Jurors included Sundance senior programmer Caroline Libresco, actress Daryl Hannah, Barbara Kopple, Jose Padilha and Joe Berlinger.

The five winners in the $200,000 Focus Forward Filmmaker Competition are:

  • Callum Cooper with Mine Kafon
  • Kim Munsamy with Bones Don’t Lie And Don’t Forget
  • Paul Lazarus with Slingshot
  • Jared P Scott and Kelly Nyks with The Artificial Leaf
  • Rafel Duran Torrent with Cyborg Foundation.

The grand prize-winner of $100,000 will be announced at Sundance on Jan 22.

Two short films from Albert Maysles and Morgan Spurlock will premiere at the festival along public screenings of Lucy Walker’s The Crash Reel, Senain Kheshgi’s Project Kashmir and David White and Paul Wedel’s I Kill on Jan 2.

“Sundance Institute shares with Focus Forward a commitment to facilitating and supporting the creation and exhibition of short-form films,” said Sundance Film Festival director John Cooper. 

“Two films supported by Focus Forward, from directors Morgan Spurlock and Albert Maysles, both of whom are Sundance alums, are strong additions to the Short Film Competition at our festival this year.”