Prague Independent Film Festival

Best Short Film was awarded to the short film Cora made by Kevin Maxwell, a student of Santa Monica College who was supervised by Salvador Carrasco.

2017

The opening film of the festival was Collector by Alexei Krasovsky. Alexei Krasovsky received the Best Director, Gustav Meyrink Prize and Konstantin Khabensky received the Best Actor award.

The film Maya Dardel, written and directed by Magdalena Zyzak and Zachary Cotler received the Best Screenplay award and Lena Olin received the Best Actress award.

Train Driver's Diary directed by received the Grand Prix, Best Feature Film and Lazar Ristovski received the Best Actor prize.

Gallery

Winners

2025

Best Feature Film

• I Never Said Goodbye — Yev K'banchik

Best Actor

• Artur Smolyaninov — I Never Said Goodbye

Best Actress

• Kristin Griffith — The Reckoning

Best Director

• The Reckoning — Alex Breux

Best Short Film

• Night of Resolutions — Dylan Gouze

Best Short Film Director

• Russell De Rozario — This Damnation

Best Documentary

• Kazbegi — Yakiv Antypenko

Best Unproduced Screenplay

• Come Monday — Graham Streeter

Best Cinematography

• The Split — Lindsay Kent, Lauren Kent

Best Art Direction

• The Mimefia — Julia Pitch

Best Experimental Film

• Providence: Electric Gods II — Joshua Benson

Best Music Video

• Baby — Nora Rosenthal

Best Animated Film

• Tiny Teaching Tales — Julie Anne Burch

2024

Best Feature Film

• Stampila — David Larson

Best Director - Feature Film

• Giant's Kettle — Markku Hakala, Mari Käki

Best Director - Short Film

• Lobster Trial — Catherine Dyer

Best Actor

• Clark Freeman — All That Remains

Best Short Film

• Arachne — Tommy Creagh

Best Art Direction

• Love Intense — Raja Hanna

Best Screenplay

• Zeke — Darrell Bridgers

Best Editing

• David Valdez — This is Not My Beautiful House (directed by Mark Tompkins)

Best Debut

• The Only Way Out is Through — Nicole Catania

Best Animated Film

• I'm Hip — John Musker

Jury Award - Gustav Meyrink Prize

• John Musker — I'm Hip

Best Experimental Film

• Giant's Kettle — Markku Hakala, Mari Käki

Best Cinematography

• Villa Mink — Darron Carswell

Best Documentary

• Erik's Midwestern Boyhood - Erik Jakobsen

Best Music Video

• Won't Be Around — Terry Blade

Best Unproduced Script

• THE PRODIGAL — Thomas O'Malley

2023

Best Feature Film

• Unfix — Directed by Graham Streeter

Best Director

• Anna Eriksson — W

Best Actress

• Anna Eriksson — W

Best Film Score

• You Are The Story — Music by Saro Cosentino & Tim Bowness

Best Short Film

• The Intermission — Directed by Ben von Grafenstein

Best Short Film Director

• Yusuke Ishide — The Master of Sento

Best Cinematography

• Cactus — Directed by Dimitris Zouras

Best Art Direction

• Anna Eriksson — W

Best Animated Film

• A Boat in the Rain — directed by Yoana Atanasova

Best Screenplay

• A Rush of Peace — written by M Hayward Scott & directed by Jake Lockett

Best Documentary Film

• Egypt — Directed by Erik Jakobsen

Best Experimental Film

• Achilles — Directed by Adam Morris

Best Music Video

• Kogersin — Directed by Malik Zenger

Best Unproduced Script

• The Dream of America — Written by Bo Svenson

• Damon Mckinnis — Unfix
• Natalie Brown — Slut Chain
• Margaux Tiltman — Oh Claire!
• Christopher Willis — The Book of Disquiet

2022

Grand Prix

• The Road to Galena — Directed by Joe Hall

Best Director

• Joe Hall — The Road to Galena

Best Feature Film

• Troubled Minds — Directed by Raitis Abele & Lauris Abele

Best Short Film

• The Turn of the Screw — Directed by Chris Fretwell

Best Actor

• Luke Mably - The Ghost Writer

Best Cinematography

• Sally Leapt Out Of A Window Last Night — Directed by Tracy Spottiswoode

Best Art Direction

• The Ghost Writer — Art direction by Belle Mundi

Best Screenplay

• Troubled Minds — Raitis Abele & Lauris Abele

Best Documentary

• Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters — Directed by Kevin Konrad Hanna & Jim Demonakos

Best Musical

• A Minute To Midnight: A Musical — Directed by Caue Barcelos & Patrick Flanagan

Best Experimental Film

• CANAL — Will Rahilly

Best Animated Film

• Kuwonererwa — Ronald Kabicek

Best Music Video

• Got to move — Oltscho

Best Unproduced Script

• Mad Bad Dangerous to Know — Written by Leonora Pitts & Emily Robinson

Honorary Mention (Student Film)

• Righteous — Directed by Ethan Grossman

2021

• The Final Stand — Directed by Vadim Shmelyov

Best Director

• The Final Stand — Directed by Vadim Shmelyov

Best Feature

• The Stairs — Directed by Peter "Drago" Tiemann

Best Cinematography

• Sashka. A Soldier's Diary () — Directed by Kirill Zaytsev. Cinematography by Vladimir Klimov

Best Screenplay

• Sashka. A Soldier's Diary — Directed by Kirill Zaytsev. Screenplay by Ivan Klochko & Igor Konyaev.

Best Documentary

• OLEG — Directed by Nadia Tass

Best Documentary ex aequo

• The Great Suppression: How Covid-19 Reignited the Fight for Life & Liberty — Directed by Deborah Wright

Best Actor

• Sergey Bezrukov — The Final Stand

Best Supporting Actor

• John Schneider — The Stairs

Best Music Score

• The Final Stand — Score by Yuri Poteenko

Best Short Film

• The Stench — Directed by Won Jang

Best Short Film Director

• Radda Novikova — Moscow Slide

Best Experimental

• Geneva Jacuzzi's Casket — Directed by Chris Friend

Best Student Film

• Old Cliff Rising — Curtis Roland

Best Art Direction

• The Swamp — Directed by Erkki Perkiömäki

Best Animation

• Feeling Lonely — Directed by Julian Nazario Vargas

Best Music Video

• Mari Kraimbrery by Hiding in the Bathroom — Directed by Serghey Grey

2020

• Lost Transmissions — Directed by Katharine O'Brien

Best Feature Film

• Man from Beirut — Directed Christoph Gampl
• Best Director
• Raimundas Banionis — Purple Mist

Best Screenplay

• Purple Mist — Raimundas Banionis

Best Actor

• Simon Pegg — Lost Transmissions

Best Actress

• Juno Temple — Lost Transmissions
• Lucie Vondráčková — Beyond her Lens

Best Short Film

• Unknown Mother — Wai Yin Wong

Best Music Video

• Nice Shoes — Directed by Jonathan Lawrence

Best Student Film

• Out of Touch — Directed by Bobby Murphy

Best Art Direction

• Eerie Fairy Tales — Directed by Meet Sander

Best Documentary

• Living in the Age of Miracles — Directed by Mia Tomikawa

Best Cinematography

• Man from Beirut — Cinematography by Eeva Fleig

Best Animated Film

• Spectre's Bride — Directed by Francesca Borgatta

Best Experimental Film

• Last Film — Directed by Martiros Vartanov

2019

• M — Directed by Anna Eriksson

Gustav Meyrink Prize (Jury Prize)

• Konstantin Khabensky

Best Feature Film

• Ivanov — Directed by Dimitri Falkovich

Best Director

• Graham Streeter — I May Regret

Best Screenplay

• I May Regret — Graham Streeter

Best Actor

• Marcel Iures — Octav

Best Short Film

• Mr. Goody — Jason MacDonald

Best Music Video

• #INSTAGRAM — Directed by Valeriya Gai Germanika

Best Art Direction

• Dance to the Party — Directed by Wayne Isham

Best Documentary

• Ballad of the Righteous Merchant — Directed by Herbert Golder

Best Cinematography

• Ivanov — Cinematography by Georges Lechaptois

Best Animated Film

• Moon's Milk — Directed by Ri Crawford

Best Experimental Film

• It Grows Dark — Directed by Benjamin Capps

2017

• Train Driver's Diary — Directed by

Best Feature Film

• Train Driver’s Diary — Directed by Milos Radovic

Best Director

• Alexei Krasovsky — Collector

Best Screenplay

• Zachary Cotler and Magdalena Zyzak — Maya Dardel

Best Cinematography

• Rana Kamran — Mah e Mir

Best Actor

• Lazar Ristovski — Train Driver’s Diary
• Konstantin Khabensky — Collector

Best Actress

• Lena Olin — Maya Dardel

Best Short Film

• The Light Thief — Eva Daoud

Best Experimental Film

• Time — Retrograde — Directed by David Ellis

Best Art Direction

• Ghosts on the Road to Camalt — Directed by Jason Tovey

Best Music Video

• God Came 'Round — Directed by Derek Frey

Best Student Film

• Muñecas — Directed by Ozzy Ozuna

Gustav Meyrink Prize (Jury Prize)

• Collector — Directed by Alexei Krasovsky

2016

• Sinking of Sozopol — Directed by

Best Feature Film

• Despite the Falling Snow — Directed by Shamim Sarif

Best Director

• Kostadin Bonev — Sinking of Sozopol

Best Screenplay

• — Rocco Has Your Name

Best Cinematography

• Konstantin Zankov — Sinking of Sozopol

Best Actor

• — Rocco Has Your Name

Best Actress

• Rebecca Ferguson — Despite the Falling Snow

Best Supporting Actor

• Anthony Head — Despite the Falling Snow

Best Short Film

• Cora — Directed by Kevin Maxwell

Best Experimental Film

• NO SIGNAL — Directed by David Ellis

Best Animated Film