Mountainfilm Announces 2021 Award Winners

Festival honors the year’s best and most impactful films

The past year may have brought about many changes, but at Mountainfilm in Telluride there was a sense of hope, a return to normality. We reconnected with our Mountainfilm family, heard from renowned speakers and had the privilege of gathering in-person to watch films under the stars.

“It felt like a sacred space,” said Festival Director Suzan Beraza. “The numbers were different from what we’re used to, but there was an intimacy and the ability to have real, in-depth conversations. It was a gift.”

The number of in-person attendees may have shifted due to the pandemic, but the quality of programming remained high. And, just like in years past, certain features and short films stood out — pushing us out of our comfort zone, inspiring action and shifting our world view. To honor these moments, a handful of films and filmmakers were recognized with a cash award.

“A big part of Mountainfilm’s mission is filmmaker support,” said Beraza. “The comment that we got from the awards juries is that the caliber of films was extremely high and they had a difficult deliberation process.”

These are the Mountainfilm 2021 award winners:

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
JACINTA

The winner of this juried award is Jacinta, a film that introduces us to a multi-generational family fighting the pattern of addiction and the cycle of prison, rehab, relapse and perpetual disappointment. Over three-and-a-half years, filmmaker Jessica Earnshaw follows a loving family faced with a seemingly endless battle against codependency and trauma.
Funded in part by Tully and Elise Friedman

BEST SHORT FILM
SINCE YOU ARRIVED, MY HEART STOPPED BELONGING TO ME

Since you arrived, my heart stopped belonging to me is the winner of this juried award that recognizes exceptional short filmmaking. Director Erin Semine Kökdil zooms in on a group of Central American mothers desperately searching the streets of Mexico for their missing migrant children.
Funded in part by Tully and Elise Friedman

CHARLIE FOWLER BEST ADVENTURE FILM
AFTER ANTARCTICA

Each year, an adventure film that embodies the spirit of Charlie Fowler, a world-class climber and Telluride crag pioneer, is recognized. This year, Tasha Van Zandt’s After Antarctica was the well-deserving recipient. The film tells the story of Will Steger, who traversed Antarctica in 1989 to defend and protect Antarctica from exploitation. Now, almost 30 years later, we watch as Steger sets out on a solo expedition to the Arctic Circle at age 75.
Funded by the Fowler family

MOVING MOUNTAINS
THE ANTS & THE GRASSHOPPER

The Moving Mountains award honors a film that’s dedicated to social justice and impact — supporting both the filmmaker and the film’s associated nonprofit. This year’s recipients are Raj Patel and Zak Piper, directors of The Ants & The Grasshopper, and the farmer-led nonprofit Soils, Food and Healthy Communities. The feature film follows Anita Chitaya from Malawi as she and her mentor, Esther Lupafya, travel through the U.S. in an effort to convince Americans that climate change is real.
Funded in part by Tully and Elise Friedman

WOMEN IN FILM
THE BEAUTY PRESIDENT

Director Whitney Skauge is the winner of this award that’s presented to an outstanding woman in the film industry. Skauge’s film, The Beauty President pays homage to a queer drag queen named Joan Jett Blakk who ran a campaign as a write-in candidate in the 1992 U.S. presidential election. In the film, we meet the male activist behind the persona, Terence Alan Smith, as he reflects on his audacious bid to draw attention to LGBTQ+ rights and the AIDS crisis.
Funded by Riccarda de Eccher and Bill Goldston

VIMEO STAFF PICK
ON FALLING

A Vimeo curation team chose On Falling as their 2021 outstanding short film. In the short, Director Josephine Anderson — who is too afraid to ride a mountain bike — follows three female pro mountain bikers to explore the topics of toughness, vulnerability and accomplishment.
Funded by Vimeo

If you missed any of these films in Telluride (or you want to give them a second watch) they will all be available on Mountainfilm Online. Passes to the online festival are also still available here. Following Mountainfilm Online, May 31–June 6, the remaining two awards: Audience Choice and Student Choice will be announced.