2025 Screen BC Short Film Award Pitch Candidates Announced

Vancouver, B.C. – Screen BC (MPPIA), Creative BC and the Whistler Film Festival are together excited to announce the five shortlisted candidates who will pitch to earn the Screen BC Short Film Award at the 2025 Whistler Film Festival + Content Summit (Dec. 3 – 7).

The five directors who will vie for the opportunity to develop and direct a signature short film project at the Whistler Film Festival on Friday, Dec. 5, 9:30 am at the Maury Young Arts Centre are:

Alex Vance, CRYPTID
Ana Carrizales, La Loba
Anaïsa Visser, Franken Me
Kevin Ang, After Party
Lauren Marsden, Angela

Established in 2007, the Screen BC (MPPIA) Short Film Award provides one filmmaker with the opportunity to further develop their directing career by realizing a unique creative vision in a short film project.

The successful candidate will receive a $15,000 cash award plus services ‘in-kind’ valued up to $100,000 from across the industry, enabling the filmmaker to complete their project with the guidance of experienced industry professionals and support services provided by the top supply houses in British Columbia. The completed film will have its world premiere screening at the 2026 Whistler Film Festival. A special feature of the pitch competition event each year is the world premiere of the short film made by the last year’s winner: this year director Norman Li’s Adverse Possession will be the featured screening.

The Screen BC Short Film Award was founded on collaboration, inclusion and equitable access to emerging filmmaker opportunities. In this spirit, creators of every voice and perspective are encouraged to apply. The Award proponents and the industry community that supports it are committed to fostering safe environments free of discrimination and harassment, where all individuals are treated with respect and dignity, and can contribute fully to the creative process without hindrance.

The Screen BC Short Film Award is a highlight on the Whistler Film Festival calendar, as some of BC’s brightest emerging directors compete on stage before a jury of industry professionals for the sought-after filmmaking opportunity.

Screen BC (Motion Picture Production Industry Association of BC) is a member-based, non-profit society established in April 2002 to grow, diversify and promote a competitive and sustainable motion picture production industry in British Columbia.

Creative BC is an independent society created and supported by the province to sustain and help grow British Columbia’s creative industries: motion picture, interactive and digital media, music and sound recording, and magazine and book publishing. The organization delivers a wide range of programs and services with a mandate to expand B.C.’s creative economy. These activities include: administration of the provincial government’s motion picture tax credit programs; delivery of program funding and export marketing support for the sector; and provincial film commission services. Combined, these activities serve to attract inward investment and market B.C. as a partner and destination of choice for domestic and international content creation. The society acts as an industry catalyst and ambassador to help B.C.’s creative sector reach its economic, social, environmental, and creative potential both at home and globally.

The Whistler Film Festival Society (WFFS) is a cultural charitable organization dedicated to furthering the art of film by providing programs that focus on the discovery, development and promotion of new talent culminating with a must attend festival for artists, the industry and audiences in Whistler. WFFS produces one of Canada’s leading film festivals and industry summits, and plays a leadership role in offering talent and project development programs for Canadian creators. The 2025 Whistler Film Festival runs Dec. 3 – 7.

The Screen BC Short Film Award is made possible by the above organizations as well as the generous support and contributions of the British Columbia motion picture production community.

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For more information and media interview requests contact:

Dominique Roy
Screen BC
DominiqueR@screenbc.com

Whistler Film Festival Media
Coldwater Communications
media@coldwater-communications.ca

Lisa Escudero
Creative BC
media@creativebc.com