Short of the Week
A little more than a month ago we opened up our first stand-alone competition in over a decade. The Unsanctioned Shorts Competition was a call for work from filmmakers who have difficulty submitting to festivals and competitions due to economic sanctions against their countries.
We don’t think artists should be held responsible for the actions of nations, and we hoped the initiative could provide a welcome spotlight on deserving filmmakers while serving as an excuse to expose ourselves to creative voices from regions we don’t frequently encounter.
We have had success on both fronts. We want to thank the hundreds of filmmakers who shared their work with us, it’s been a pleasure viewing your films! As a programming team, we whittled this number down to a shortlist and, after internal deliberations, came to a decision on a winner. Now, we want to share that film with you.
The Unsanctioned Winner
Congratulations to Nikita! Short of the Week’s Editor-in-Chief, Jason Sondhi on the winner:
“Exhibiting a mastery of his craft, Grushin, through photographic and editing techniques, is able to construct a remarkable sensory experience, placing the viewer in the headspace of someone thinking the unthinkable. In doing so, Grushin engages our shared humanity and transmits a hopeful message that, though there is horror in the world, beauty is the solution. We’re very pleased to acknowledge “Fireworks” as the winner of the contest.”
As the winner, Fireworks features on the site today as an official selection and on our YouTube channel. Nikita also receives a 1 year PRO membership to Shortverse. In addition, via our partner WeTransfer, Nikita will receive a 1-year membership of their PRO service, as well as placement as one of their “Wallpapers” which reach 80M+ visitors monthly.