Appalachian Film Festival Winners
These are all films that have won awards at the Appalachian Film Festival in West Virginia, from oldest to most recent. Some past award winners do not have IMDb pages and do not appear on this list as a result.
List activity
1.5K views
• 0 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
56 titles
- DirectorChuck PortzStarsIgor GuzunVera MaryanchikRoland MuldoonAn American journalist, a mysterious Gypsy woman and a bookkeeper with an inside angle try to stay one step ahead of a gang of ruthless killers as they uncover the horrors of the human trafficking of sex slaves in the Balkans.Won 1st place in the Feature Films category at the 2004 ceremony.
- DirectorAnton EvangelistaStarsJosephine BerrettaGary CancroDonna CarrollWhen a young Italian American couple living in the Bronx in 1968 get over their heads financially, she starts working nights and he starts moonlighting at a chop shop. These jobs bring new stresses to their relationship until he sets out with a gun to kill the love of his life. Will there be an intervention in time?Won 2nd place in the Feature Films category at the 2004 ceremony.
- DirectorMickey FisherStarsKate ArringtonDominic BogartJonathan ClarkHaving just turned thirty years old, former high school star athlete TYLER WELLS is having trouble settling into his comfortable, middle class life. With a baby on the way and his job at a local plant hanging in the balance, he goes for one last roar of the crowd by entering The Iron Masters King of the Ring Contest, a brutal fight contest where the winner fights four fights in one night. When his troubled younger brother GABE enters, Tyler finds himself fighting not only his past present and future, but his own flesh and blood as well.Won 3rd place in the Feature Films Category at the 2004 ceremony.
- DirectorChris BoebelNick PoppyContainment: Life After Three Mile Island examines the legacy of the Three Mile Island nuclear accident through the lens of the nearby community of Middletown, Pennsylvania. The film explores the political, environmental, and psychological effects of the accident on area residents.Won Best Documentary at the 2004 ceremony.
- DirectorJustin SwibelStarsJosh PodorisBrian SwibelAaron FallA disturbing and darkly comic short film about a rich American boy who attacks his tennis instructor.Won Best Short Film at the 2004 ceremony.
- DirectorBen SledgeMatt WheelerStarsBrian ReedMatt WheelerGary FleckHis boss just fired him because he lacks the skills to make a burrito. His girlfriend thinks he's a big-time loser. His father just wants him to be a successful air conditioner salesman. But Mark Rotane will let nothing in the way of his dream to become the world's greatest ninja.Won 1st place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2005 ceremony.
- DirectorKris BoyattNatalie BoyattStarsJ.W. WilliamsRalph HatleyDedrick Bullard"Rookie Bookie" is a story of greed combined with opportunity. Joe Turner is a struggling pharmaceutical sales rep that finds himself mixed up with a group of doctors involved in a high stakes gambling ring headed up by a corrupt hospital administrator. Before he can think twice, Joe becomes a bookie and gets in way over his head. As he desperately tries to get out of the situation and salvage everything important to him, he finds nothing is what it seems.Won 2nd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2005 ceremony.
- DirectorDennis BurkleyStarsF. Murray AbrahamAlex AlbrechtPeter BartonWon 3rd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2005 ceremony.
- StarsOra E. AndersonReporter Ora Anderson relates how the Civilian Conservation Corps created Ohio's Wayne National Forest.Won 1st place in the Best Documentary category at the 2005 ceremony.
- DirectorBrett IngramStarsGeorge BickfordBruce BickfordGreg McClellanMonster Road explores the wildly fantastic worlds of legendary underground clay animator Bruce Bickford. Tracing the origins of his remarkably unique sensibility, the film journeys back to Bickford's childhood in a competitive household during the paranoia of the Cold War and examines his relationship with his father, George, who is facing the onset of Alzheimer's Disease. Bickford's films, especially the dark and magical clay animations he created for Frank Zappa in the 1970s, have achieved cult status worldwide. Entirely self-taught, the 56-year-old Bickford works alone in a makeshift basement studio in his house near Seattle. Bickford's father George, a retired Boeing engineer of the Cold War era, is the other main character. George's talent for maximizing the space inside airplanes and missiles parallels his son's animations, which often contain dozens of inch-tall figures fighting battles on a tiny set. George's wondrous musings about the universe reveal a deep admiration for the implicit architect of such splendor while atheism prevents him from admitting the possibility of a God. Along with the wonder of creation, George considers the pain of a life spent disengaged from his family and centered on the imperfections in those around him.Won 2nd place in the Best Documentary category at the 2005 ceremony.
- DirectorGiovanni SansevieroStarsGiovanni SansevieroMichael MaldonadoTony RyanWon 1st place in the Best Short Film category at the 2005 ceremony.
- DirectorKim SpurlockStarsJulia NguyenNina NguyenNg Thanh NhanA lost spirit returns home for a visit on a rainy afternoon. Drawn by the grief of her husband and a longing for the vestiges of physical sensation, the spirit of the family matriarch comes calling.Won 2nd place in the Best Short Film category at the 2005 ceremony.
- DirectorBob HardisonRich RobinsonStarsJade DornfeldFrankie IngrassiaRoss KurtA troubled young man returns home for Christmas in an attempt to reconcile with his estranged sister. Her alleged boyfriend shows up and turns the holiday dinner into a dark, disturbing night of violence and terror.Won 1st place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2006 ceremony.
- DirectorAdam JonesStarsYoussef KerkourAdam JonesJustin LaneNothing and no one in Ernie's life wants him to be a writer. Not his boss, not his roommates, not even the neighborhood meter maid. All seem bent on squashing him and the noble pursuit of his dream... writing his first novel. The only place Ernie feels safe and confident is in his imagination. But when the world he hates encroaches on his typewriter, Ernie loses focus, and the typewriter goes silent. Uninspired and unable to write, Ernie decides if he can't gain people's respect, he can certainly take it. Magically, the very act of standing up for himself gets the typewriter clicking, but entwines Ernie in a bizarre tangle of crime, kidnapping, robotics, and kung fu. Ernie ultimately finds liberation in the least likely of places - namely handcuffing half the neighborhood to a stolen fire hydrant in the middle of his living room. Today Ernie is inspired.Won 2nd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2006 ceremony.
- DirectorBob GrayStarsTodd CoxLiza FosterBob GrayIn a place, where man and nature have co-existed for years. Man has finally overstepped his bounds and nature is fighting back.Won 3rd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2006 ceremony.
- DirectorXackery IrvingStarsJoe ArpaioXackery IrvingDaniel JensenChain gangs: a throwback to slavery or an appropriate punishment? This award winning documentary examines the American trend of using chain gangs to punish criminals.Won 2nd place in the Best Documentary category at the 2006 ceremony.
- DirectorRichard KeelStarsTerry JerniganScott HastyNewton MillerWhat happens when a wise-cracking vent figure teams up with a shy boy with a love of puppets? You get FORGOTTEN STARS, a mockumentary about ventriloquist Jerry Boyd and his partner, Delbert Schwartz. This whimsical tale covers the ups and downs, triumphs and tragedies of one of America's best, and least remembered, ventriloquist teams.Won a tied award in the Best Short Film category at the 2006 ceremony.
- DirectorKim SpurlockStarsEllen BermanBrittany Alexis PalmerDmitry PomirchyAn elderly German woman faces her troubled past in order to prevent a young boy from repeating her mistakes. This is a story about the complexities of reconciliation and people's ability to forgive.Won a tied award in the Best Short Film category at the 2006 ceremony.
- DirectorD.B. SweeneyStarsJohn C. McGinleyD.B. SweeneyNed BellamyThree guys on the verge of forty begin to realize all the best things in their lives happened before they were twenty. A spontaneous road trip adventure gives them a chance to balance the ledger.Won the Governor's Golden Appy at the 2007 ceremony.
- DirectorAndrew C. ErinStarsCameron BancroftBellamy YoungAidan MitchellIn order for a big-city doctor to get the job of a lifetime, he must spend his summer in Dunn's Rock, North Carolina. Arriving with his 10-year old son, he discovers what is most important and learns to enjoy the simple things in life.Won 1st place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2007 ceremony.
- DirectorJD EvermoreStarsWill AtkinsonJane Rule BurdineBruce ButlerA Jewish filmmaker from New York travels to the small town of Sinnaville, Mississippi for a week to shoot his graduate thesis documentary about a gay antique dealer and community theater actor causing a local and federal controversy with his gay mailbox.Won 2nd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2007 ceremony.
- DirectorJon Russell CringStarsLawrence Bull Jr.Buddy FarlerJenson GoinsA waitress and her adventures raising a daughter as a single mother in a small town, juggling plates, culture shock, coming of age, synthetic marijuana, and lesbians while trying to pay the electric bill before the lights go out.Won 3rd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2007 ceremony.
- DirectorScott C. JacksonStarsBig Mike GriffinJason NeeseMonkey TidwellFor years, urban legends have warned about an isolated Southern town where the locals ran-off their police department and outsiders fear to tread. To blues musician Big Mike Griffin, Iron City seemed like the perfect subject for a song. However, first, he must find out for himself if the legends are true. Join Big Mike and his guide, a cigar-chomping ex-Marine named Jason Neese, as they ride their Harleys through Tennessee's backwoods into a place that even cops fear. You'll meet a collection of unforgettable characters as you witness the creation of a blues song about the most notorious town in the South. Welcome to Iron City. Watch your back.Won 1st place in the Best Documentary category at the 2007 ceremony.
- DirectorDon Henderson BakerJim HaverkampStarsBrian PrinceElizabeth RobertsJon StaffordIn 1740s Northern Ireland, a young man becomes ensnared in a deadly love triangle and must decide whether to listen to his heart or his father's twisted advice. Based on a famous murder ballad, "Willow Garden" is a dark fable of love, zealotry, and deception.Won Best Short Film at the 2007 ceremony.
- DirectorJoe EnsleyStarsZolaikha AfzaJake BaskinTamika BryantBased on the true story of a 16 year old track star Aylen, JOY follows the runner as she loses her innocence being surrounded by teenage sex, drugs, and carefree living. Aylen must cope with her emotional and social downfall as she is forced to experience one of life's greatest challenges.Won the Best Young Filmmaker award at the 2007 ceremony.
- DirectorWill BensonStarsDuffy HudsonSusan FloydKirk BaltzNo matter how hard you run from the past, it has a way of catching up with you. No one knows this better than 38 year-old Vince, back in his hometown of Silverton, Ohio, after a 13 year absence. He has come back to visit his mother's grave, somehow he missed her funeral by just one; day but instead he finds himself in an all too familiar place, a bar. The people in this bar are also familiar. Vince runs into Julie, an old friend of the family, who teaches art at the local elementary school. At first this encounter with his past is pleasant until Julie's ex boyfriend Ben shows up. Ben has a way of making trouble for Julie. He is a cop, and chances are he's going to make some trouble for Vince as well. Vince finally arrives at the cemetery the following day. A very hung-over Julie is also there, on a field trip with her art class. It seems that Vince's sister, Sara, has shown up too, about 22 years after she was abducted and murdered. Vince's flood of memories about Sara's disappearance is brought on when he happens upon 10 year old Ellen, one of Julie's students. Still suffering from her hangover, Julie doesn't realize that Ellen is missing when the school bus leaves the cemetery. Suffering from his flashbacks, Vince doesn't realize that Ellen has also disappeared from the cemetery, right before his eyes. The entire town begins to look for Ellen when she fails to appear at home that night. And eventually some eyes turn toward the drifter, Vince. Making matters worse, Vince is having trouble discerning reality from memory. He is at a loss to describe what he may have seen to the police, to Ellen's mother, to himself. As he spirals into a series of hallucinations, the line between his sister's death and Ellen's disappearance blurs. Only through his recurring dreams of Sara and Ellen can he begin to separate the past from the present, and piece together what may have happened in the cemetery. With nothing to go on but his dreams and gut instinct, Vince launches into his own search for Ellen or is he really searching for Sara? Years of guilt and sorrow tumble over each other as Vince struggles to retain his sanity and understand who it is he is hoping to find alive.Won 1st place in the Best Features category at the 2008 ceremony.
- DirectorTommy WoodStarsCourtney Cole-FendleyJustin GeerWest CummingsIn a small, sleepy Georgia town, Bobby Hicks rules the roost, until he is found grilled to death on his still-warm barbecue smoker. When the town's only lawyer informs a select group that Bobby has left over a quarter-million dollar inheritance to the last one of them left living, things take a turn for the worse. In the midst of the chaos, Bobby's niece Megan falls for a Latino artist and suspect in Bobby's murder. Can Megan and Lenny get out of town before it's too late for both of them?Won 3rd place in the Best Features category at the 2008 ceremony.
- DirectorRebecca CereseStarsJeff AlguireAlex FeltchJeffrey WestChange Comes Knocking is the tumultuous story of a bi-racial anti-poverty organization, called the North Carolina Fund (NCF) that boldly confronted the explosive issues of race, class and politics during the turbulent 1960s. In 1963, progressive North Carolina Democratic governor, Terry Sanford took an audacious step to attack the entrenched poverty he found throughout his state. The Fund directly empowered poor people, including African Americans, so they could themselves ruffle the feathers of the establishment, all too comfortable with the racial divisions that were the foundations of the economic status quo. Add to that a charismatic Fund employee named Howard Fuller, who spoke of Black Power and urged a more confrontational approach, and the backlash came swiftly.Won 1st place in the Best Documentary category at the 2008 ceremony.
- DirectorMichael Cusack O'ConnellStarsJudy BondsLarry GibsonMaria GunnoeHard-hitting documentary on the effects of the radical and environmentally disastrous form of coal mining known as "Mountaintop removal."Won 2nd place in the Best Documentary category at the 2008 ceremony.
- DirectorGabe FazioLev GornStarsPaul Ben-VictorGabe FazioLev GornWon Best Short Film at the 2008 ceremony.
- DirectorZachary GroffStarsCharlie PolingerPaige GrestyBrendan YukinsJim is a young man suffering from a common fear: fear of people. When Jim suffers from a fear-induced panic attack, neither he nor anyone else can keep his mind grounded in reality.Won the Best Young Filmmaker award at the 2008 ceremony.
- DirectorWayne GurmanWilliam LappeStarsShalin AgarwalRitchie AllenDominick AmicoWayne Gurman's life story. Follow him as he tears through the mean streets of the Bronx. Losing friends, making enemies and fighting against the odds to find Paradise.Won 1st place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2009 ceremony.
- DirectorRichmond RiedelStarsJoey LanaiEltony WilliamsSolomon Hoilett5 friends on a fishing trip discover a hidden training camp for homegrown terrorists.Won 2nd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2009 ceremony.
- DirectorJoseph MiddletonStarsTye BanksBig Dave BrownNathanial CarterMichael Wilson was always afraid of being who he wanted to be. At 17, when Michael finds himself in a hospital after a car accident, he has a realization that will change his life forever. This sudden realization shows Michael how fragile life is, and that living it to the fullest, not caring what others think, is in fact the way to live.Won 3rd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2009 ceremony.
- DirectorCasey HaywardStarsAngela Nicole PatmonAfter 80 years, world-renowned artist David Hostetler reflects on a life and career filled with more turns and curves than the women he has become so well-known for carving. Drawing on a wealth of never-before-see home movies and images from Hostetler's past, the film explores the roots of his talent and passions.Won 1st place in the Best Documentary category at the 2009 ceremony.
- DirectorMike FountainIn the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, a young coal miner toils a mile underground. Despite the harsh working conditions, Lucas Chaffin takes fierce pride in doing the job once done by the man he loves more than anything, his father. Lucas' father, nicknamed "Bonecrusher," was a strong, handsome man. Now he's withered and sick; coal dust has ravaged his lungs. As life slips away, his greatest concern isn't for himself; it is for Lucas' safety. Bonecrusher is an intimate and moving account of the love between a father and son and the powerful bond they share, a bond that is put to the test.Won 2nd place in the Best Documentary category at the 2009 ceremony.
- DirectorShira-Lee ShalitStarsLynn CohenAgata DomanskaEeva SemerdjievUnder the watchful eye of a hidden sniper, two women attempt some form of normality in their everyday lives, knowing one misstep would mean immediate death.Won 1st place in the Best Short Film category at the 2009 ceremony.
- DirectorMichael KortlanderStarsMike MihmBekka PrewittChristopher WellsIn The Dying Western, Howard obsessively pursues his dreams to be the next John Wayne, but has only been successful at playing dying extras in western movies. Set in 1960's Hollywood, Howard's steadfast commitment to his work gets in the way of his relationships at home as he practices for his roles by faking his death on a near-nightly basis. These playful imitations grow competitive when his wife June is diagnosed with cancer and Howard becomes convinced that she is trying to "out-die" him.Won 1st place in the Best Young Filmmaker category at the 2009 ceremony.
- DirectorBlake PruittStarsDave KontnyJohn GavrilisTom PruittWon 2nd place in the Best Young Filmmaker category at the 2009 ceremony.
- DirectorJacob RichardsonStarsJacob RichardsonThe character in this surrealist short film takes a medicine called "Null" that has very existential adverse effects.Won 2nd place in the Micro-Film category at the 2009 ceremony.
- DirectorElias PlagianosStarsRobert ClohessyJosh BurrowChrishell StauseTwo desperate men find themselves unwitting pawns in an ancient ritual.Won 1st place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2010 ceremony.
- DirectorMartha StephensStarsKentucker AudleyWill CasseKarrie CrouseSet among the coalfields of Eastern Kentucky, 'Passenger Pigeons' is a story about finding hope and beauty in the dark hills of Appalachia. The film quietly interweaves four separate story lines over the course of a weekend as the town copes with the death of a local miner.Won 2nd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2010 ceremony.
- DirectorDale JacksonJeffrey JonesStarsJoseph D. DurbinKarn FordChris McMinnA Washed up Filmmaker from the Silent Era needs a new camera for his final project, his first talkie that he wants to leave behind as his greatest work, his legacy. The camera is found at a strange second hand shop off the beaten path . Maxwell Stein decides this is the camera for him,however the camera has different plans for Mr Stein and the cast as this haunted film camera begins to take over.Won 3rd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2010 ceremony.
- DirectorPeter BullStarsJeff GoodellA documentary about the myth of clean coal. The film reveals the true, hidden environmental and social costs of the 'cheap' nineteenth century technology that still provides more than half the electricity powering today's digital age. DIRTY BUSINESS exposes Big Coal's propaganda campaign to convince the public that renewable energy, such as solar and wind power, are not ready for prime time - and that clean coal already exists.Won 1st place in the Best Documentary category at the 2010 ceremony.
- DirectorJacob PenchanskyStarsBuddhiman GandharbaDanny KnicelyTara LinhardtFollows two Virginia musicians, who travel to Nepal to explore the extraordinary connections between Appalachian and Himalayan folk music.Won 2nd place in the Best Documentary category at the 2010 ceremony.
- DirectorSteven MiddletonFire In The Mountains documents a independent wrestling organization in Appalachian Kentucky. Showing the hardships of life in both being a wrestler and promoter in Eastern KY in 2009. What was once a dream is now limited to very small armories and school lunchrooms across the mountains. Showcasing the hardships of life of a by gone industry.Won Best Short Film at the 2010 ceremony.
- DirectorKim SpurlockStarsMichael MeredithChristopher DevlinJohn HalsteadSouthern Gothic tale of a coal miner pushed to his limits for the love of his son.Won People's Choice Short at the 2010 ceremony.
- DirectorDavid DonarStarsEd BoltSteve GaheeBill NicholsAn old clog dancer retires to bed, but his shoes keep on clogging.Won the Micro-Film award at the 2010 ceremony.
- DirectorTimothy HallStarsW. Scott Parker IIILinda DonnellJeff WickerJonathan Granger, a small town North Carolina native, finds his world crumbling as the factory where he's worked for decades closes.Won the Best Young Filmmaker award at the 2010 ceremony.
- DirectorAndrew FitzgeraldStarsCheryl AielloJohn BayneSteven BeckinghamDustin seems to be living the happy life of a swinging NYC bachelor. By day, he works as a personal trainer, by night he hangs out with his boys from the gym, and every spare moment seems more than dedicated to staying in peek physical condition. After a gym member, Becky (the type of woman his wild friends wouldn't give a second look), Dustin begins facing some bitter realities of his life, both past and present. Combining comedy and drama, the film asks the question of whether you can really be honest with anyone unless you're honest with yourself...Won 1st place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2011 ceremony.
- DirectorA.J. DetischNick DetischStarsMatt BolandJeannie JenkinsDon KirschScott is a post-suicidal young man who takes a job selling caskets.Won 2nd place in the Best Feature Films category at the 2011 ceremony.
- DirectorThomas HenwoodPirooz KalayehStarsSteven AndrewJennifer Angela BishopDaniel GenaloOn the eve of the Iraq War, teenager Mark Swift dreams of escape from the realities of his lower-class existence in Youngstown, Ohio, and the fear and bewilderment of a society at war.Won 3rd place in the Best feature Films category at the 2011 ceremony.
- DirectorFrancine CavanaughAdams WoodStarsJudy BondsDebbie JarrellMaria LambertShot over a five year period, ON COAL RIVER follows the transformation of four remarkable individuals as they fight for the valley they love and for future generations making dramatic changes against all odds.Won 1st place in the Best Documentary category at the 2011 ceremony.
- DirectorJeremy VeverkaJesse VeverkaStarsTenzin ChoeyingKunda DixitChalmers JohnsonPeaceful rise or potential threat: What does China's 21st century re-emergence as a great world power mean for the rest of us?Won 2nd place in the Best Documentary category at the 2011 ceremony.
- DirectorJack BennettStarsBarry KiddAmy NorthupDan GrubbChuck and Dawn are grad students and aspiring writers. They've been aspiring so long it's hard to remember why they started. As they struggle with a bad semester in a discouraging program, and the possible rewards shrink in proportion to the growing personal sacrifices, the question looms... why is being a writer even worth it? That's the gist of The Goat. (the period is part of the title), adapted by Jack Bennett from Atlanta-based writer Nick Tyler's short story of ennui and frustrated desire.Won Best Short Film at the 2011 ceremony.
- DirectorEric WidingStarsRachel CarterJustin LancasterPatricia MooreAn elderly woman named Mary is visited early one morning by a strange man wearing a suit. He insists on seeing her despite her suspicion of him.Won the Best Young Filmmaker Award at the 2011 ceremony.