‘Retirement Plan’ crowned best of fest at Palm Springs International ShortFest

The Palm Springs International ShortFest, one of the largest short film festivals and the first stop on the campaign trail for Oscar-qualifying shorts, announced its winners today, including director John Kelly's Retirement Plan, which was named "best of the festival" and received a $5,000 cash prize.

Awards were also given for best animated short, best documentary short, and best live-action short, as well as student shorts.

Over 300 films were part of the official selection at the festival, which ran from June 24-30. The winners of the five Oscar-qualifying awards are eligible to submit their shorts for Academy Award consideration.

The complete list of winners includes:

Best of the Festival Award
Winner: Retirement Plan, Directed by John Kelly
Special Mention for Best Director: Passarinho, Directed by Natalia García Agraz
Special Mention for Best Acting: Beyond Silence, Directed by Marnie Blok
   
Best Animated Short
Winner: Budō (Sweden), Directed by Amanda Aagard and Alexander Toma
Special Mention: The Little Ancestor (Canada), Directed by Alexa Tremblay-Francoeur
   
Best Documentary Short
Winner: Shanti Rides Shotgun (USA), Directed by Charles Frank
Special Mention: One Day I Will Hug You (Palestine/Sweden/Qatar), Directed by Mohammed Fares Al Majdalawi
   
Best Live-Action Short Over 15 Minutes
Winner: Susana (Mexico/USA), Directed by Amandine Thomas and Gerardo Coello Escalante
Special Mention: Nervous Energy (USA), Directed by Eve Liu
  
Best Live-Action Short 15 Minutes and Under   
Winner: Medusa (USA), Directed by Sarah Meyohas
Special Mention: Made From Leakproof Plastic (Canada/United Kingdom), Directed by Anastasiya Mykhaylova

Student Short Awards:  

Best Student Animated Short & Best Student International Short
Student Animated Short:
Winner: Dragfox (United Kingdom), Directed by Lisa Ott
Special Mention: Ma Mao (Canada), Directed by Thanh Ngo
 
Student International Short:
Winner: Cura Sana (Spain), Directed by Lucía G. Romero
Special Mention: Crazy For You (Spain/USA), Directed by Greta Díaz Moreau
 
Best Student U.S. Short & Best Student Documentary Short 
Student U.S. Short:
Winner: Nervous Energy (USA), Directed by Eve Liu and Breastmilk (USA/Nigeria) Directed by Ifeyinwa Arinze
Special Mention: Kisses and Bullets (USA/Iran), Directed by Faranak Sahafian
 
Student Documentary Short: 
Winner: You Can’t See It from Here (USA/Colombia), Directed by Enrique Pedráza-Botero
Special Mention: Dancing in Tomorrowland (USA), Directed by Jakob Roston
 
Special Jury Awards:  
Vimeo Staff Pick Award
Winner: You Know You Wanna Stay (USA), Directed by Alex Heller

Best International Short  
Winners: Beyond Silence (The Netherlands), Directed by Marnie Blok and Kuchar (The Itch) (India), Directed by Vaidaangi Sharma
Special Mention: Goodbye Sun (France), Directed by Hakim Atoui
  
Best U.S. Short
Winner: Szypliszki (USA), Directed by Jordan Axelrod
Special Mention: Ragamuffin (USA), Directed by Kaitlyn Mikayla
 
Best Comedy Short
Winners: How Was Your Weekend (USA), Directed by Cam Banfield and Your Own Flavor (USA), Directed by Alisha Ketry
Special Mention: Blood Ties (France/Belgium), Directed by Hakim Atoui
   
Best LGBTQ+ Short
Winners: Chico (France/Belgium), Directed by Théo Abadie and Hold Me Close (USA), Directed by Aurora Brachman and LaTajh Simmons-Weaver
Special Mention: It Will Always End In The End (Canada), Directed by Nancy Pettinicchio
  
Best Midnight Short
Winner: Mango (United Kingdom/France), Directed by Joan Iyiola
Special Mention: Real (France), Directed by Rodrigue Hart
   
Local Jury Awards:
Desert Views Local Jury Award
Winner: Big Bass (USA), Directed by Drew Dickler
Special Mention: The Devil Is Busy (USA), Directed by Geeta Gandbhir and Christalyn Hampton
    
Young Cineastes Award
Winner: Énouement (USA), Directed by Angel Lu
Special Mention: Dandelion (USA), Directed by Fiona Obertinca
 
Kids’ Choice Award
Winner: Wednesdays with Gramps(USA), directed by Chris Copeland and Justin Copeland
Special Mention: Forevergreen (USA), directed by Nathan Engelhardt and Jeremy Spears