2025 MIFF Award winners unveiled by celebrated international jury – This evening, the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) announced the esteemed winners of its 2025 MIFF Awards, at the Ceremony presented by Penfolds, and awarded more than $300,000 in prize money across various categories. The flagship $140,000 Bright Horizons Award, supported by VicScreen, was awarded to a film with an outstanding filmmaker on the rise.
This year’s winner is A Poet, directed by Simón Mesa Soto.
Other celebrated prize winners include First Light director James J. Robinson who was the recipient of the Blackmagic Design Best Australian Director Award, proudly supported by Blackmagic Design, recognising an outstanding Australian director of a film that screened as part of this year’s program. The winner received a $50,000 cash prize and a fully kitted URSA Cine 12K camera valued at $27,500.
Looking back at this year’s 73rd festival edition, MIFF Artistic Director, Al Cossar said:
“It’s been incredible to see Melbourne come alive with film over the past couple of weeks. MIFF is always an emphatic celebration of cinema across the city, and this year felt extra special – the hum of sold out theatres, excited audiences, and immense appreciation for so many extraordinary filmmakers attending from around the world has made the 2025 Melbourne International Film Festival one of our all-time seasons. And there’s still time to be a part of it, too!”
Of this year’s MIFF Awards, Penfolds Chief Marketing Officer, Kristy Keyte, added:
“Penfolds are proud to present the 2025 MIFF Awards and celebrate the visionaries shaping the future of film. For more than 180 years, Penfolds has embraced innovation and curiosity, and our partnership with MIFF reflects our commitment to engaging with communities and creators who push boundaries and redefine excellence.”
Deliberating on the 2025 Bright Horizons Award and the Blackmagic Design Best Australian Director Award was a venerated international jury who were all in the room at Rydges Melbourne this evening to name their winners firsthand, alongside other esteemed guests of the festival.
This year’s Bright Horizons Jury was led by writer-director-producer Charlotte Wells (Aftersun, MIFF 2022), who served as Jury President; along with Australian actress, writer and performer Tamala; American filmmaker and actor Alex Ross Perry (Pavements; Videoheaven, MIFF 2025); Greek filmmaker, writer and producer Athina Rachel Tsangari (Harvest, MIFF 2025); IMDb founder and Executive Chairman Col Needham; Vietnamese-Australian author and screenwriter Nam Le; and acclaimed Australian composer and musician, Caitlin Yeo.
On awarding this year’s top prize – the 2025 Bright Horizons Award – the Jury remarked in a joint statement:
“A tragicomic satire and microcosm of melancholy and irreverence, A Poet depicts Óscar, a failed poet turned reluctant mentor drifting between aspiration and self-destruction. The film is a biting fable of art as both an inescapable burden and a personal compass, breaking convention through its refreshingly brisk pace, unpretentious use of 16 mm cinematography, deadpan performances by a mostly first-timer cast, and pared-back jazzy score. The film’s balancing act of unflinching character study and social satire marks Simón Mesa Soto as a vital voice in contemporary Latin American cinema.”
| Upon selecting this year’s Blackmagic Design Best Australian Director Award, they continued: “James J. Robinson’s First Light is a moving and powerful meditation on faith, institutional corruption, and moral awakening. The film is anchored by a pitch-perfect performance from Ruby Ruiz and a sensorial mise en scène, inviting the audience into the spiritual grandeur of the landscape and the sacred intimacy of the convent to interrogate, alongside Sister Yolanda, not only the crime at hand, but also the Catholic Church and modern society itself. As the first Australia–Philippines co-production to debut at MIFF, First Light not only showcases Robinson’s promise as a cineaste but also marks a noteworthy milestone in cross-cultural cinema.” The Uncle Jack Charles Award in collaboration with Kearney Group, named in honour of the late, great actor and activist, was awarded to Yarrenyty Arltere Artists for their art direction in short film, The Fix-It-Man and the Fix-It-Wooman. The Yarrenyty Arltere Artists receive $20,000 in prize money and tailored financial services from Kearney Group valued at $25,000. |
| Celebrating excellence and dedication in storytelling, the award honours an outstanding Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander screen creative whose work features in the 2025 festival, with nominees drawn from across all film creative departments including directing, producing, screenwriting, composing, editing, cinematography, acting, production design, art direction and sound design. This year’s independent Jury for The Uncle Jack Charles Award are interdisciplinary artist Reko Rennie; acclaimed filmmaker Jub Clerc (Sweet As MIFF 2022); and last year’s Uncle Jack Charles Award winner, digital artist and director April Phillips (kajoo yannaga (come on let’s walk together), MIFF 2024). In speaking to this year’s winner, the Jury shared: “We recognise this heart-warming short film as the culmination of community collaboration, innovation, artistic skills, and self-determined storytelling at Yarrenyty Arltere Artists. How energising to see these soft sculptures come to life on the bright light, big city dance floor! The romantic scenes were both hilarious and sincere, and the combination of digital and hand made process felt rich and unique to the convention of animation. We can’t wait to see more from the creative team in the future.” “We are so pleased for the Yarrenyty Arltere Artists, winner of the 2025 Uncle Jack Charles Award. First Peoples storytelling is the heartbeat of this country. It holds more than 65,000 years of memory, truth, resistance, and wisdom. Your work calls us to see, to feel, to reckon with our shared history and imagine a brighter future. It’s a privilege to stand alongside you and to celebrate the cultural power, technical excellence and creative brilliance you bring to our screens,” Kearney Group CEO & Founder, Paul Kearney, stated. Always a highly contested category, this year’s Intrepid Audience Award was named as MIFF Premiere Fund supported Careless, directed by Sue Thomson. Voted by festival-goers from across the in-cinema season, film buffs this year were further tempted by the chance to win an Intrepid trip for two to Japan simply by selecting their favourite film in the program. Intrepid Travel, Managing Director ANZ, Brett Mitchell said: “Congratulations to this year’s MIFF Audience Award winner! At Intrepid Travel, we’re proud to support storytelling that sparks curiosity, creativity and meaningful conversations. Careless has clearly resonated with audiences, reminding us of the power cinema holds to connect people and inspire. We’re thrilled to celebrate this moment with MIFF and the talented filmmakers who continue to push boundaries and share stories with the world.” |
| Presented by Collarts, the MIFF Schools Youth Jury Award recognises the best title from the MIFF Schools program and was this year awarded to Greetings From Mars. Directed by Sarah Winkenstette, the film receives a $10,000 cash prize. Selected by a Jury composed of three young filmmakers from the 2025 Top Screen cohort, this year’s MIFF Schools Youth Jury was composed of Alex Feehan, Mia Sattler and Tadhg Sheehan. “The Melbourne International Film Festival is a powerhouse of fresh ideas, fearless storytelling and creative innovation. We’re proud to be part of an event that drives artistry and inspires storytellers to take risks and share new perspectives. For our Collarts community, this partnership offers a valuable opportunity to connect with industry leaders, learn from groundbreaking work and gain insights to help springboard careers. It motivates our students and alumni to craft meaningful stories that truly resonate and shape the future of film and media,” said Collarts CEO, Sam Jacob. The MIFF Awards were a chance to celebrate some of this year’s breakout talent and crowd pleasers on the eve of the festival’s final day of in-cinema activity for 2025. Tonight’s winners join the 2025 MIFF Shorts Awards class, including Grand Prix winner Rashida Seriki for Leaving Ikorodu in 1999, with the full slate of Shorts Awards winners announced in a special standalone ceremony at ACMI on Friday 15 August. As one of the world’s most highly regarded short film competitions, this year’s 64th edition honoured the very best in short-form filmmaking with an overall prize pool of $50,000. As both Academy Awards®-accredited and BAFTA-qualifying, the 2025 winners in key categories will be eligible for submission to the 98th Academy Awards® and considered for entry into the 2026 BAFTA Film Awards. As the 73rd MIFF’s live program nears its conclusion, audiences can still experience the festival’s final in-cinema screenings, encore presentations, immersive film experiences, and exclusive MIFF Talks featuring international guests for its final day on Sunday 24 August. Meanwhile, MIFF Online runs until Sunday 31 August. Concluding this year’s expansive MIFF Talks program is Hidden in Plain Sight: Women in Horror at The Wheeler Centre, a panel discussion exploring women’s often-overlooked yet crucial role in the horror genre. Featuring local award-winning author and critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, director Donna Davies of 1000 Women in Horror, and academic/programmer Cerise Howard, the event will be hosted by MIFF Senior Programmer Kate Fitzpatrick and delve into gender politics, representation, feminism, and the significant contributions of women both in front of and behind the camera. Over at ACMI, don’t miss the chance to experience some of MIFF XR’s mind-bending screen experiences to complete the ultimate cinema adventure this festival season. Open from 12pm-8pm, witness powerful climate stories unfold through VR, projections and miniatures in The World Came Flooding In by Van Sowerwine and Isobel Knowles, exploring flood survivors’ interconnected narratives, in partnership with Now or Never. Sessions for the free installation include a 30 minute VR experience and spots are ticketed. Away from the MIFF XR action at ACMI, be sure to catch some of the Festival’s top flicks including Cannes and MIFF Competition highlight, Renoir – the second impressive feature by Chie Hayakawa – is a tender memoir about 11-year-old Fuki coping with family loss in 1987 Tokyo, or, check out some of the region’s hottest emerging talent and next generation of filmmakers with Accelerator Shorts 2. |
| Across the CBD, some of Melbourne’s iconic cinemas continue to screen festival favourites, including Kristen Stewart’s directorial debut in The Chronology of Water at Forum Melbourne; Hélène Cattet and Bruno Forzani’s Reflection in a Dead Diamond at Hoyts Melbourne Central; the Kino showcases contemplative work All I Had was Nothingness; and The Capitol plays historical drama Two Prosecutors by Guillaume Ribot. In Carlton, MIFF brings exceptional films to the big screen at IMAX with Andrew Patterson’s The Rivals of Amziah King, starring Matthew McConaughey as a banjo-playing beekeeper in rural Oklahoma, while Cinema Nova screens Sundance winner DJ Ahmet by Georgi M. Unkovski, which follows a Macedonian shepherd’s discovery of electronic music and forbidden love. Film buffs can also cap off their festival experience by spending MIFF’s final day at the Astor Theatre with a schedule of back-to-back highlights. Begin the day with James Griffiths’ British comedy-drama The Ballad of Wallis Island, which sees an eccentric fan reuniting an estranged folk duo on a remote Welsh island. Stay for an encore screening of Bi Gan’s Cannes-awarded Resurrection, or just pull up for a night of headliners with Harris Dickinson’s directorial debut, Urchin, screening just before Richard Linklater’s highly lauded Nouvelle Vague. MIFF Regional presents its final sessions across the state showcasing some of the program’s most compelling and finest screen works. The moving Journey Home, David Gulpilil chronicles the legendary actor’s final journey to his East Arnhem Land homeland. In MIFF Premiere Fund supported Iron Winter, two friends battle extreme conditions across Mongolia’s frozen steppes, and in The Extraordinary Miss Flower, a remarkable story is brought to life after the discovery of 1960s love letters. Rounding out the selection, Sundance hit Sorry, Baby explores one woman’s recovery through life’s smaller moments. Celebrating this year’s electrifying in-cinema season that ignited with enthusiasm and sold-out sessions, MIFF delivered unforgettable cinematic moments that continue to cement its position as a premier destination on the global film festival circuit. Cinema lovers battled for coveted seats to witness this year’s most sought-after releases, with repeat sold-out sessions for Oliver Laxe‘s Sirât, Jafar Panahi‘s It Was Just an Accident, Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon, Kelly Reichardt’s The Mastermind and more acclaimed titles from celebrated international filmmakers. MIFF Online extends the festival experience via the ACMI Cinema 3 streaming platform, available now and through to Sunday 31 August. Films include Joshua Oppenheimer’s The End; Fiume o morte! by Igor Bezinović; Ghost Boy by Rodney Ascher; Kostis Charamountanis’s Kyuka Before Summer’s End alongside the full slate of Footy Shorts, available to stream for free. The digital offering brings a curated selection of festival films and complimentary short films directly to audiences nationwide. 2025 MIFF AWARD WINNERS, PRESENTED BY PENFOLDS Bright Horizons Award supported by VicScreen A Poet directed by Simón Mesa Soto Blackmagic Design Best Australian Director Award James J. Robinson, First Light The Uncle Jack Charles Award in collaboration with Kearney Group Yarrenyty Arltere Artists, The Fix-It-Man and the Fix-It-Wooman, short film – art direction Intrepid Audience Award Careless directed by Sue Thomson MIFF Schools Youth Jury Award presented by Collarts Greetings From Mars directed by Sarah Winkenstette |
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2025 MIFF Award winners unveiled by celebrated international jury
