Due to the hybrid nature of the season, the award ceremonies were streamed live. The main awards at The Brightside Tavern, and the student awards were recorded and posted on our Facebook page the night before.

Watch the main one above, and the student awards video is below on this page.

Award Nominations
Awards held on Sunday May 16th, following the last sets.

Best Actor Drama
WINNER Jon Tierney for Family Bond
Tray Chaney for Expiration Date
Nataniel Barton for Alesha
Ramsay Wise for Within the Silence
Chris Thompson for The First Responder
Kazy Tauginas for Untitled
 
Best Actress Drama
Alexandra Jorgensen for Summer Rain
Eve Austin for Confidant
Adèle Marie-Alix for Gabriellez
Jillie Simon for A Chance
WINNER Gerry Glennon for Switch
Erin Bright for Winnetka
 
Best Actor Comedy Short
David Socolar for Do It Again
Dan Gregory for Crazy Mike
Jim Ford for Small World
WINNER Joshua Will for 60 Watt
Zach Tinker for Across the Room
Patrick Lescarbeau for The Shakedown
 
Best Actress Comedy Short
Karisa Tate for Across the Room
Cecillia Cereijido-Bloche for Do It Again
WINNER Lori Beth Denberg for Lost Treasure of the Valley
Hannah Sloat for Small World
Chris Humphrey for The Shakedown
Cathy Fiorillo for Recipe for Disaster
 
Best Actor Horror/Thriller
WINNER Drew Maniscalco for the Acquisition
Sam Platizky for Blackout
Patrick Shane for Still
Freddie Maas for Better Safe Than Sonny
Mike Sutton for Rendezvous
 
Best Actress Horror/Thriller
WINNER Caroline Heinle for Still
Carissa Pignatelli for The Acquisition
Persephone Apostolou for Just Be
Katarina Morhacova for Rendezvous
Alannah Potter for Blackout
 
Best Director Drama
Christopher Guzzo For Family Bond
Paul Warner for Hamlet/Horatio
WINNER Vanessa M. H. Powers for In Their Nature
Nicola Rose for Gabrielle
Debra Markowitz for Confidant
Patrick Devaney for Identity Check
 
Best Director Comedy
WINNER Mellinda Hensley for Across the Room
Theresa Labreglio for Best of Fest
Robert Husted For Lost Treasure of the Valley
Raquel Loving for Do It Again
David Carey for 60 Watt
Sean Feuer for Crazy Mike
Randy Brown for The Shakedown
Jackie Fiorillo for Recipe for Disaster
 
Best Director Horror/Thriller
Lance J Reha for Still
WINNER Sarah Koteles for Just Be
Lance J Reha for The Acquisition
Ellie Schuckman for Apple
Jack Lawrence for Tell-Tale Heart
Grace Soriano for Better Safe Than Sonny
Seth Kozak for Rendezvous
 
Best NJ Director
Arsen Bortnik for Mary Jane’s Tribulations
Ashlei Hardenburg-Cartagena for A Single Evening
Todd Staruch for The Bond of Friendship
WINNER Renzo Montoya for Summer Rain
Alejandra Cedeno for The Photographer
Eddie "Denity" Foster for Expiration Date
 
Best Comedy
Across the Room
Do It Again
Small World
Crazy Mike
RUNNER UP Best of Fest
WINNER Lost Treasure of the Valley
60 Watt
 
Best Drama
Family Bond
A Chance
In Their Nature
WINNER The First Responder
Switch
Gabrielle
RUNNER UP Confidant
 
Best Horror/Thriller
RUNNER UP Still
WINNER Just Be
The Acquisition
Tell-Tale Heart
Rendezvous
 
Best Micro Shot
Orion 47
Day One
The Hit
WINNER Restless
Apple
 
Best Short Short
End of Summer Love
WINNER Virtually Gone
Tell Tale Heart
A Road Less Traveled
Small World
Nebula Seven
The Photographer
 
Best NJ Short Film
Bond of Friendship
RUNNER UP Summer Rain
WINNER The Photographer
Mary Jane’s Tribulations
A Single Evening
Expiration Date
 
Best Cinematography
Hamlet/Horatio
Rendezvous
Just Be
WINNER Within the Silence
The First Responder
Tell-Tale Heart
Restless
 
Best Concept
The Shakedown
Beware His Hairy Palm
Daisy
Virtually Gone
WINNER Winnetka
Alesha
Identity Check-Runner up
Mission: Ex-Lover
 
Best Experimental
Beware His Hairy Palm
WINNER Hush
The IIFF
Restless
Daisy
Orion 47
 
Best Ensemble
Just Be
Hamlet/Horatio
WINNER A Chance
In Their Nature
Across the Room
The First Responder
Summer Rain
 
Best Script Produced
Untitled
Gabrielle
A Chance
Virtually Gone
Confident
WINNER Severance
In Their Nature
Recipe for Disaster
 
Best Unproduced Script Finalist
Curran Ellis for Liquid Steak
Mitchell Graham Colley for Hurricane
Alicia Ocana for Ashes
Cassandra Phillips for The Cry of the Red Cardinal
Jennifer L. DiOrio for Luna and Samson Learn About Each Other
Elroy Martinez, Jr. for A Killer’s Twist
WINNER Drew Henriksen for Afternoon

BEST DRAMA DUO
Eddie McGee and Eve Austin for Confident​

Rising Star Award
Clementine Lea Spieser

NJ Achievement in The Art of Acting, "The Tom Parisi Award”: Eve Austin
NJ Achievement in The Art of Filmmaking Award: The Cremer Brothers

Student Award Nominations
Awards held on Saturday May 15th

​Best Actor in a Student Film College
Nick Briccetti for The Recovered

​Best Actress in a Student Film College
Anna Fitzpatrick for Triangle

Best Director College
Charlie Norton for Images
Joseph Awoyera for Live Lessons
WINNER Anthony Starvaggi for Triangle
Audrey Eck for The Recovered

Best Film College
Lose You to Love Me
Images
The Recovered
WINNER Life Lessons
Triangle

Best Concept College
Lose You to Love Me
WINNER Images
New Normal
Life Lessons
He Dropped Dead

Best Cinematography College
WINNER Lose You to Love Me
Images
The Recovered
Life Lessons

Best Documentary
Surviving With Grief

Best Film High School
Puppet
Just Deserts
WINNER Her
Growing Pains
Norepinephrine
Deadline

Best Experimental-High School
WINNER Growing Pains
Mirror Mirror
Norepinephrine
Whispers
The White Wood
Isolation

Best Concept High School
Door
WINNER Just Deserts
Her
Deadline
Stressed Out
Mirror Mirror
Empty

Best Cinematography High School
The New Normal
Fear Thy Forest
The White Wood
Cycle
WINNER Mirror Mirror

Best Documentary High School
AAHSFF Behind The Scenes
A Drive Through Brooklyn
My POV
WINNER International Diplomacy Class at Perth Amboy HS

Best Animation/Stop Motion
Empty
Stressed Out
WINNER I Want Them To Know
The Swan and Her Babies
Racing Block

Best Horror/Thriller/Sci-Fi High School
WINNER Fear Thy Forest
Mirror Mirror
The Salesman
Just Desserts
The New Normal

Rising Star HS Student Award
Michelle Tang