From the films submitted annually to TMFF, only a small subset make it into the Festival as part of that year's Official Selection of films. We curate meticulously and choose films that inspire, showcase our community stories and share new perspectives, looking for those that will leave out audience smiling, thinking, and feeling. We're picky and only choose the best of the best, and then we release them to our panel of judges and to you. Our judges look at originally and creativity, cinematography, editing, production value, and storytelling structure, choosing the top film in each category.
Here are the 2023 award-winning films.
Jury Awards
Jury awards are selected by our jury panel consisting of members of the media, writers, and filmmakers who are influential in the global motorcycling community.
Best Feature Film
Dark Rider
Directed by Eva Küpper
Runner up: Pozzis, Samarcanda, directed by Stefano Giacomuzzi
From our judging panel: "Wow. I don't think a motorcycle movie has ever made me tear up until now. This was stunning and flawlessly executed. The cinematography was perfect, the topic was touching, the audio's brilliance was in the silence, the pace was slow enough to let me sit with it but not so slow that it lost my interest."
Best Short Documentary
Korta
Directed by Nick Dean
Runner up: Polarcirkeln directed by Emil Duvander.
From our judging panel: "Beautifully shot and edited film. Love the lighting, camerawork, and pace of the edit. Lots of polish and thought went into this," and, "I loved the message behind this, as inner-city stunt riders are so dehumanized by the general public. This was a great insight into that world, and done in a polished, engaging, and educational way."
Best Canadian Film
Unpaved
Directed by Glenn King
Runner up: A Motorcycle Saved My Life, directed by lori lozinski
From our judging panel: "Great production value, beautiful shots. So important to showcase actual women riders, actually riding. I would love to know more about her backstory, but I do love it when a film is just the right length for the content it contains, no more, no less."
People's Choice Award
The People's Choice Award is chosen by or audience. Following the screenings, our audience can vote for their favourite film of the Festival.
People's Choice Award
Missile from the East
Directed by Justin Stokes
Runner up: Women in the Front Seat, directed by Indy Saini
Judging Panel
The 2023 judging panelists are: Kirsten Midura, Founder, Engines for Change; Roberto Serrini, Director; Sophia Vassiliadis, Contributing Writer, Inside Motorcycles; and Scott Wilson, Co-Founder, Producer, Echo Bay Media. Find out more about them and the judging process.