"Know Your Place", "Sweetheart Deal", "Kimi" Among Five Finalists For SFCS's Inaugural Pacific Northwest Filmmaking Award
Finalists for the Seattle Film Critics Society’s Pacific Northwest Filmmaking Award have been selected and announced!
This is the first year that this award will be included as part of the Seattle Film Critics Society’s (SFCS) annual awards ceremony, which highlights the films members considered the best of the year. With this award, SFCS aims to recognize and honor exceptional films and filmmakers with strong connections to the Pacific Northwest region.
In the official press release, SFCS President Matt Oakes states, “We’re excited to formally acknowledge the plethora of great work coming out of our distinct region. This inaugural batch of nominees will set a precedent for years to come by propelling further conversation and recognition of the exciting filmmaking happening in the Pacific Northwest.”
The nominating committee, which I was honored to be a part of, considered a wide variety of feature films that either premiered or had a wide release in 2022. After narrowing the collection of deserving candidates down, these are the five feature films that were selected as finalists for the Pacific Northwest Filmmaking Award:
ALL SORTS
Filmed in Yakima, WA, All Sorts is an absurdist office comedy that follows its main characters into the underground world of competitive filing. The film premiered at the 2021 Seattle International Film Festival and had its international premiere at the 2021 Raindance Film Festival, then released on digital VOD in October 2022. Written and directed by
J. Rick Castaneda.
KIMI
Based and filmed in downtown Seattle, Kimi stars Zoë Kravitz as an agoraphobic computer programmer who finds herself enmeshed in a corporate scandal. The film released on HBO Max in February 2022. Written by David Koepp and directed by Steven Soderbergh.
KNOW YOUR PLACE
This slice of life drama follows two teens traversing present-day Seattle. The film had its world premiere at the 2022 Seattle International Film Festival, where it won the New World Cinema Competition Grand Jury Prize and the Golden Space Needle Award. Know Your Place was also an award winner at the Tacoma Film Festival, and an official selection of BFI London Film Festival and the Vancouver International Film Festival. This is Zia Mohajerjasbi’s writing and directorial debut on a feature film.
SAM NOW
Filmed over 25 years, Sam Now tells the story of two Seattle-based brothers who travel the west coast to solve a family mystery. Sam Now had its World Premiere at HotDocs 2022 and went on to earn a number of awards at many festivals including the Zurich Film Festival (Documentary Competition Winner), the Santa Cruz Film Festival (Best Documentary Feature), and the SCAD Savannah Film Festival (Best Documentary Feature, Best Director). Sam Now is Reed Harkness’s writing and directorial debut on a feature film.
SWEETHEART DEAL
With a raw and unfiltered perspective, Sweetheart Deal captures a deeply moving portrait of sex workers on Seattle’s Aurora Avenue seeking salvation from the spiral of addiction. This film had its world premiere at the 2022 Seattle International Film Festival, won for Best Directing at BendFilm Festival, and is now an official selection of the 2023 Slamdance Film Festival. Sweetheart Deal is Elisa Levine and Gabriel Miller’s feature directorial debut.
The first winner of this Pacific Northwest Filmmaking Award will be voted on by the full SFCS membership and announced on January 17th, 2023, along with SFCS’s other awards.
On a personal note, these are all films that I’m glad have been brought to my attention and enjoyed having a chance to watch. As one who has lived my entire life in Northwest Washington, I’m proud to see so much great storytelling taking place in my own backyard, and I strongly recommend taking some time to watch these films and support these filmmakers.
Watch the Seattle Film Critics Society sizzle reel for the award announcement below, and learn more about SFCS on their official website.