Student Academy Awards® 2024 Winners Announced, Ceremony Moves to London
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced the winners of the 51st Student Academy Awards®, selecting 15 students from around the world. The competition, which this year saw 2,683 entries from 738 colleges and universities, continues to serve as a prestigious platform for emerging filmmakers. These students join the ranks of past award recipients, including acclaimed filmmakers such as Patricia Cardoso, Pete Docter, Spike Lee, Patricia Riggen, and Robert Zemeckis.
The Academy also revealed that this year’s award ceremony will be held in London, marking a significant shift from its traditional home at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. The ceremony will take place at the ODEON Luxe Leicester Square on October 14, 2024, at 7:00 p.m. BST. The event is free and open to the public, but advance tickets are required. This year's ceremony is organized in partnership with Rolex and coincides with the BFI London Film Festival, offering winners access to exclusive panels and networking opportunities with industry professionals.
The 2024 winners were recognized across four categories: Alternative/Experimental, Animation, Documentary, and Narrative. First-time honors were awarded to institutions such as the National Institute of Design (India), Digital Hollywood University (Japan), and Filmová Akademie Miroslava Ondříčka v Písku (Czech Republic). The winners, listed alphabetically by category, are as follows:
Alternative/Experimental:
- "bonVoyage pour monVoyage" / Akshit Kumar / National Institute of Design, India
- "A Brighter Summer Day for the Lady Avengers" / Birdy Wei-Ting Hung / San Francisco State University
- "In Living Memory" / Dori Walker / Brown University
Animation:
- "Au Revoir Mon Monde" / Florian Maurice, Maxime Foltzer & Estelle Bonnardel / MoPA 3D Animation School, France
- "Origami" / Kei Kanamori / Digital Hollywood University, Japan
- "Student Accomplice" / Spencer Baird / Brigham Young University
Documentary:
- "A Dream Called Khushi (Happiness)" / Rishabh Raj Jain / New York University
- "Keeper" / Hannah Rafkin / School of Visual Arts
- "The 17%" / Aaron Johnson / Chapman University
Narrative:
- "The Compatriot" / Pavel Sýkora & Viktor Horák / Filmová Akademie Miroslava Ondříčka v Písku, Czech Republic
- "Crust" / Jens Kevin Georg / Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF, Germany
- "Neither Donkey nor Horse" / Robin Wang / University of Southern California
The Academy will announce the gold, silver, and bronze placements for each category during the ceremony. All winning films are now eligible for consideration at the 97th Oscars® in the Animated Short Film, Live Action Short Film, or Documentary Short Film categories. Over the years, Student Academy Award winners have earned 67 Oscar® nominations and secured 15 wins, further underscoring the impact of this competition in identifying future leaders of the film industry.
Since its establishment in 1972, the Student Academy Awards® have aimed to highlight global talent, offering aspiring filmmakers an invaluable opportunity to present their work to industry leaders.