Jon Bell’s horror feature film debut The Moogai has won the Sydney Film Festival Audience Award for Best Australian Narrative Feature, with Van Alpert’s Skategoat taking out the prize for Best Australian Documentary.
Other winners include Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof’s The Seed of the Sacred Fig, which was named Best International Feature, and The Home Game, from Icelandic duo Smari Gunn and Logi Sigursveinsson, winner of the Best International Documentary award.
Taken from more than 20,000 votes, the announcement of the Audience Awards follows the conclusion of this year’s festival on Sunday evening.
Sydney Film Festival director Nashen Moodley paid tribute to each of the filmmakers behind the four winners.
“Jon Bell’s The Moogai is a remarkable feature debut, delivering a haunting narrative that masterfully intertwines the chilling elements of psychological horror with disturbing history,” he said.
“Skategoat, directed by Van Alpert, offers a gripping and kinetic portrayal of one young man’s journey from a turbulent childhood to professional skateboarding.
“Mohammad Rasoulof’s The Seed of the Sacred Fig is a testament to the power of cinema to challenge and provoke. Finally, The Home Game brings a touch of warmth and humour to the Festival with its heart-warming tale of a community united by a dream.”
The full list of winners and runners up is as follows:
Australian Feature:
• Winner: The Moogai
• Runner Up: In Vitro
Australian Documentary:
• Winner: Skategoat
• Runner Up: Every Little Thing
International Feature:
• Winner: The Seed of the Sacred Fig
• Runner Up: Kneecap
International Documentary:
• Winner: The Home Game
• Runner Up: Porcelain War