LA Shorts Oscar-Qualifying Film Festival Wraps With Awards Ceremony: Garin Hovannisian’s NOWHERE Wins Top Prize, Three Other Films Also Qualify

Los Angeles…August 1st … Los Angeles-based filmmaker Garin Hovannisian is among a select group of filmmakers to punch their ticket for the Oscar race, after scoring a big win at the LA Shorts Oscar-Qualifying Film Festival. Other Oscar qualifying winners are It Takes a Village Best International Film (Armenia) Director: Ophelia Hanutyunyan, The Brave Locomotive Best Animation Director: Andrew Pierce Chesworth, and The Noble Guardian Best Documentary Director: Anna Coren.

Hovannisian’s 11-minute film Nowhere won the Best of Fest at the festival’s awards ceremony on Sunday evening. Set in the city called Nowhere, shadows dream of a life without their human masters. Los Angeles-based Immaculate Heart Community.

bestowed five (5) individual, $1,000 cash prizes onto participating filmmakers whose representative work (respectively) demonstrates enlightenment, inclusivity, and independent spirit. Recipients include Jasmine Bissete, Chloe Campos, Lorena E. Gonzalez, Melika Jamshidabadi, and Tanxuan Shi.

See the full list of winners below.

The festival is accredited by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences OSCAR®, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts BAFTA, the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television ACCT Canadian Screen Awards and The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Spain GOYA  AWARDS. 66 LA Shorts filmmakers have earned Academy Award® nominations, with 17 taking home the Oscar.

LA Shorts is the longest-running short film festival in Los Angeles. The festival screens over 350 films and attracts 10,000 attendees each year including Hollywood industry professionals and emerging undiscovered independent filmmakers.

Best of Fest

Nowhere – Director: Garin Hovannisian

Best International

It Takes a Village…  (Armenia)  Director: Ophelia Harutyunyan

Best Drama

The Kill Floor – Director: Carlos Avila​

Best Comedy

The Avon Lady – Director: Carolina Espiro

Best Animation

The Brave Locomotive – Director: Andrew Pierce Chesworth

Best Experimental

Red Man – Director/Writer: Xinhao Lu

Best Documentary

The Noble Guardian  Director Anna Coren

Best Sci-Fi

Dream Maker (Turkey) – Director: Mohsen Mehri Darouei, Milad Kiaei

Best Horror

Get Away – Director: Michael Gabriele

Best Music Video

Pronto – Light Light (Switzerland) Director Maximilian Speidel

Best Web Series

Space Rats (Australia) – Director Darwin Schulze, Basil Scott-Mitchell

Best High School Film

Sharing the Floor – Director/Writer Lily Brooks O’ Briant

Best Actor

Dusan Brown (“All In”)

Best Actress

Janessa St. Pierre (“Hair or No Hair”)

Best Script

Jimmy Prosser (“Korean Shooter”)

Immaculate Heart Community Cash Prizes

Five directors will each receive a $1,000 cash prize for their respective works. The directors are Melika Jamshidabadi, Chloe Campos, Lorena E. Gonzalez, Jasmine Bissete, and Tanxuan Shi.