Seattle International Film Festival 2023 Archive

Seattle International Film Festival 2023

Relive the 49th Seattle International Film Festival. Read key details, flip through the full Festival catalog, see photos and other media, and find a full list of feature-length films presented at the 2023 Seattle International Film Festival.

Dates: May 11–21 & streaming May 22–28
Number of Days: 18
Venues: Ark Lodge Cinemas, AMC Pacific Place 11, Paramount Theatre, Shoreline Community College Theater, SIFF Cinema Egyptian, SIFF Cinema Uptown, SIFF Film Center, SIFF Channel (virtual) 

Opening Night: Past Lives at The Paramount Theatre,
Closing Night: I Like Movies at SIFF Cinema Egyptian


FESTIVAL CATALOG


TRAILER

On this page: FULL LINEUP DETAILS

SIFF's Beth Barrett and Tom Mara pose with director, Chandler Levack, on the red carpet at Closing Night, which featured Levack's film I Like Movies

SIFF's Beth Barrett and Tom Mara pose with director, Chandler Levack, on the red carpet at Closing Night, which featured Levack's film I Like Movies

SIFF's Beth Barrett and Tom Mara pose with director, Chandler Levack, on the red carpet at Closing Night, which featured Levack's film I Like Movies

SIFF's Beth Barrett and Tom Mara pose with director, Chandler Levack, on the red carpet at Closing Night, which featured Levack's film I Like Movies

Guests celebrate Closing Night of the 49th Seattle International Film Festival at MOHAI

Guests celebrate Closing Night of the 49th Seattle International Film Festival at MOHAI

Guests celebrate Closing Night of the 49th Seattle International Film Festival at MOHAI

Guests celebrate Closing Night of the 49th Seattle International Film Festival at MOHAI

Special guests for Opening Night included astronauts from the actual movieverse, come to life from the festival trailer

Special guests for Opening Night included astronauts from the actual movieverse, come to life from the festival trailer

Special guests for Opening Night included astronauts from the actual movieverse, come to life from the festival trailer

Special guests for Opening Night included astronauts from the actual movieverse, come to life from the festival trailer

The grand view of Opening Night from the Paramount Theatre balcony

The grand view of Opening Night from the Paramount Theatre balcony

The grand view of Opening Night from the Paramount Theatre balcony

The grand view of Opening Night from the Paramount Theatre balcony

Director, Celine Song, poses with Artistic Director, Beth Barrett, on the Opening Night Red Carpet before the screening of her film, Past Lives

Director, Celine Song, poses with Artistic Director, Beth Barrett, on the Opening Night Red Carpet before the screening of her film, Past Lives

Director, Celine Song, poses with Artistic Director, Beth Barrett, on the Opening Night Red Carpet before the screening of her film, Past Lives

Director, Celine Song, poses with Artistic Director, Beth Barrett, on the Opening Night Red Carpet before the screening of her film, Past Lives

I Like Movies
I Like Movies
Past Lives
Past Lives
The Blue Caftan
The Blue Caftan
26.2 To Life
26.2 To Life
Mutt
Mutt
20 Days In Mariupol
20 Days In Mariupol
Even Hell Has Its Heroes
Even Hell Has Its Heroes

FULL LINEUP DETAILS

Awards

Golden Space Needle Awards

Best Film
Dancing Queen (dir. Aurora Gossé, Norway)

Best Director
Maryam Touzani (The Blue Caftan, Morocco/France)

Best Performance
Lubna Azabal (The Blue Caftan)

Best Short
Donkey (dir. Matt Kazman, USA)

Best Documentary
26.2 to Life (dir. Christine Yoo, USA)

Lena Sharpe Award for Persistence of Vision, presented by Women in Film Seattle

26.2 to Life (dir. Christine Yoo, USA)

Juried Competition Awards

Official Competition Grand Jury Prize
20,000 Species of Bees (dir. Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren, Spain)

New Directors Competition Grand Jury Prize
Next Sohee (dir. July Jung, South Korea)

New American Cinema Competition Grand Jury Prize
Mutt (dir. Vuk Lungulov-Klotz, USA)

Documentary Competition Grand Jury Prize
Against the Tide (dir. Sarvnik Kaur, India/France)

Ibero-American Competition Grand Jury Prize
The Fishbowl (dir. Glorimar Marrero Sánchez, Spain)

Youth Jury Prize for Best Futurewave Feature
And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine (dir. Axel Danielson, Maximilien Van Aertryck, Sweden/Denmark)

Juried Awards - Shorts

Live Action Short Grand Jury Prize
AirHostess-737 (dir. Thanasis Neofotistos, Greece)

Live Action Short Special Jury Prize
Sisters of the Rotation (dir. Gaby Zarazir, Michel Zarazir, Lebanon)

Documentary Short Grand Jury Prize
Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó (Grandma & Grandma) (dir. Sean Wang, USA)

Documentary Short Special Jury Prize
45th Parallel (dir. Lawrence Abu Hamdan, United Kingdom)

Animated Short Grand Jury Prize
fur (dir. Zhen Li, USA)

List of Feature-Length Films

20 Days in Mariupol - dir. Mstyslav Chernov, 2023, Ukraine/USA

26.2 to Life - dir. Christine Yoo, 2022, USA

ABLED - dir. Einar Thorsteinsson, 2023, USA

Against the Tide - dir. Sarvnik Kaur, 2023, India/France

Aitamaako'tamisskapi Natosi: Before the Sun - dir. Banchi Hanuse (Nuxalk Nation), 2023, Canada/USA

Alan @ Work - dir. Doug Ing, 2023, USA

And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine - dir. Axel Danielson, Maximilien Van Aertryck, 2023, Sweden/Denmark

Art for Everybody - dir. Miranda Yousef, 2023, USA

Bad Press - dir. Rebecca Landsberry-Baker (Muscogee Creek), Joe Peeler, 2023, USA

Being Mary Tyler Moore - dir. James Adolphus, 2023, USA

Bottle Conditioned - dir. Jerry Franck, 2023, USA

Circus of the Scars - The Insider Odyssey of the Jim Rose Circus Sideshow - dir. Chicory Wees, 2022, USA

Coldwater Kitchen - dir. Brian Kaufman, Mark Kurlyandchik, 2022, USA

Confessions of a Good Samaritan - dir. Penny Lane, 2023, USA

SIFF & CFC Present The Craft with DJ NicFit - dir. Andrew Fleming, 1996, USA

Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy - dir. Nancy Buirski, 2022, USA

A Disturbance in the Force - dir. Jeremy Coon, Steve Kozak, 2023, USA

Douglas Sirk - Hope as in Despair - dir. Roman Hüben, 2022, Switzerland/Germany/France

The Echo - dir. Tatiana Huezo, 2023, Mexico/Germany

Even Hell has its Heroes - dir. Clyde Petersen, 2023, USA

Food and Country - dir. Laura Gabbert, 2023, USA

Fragments of Paradise - dir. KD Davison, 2022, USA/Lithuania

Free Money - dir. Sam Soko, Lauren DeFilippo, 2022, USA/Kenya

Gloriavale - dir. Noel Smyth, Fergus Grady, 2022, Australia/New Zealand

The Grab - dir. Gabriela Cowperthwaite, 2022, USA

Hidden Master: The Legacy of George Platt Lynes - dir. Sam Shahid, 2023, USA

Hole in the Head - dir. Dean Kavanagh, 2022, Ireland

The Incredible Shrinking Man - dir. Jack Arnold, 1957, USA

Invisible Beauty - dir. Bethann Hardison, Frédéric Tcheng, 2023, USA

It’s Only Life After All - dir. Alexandria Bombach, 2023, USA

King Coal - dir. Elaine McMillion Sheldon, 2023, USA

LIFT - dir. David Petersen, 2022, USA

Love to Love You, Donna Summer - dir. Brooklyn Sudano, Roger Ross Williams, 2023, USA

Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes - dir. Samuel Pollard, Ben Shapiro, 2023, USA

Midnight Cowboy - dir. John Schlesinger, 1969, USA

Milisuthando - dir. Milisuthando Bongela (Xhosa Nation), 2023, South Africa/Colombia

Mom - dir. Xun Sero (Tzotzil), 2022, Mexico

Motherland - dir. Hanna Badziaka, Alexander Mihalkovich, 2023, Sweden/Ukraine/Belarus

Pianoforte - dir. Jakub Piątek, 2023, Poland

Punderneath It All - dir. Abby Hagan, 2023, USA

Riders on the Storm - dir. Jason Motlagh, Mark Oltmanns, 2023, Austria

Satan Wants You - dir. Sean Horlor, Steve J. Adams, 2023, Canada

Smoke Sauna Sisterhood - dir. Anna Hints, 2023, Estonia/France/Iceland

Stella - dir. Tyler Doehring, 2022, USA

Stephen Curry: Underrated - dir. Peter Nicks, 2023, USA

To Kill a Tiger - dir. Nisha Pahuja, 2022, Canada

The Tuba Thieves - dir. Alison O’Daniel, 2023, USA

Whale Nation - dir. Jean-Albert Lievre, 2023, France

20,000 Species of Bees - dir. Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren, 2023, Spain

Adolfo - dir. Sofia Auza, 2023, Mexico/USA

Ajoomma - dir. He Shuming, 2022, Singapore/South Korea

All the Colours of the World Are Between Black and White - dir. Babatunde Apalowo, 2023, Nigeria

Almamula - dir. Juan Sebastian Torales, 2023, France/Argentina/Italy

Angry Annie - dir. Blandine Lenoir, 2022, France

ANU - dir. Sudeshna Sen, 2023, USA

The Beasts - dir. Rodrigo Sorogoyen, 2022, Spain/France

The Blue Caftan - dir. Maryam Touzani, 2022, Morocco/France

Blue Jean - dir. Georgia Oakley, 2022, United Kingdom

Burning Hearts - dir. Pippo Mezzapesa, 2022, Italy

Chile ‘76 - dir. Manuella Martelli, 2022, Chile/Argentina/Qatar

Coo-Coo 043 - dir. Ching-lin Chan, 2022, Taiwan

Copenhagen Does Not Exist - dir. Martin Skovbjerg, 2023, Denmark

Coyote - dir. Katherine Jerkovic, 2022, Canada (Québec)

Dancing Queen - dir. Aurora Gossé, 2023, Norway

DEMIGOD: The Legend Begins - dir. Huang Wen-Chang, 2022, Taiwan

Dreamin’ Wild - dir. Bill Pohlad, 2022, USA

Egghead & Twinkie - dir. Sarah Kambe Holland, 2023, USA

The Eight Mountains - dir. Felix Van Groeningen, Charlotte Vandermeersch, 2022, Italy/Belgium/France

Ernest & Célestine: A Trip to Gibberitia - dir. Jean-Christophe Roger, Julien Chheng, 2022, France/Luxembourg

Falcon Lake - dir. Charlotte Le Bon, 2022, Canada/France

Feast - dir. Brillante Mendoza, 2022, Hong Kong

Filip - dir. Michal Kwiecinski, 2022, Poland

The Fishbowl - dir. Glorimar Marrero Sánchez, 2023, Puerto Rico/Spain

Four Little Adults - dir. Selma Vilhunen, 2023, Finland/Sweden

Fremont - dir. Babak Jalali, 2023, USA

Gaga - dir. Laha Mebow (Tayal Tribe), 2022, Taiwan

A Guilty Conscience - dir. Jack Ng, 2022, Hong Kong

Hanging Gardens - dir. Ahmed Yassin Al Daradji, 2022, Iraq/Palestine/Saudi Arabia/Egypt/UK

The Happiest Man in the World - dir. Teona Strugar Mitevska, 2022, North Macedonia/Belgium/Slovenia/Denmark/Croatia/Bosnia and Herzegovina

Harka - dir. Lotfy Nathan, 2022, France/Germany/USA/Tunisia

Harvest Moon - dir. Amarsaikhan Baljinnyam, 2022, Mongolia

The Hill of Secrets - dir. Lee Ji-eun, 2022, South Korea

A House in Jerusalem - dir. Muayad Alayan, 2023, Palestine/United Kingdom/Germany/Netherlands/Qatar

The Hummingbird - dir. Francesca Archibugi, 2022, Italy/France

I Like Movies - dir. Chandler Levack, 2022, Canada

Ingeborg Bachmann - Journey into the Desert - dir. Margarethe von Trotta, 2023, Switzerland/Austria/Germany/Luxembourg

Irati - dir. Paul Urkijo Alijo, 2022, Spain

Jamojaya - dir. Justin Chon, 2023, USA/Indonesia

The Last Exit - dir. Matthias Hoene, 2023, United Kingdom

Late Bloomers - dir. Lisa Steen, 2023, USA

A Letter From Helga - dir. Ása Helga Hjörleifsdóttir, 2022, Iceland

Let the Dance Begin - dir. Marina Seresesky, 2023, Argentina/Spain

Let The River Flow - dir. Ole Giæver (Sámi), 2023, Norway

L’immensità - dir. Emanuele Crialese, 2022, Italy/France

LOLA - dir. Andrew Legge, 2022, Ireland/United Kingdom

Lonely Castle in the Mirror - dir. Keiichi Hara, 2022, Japan

MAMI WATA - A West Afrikan Folklore - dir. C.J. "Fiery" Obasi, 2023, Nigeria/France/United Kingdom

Matria - dir. Álvaro Gago Diaz, 2023, Spain

The Mattachine Family - dir. Andy Vallentine, 2023, USA

Mavka: The Forest Song - dir. Oleh Malamuzh, Oleksandra Ruban, 2023, Ukraine

Monica - dir. Andrea Pallaoro, 2022, USA/Italy

Mother Superior - dir. Marie Alice Wolfszahn, 2022, Austria

Mutt - dir. Vuk Lungulov-Klotz, 2023, USA

My Animal - dir. Jacqueline Castel, 2023, Canada/USA

My Love Affair With Marriage - dir. Signe Baumane, 2022, Latvia/USA/Luxembourg

Next Sohee - dir. July Jung, 2022, South Korea

The Night of the 12th - dir. Dominik Moll, 2022, France/Belgium

One Day All This Will Be Yours - dir. Andreas Öhman, 2023, Sweden

Opponent - dir. Milad Alami, 2023, Sweden

Other People’s Children - dir. Rebecca Zlotowski, 2022, France

Passages - dir. Ira Sachs, 2023, France

Past Lives - dir. Celine Song, 2023, USA/Korea

Plan 75 - dir. Chie Hayakawa , 2022, Japan/France/Philippines

Pretty Red Dress - dir. Dionne Edwards, 2022, United Kingdom

The Quiet Migration - dir. Malene Choi, 2023, Denmark

Retreat - dir. Leon Schwitter, 2022, Switzerland

A Room of My Own - dir. Ioseb “Soso” Bliadze, 2022, Georgia/Germany

Scrapper - dir. Charlotte Regan, 2023, United Kingdom

Seven Samurai - dir. Akira Kurosawa, 1954, Japan

Sister & Sister - dir. Kattia G. Zúñiga, 2023, Panama/Chile

Snow and the Bear - dir. Selcen Ergun, 2022, Turkey/Germany/Serbia

Sonne - dir. Kurdwin Ayub, 2022, Austria

Subtraction - dir. Mani Haghighi, 2022, Iran/France

The Sunny Side of the Street - dir. Lau Kok-rui, 2022, Hong Kong

Superposition - dir. Karoline Lyngbye, 2023, Denmark

Table For Six - dir. Sunny Chan, 2022, Hong Kong

Theater Camp - dir. Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman, 2023, USA

This Closeness - dir. Kit Zauhar, 2023, USA

To the North - dir. Mihai Mincan, 2022, Romania

Until Branches Bend - dir. Sophie Jarvis, 2022, Canada

Valeria is Getting Married - dir. Michal Vinik, 2022, Israel/Ukraine

The Visitor From the Future - dir. François Descraques, 2022, France

We Are Still Here - dir. Beck Cole (Luritja), Dena Curtis (Warrumungu/Warlpiri), Tracey Rigney (Wotjobaluk/Ngarrindjeri), Danielle MacLean (Warumungu/Luritja), Tim Worrall (Ngai Tuhoe), Renae Maihi (Ngati Whakaue/Ngapuhi), Miki Magasiva (Samoan), Mario Gaoa (Samoan), Richard Curtis (Ngati Rongomai/Ngati Pikiao), Chantelle Burgoyne (Samoan), 2022, Australia/New Zealand

When it Melts - dir. Veerle Baetens, 2023, Belgium/Netherlands

Divinity - dir. Eddie Alcazar, 2023, USA

Year of the Fox - dir. Megan Griffiths, 2023, USA

Yuku and the Himalayan Flower - dir. Rémi Durin, Arnaud Demuynck, 2022, Belgium/France

Special Programs & Events

Festival Spotlights: SIFF & CFC Present The Craft with DJ NicFit, Year of the Fox

Divinity (was billed as “Wild, Terrifying, and For One Night Only”) - dir. Eddie Alcazar, 2023, USA

Secret Fest