After an incredible week of world class cinema, we announced the winners of the prize for feature filmmaking and the prize for short filmmaking at the EIFF closing ceremony.
The winner of this year’s The Sean Connery Prize for Feature Filmmaking Excellence, decided on by an audience vote and funded by The Connery Foundation is Abdolreza Kahani’s Mortician. Ten feature-length World Premieres were presented at EIFF as part of the competition with the winning filmmaker being awarded £50,000 to support their future projects. Kahani was presented the award by Jason Connery on behalf of The Connery Foundation.
In Mortician, a reclusive mortician faces an unusual request from a dissident singer in hiding, their bond providing the beating heart of this disarmingly elegant film. Combining a distinctive, lo-fi visual style, naturalistic performances and familiar wit and humanity, Director Abdolreza Kahani’s film is both utterly distinctive and affecting.
Mortician sees director Abdolreza Kahani return to EIFF following his film A Shrine screening as part of last year’s Festival. Mortician is presented as part of Spotlight Canada 2025, supported by The High Commission of Canada and The Beaverbrook Canadian Foundation.
At the closing ceremony EIFF also announced that the winner of The Thelma Schoonmaker Prize for Short Filmmaking Excellence – Mother Goose directed by Joanna Vymeris.
The short film competition winner was also decided on by an audience vote and is awarded £15,000 to support their future projects. The award was presented by the legendary film editor Thelma Schoonmaker.
After the death of her husband, Janet decides to distract herself by rearing a goose, which is to be the centrepiece of her Christmas dinner. However, as she grows ever more isolated from her daughter, Janet’s need to nurture the goose becomes an obsession: one which will cost her dearly. A modern day Grimm’s fairy-tale about grief, isolation and a goose.
