Award Nominations
Awards held on Sunday March 4th following Red Carpet Event
Best Actor Drama
Michael Ray for Collar
WINNER Randall Rodriguez for Last to Fall
Dan Berkey for The Last Visit
Moses Massena for Shadowstar Returns
Sebastian Beacon for The Villager
Michael Boston for The Guitar
Drew Maniscalco for Divided
Best Actress Drama
Amanda Bear for Like Me
Alexis Lariviere for The Last Visit
WINNER Jennifer Jiles for The Choice
Anne-Marie Mueschke for Death of Love
Jessica Ryan for Green Shoes
Laura Dowling Shea for The Spilling
Emma Orelove for The Hour Glass
Best Actor Comedy
Ryan O’Regan for Healing Heroes
WINNER Dante Giannetta for Punchline
David Weinheimer for The Loving Dead
Brett Eidman for Taken in the Night
Rob Cantrell for Headspace
David J. Marzon for Fruit Bat 11
Seton Brown for The Tragedy of Sal
Best Actress Comedy
WINNER Kathrina Miccio for St. Joseph
Nina Cudic for Garbaggio
Suzanne Schmidt for Hey You, It’s Me
Brooke Hoover for Shyft
Gillian Goll for The Vigilantes
Sarah Jun for the Loving Dead
Jessica Green for Mindfull
Best Actor Horror
WINNER Jim Thalman for 16 Minutes
Flood Reed for Balloon
Dan Gregory for In the Blood
Derek Chariton for Dead Color
Tim Parrish for Dead Color
Best Actress Horror/Thriller
Erin Kiniry for Balloon
Christiane Seidel for 16 Minutes
Jamie Miller for Dead Color
Alyssa Booth for Beneath
Sam Garland for The Closet
WINNER Heather B O’Scanlon for the Gift
Yvonne Szumski for Ding Dong
Best Supporting Actor-Short Film
WINNER Artie Pasquale for Santino
Nick Sakai for Uneffable
Thomas Randolph for Bad Romance
Jared Rinaldi for Death of Love
Jonathan Pessin for Hey You It’s Me
Ciaran Sheehan for The Choice
Tom Bentey for Last Call
Best Supporting Actress-Short Film
WINNER Lindsay Brice for Hearts that Cross Borders
Samantha Scaffidi for Santino
Ameara Wahhab for the Villager
Pamela Bowen Stanley for Reckoning
Rebecca Kush for Last to Fall
Angelita Esperanza for The Pleasure of Being Served
Samantha Herrera for The Hour Glass
Best Director Drama
Linda Yellen for The Spilling
WINNER Debra Markowitz for The Choice
Paul Mendoza for Last to Fall
Maurice Paramore for Bad Romance
James McKenzie for Shadowstar Returns
Renee Stork for Hearts that Crossed Borders
Jennifer Marie for Please Read
Best Director Comedy
DJ Higgins for Santino
WINNER Chris Caccioppoli for the Loving Dead
Michael Irgang for Garbaggio
Courtni Saizon for Uneffable
Joseph Redl for Punchline
Christopher Orango for Healing Heroes
Derek Frey for Kill the Engine
Best Director Horror
Larry Rosen for Until the End
Stephane Verzi for 16 Minutes
Mitchell Slan for Balloon
WINNER Lindsay Serrano for Beneath
Zach Griffin for The Closet
Tom Ryan for The Gift
Best Comedy
Santino
WINNER Garbaggio
RUNNER UP Hey You, Its Me
Kill the Engine
Uneffiable
St. Joseph
Fruit Bat 2
Best Horror/Thriller
Until the End
16 Minutes
WINNER Balloon
The Closet
Beneath
RUNNER UP The Gift
Best Short Drama
WINNER The Spilling
The Choice
RUNNER UP Hearts that Crossed Borders
Last to Fall
The Villager
The Last Visit
The Guitar
Best Short Short
The Smiling Phantasm
WINNER Smack
Ding Dong
Reckoning
Kit
RUNNER UP Shyft
One in 175 Million
All About Rita
Best NJ Short Comedy
St. Joseph
RUNNER UP Healing Heroes
The Tragedy of Sal
Punchline
WINNER Uneffable
Aria
Taken in the Night
Best NJ Short Drama
Death of Love
RUNNER UP Bad Romance
WINNER The Last Visit
The Interrogator
Green Shoes
Secrets, a coming of age story
Last Call
Best Cinematography
RUNNER UP Shadowstar Returns
WINNER The Long Wet Grass
16 Minutes
The Guitar
Finding Water
Green Shoes
Through the Window
Best Concept
Smack
WINNER Mindful
The Other Place
The Dinner Scene
The Good Hand
Secrets, A Coming of Age Selfie Film
We are Friends
Thumb Wrestler
A Perfect Day
Best Experimental
WINNER Secrets, A Coming of Age, Selfie Film
We are Friends
Devour Me
RUNNER UP Ma Belle Ami
Lonely Girl
Ms. Fortune
Distance
Best Ensemble
WINNER Santino
The Choice
The Spilling
Mindfull
Uneffable
The Other Place
RUNNER UP Death of Love
Best Screenplay
WINNER Jennifer Marie for Please Read
Séamus Scanlon for The Long Wet Grass
Gillian Goll for The Spilling
Tom Bragg for Divided
Amanda Bear for Like Me
Michael Manese for The Pleasure of Being Served
Troy Gabaldon for Collar
Top Scripts
Ruth’s (Chen Drachman)
Grifters, Drifters and Hipsters (Greg Taylor)
Brier Hill (Jonathan D. Stiffy)
The High Dive (Brian Patterson)
First Prize (Carl B. Clark)
After Credits (Jonathon Benoy)
WINNER Staying Ahead (Lee Kolinsky)
Vat Number 3 (Debra Johnson)
Cherry Glazed (Christine Sherwood)
Paradigm Shift (Katherine Fitzgerald)
Best Animation We Are Friends
Best One Minute Short You're Not Alone
Rising Star Award Jessica Ryan
Audience Award St. Joseph
Awards held on Sunday March 4th following Red Carpet Event
Best Actor Drama
Michael Ray for Collar
WINNER Randall Rodriguez for Last to Fall
Dan Berkey for The Last Visit
Moses Massena for Shadowstar Returns
Sebastian Beacon for The Villager
Michael Boston for The Guitar
Drew Maniscalco for Divided
Best Actress Drama
Amanda Bear for Like Me
Alexis Lariviere for The Last Visit
WINNER Jennifer Jiles for The Choice
Anne-Marie Mueschke for Death of Love
Jessica Ryan for Green Shoes
Laura Dowling Shea for The Spilling
Emma Orelove for The Hour Glass
Best Actor Comedy
Ryan O’Regan for Healing Heroes
WINNER Dante Giannetta for Punchline
David Weinheimer for The Loving Dead
Brett Eidman for Taken in the Night
Rob Cantrell for Headspace
David J. Marzon for Fruit Bat 11
Seton Brown for The Tragedy of Sal
Best Actress Comedy
WINNER Kathrina Miccio for St. Joseph
Nina Cudic for Garbaggio
Suzanne Schmidt for Hey You, It’s Me
Brooke Hoover for Shyft
Gillian Goll for The Vigilantes
Sarah Jun for the Loving Dead
Jessica Green for Mindfull
Best Actor Horror
WINNER Jim Thalman for 16 Minutes
Flood Reed for Balloon
Dan Gregory for In the Blood
Derek Chariton for Dead Color
Tim Parrish for Dead Color
Best Actress Horror/Thriller
Erin Kiniry for Balloon
Christiane Seidel for 16 Minutes
Jamie Miller for Dead Color
Alyssa Booth for Beneath
Sam Garland for The Closet
WINNER Heather B O’Scanlon for the Gift
Yvonne Szumski for Ding Dong
Best Supporting Actor-Short Film
WINNER Artie Pasquale for Santino
Nick Sakai for Uneffable
Thomas Randolph for Bad Romance
Jared Rinaldi for Death of Love
Jonathan Pessin for Hey You It’s Me
Ciaran Sheehan for The Choice
Tom Bentey for Last Call
Best Supporting Actress-Short Film
WINNER Lindsay Brice for Hearts that Cross Borders
Samantha Scaffidi for Santino
Ameara Wahhab for the Villager
Pamela Bowen Stanley for Reckoning
Rebecca Kush for Last to Fall
Angelita Esperanza for The Pleasure of Being Served
Samantha Herrera for The Hour Glass
Best Director Drama
Linda Yellen for The Spilling
WINNER Debra Markowitz for The Choice
Paul Mendoza for Last to Fall
Maurice Paramore for Bad Romance
James McKenzie for Shadowstar Returns
Renee Stork for Hearts that Crossed Borders
Jennifer Marie for Please Read
Best Director Comedy
DJ Higgins for Santino
WINNER Chris Caccioppoli for the Loving Dead
Michael Irgang for Garbaggio
Courtni Saizon for Uneffable
Joseph Redl for Punchline
Christopher Orango for Healing Heroes
Derek Frey for Kill the Engine
Best Director Horror
Larry Rosen for Until the End
Stephane Verzi for 16 Minutes
Mitchell Slan for Balloon
WINNER Lindsay Serrano for Beneath
Zach Griffin for The Closet
Tom Ryan for The Gift
Best Comedy
Santino
WINNER Garbaggio
RUNNER UP Hey You, Its Me
Kill the Engine
Uneffiable
St. Joseph
Fruit Bat 2
Best Horror/Thriller
Until the End
16 Minutes
WINNER Balloon
The Closet
Beneath
RUNNER UP The Gift
Best Short Drama
WINNER The Spilling
The Choice
RUNNER UP Hearts that Crossed Borders
Last to Fall
The Villager
The Last Visit
The Guitar
Best Short Short
The Smiling Phantasm
WINNER Smack
Ding Dong
Reckoning
Kit
RUNNER UP Shyft
One in 175 Million
All About Rita
Best NJ Short Comedy
St. Joseph
RUNNER UP Healing Heroes
The Tragedy of Sal
Punchline
WINNER Uneffable
Aria
Taken in the Night
Best NJ Short Drama
Death of Love
RUNNER UP Bad Romance
WINNER The Last Visit
The Interrogator
Green Shoes
Secrets, a coming of age story
Last Call
Best Cinematography
RUNNER UP Shadowstar Returns
WINNER The Long Wet Grass
16 Minutes
The Guitar
Finding Water
Green Shoes
Through the Window
Best Concept
Smack
WINNER Mindful
The Other Place
The Dinner Scene
The Good Hand
Secrets, A Coming of Age Selfie Film
We are Friends
Thumb Wrestler
A Perfect Day
Best Experimental
WINNER Secrets, A Coming of Age, Selfie Film
We are Friends
Devour Me
RUNNER UP Ma Belle Ami
Lonely Girl
Ms. Fortune
Distance
Best Ensemble
WINNER Santino
The Choice
The Spilling
Mindfull
Uneffable
The Other Place
RUNNER UP Death of Love
Best Screenplay
WINNER Jennifer Marie for Please Read
Séamus Scanlon for The Long Wet Grass
Gillian Goll for The Spilling
Tom Bragg for Divided
Amanda Bear for Like Me
Michael Manese for The Pleasure of Being Served
Troy Gabaldon for Collar
Top Scripts
Ruth’s (Chen Drachman)
Grifters, Drifters and Hipsters (Greg Taylor)
Brier Hill (Jonathan D. Stiffy)
The High Dive (Brian Patterson)
First Prize (Carl B. Clark)
After Credits (Jonathon Benoy)
WINNER Staying Ahead (Lee Kolinsky)
Vat Number 3 (Debra Johnson)
Cherry Glazed (Christine Sherwood)
Paradigm Shift (Katherine Fitzgerald)
Best Animation We Are Friends
Best One Minute Short You're Not Alone
Rising Star Award Jessica Ryan
Audience Award St. Joseph
STUDENT NOMINATIONS
Awards to be held Saturday, March 3rd, following Red Carpet Event
Best Actress in a Student Film
WINNER Julia Sims for Prude
Brooke Barker for Through the Window
Chloe Parayre for Spaced Out
Georgi Schnappauf for HM
Maddie Brand for Test Drive
Kayla Killian for Summer of Dreams
Abi Karl for Doors to the New Vocabulary
Best Actor in a Student Film
Lane Brunson for In Between
Connor Daniels for Tick Tock
Jack O Connell for Boy And
WINNER Jake Edelstein for Almost Free
Zulfi Khan for Stop Bullying!
Jonathan Slovak for HM
TJ Rumer for Summer of Dreams
Best Director-College
Summer of Dreams
Nien Means No
WINNER A Perfect Day
Prude
The Shelving
In Between
Best Director-High School
WINNER Julia Picozzi for Wine
Keegan Tindall for Tick Tok
Ebbie Shim for A Little Bit of Respect
Abigail Karl for Voicemail
Carly Drabeck for Doors to the New Vocabulary
John Tuohy for Parallax Dreams
Keeley Giblin for Snip
Sage Levine for Un-Reality
Best Short-College
WINNER Prude
A Perfect Day
Summer of Dreams
The Shelving
NightGuard
Swallow
Best Experimental-College
Little Death
Grief
Wings
WINNER Boy And
Swallow
Best Short Drama-High School
WINNER Snip
A Little Bit of Respect
Wine
Un-Reality
Doors to a New Vocabulary
HM
Dark Red
Best Comedy-High School
Go Elf Yourself
Tick-Tok
Jerry Thinks He’s Funny
Pooh
What He Did
WINNER Kebabbed
Best Experimental-High School
Saturn Returns
That Little Voice
Dreamer
Note to Future Self
Un-Reality
Voicemail
WINNER Dark Red
Parallax Dream
Best Concept
In Between
Tick-Tok
Run
Snip
Test Drive
WINNER Doors to the New Vocabulary
Stop Bullying
Technical Difficulties
Best Animation/Stop Motion
Muscle Memory
The Orange Crayon
Conversations
Kebabbed
All Dolls Fall in Love
WINNER Day Dream Journal
Best Cinematography
Almost Free
Nightguard
Saturn Returns
Spaced Out
A Perfect Day
WINNER Swallow
Parallax Dreams
Dark Red
Best Ensemble
WINNER Nien Means No
Summer of Dreams
The Shelving
Prude
Almost Free
Through the Window
Best Screenplay
Through the Window
Almost Free
The Shelving
WINNER Summer of Dreams
Nien Means No
Spaced Out
Best Comedy Nien Means No
Best Editing A Little Bit of Respect
Rising Star Award John Tuohy
Awards to be held Saturday, March 3rd, following Red Carpet Event
Best Actress in a Student Film
WINNER Julia Sims for Prude
Brooke Barker for Through the Window
Chloe Parayre for Spaced Out
Georgi Schnappauf for HM
Maddie Brand for Test Drive
Kayla Killian for Summer of Dreams
Abi Karl for Doors to the New Vocabulary
Best Actor in a Student Film
Lane Brunson for In Between
Connor Daniels for Tick Tock
Jack O Connell for Boy And
WINNER Jake Edelstein for Almost Free
Zulfi Khan for Stop Bullying!
Jonathan Slovak for HM
TJ Rumer for Summer of Dreams
Best Director-College
Summer of Dreams
Nien Means No
WINNER A Perfect Day
Prude
The Shelving
In Between
Best Director-High School
WINNER Julia Picozzi for Wine
Keegan Tindall for Tick Tok
Ebbie Shim for A Little Bit of Respect
Abigail Karl for Voicemail
Carly Drabeck for Doors to the New Vocabulary
John Tuohy for Parallax Dreams
Keeley Giblin for Snip
Sage Levine for Un-Reality
Best Short-College
WINNER Prude
A Perfect Day
Summer of Dreams
The Shelving
NightGuard
Swallow
Best Experimental-College
Little Death
Grief
Wings
WINNER Boy And
Swallow
Best Short Drama-High School
WINNER Snip
A Little Bit of Respect
Wine
Un-Reality
Doors to a New Vocabulary
HM
Dark Red
Best Comedy-High School
Go Elf Yourself
Tick-Tok
Jerry Thinks He’s Funny
Pooh
What He Did
WINNER Kebabbed
Best Experimental-High School
Saturn Returns
That Little Voice
Dreamer
Note to Future Self
Un-Reality
Voicemail
WINNER Dark Red
Parallax Dream
Best Concept
In Between
Tick-Tok
Run
Snip
Test Drive
WINNER Doors to the New Vocabulary
Stop Bullying
Technical Difficulties
Best Animation/Stop Motion
Muscle Memory
The Orange Crayon
Conversations
Kebabbed
All Dolls Fall in Love
WINNER Day Dream Journal
Best Cinematography
Almost Free
Nightguard
Saturn Returns
Spaced Out
A Perfect Day
WINNER Swallow
Parallax Dreams
Dark Red
Best Ensemble
WINNER Nien Means No
Summer of Dreams
The Shelving
Prude
Almost Free
Through the Window
Best Screenplay
Through the Window
Almost Free
The Shelving
WINNER Summer of Dreams
Nien Means No
Spaced Out
Best Comedy Nien Means No
Best Editing A Little Bit of Respect
Rising Star Award John Tuohy
March 2018 FESTIVAL ACHIEVMENT AWARDS
NJ Achievement in The Art of Acting "The Tom Parisi" Award: Jennifer Jiles
NJ Achievement in The Art of Filmmaking Award: D.J. Higgins
NJ Achievement in The Art of Acting "The Tom Parisi" Award: Jennifer Jiles
NJ Achievement in The Art of Filmmaking Award: D.J. Higgins