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Fall 2020 WINNERS

In order to insure that each film is studied and rated on an individual basis, NWBFF has instituted a system where entries do not compete against each other, but instead are recognized for their own individual merits.
For all intents and purposes, they compete against themselves:  each entry is judged on individual merits and scored on an inherent value system.

The judges focus is on your film when it is your turn to be evaluated, not on all the other films that are in cue: this insures that they will not have comparisons going on in their minds when they should be focusing entirely on YOU.

Judges score entries on a performance scale and winning entries are recognized and awarded not only for Best of Festival &  Best of Show, but also for two Awards of Excellence levels,two Awards of Merit levels, a Kudos Endeavor Award, or no award.

Best Of Festival & Best of Show honors are granted to the top scoring entry/entries for each season;  Awards of Excellence are granted to entries with truly exceptional artistic and technical achievements; and Notable achievements are recognized at the  Merit and 'Kudos' award levels.

The number of awards granted at any given level will fluctuate based on the total number of entries received for each competition deadline.

Fastest way to find your award:
Press Ctrl + F
Type film's title
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Award Categories Menu Index
Best Of Festival
Best Of Show
Outstanding Excellence
Excellence
Exceptional Merit
Merit




Best of Festival and Best of Show films are selected
by category and region.
Not all categories had a Best of Festival or Best of Show winner





We select  two Best Of Festival Award Winners for
Domestic and Foreign in various categories
, if available.

BEST OF FESTIVAL
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries




Indigenous: Fight for Survival
Director Gary Rottger
United States

A documentary that examines someof the unique native animals and plants of the Everglades
and their struggles with climate change, invasive species and humanintervention. Filmed over a two and half year period, this
film takes a deep look into the trials and tribulations of native lifeand what is in store for future generations.







The Memory of Water
Director JAEUN, CHIN
Also: Outstanding Excellence: Direction
Korea, Republic of.

Water remembers everything. That memory is life as water is life. Waterdoes not hesitate to flow onward as life does not fear moving forward. This is the enigmatic law of nature. The fields that contain this waterare where the water’s memories come to life.
Ten years ago, casted aside in political turmoil, one man beganbiological agriculture. And ten years later, the now-deceased farmer runs into a boy who communicates with nature without fear. This boy isthe farmer himself. The water’s memory erases the boundary between life and death. It’s never existed to begin with. The farmer and the boyremain eternally alive through the water’s memory. And life does not stop and it

NO TRAILER AVAILABLE

BEST OF FESTIVAL
Narrative Feature Film Centered on:
Animal, nature or environment


Khacchad:Mule
Director Michael Brown
United Kingdom


In Nepal, over 100,000 equines are regularly put to work labouring in brick factories and carrying goods into the high Himalayanmountains. Film-maker Michael Brown travelled alone, following the mules every step of the way, from their birth in India, their sale atthe huge Barabanki Fair in Uttar Pradesh, their journey to the brick factories in the Kathmandu Valley, and finally portering as packanimals in the high Himalayas. Sometimes joyful and at times heartbeaking, this film is a beautiful and moving portrait of Nepal'sworking mules and the diverse communities that make their living with them. Without making judgements on people, communities or cultures thisfilm does raise questions about humanity and our relationship with animals.



BEST OF FESTIVAL
Narrative Short Film Centered on:
Animal, nature or environment




Treibjagd (The Driven Hunt)
Director Christiane Hitzemann
Germany
Also: Outstanding Excellence: Sound Editing


On a driven hunt a young huntress aims to shoot her first stag - with disastrous consequences for her relationship to the leaderof the hunt, her dad.

NO TRAILER AVAILABLE

Gorilla Girl
Directors Rob Grobman, Antonio Melendez
United States

Also: Outstanding Excellence: Content/Message Delivery

Animal rehabilitation expert Ann Southcombe shares over 50 years ofexperience raising animals. She expresses the deep emotional intelligence of our non human counterparts and the love that transcendsspecies.


NO TRAILER AVAILABLE

BEST OF FESTIVAL
Environmental




Vertical: The Future of Farming
Directors Scott Morris, Jay Windland
United States

Vertical: The Future of Farming follows a new generation of urban,indoor farmers, whose approach to food production offers the potential to combat climate change while feeding hundreds of millions. From NewYork City, to Portland, Oregon to Singapore, these farmers are turning agricultural conventions on their head by utilizing vertical space incities, rather than expansive rural fields. The result, according to retired Columbia Professor Dickson Despommier, represents the "nextevolutionary jump in humanity's quest for a reliable, sustainable food supply."


I Wish for You
Director Stuart Rideout
United Kingdom

A woman finds a long lost letter from her grandfather. As she reads it,his words evoke strong emotive memories as well as a love and hope for the world around us that transcends time.

NO TRAILER AVAILABLE

BEST OF FESTIVAL
Ornithology Documentaries


canopy of wings
Director San
United States

Also: Outstanding Excellence: Cinematography

We see that from aerial heights above treetops, forest movements goundetected. The camera drops just below this covering and we spend some time observing the beauty of natures' own aerial acrobatics-- at rest,at play and just being. During the brief time with our subject, before we fly away, we get a glimpse at the variety of tropical bird speciesthat commingle within and their contribution to wilderness biodiversity.


NO TRAILER AVAILABLE

Wild Portugal
Director Christian Baumeister
Germany

Also: Outstanding Excellence: Editing
Outstanding Excellence: Cinematography

From the rugged continental mountain plateaus and lush green valleys ofthe north to the storm-tossed Atlantic coast and the sun-drenched Mediterranean south, Portugal with its unique landscapes is anunequalled hotspot of species diversity in Europe.


NO TRAILER AVAILABLE

BEST OF FESTIVAL
Ocean Life Documentaries




A Voice for Whales
Director Selket Kaufman
United States

In 2018, Pacific Whale Foundation’s founder Greg Kaufman passed awayafter a hard-fought battle with cancer. 'A Voice for Whales' was created to tell the story of his fight to save humpback whales fromextinction by educating the public, from a scientific perspective, about whales and their ocean habitat.

A film created over the course of two years by Greg's wife, PWF teammember, and acclaimed photojournalist Selket Kaufman, the 20-minute piece tells a story of hope and of “standing up for what you believein, no matter the odds,” according to the filmmaker, who traveled to Tonga, Slovenia, Australia and the continental U.S. to interview,friends, colleagues and people who knew him best to help tell his story.





THE GIANT DEEP REDS
Director MAURICE MICALLEF
Ocean Life Documentaries, Research (subcat), Editing (subcat),Cinematography (subcat)
Malta

Also:
Research: Outstanding Excellence
Editing: Outstanding Excellence
Cinematography: Outstanding Excellence







Animals at the Borders
Director Cornelia Volk
Environmental
Germany
Best of Show
Ars Natura
Director Hans Leysieffer
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries, Environmental, Cinematography (subcat)
Switzerland
Best of Show
Outstanding Excellence: Cinematography
canopy of wings
Director San
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Best of Show
Countdown to Year Zero
Director Jane Velez-Mitchell
Environmental
United States
Best of Show
Irelands Wild Ancient East
Director Noel Marry
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Ireland
Best of Show
Pant Hoot
Director Richard Reens
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment,Original Concept (subcat), Original Score (subcat), Original Song (subcat), Editing (subcat), Direction (subcat)
United States
Best of Show
Excellence: Original Concept
Excellence: Original Score
Excellence: Original Song
Excellence: Editing
Outstanding Excellence: Direction
Sockeye Salmon. Red fish
Directors Dmitriy Shpilenok , Vladislav Grishin
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Russian Federation
Best of Show
The Seacrets
Director philippe azoulay siritzky
Narrative Feature Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
France
Best of Show
The Secret Life of the Andean Bear
Director Philippe Molins
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
France
Best of Show
Outstanding Excellence: Cinematography
Vertical: The Future of Farming
Directors Scott Morris, Jay Windland
Environmental
United States
Best of Show

Wild Portugal
Director Christian Baumeister
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Germany
Best of Show








Escape from Extinction
Director Matthew R. Brady
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Outstanding Excellence

Guardians of the Forest
Director Jacob Wagner
Environmental
United States
Outstanding Excellence
Outstanding Excellence: Cinematography
Little big volcano
Director Domingo Damian Ojeda Yanes
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Spain
Outstanding Excellence
Outstanding excellence: Sound Editing
Outstanding Excellence: Narration
Excellence: Cinematography
Patches, The Last Marbled Duck
Director Batiste Miguel Gil
Ornithology Documentaries
Spain
Outstanding Excellence
Send me a little light
Submitter Conny Conrad
in Original Song (subcat)
Germany
Outstanding Excellence
Songscape: Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge featuring Ben Sollee
Director Mallory Cunningham
Original Song (subcat)
United States
Outstanding Excellence
The Blinding Sea
Director George Tombs
Biography
Canada
Outstanding Excellence
Excellence: Cinematography
Excellence: Sound Editing
Excellence: Editing
THE EGRET'S VOYAGE
Director Kamila Delart
Sound Editing (subcat)
Czech Republic
Outstanding Excellence: Sound Editing
The Legacy (engl.)
Director Jens Klingebiel
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Germany
Outstanding Excellence
Outstanding Excellence: Cinematography
The Ocean Voice
Director Rodrigo Thome
Ocean Life Documentaries
Brazil
Outstanding Excellence
Outstanding Excellence: Cinematography
The Princess of the Bottom of the World
Writer Dan Linehan
Screenplay
United States
Outstanding Excellence
Those In Grass Houses
Director Christian Lawes
Ornithology Documentaries


Outstanding Excellence
Outstanding Excellence: Cinematography
Through Her Eyes: The Science and Beauty of Inter-tidal Life in the Salish Sea
Director Michael Noonan
in Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Outstanding Excellence
Excellence: Cinematography
Treasures Of The Chesapeake
Director Christopher Lapinski
Environmental
United States
Outstanding Excellence
Outstanding Excellence: Cinematography
Outstanding Excellence: Voice Over Talent
Wild Lands Wild Horses
Director Jamie Baldanza
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Outstanding Excellence
Excellence: Cinematography








Aedipar - The secret of the forbidden valley
Director Dr. Ingo Bruchhold
Animation
Germany
Excellence
Art of Pollution
Director Milan Radisics
Environmental, Original Song (subcat)
Hungary
Excellence
Outstanding Excellence: Original Song
as if one bird
Director Cathryn Vasseleu
Ornithology Documentaries
Australia
Excellence
Excellence: Cinematography
Beauty on the Wing: Life Story of the Monarch Butterfly
Director Kim Smith
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Excellence
Becoming Borderless - One Year on the Road
Director Adam Clayton
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
Excellence
Burren Girl
Director rita davern
in Environmental
United States
Excellence
Excellence: Research
Catnip Nation
Director Tina Traster
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Excellence
Corona Lockdown Wildlife
Director Sanne Vermaas
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
Netherlands
Excellence

Costa Rica - Biodiversity in the Tropical Forest
Director RTV Slovenija
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Slovenia
Excellence
Excellence: Cinematography
Deforestation Made in Italy
Director Francesco De Augustinis
Environmental
Italy
Excellence
Fouled Nest
Writer Tania Kamal-Eldin
Screenplay
United States
Excellence
Great White Encounters
Director Jason Perryman
Ocean Life Documentaries
United Kingdom
Excellence
Growing Solutions
Director Leo Horrigan
Environmental
United States
Excellence
Guardians of the Grasslands
Directors Sarah Wray , Ben Wilson
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
Canada
Excellence
Outstanding Excellence: Sound Editing
Honor the Earth
Director Tara Coyote
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
Excellence
Special Juror's Choice Award for a short Documentary with a strongmessage by a first time filmmaker
Iceland - Into the Flow of Your True Nature
Director Ilan Shamir
Content/Message Delivery (subcat)
United States
Excellence: Content/Message Delivery
Izembek
Director Gerrit Vyn
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Excellence
Excellence: Cinematography
Kangaroo
Directors Kate McIntyre Clere, Michael McIntyre
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Australia
Excellence
Letter From Nature
Director Pedro Pablo Celedon
Environmental
United States
Excellence
Outstanding Excellence: Cinematography
Life in the Buffer Zone
Director Constantinos Christou
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Cyprus
Excellence
Merganser Migration
Director William Harper
Original Concept (subcat)
United States
Excellence
Nanuq - an arctic journey from past to future
Director Emanuele Licitra
Environmental
Italy
Excellence
No Fear No Favor
Director Mirra Bank
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Excellence
Outstsanding Excellence: Cinematography
Peloton Against Plastic
Directors Jamie Lepre, Paul Hellier
Environmental
Australia
Excellence
Plastic Britain: On Our Watch
Director Michael Wafer
Environmental
United Kingdom
Excellence
Pristine Places
Director John Hart
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Australia
Excellence
Save Our Species
Director Delwyn Jude Remedios
Animation
India
Excellence
Sacred Cow: The Case for Better Meat
Director Diana Rodgers
Environmental
United States
Excellence
Superb Fairy-Wren
Director Paul Willis
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
Australia
Excellence
Terra Nostra
Directors Christophe Chagnard, Charlie Spears
Original Score (subcat)
United States
Excellence: Original Score
The Fire
Director MicK McIntyre
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
Australia
Excellence
The Frozen Kingdom of the Snow Leopard
Director Frederic Larrey
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
France
Excellence
The Keeper and the Bee
Director Bill Vilkelis
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Excellence
The Last House Standing
Director George Siegal
Environmental
United States
Excellence
The Last Song of the Nightingale
Director Katie Stacey
Ornithology Documentaries
United Kingdom
Excellence
The last urban dragons
Directors Jorge Alvarez Chachero, David Alvarez
Herpetology Documentaries
Spain
Excellence
The Linesman: Both Sides Matter
Director Dominic Gill
Environmental
United States
Excellence
The Return of the Wildcat
Director David Cebulla
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Germany
Excellence
The Toxic Pigs of Fukushima
Director Otto Bell
Environmental,
United States
Excellence
The Toxic Pigs of Fukushima
Director Otto Bell
Content/Message Delivery (subcat)
United States
Excellence
The Warm Heart of Africa
Director Matthew Krul
Narrative Feature Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
Excellence
Excellence: Sound Editing
Excellence: Cinematography
Outstanding Excellence: Narration Talent
There Is A Place On Earth
Director Ellen van den Honert
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Netherlands
Excellence
Tiger Tale
Writer Karl Mather
Screenplay
Australia
Excellence
Water Be Dammed...
Directors Vanita Khanna, Dr. Romila Verma and Prab Kainth
Environmental
Canada
Excellence







A Cheat's Guide to Time Travel
Director Anthony Povah
Environmental
United Kingdom
Exceptional Merit
"A World Within A World: The Bay Houses of Long Island"
Directors Barbara J Weber , Greg Blank
Original Score (subcat)
United States
Exceptional Merit
A VOYAGE AGAINST TIME
Director Steve Mackay
Environmental, Ocean Life Documentaries
Kuwait
Exceptional Merit
Coastal Requiem
Director Diane Tuft
Environmental
United States
Exceptional Merit
Dancing Water
Director Anthony Oliver Garvin
Environmental
United States
Exceptional Merit
Excellence: Cinematography
ECO-Drone
Director Michael Hanrahan
Environmental
Exceptional Merit
freeFLY
Director Avery Bazan
Ocean Life Documentaries
United States
Exceptional Merit
Harmony - a zero waste film
Director Stanislava Oben
Environmental
Canada
Exceptional Merit
Ho Gayi Hai Pir Parvat Si: The Mountains Agonized
Director Subrat Kumar Sahu
in Environmental
India
Exceptional Merit
How the Ocean Dreamed Breakers
Director Adam Hill
Oceanography Documentaries
Canada
Exceptional Merit
Ice
Directors Jonathan Sprout, Rodney Whittenberg
Environmental
United States
Exceptional Merit
I Am Cheo
Director Pablo Irlando-Wildman
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
Exceptional Merit
La Lobera
Submitter Claudio Escobar
Ocean Life Documentaries
Mexico
Exceptional Merit
Last Call for Tomorrow
Directors Gary Null, Valerie Van Cleve_Co-director
Environmental
United States
Exceptional Merit
LUONTO - The Nature in Us
Director Anna Lunden
Environmental
Finland
Exceptional Merit
Nightingales in Berlin
Director Ville Tanttu
Ornithology Documentaries
Finland
Exceptional Merit
Oceans
Director Graciela Cassel
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
Exceptional Merit
Organic & Sustainable Agriculture: The Rodale Way
Director Josh Karan
Environmental
United States
Exceptional Merit
Planting Trees in Tamil Nadu
Director Pankaja Brooke
Environmental
United Kingdom
Exceptional Merit
Polar Spin
Director Jose Emilio Ramos Gomez
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries, Viewer Impact: Entertainment Value(subcat), Original Score (subcat)
Mexico
Exceptional Merit
Exceptional Merit: Viewer Impact: Entertainment
Excellence: Original Score
Reboot Planet Earth
Director Marysia Clouter
Environmental
United Kingdom
Exceptional Merit
River plants
Director Daniel Ocampo Rincon
Flora Documentary
Colombia
Exceptional Merit
Roam 4 Wild
Director Jeremy Conte
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Exceptional Merit
San Marcos River Project
Director Nick Breaux
Environmental
United States
Exceptional Merit
San Pedro Huachuma E. Pachanoi
Director Jerry Toth
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
Exceptional Merit
SAVE THE WHALES FOR SUPPER
Director Bonnie Carini
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
Exceptional Merit
Saving Beauty: Learning to Live with the Rare Ones Among Us
Directors Christina Selby, Arturo Anzures
Flora Documentary
United States
Exceptional Merit
Sentinels of Silence?: Whale Watching, Noise, and the Orca
Director Mark Pedelty
Environmental
United States
Exceptional Merit
Sparse
Director Ann Huang
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
Exceptional Merit
Springtime Odyssey
Director Dale Jakubowski
Flora Documentary
United States
Exceptional Merit
Stromboli – as long as the heart beats
Director Hanspeter Aliesch, Zurich
Environmental
Switzerland
Exceptional Merit
TABIRA
Director Aner Etxebarria Moral
Ornithology Documentaries
Spain
Exceptional Merit
The Coral Project
Director Jonathan Paine
Environmental, Ocean Life Documentaries, Oceanography Documentaries
United States
Exceptional Merit in all three main categories
The Last Song of the Nightingale
Director Katie Stacey
Ornithology Documentaries
United Kingdom
Exceptional Merit
The Monumentals
Director Dennis Rollins
Environmental
United States
Exceptional Merit
The nymph's tears
Director Florence Kermarec
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
France
Exceptional Merit
The Toxic Pigs of Fukushima
Director Otto Bell
Original Score (subcat)
United States
Exceptional Merit
The Toxic Pigs of Fukushima
Director Otto Bell
Cinematography (subcat)
United States
Exceptional Merit
WATER. THIRST TIME
Director Евгений Безбородов
Environmental
Russian Federation
Exceptional Merit
Way to Go!
Director Kathy Roselli
Environmental
United States
Exceptional Merit
Youth Misinformed
Directors Abirami Subramanian, Serena Griffin, Cambria Bartlett, MercyGilniy
Youth Produced
United States
Exceptional Merit









ACID MINE NATION Ep 2 - Immediate Reaction Colorado
Director Tom Schillaci
Environmental
United States
Merit
"After The Gold Rush"
Director Orestes Valdes
Viewer Impact: Entertainment Value (subcat)
United States
Merit
'As we are, so we see'
Director Beate Gillson
Environmental
Ireland
Merit
"A World Within A World: The Bay Houses of Long Island"
Directors Barbara J Weber , Greg Blank
Ocean Life Documentaries
United States
Merit
Birds
Director Giorgi Tkemaladze
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Georgia
Merit
Cedar Creek
Director Dick DeAngelis
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
Merit
C. P. CAVAFY | THE CITY (Wherever I Turn My Eyes To)
Directors Panagiotis Kountouras, Aristarchos Papadaniel
Wildlife/Nature Documentaries, Original Song (subcat)
Greece
Merit
Kudos: Original Song
Giufa
Director Tony Gangitano
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
Italy
Merit
Immuto (Change)
Submitter Janis Steele
Environmental
United States
Merit
   
Little Bear and Me
Director Beth van Raalte
 Youth Produced
Australia
Merit
Miracle! Mother Nature has appeared to me
Directors Mario Pascariello , Tommaso MiceliMalaguti
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
Italy
Merit
Mr.Kovid
Director Payman Soltani
Animation
United States
Merit
Newborn
Submitter Michael Amter
Content/Message Delivery (subcat)
United States
Merit
Pharaoh Bug
Directors Daniel St. Ours, Andrew Petrilla
Entomology Documentaries
United States
Merit
Peacock Island (Pfaueninsel)
Director Miklos Gaal
Original Concept (subcat)
Finland
Merit
Salt, Wine & Wildlife
Director Luke Massey
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
Spain
Merit
The Adventures of Kehaulani
Director S. Fiducci
Animation
United States
Merit
The Vengeance of the Animals
Director Martin Thaw
Environmental
Canada
Merit
Two Very Short Nature Films
Director Denise Fairbanks Simpson
Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
Merit


Wild West
Director Hannah Beadman
Environmental
United States
Merit