The Russo Brothers' AGBO Announces No Sleep 'Til Film Fest Winners

AGBO today annoucned the winners of their 48-hour filmmaking competition, "No Sleep 'til Film Fest." Darren Hinchy, an Irish filmmaker currently residing in Canada, earned first place for his short "Time of Your Life," about a college freshman's life unfolding solely on her phone screen. Second place was awarded to the directing team of Ukrainian filmmaker Tanya Lialina and Russian filmmaker Teodor Klimov for their short, "Just a Sec!" a humorous drama about a man who halts his own funeral to deal with unfinished affairs. Grace McLeod, a queer playwright and screenwriter from New York City, took third place for her film "02:00 Minutes," a story of two best friends waiting for the results of a pregnancy test and imagining different outcomes in possible future timelines.

AGBO's "No Sleep 'til Film Fest" is a 48-hour short filmmaking competition, which invites emerging creators to make a bite-sized film (three minutes or less) based on a creative prompt provided. The judges for the festival included AGBO co-founders and directors Anthony and Joe Russo, Chief Creative Officer Angela Russo-Otstot, Chief Innovation Officer Jake Aust, Chief Marketing Officer Marian Koltai-Levine, President of Film Michael Disco, and President of TV Scott Nemes.

"We are more impressed every year with the caliber of short films created in just 48 hours. Moreover, the enthusiasm from the participants continues to grow: This year we received over 500 submissions from over 45 countries," said AGBO's Chief Creative Officer Angela Russo-Otstot. "We are proud to host a festival that celebrates and champions filmmakers of all levels from all over the world."

All of the winning shorts are available to watch on AGBOVERSE.com/NoSleep.

First place will receive a RED KOMODO Starter Pack, a new GoPro action camera, a Surface Pro 9 from Microsoft, a copy of DaVinci Resolve Studio from Blackmagic Design, a copy of Final Draft screenwriting software, AGBO merch and a Red Bull swag bag [Red Bull Records customized U-Turn Turntable, Custom Speaker, a collection of Vinyl from Red Bull Records, Swell Water Bottle.] Both runners up will receive a new camera from GoPro, a Surface Pro 9 from Microsoft, a copy of DaVinci Resolve Studio from Blackmagic Design, a copy of Final Draft screenwriting software, merch from AGBO and a swag bag from Red Bull. 

All three winners will be invited to join the AGBO Storytellers Collective, an alumni network of participants from other AGBO fellowship programs. Current members of the Storytellers Collective voted on a winning film to receive the "AGBO Storytellers Collective Award," which brings in another filmmaker to the mentorship and alumni program with their colleagues. The recipient of this year's award is "Eon's Echo," directed by Maxence Cazorla and Godefroy Ryckewaert, who hail from France.

All winners and honorable mentions from "No Sleep 'til Film Fest" include:

First Place
Time of Your Life, directed by Darren Hinchy (Toronto, Canada)

Second Place
Just a Sec!, directed by Tanya Lialina and Teodor Klimov (Georgia, Tbilisi)

Third Place
02:00 Minutes, directed by Grace McLeod (California, USA)

AGBO Storytellers Collective Award
Eon's Echo, directed by Maxence Cazorla and Godefroy Ryckewaert (Paris, France)

Honorable Mentions

• Killing Time, directed by Mike Cerisano (New York, USA)
• Ankle Watch, directed by Jeff Robinson (Ontario, Canada)
• The Unfortunate Cookie, directed by Faye Tamasa (California, USA)
• Turbo Sean, directed by Tommy Heffernan (Washington, USA)
• CronoviZion, directed by Anna Dominguez (Ohio, USA)
• Quality Time, directed by Jessie Li White and Aliotto della Gherardesca (California, USA)
• Coffee Time, directed by Tim Hamilton (Wellington, New Zealand)
• Other Inc., directed by Ross McClure (Belfast, Northern Ireland)
• Two Lines, directed by Adriana Perra and Roberto Achenza (Sassari, Italy)
• Echoes of Silence, directed by Ariya Akhavan (California, USA)
• The Curious Case of T.T. Danson, directed by Noah A. Bordelon (California, USA)