Festival | 2023 Festival | Community Partners | 2023 Awards | Festival Photos

It’s a Wrap!

This season, we presented 45 films over five days, welcomed social justice filmmakers and special guests from around the country, and presented workshops and panel discussions focusing on reproductive justice, restorative justice, and amplifying youth voices. What an amazing, supportive community of festival-goers, donors, and community members. We are very fortunate to be a part of this community and could not present this event without all of you.

On behalf of the board and staff of the Social Justice Film Festival, we extend our heartfelt thanks to our community, filmmakers, partners, volunteers, participants, and audience members who celebrated with us during the 2023 film festival that took place October 11-15 in Seattle in-person and in North America online October 16-22.

The Social Justice Film Festival harnesses the power of visual storytelling to inspire, empower, and educate. SJFF serves as a resource and a critical lens to democratize filmmaking and produce brave, cutting-edge documentary and narrative stories otherwise absent from the mainstream media. It is a place for activism, where content creators use visual storytelling to imagine and inspire transformational change.

Festival Trailer

Social Justice Film Festival Community Partners

Washington Family Engagement
501 Commons 
Working Films
Restorative Community Partners 
Real Change
Northwest Animal Rights Network 
350 Seattle
Crisis Connection 
University District Food Bank
Seattle 4 Assange

Northwest Film Forum
University Heights Center 
Friends of WPC Nepal
Roosevelt Alumni for Racial Equity 
Lifewerq Project  
Speak with Purpose
BLKBRY
Center for Indigenous Midwifery
Faith Action Network
Restorative Community Partners

2023 Social Justice Film Festival Award Recipients

Feature Documentary Bronze
ADDICTED TO LIFE
Pola Rapaport

Short Narrative Gold
THE FOURTH
Johnny Kirk

Medium Length Documentary Bronze
HEART: Serving our Neighbors in Crisis
Dilsey Davis, Hannah Hamza

Youth Visions Award
WAITING FOR BUFFALO
Grace Beutter, Aidan O'Malley

Feature Documentary Gold
ON THESE GROUNDS
Garrett Zevgetis

Short Documentary Bronze
MUSTANG MOMENTS
Jamie Williams

Short Documentary Gold
OVERTOWN'S LIVING LEGACY
Gina Margillo

Medium Length Narrative Silver
COMMON AS RED HAIR
Director - Robbie Robertson

Short Documentary Silver
WORLDS MOST MISERABLE PRIEST
Xin Xue

Medium Length Documentary Silver
BY MY SIDE
Vicki Topaz, Wynn Padula

Short Narrative Silver
SUNFLOWER FIELD
Polina Buchak

Director Choice Award
WHERE DO THEY GO? The Painful Reality of Seattle's RV Homeless Sweeps
Mark Horvath, Alex Gasaway

Medium Length Documentary Gold
CALLS FROM HOME
Sylvia Ryerson

Feature Documentary Silver
ITHAKA
Ben Lawrence

Anne Paxton SJFF Founder's Award
CASE NOTES
Sebastian Rogers

2023 Social Justice Film Festival Photo Gallery