Category: 2025 WSXA Barcelona

HONORABLE MENTION

Original Film Title: End of Trip – Sahara

Director’s Name: Antonio Rodríguez Cabal

Writer’s Name: Antonio Rodríguez Cabal

Producer: Antonio Rodríguez Cabal, María Rodríguez Palao

Country of Origin: Spain

Country of Filming: Algeria

Language: Spanish

Runtime: 2 hours 8 minutes 42 seconds

Film Description:

Step back in time to the vibrant 1970s, where two young Spanish adventurers, Javier and Rafa, venture into the Sahara Desert, driven by a hunger for thrilling escapades and the yearning for an unforgettable journey.
Amidst the vast expanse of sand, they discover the allure of friendship, the allure of risk… and the alluring Florence, a captivating French muse whose presence awakens a whirlwind of emotions. Together, they brave the perils of the notorious “Desert Pirates,” immerse themselves in the ethereal wonders of the Tuareg culture, and endure the relentless grip of the shifting sands.
But it is Javier alone who unearths the extraordinary secret guarded by “Tin-Hinan,” the enigmatic Tuareg princess with a spirit as vast as the desert itself.

(WINNER)

Original Film Title: RITAKRON – It’s not me

Director’s Name: Alena Protasova, Nikita Gorodnichenko

Writer’s Name: Alena Protasova, Nikita Gorodnichenko

Producer: Alena Protasova

Country of Origin: Russian Federation

Country of Filming: Russian Federation

Language:

Runtime: 4 minutes 18 seconds

Film Description:

What if there were a way to atone for your sins during your lifetime and, in doing so, unlock a new level of existence?
Imagine a “Room of Redemption” as part of a groundbreaking social program—anyone can enter, anyone can try. The line of volunteers stretches endlessly, but the rules remain unclear. Those who pass through the room never return to their old lives; they move on to an entirely new world.
What holds people back in life? Fear, doubt, despair, greed, envy, pride—what must be renounced, or perhaps embraced and transformed, to light the green signal of a better future?
We explore the theme of humanity’s search for inner freedom—how individuals confront, understand, or embrace the barriers that hinder their growth, both external and internal.
To gain something truly new, one must sometimes be willing to lose everything. It’s about taking that one bold step, so you never have to look back and regret not even trying

(FINALIST)

Original Film Title: Sublime Love

Director’s Name: Ella Mosseri

Writer’s Name: Ella Mosseri

Producer: Shir Aizic

Country of Origin: Israel

Country of Filming: Israel

Language:

Runtime: 4 minutes 18 seconds

Film Description:

A gripping experimental music video “Sublime Love”, where addiction takes center stage through a captivating dance narrative.
Follows a character’s tumultuous journey depicted through odd, yet compelling, dance moves, symbolizing the highs and lows of battling personal demons.
This visual piece seamlessly combines music and dance, offering a powerful reflection on addiction’s unpredictable nature and the triumph of self-discovery.
“Sublime Love” is a short, intense exploration into the universal theme of addiction.

(WINNER)

Original Film Title: Heaven

Director’s Name: Masha Shalagina

Writer’s Name: Masha Shalagina

Producer: Masha Shalagina, Natalya Tarasova

Country of Origin: Finland

Country of Filming: Finland

Language: Russian

Runtime: 5 minutes

Film Description:

A young woman struggles with feeling trapped inside her body, and the authoritarian and dystopian society she lives in. She clings on to hope as she desperately tries to escape.

(WINNER)

Original Film Title: Meekz – Mini Me’s Directed by KC Locke

Director’s Name: KC Locke

Writer’s Name: KC Locke

Producer: Fin Mulligan

Country of Origin: United Kingdom

Country of Filming: United Kingdom

Language: English

Runtime: 5 minutes

Film Description:

MEEKZ “MINI ME” DELIVERS MAJOR PAYBACK IN EXPLOSIVE NEW VIDEO DIRECTED BY CINEMATIC MASTER KC LOCKE
Masked British Hip-Hop Artist Drops New Tune in a Sonic and Visual Tour de Force Helmed By the Rapper in Collaboration with the Hottest Music Video Director in the Industry

LONDON, APRIL 11, 2024 – One of the most prolific and culturally influential directors in the music video world, and the chief chronicler of the exploding Manchester Hip-Hop scene, KC Locke has just released a visual and sonic tour de force video featuring Manchester’s own masked rapper Meekz performing his highly-anticipated new tune “Mini Me.” A spectacular work of art, the video features Meekz traveling through a savage hellscape on a sonic night train to a dystopian future as he lashes out at his imitators or “Mini Me’s” who have copied his now popular masked look, his unique style of music and the original look of his videos.

“So many Mini Me’s and I’m the one to blame. I came into this industry and a lot of shit changed,” he sings. “When they ask them who inspires them they should mention me. I guess this shit was meant to be, I am so legendary.” His hypnotic refrain “So many Mini Me’s. So many Mini Me’s” echoes throughout the piece, sounding very much like “So many enemies. So many enemies” as he retells the story of his meteoric rise in the music industry and blasts the copycats who have ripped him off.

“Meekz wrote this song as a reaction to how others were stealing his brand and our style of filmmaking,” said KC who used motion control extensively in this video and in previous collaborations with the artist. “We created something here that references our past work together and then moves beyond the pretenders who have copied and cloned him, and into the post-apocalyptic future where Meekz is the only artist left standing. It’s a powerful statement, expressed in artform.”

The first half of the epic five-minute video features dizzying motion control work by G6Mocco, with Meekz scornfully taunting the plagiarists around him while floating and spinning through the air in a chair fixed to a massive robotic camera control rig, riding the machine like he’s at an amusement park. The stunning gyrating black rig becomes a major co-star of the video. The second half of the video presents Meekz in a wild doomsday world with blazing effects created by VFX studio LMNTL.

KC Locke is a highly experimental filmmaker who expands the boundaries of a creative vision while tapping into the cultural zeitgeist. His style is epic in both scale and confidence, contrasting grit with color to craft bespoke worlds for his artists that create intrigue and drive rewatchability. Over the course of his career KC has worked with top music artists such as Calvin Harris, Ed Sheeran, Stormzy, Aitch, AJ Tracey, David Guetta, Little Mix, and Mahalia, to name a few. He has earned a string of nominations and awards in the UK, US, Europe, and Asia, including the New York International Film Awards, the Los Angeles Film Awards, Munich Music Video Awards, Manchester Film Festival, Tokyo International Short Film Festival, 2022 ARFF Barcelona // International Award, and London International Film Awards.

(WINNER)

Original Film Title: Zef: The Story of Die Antwoord

Director’s Name: Jon Day

Writer’s Name: Jon Day

Producer: Jon Day

Country of Origin: South Africa

Country of Filming: South Africa

Language: English

Runtime: 1 hour 30 minutes

Film Description:

South African producer / director JON DAY spent the last 5 years making a documentary about the mysterious rap-rave group, DIE ANTWOORD. Art directed by surrealist photographer, ROGER BALLEN. Narrated by NINJA & ¥O-LANDI’S daughter, 16 JONES.

“ZEF – The Story of Die Antwoord comes along as provocative as its protagonists: a surprising, quirky and masterfully edited documentary. Like the numerous clips it features, the film is a exploration of many contrasts that sometimes seem tricky to reconcile — loud and quiet, beautiful and ugly, wealthy and poor, featuring success and failure.