NYC Quarantine Film Festival Is Creative Outlet Amid Coronavirus

UPTOWN, MANHATTAN — The results of the first and "hopefully last" New York City Quarantine Film Festival proves the limitations of the coronavirus crisis are no match for the city's filmmakers.

Inwood Art Works revealed the winners this week of an at-home contest organizers created to replace their usual Inwood Film Festival, which was cancelled as the coronavirus limited large gatherings in March.

Filmmakers across the five boroughs — using only their phones and practicing social distancing — rose to the challenge of creating artful short films, whether it be an escape or documentation of life during the pandemic.

“We were amazed by the positive response and number of submissions received, and in such a short amount of time,” said Inwood Art Works' Founder Aaron Simms said. “This just goes to show the importance of arts and entertainment in our society and the need for a creative outlet for countless artists in NYC.”

Inwood Art Works, which typically asks for submissions from only Manhattan filmmakers, garnered more than 100 submissions from across the five boroughs during just two weeks in May, according to the organization.

The winners were chosen for both genre and location-specific categories through a voting period that ended June 13.

The top films each will be awarded a $250 prize and will stay up on the Inwood Art Works YouTube page throughout the summer. The "Top 10" liked films and awarded films will be shown at an outdoor cinema series Inwood Art Works is planning for post-quarantine.

Check out the winners here:

Best Bronx: Alone With My Demons by Juan Ramirez, Jr.

Best Brooklyn: 19 Times by Mariana Meraz

Best Manhattan: Out of Joint by Chang Wen

Best Queens: Dead or Alive by Polly Solomon

Best Staten Island: The Tale of Propsey by Eduardo Guzman

Best Horror: Captor by Regan Alejo

Best Comedy: When Filming A TikTok Goes Wrong by Tea’a Taylor

Best Dramatic: A Sunday in May by Carlos Matias

Best Kids: Big Brother by Dylan Lopez

Top Honorable Mentions:

Day 63 – A Dancer In Quarantine by Julia Bengtsson

Quarantine Day 237 by Andrew Sanford

Pane Pals by Mary Albert, Omar Camps-Kamrin

NYC Life in Quarantine by Marija Parente