See below for the full list of awards.
Toms performance in that film is incredible, Patel said.
And hes a huge advocate of inspired and international young filmmakers.
Tom Holland and Pawo Choyning DorjiGetty Images
Patel added, If you get an opportunity to meet him, definitely send him your script.
Dont tell him I said that.
Patel himself received the WCFF Legacy Award For Contribution To Cinema.
Tom Holland in ‘In the Heart of the Sea.’Jonathan Prime/©Warner Bros./Courtesy Everett Collection
WCFFs Best Feature Film Award went toThe Monk and the Gun, directed by Pawo Choyning Dorji.
What the lama has in mind for the arms remains uncertain until the films denouement.
Dorji also received the WCFF Luminary Award, recognizing his cinematic work.
Accepting the award, Dorji said his gratitude goes beyond the sky.
He added about his career, I didnt go to film school.
I fell in love with storytelling, and I used to work as a stills photographer.
Lets shoot it back here and pretend its the worlds remotest school.
[But] I wanted it to be authentic.
We hiked up to the worlds remotest school, we stayed up there for two months making this film.
We had no electricity; the entire film was made on solar batteries.
He was encouraged to submit the film as Bhutans official selection for the Oscars Best International Film category.
The only problem Bhutan had no committee to choose films for such a distinction.
Eventually, a committeewasformed, and itdidselectLunanato represent Bhutan.
Dorji also offered some words of encouragement to aspiring directors.
Will anyone watch what I create?
The festivals award for Best Feature Documentary went toEskawata Kayawai, directed by Lara Jacoski and Patrick Belem.
After enduring decades of slavery, massacres, and cultural suppression, their resurgence began in 2000.
Two decades later, theyre thriving at a cultural peak, rediscovering and embracing their true heritage.
Executive producer Alex Moreno accepted the award on behalf of the directors.
Id like to thank the Great Spirit.
I would like to thank them for their inspiration.
I would also like to thank the true people that we document, the Huni Kuin tribe.
Id like to thank their guardianship of the beautiful forest.
The second iteration of the festival is expected to take place in late April 2025.
