# Vienna Shorts

Vienna Shorts (formerly known as VIS Vienna Independent Shorts) is an international short film festival held annually in May in Vienna. It is the largest short film festival in Austria.

## History

Vienna Independent Shorts was held in 2004 for the first time. Several Viennese institutions active in the promotion of short films arranged one day of the one-week event. The festival program consisted of 125 short films. Among the venues that have been used continuously since the first festival edition are the Top Kino and the Reformed Church.
Since 2005, the festival is hosted the Independent Cinema Association which was founded by the organizers of the first festival edition. For the first time an international competition with 64 films was held. Annually recurring festival events, which were introduced in 2005, are a retrospective of the University of Applied Arts Vienna and a Kino Kabaret.
The festival edition of 2006 included 83 films in international competition. A retrospective was dedicated to Austrian director Mara Mattuschka and short films from Southeast Europe were given a special focus. The film reel of the 26 single films of The Mozart-Minute, which was produced on the occasion of the 250th birthday of Mozart, celebrated its Vienna premiere at the festival. In 2006, venues outside of Vienna – in Dornbirn, Graz and Innsbruck – were also used for festival screenings.
In 2007, a Panorama section with Austrian short films was added to the international competition for the first time. 49 short films were part of the international competition, 23 films were presented in the Panorama section. There were also three retrospectives with short films by Paul Bush, Miranda July and Virgil Widrich. One of several guest programs was curated by the Ars Electronica. In the context of VIS on Tour Vienna Independent Shorts compiled film programs for the Vienna Festival, the Forum Stadtpark, Crossing Europe, the Diagonale, and others. Since 2007, the permanent festival office is located at the quartier21 of the Museumsquartier.
Vienna Independent Shorts 2008 was opened with the world premiere of Eleven Minutes at Vienna's Gartenbaukino with about 1100 guests attending. The Austrian-Swiss anthology film was produced on the occasion of the UEFA Euro 2008 taking place in both countries. Switzerland was given a special focus, including a film program by the Baden Fantoche Animation Film Festival. Forza Bastia, a rarely shown documentary film by Jacques Tati, was screened in the context of an emphasis on films dealing with association football. Retrospectives devoted to Chantal Akerman, Hubert Sielecki and Jerzy Kucia were also presented at the festival. In addition to twenty special and guest programs there were 47 films in international competition and 33 films in the Panorama section.
311 short films were presented during the sixth edition of Vienna Independent Shorts in 2009, including 44 films in international competition. 1129 films from 54 countries were submitted. Major thematic focuses were the memory of the years 1939 (the outbreak of World War II) and 1989 (the fall of the Berlin Wall) as well as the United States and Russia. Retrospectives were devoted to, inter alia, Ben Rivers, Norbert Pfaffenbichler and Lotte Schreiber, and the California Institute of the Arts.
The 2010 VIS Festival was held at seven screening locations in Vienna and two new competitions in the category of international narrative and documentary short film were added: Animation Avantgarde and a national competition that awarded the country's first Austrian Short Film Award. Over 1800 international films were submitted for the festival which had "Dance and Rhythm" as its general thematic focus. The music-based events were presented in cooperation with Radio FM4 and the sixpackfilm distribution firm. Max Hattler and Noriko Okaku premiered their VIS-commissioned audiovisual performance "Resc(O)re 192010". Filmmaker Adnan Popović created the year's popular trailer. Retrospectives on the works Miranda Pennell and Thomas Draschan were presented and the independent Vienna broadcast channel Octo as well as the Austrian national network ORF offered lengthy television coverage on the festival.
Max Hattler created the festival trailer for VIS 2011.

## Award winners

Awards winner 2005 :
| Golden Shorts – Audience Award | Stefan Wolner (Austria): Balls |
| Award winners 2006 ||
| Golden Shorts – Audience Award | Alexis Ferrebeuf (France): Mort à l'écran |
| DocuZone Austria Short Film Award | Markus Oberndorfer (Austria): Untitled_in_Case_No_1 |
| diemelange Short Film Award | Björn Kämmerer (Austria): Escalator |
| Award winners 2007 ||
| Vienna Short Film Award | Marc Schaus (Belgium): Quelque chose en O |
| ray Audience Award | Astrid Rieger (Germany): Apple On a Tree / Mammal |
| 3 Short Film Awards | Johanna Moder (Austria): Her mit dem schönen Leben SI.SI. Klocker (Austria): Laura. Was Sie schon immer über Telefonsex wissen wollten Iris Blauensteiner (Austria): Suture |
| Award winners 2008 ||
| Vienna Short Film Award | Alina Rudnitskaya (Russia): Kak stat stervoi (Vixen Academy) |
| ray Audience Award | Radu Jude (Romania): Lampa cu caciula (The Tube With a Hat) |
| Hoanzl Audience Awards | Umut Dag (Austria): Todesnachrichten Katharina Swoboda (Austria): Transition Sasha Pirker (Austria): John Lautner, The Desert Hot Springs Motel Bernhard Hetzenauer (Austria): Wann habe ich aufgehört, dir meine Träume zu erzählen? |
| Hubert Sielecki Prize | Michael Wirthig (Austria): Inside 1014 |
| Award winners 2009 ||
| Vienna Short Film Award | Asitha Ameresekere (UK): 14 |
| ray Audience Award | Sasha Pirker (Austria): Angelica Fuentes, The Schindler House |
| Hoanzl Audience Award | Elizabeth Marre, Olivier Pont (France): Manon sur le bitume |
| Airbed Movie Award | Robert Pohle, Martin Hentze (Germany): Der Conny ihr Pony |
| Prix Très Chic | Carsten Strauch (Germany): Das grüne Schaf |
| Hubert Sielecki Prize | Adnan Popović (Austria): Walzerkönig |
| Award winners 2010 ||
| Vienna Short Film Award | Liza Johnson (USA): In the Air |
| ASIFA Austria Award | Joaquín Cociña, Cristóbal León, Niles Atallah (Chile): Lucía Joaquín Cociña, Cristóbal León, Niles Atallah (Chile): Luis |
| ASIFA Austria Award Special Mention | Max Hattler (Germany/UK): AANAATT |
| Austrian Short Film Award | Lisa Weber (Austria): Kommt ein Sonnenstrahl in die Tiefkühlabteilung und weicht alles auf |
| LG Audience Award | Chris Niemeyer (Switzerland): Las Pelotas |
| Skip Audience Award | Joaquín Cociña, Cristóbal León, Niles Atallah (Chile): Lucía |
| ray Audience Award | Robert Cambrinus (Austria/UK): Commentary |
| Elfi von Dassanowsky Prize | Inger Lise Hansen (Norway): Parallax |
| Airbed Movie Award | Katharine Pfiel, Marlene Rudy, Andreea Jebeleean, Barbara Wilding, Volker Buchgraber, Dominik Hart (Austria): Der Conny ihr Pony |
| Prix Très Chic | Florian Juri (Austria): Zerebrale Dichotomie |
| Award winners 2011 ||
| Vienna Short Film Award | Nicolas Provost (Belgium): Stardust |
| ASIFA Austria Award | David O'Reilly (Germany): The External World |
| Austrian Short Film Award | Peter Tscherkassky (Austria): Coming Attractions |
| Citroën Audience Award | Rungano Nyoni (Zambia): Mwansa the Great |
| Skip Audience Award | David O'Reilly (Germany): The External World |
| ray Audience Award | Christoph Schwarz (Austria): Supercargo |
| Elfi von Dassanowsky Prize | Annick Blanc (Canada): Au milieu de nulle part ailleurs |
| VAM New Talent Prize | Christoph Schwarz (Austria): Supercargo |
| Airbed Movie Award | Susi Sie (Germany): Float |
| Prix Très Chic | Erik Eriksson and Rune Eriksson (Norway): Standup Comedy On Mars, Hand of God and Norwegian Shorts With No Ending: The 50 Years Anniversary of Annecy Int. Animation Festival Edition |
| Award winners 2012 ||
| Vienna Short Film Award | Jan Czarlewski (Poland/Switzerland): L'Ambassadeur & moi |
| ASIFA Austria Award | Ruth Lingford (UK/USA): Little Deaths |
| Austrian Short Film Award | Gabriele Mathes (Austria): Flaschenpost |
| Jameson Whiskey Audience Award | Samuel Tilman (Belgium): Nuit blanche |
| Skip Audience Award | Marta Pajek (Poland): Sleepincord |
| ray Audience Award | Dinko Draganovic (Austria): Tatin Ponos |
| Elfi von Dassanowsky Prize | Ruth Lingford (UK/USA): Little Deaths |
| VAM New Talent Prize | Katharina Gruzei (Austria): Die Arbeiterinnen verlassen die Fabrik |
| Special Prize of the Vienna Film Academy | Patrick Vollrath (Austria): Dieser Film ist ein Zusammenschnitt von DV-Kassetten, die bei einer Online-Auktion versteigert wurden |
| Jury Prize -Night of the Light | Eva Chytilek (Austria): Einbruch der Nacht |
| Audience Prize -Night of the Light | Willi Kubica (Austria): Ein Fest der Kabel und Stecker |
| Award Winners 2013 ||
| Vienna Short Film Award | Fyzal Boulifa (Morocco/UK): The Curse |
| ray-Audience Award Fiction Documentary | Robert Cambrinus (Austria): I can't cry much louder than this |
| ASIFA Austria Award | Don Hertzfeldt (USA): It's such a beautiful day |
| Artist-in-Residence Grant | Mihai Grecu and Thibault Geize (France): Exland |
| ray-Audience Award Animation Avantgarde | Joseph Pierce (UK): The Pub |
| Elfi-von-Dassanowsky-Prize | Karolina Glusiec (UK): Velocity |
| Austrian Short Film Award | Ulrike Putzer and Matthias van Baaren (Austria): Hands up to Heaven |
| Youth Jury Award | Ulrike Kofler (Austria): We're flying |
| VAM- New Talent Prize | Kurdwin Ayub (Austria): Family Holidays |
| ray-Audience Award Austrian Competition | Ulrike Kofler (Austria): We're flying |
| Austrian Music Video Award | Daniel Moshel (Austria): Metube: August sings Carmen 'Habanera' (Music: August Schram) |
| Audience Award International Music Video | Alma Har'el (Israel): Fjögur Píanó (Music: Sigur Rós) |
| Jury Prize Night of the Light | Reinhold Bidner and Georg Hobmeier (Austria): Impulse |
| Audience Award Night of the Light | Gabriel Tempea (Austria): Joghurt mit Wachs |
| Prix Très Chic | Marion Pfaus (Germany): Vodka Diary |
| Award Winners 2014 ||
| Vienna Short Film Award | Aniela Gabryel (Poland): Leciec, nie leciec (To fly or not to fly) |
| Audience Award Fiction Documentary | Guido Hendrikx (Netherlands): Escort |
| ASIFA Austria Award | Michel Klöfkorn (Germany): x-x-xx--x--gewobenes Papier |
| Artist-in-Residence Grant | Atsushi Wada (Japan): Anomalies |
| Audience Award Animation Avantgarde | Réka Bucsi (Hungary): Symphony No. 42 |
| Elfi-von-Dassanowsky-Prize | Jennifer Reeder (USA): A Million Miles Away |
| Austrian Short Film Award | Christina Perschon (Austria): Noema |
| Youth Jury Award | Christina Perschon (Austria): Noema |
| VAM-New Talent Prize | Iris Blauensteiner (Austria): Sweat |
| ray-Audience Award Austrian Competition | Christina Perschon (Austria): Noema |
| Austrian Music Video Award | Anton B. Pevny (Austria): Maschin (Music: Bilderbuch) |
| Audience Award International Music Video | Carl Roosens and Noémie Marsily (Belgium): Our Lights (Music: BRNS) |
| Best Student Film | Peter Brunner (Austria): Milk Teeth |
| Jury Prize Night of the Light | Lena Weiss (Austria): Gatos de luz |
| Audience Award Night of the Light | Lena Weiss (Austria): Gatos de luz |
| Prix Très Chic | Adrian Thiessen (Canada): The Auteurs of Christmas |
| Jennifer Reeder Christiana Perschon Lena Weiss Antonin B. Pevny Iris Blauensteiner ||
| Award Winners 2015 ||
| Vienna Short Film Award | Fabian Kaiser (Switzerland): De Schnuuf (The Breath) |
| Audience Award Fiction Documentary | Morgan Knibbe (Netherlands): Shipwreck |
| ASIFA Austria Award | Rainer Kohlberger (Austria): Moon Blink |
| Artist-in-Residence Grant | Peter Millard (UK): Fruit Fruit |
| Audience Award Animation Avantgarde | Don Hertzfeldt (USA): World of Tomorrow |
| Elfi-von-Dassanowsky-Prize | Konstantina Kotzamani (Greece): Washingtonia |
| Austrian Short Film Award | Sebastian Brameshuber (Austria): Of Stains, Scrap & Tires |
| Youth Jury Award | Christoph Rainer (Austria): Pitter Patter goes my Heart |
| VAM-New Talent Prize | Jola Wieczorek (Austria): List do Polski (Letter to Poland) |
| Audience Award Austrian Competition | Christoph Schwarz (Austria): Beingwhale |
| Austrian Music Video Award | Stephanie Winter (Austria): Tristes Déserts - A robots tale (Music: August feat. Austrian Apparel) |
| Audience Award International Music Video | Hiro Murai (Japan): Never Catch me (Music: Flying Lotus) |
| Jury Prize Night of the Light | Nicola von Leffern and Jakob Carl Sauer (Austria): Mafi Kharaba |
| Audience Award Night of the Light | Georg Blume and Anna Hawliczek (Austria): Iguana Imperialista |
| Prix Très Chic | Ernst Palicek (Austria): Summer in Vienna (prod.By 08) |
| Benjamin Gruber, Daniel Ebner Rainer Kohlberger Jola Wieczorek Fabian Kaiser Peter Millard Nicola von Leffern ||