2025 Best Use of Footage in a Short Film Production
Any film of 30 minutes or less in which footage is integral to the storytelling, whether documentary, fiction or any genre of filmmaking.
Shortlisted
Motorcycle Mary
Director:
Haley Watson
Producer(s):
Haley Watson / Rachel Greenwald / Carolyn Hepburn
Footage Archive Researcher:
Cody Wilson / Haley Watson
Footage Archive Producer:
Laura Carlson
Archival Sources:
Mary McGee & Family / Bruce Brown Films / NORRA (National off Road Racing Association) / Kinolibrary / Peterson Archives
Production Company:
ESPN Films / Breakwater Studios
Country of Production:
United States
Original Release:
2024
Synopsis
MOTORCYCLE MARY tells the untold story of legendary motorsports pioneer Mary McGee, with stunning never-before-seen archival footage. Confronted by sexism and personal tragedy, Mary perseveres, pushing herself to greater heights—culminating in her most hair-raising challenge: becoming the first person to solo the grueling Baja 500 on a motorcycle.
The Ban
Director:
Roisin Agnew
Producer(s):
Sam Howard
Footage Archive Researcher:
Stephen Newe
Footage Archive Producer:
Evan Marshall
Archival Sources:
ITV / Ulster Television / Getty Images / BBC / BFI
In 1988, during the conflict in Northern Ireland, Margaret Thatcher's government banned UK broadcasters from giving airtime to representatives of the IRA and Sinn Féin, to deprive them of 'the oxygen of publicity'.
Thanks to a loophole in the law, a practice developed for actors to dub recorded interviews instead. Through unseen archive footage and present-day interviews with key figures such as Gerry Adams and Stephen Rea (who once voiced him), The Ban reflects on the British government’s use of the threat of ‘terrorism’ to justify censorship, drawing inevitable comparisons with today.
In the Veins
Director:
Andy Burns
Producer(s):
Graham Relton
Footage Archive Researcher:
David Parsons / Montserrat Rovira Prieto / Megan McCooley / John Casey / Ruth Patman
Footage Archive Producer:
Graham Relton
Executive Producer:
Ben Lamb
Archival Sources:
Yorkshire and North East Film Archive collections / ITV Archive / BBC Motion Gallery
Production Company:
Yorkshire and North East Film Archive / Teesside University
Country of Production:
United Kingdom
Original Release:
2024
Synopsis
‘In the Veins’ is a short film that resonates through time, using over a century of archive footage to shine a light onto the face of the mining heritage of Yorkshire and the North East of England.
“Some people have blood running through their veins, I think we’ve got coal dust!” ~ Miner’s daughter
A story of hardship and hope, division and defiance, perseverance and pride; this is not a history lesson, it’s an emotional journey that digs deep into the heart of a community built on coal.
For centuries, men toiled in the bowels of the earth to build a nation, creating prosperity and improved standards of living, before experiencing the gut-wrenching end to livelihoods, a cost to people and their communities that is still having an impact across the generations.
From villages, towns and communities that grew from the industry, the bonds and friendships fostered, to the formation of activist groups such as ‘Women Against Pit Closures,’ ‘In the Veins’ celebrates the success, commiserates the demise and is a timely reminder about the need for a ‘just transition’ from fossil fuels to cleaner energy.
