.”

Erin Lowe

Economic Development Officer, Municipality of Chester

The Chester Playhouse Theatre

“What a wonderful experience I had in working with Stephanie. When The Chester Playhouse suspended programming due to the pandemic, we were faced with a dark stage – a cancelled season and no way to entertain our audience. However, like us, Stephanie knew the show must go on so she suggested we host our very own radio program and as a result, The Chester Playhouse Radio Show was created! Not only did Stephanie do the research, write, and produce the 2-hour weekly broadcast – she jumped on to co-host with me. The 9-week campaign allowed us to reach our loyal patrons, grow our audience, and thank our generous sponsors all while keeping the Chester Playhouse Theatre brand centre stage in our community. It was truly fun and oh so fortuitous!”

Roma Dingwell

Chester Playhouse Theatre

Digby Area Learning Association

“It was an absolute pleasure to work with Stephanie while developing a new website for our organization. Stephanie’s enthusiasm, creativity, and ability to accurately envision our needs was a huge plus.  It was apparent that customer satisfaction is a top priority for Stephanie as she worked very diligently to ensure that the final result met our expectations.

I can easily say that they not only met expectations but exceeded them. She took the extra steps to make sure we understood the concepts of marketing, branding, and communication, and I feel I learned a lot from her in a very lot from her in a short period of time.  I would certainly recommend Stephanie Beaumont and her company, Rae of Hope Productions for any of your marketing needs.”

Charles Cranton, CPA

Executive Director, Digby Area Learning Association

DOODLE Lovely

“I LOVE working with Stephanie, as she is incredibly creative, has amazing energy, and when she says she is going to do something she does!

Stephanie helped me focus and create some awesome marketing strategies that increased engagement and provided diverse public exposure! I have total confidence in Stephanie and know anyone that works with her will be lucky to experience her incredible talents and her very lovely personality!” 

Melissa Lloyd

Doodle Lovely Founder

The Village Emporium

“Working with Stephanie is a dream!
We asked for the full service of creativity and copy for our social media accounts and she quickly delivered.
We are so happy with what was delivered!
5 star rating!”

 

Angela Kitching

Co-Owner of The Village Emporium Chester NS

Discover more from Stephanie Beaumont

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading