The 2025 Oil Valley Film Festival featured 16 films, representing six countries. The festival, which ran Sept. 5-7, was composed of competitive sections for American and international narrative and documentary films, both feature-length and short.
The festival was presented by and in partnership with InkTip, the Oil Region Library Association, the DCP Works, the Scribe Playwriting Competition, and the Hypothesis Lab.
Winners are as follows:
Best Picture, Feature, Narrative or Documentary: “Capturing Kennedy” (director Steele Burrow)
Best Picture, Short, Narrative or Documentary: “The Connoisseur” (director Anne Marie Boidock)
Best Director, Narrative Feature: Simon Stockdale, (“What Really Happened”)
Best Director, Narrative Short: John Christopher (“The Axe Forgets”)
Best Director, Documentary, Feature or Short: David Grabias (“You. Sleep. Stay”)
Outstanding Achievement in Lead Acting, Feature: Palmer Ashe III (“What Really Happened”)
Outstanding Achievement in Lead Acting, Short: Doho Ahn (“Taxi, Jelly”)
Outstanding Achievement in Supporting Acting, Feature: Katelin Derr (“Be Funny”)
Outstanding Achievement in Supporting Acting, Short: Sarah Bock (“The Connoisseur”)
Outstanding Cinematography, Feature, Narrative or Documentary: Vincent Venturella (“You. Sleep. Stay.”)
Outstanding Cinematography, Short, Narrative or Documentary: Naoise Kettle (“The Axe Forgets”)
Best Editing, Feature, Narrative or Documentary: Steele Burrow, Peter Deak (“Capturing Kennedy”)
Best Editing, Short, Narrative or Documentary: Nick Biddlecombe (“Whispers of Freedom”)
Outstanding Screenwriting, Feature, Screenplay: Craig Urquhart (“Haven”)
Outstanding Screenwriting, Short, Screenplay: Russ Franklin (“I Killed a Deer And Probably Walker Percy Too”)
Outstanding Screenwriting, Hour-long, Pilot: Jennifer Treacy Cole (“The Magical Education of Robin Winter”)
Global submissions are open for the 2026 Oil Valley Film Festival, scheduled Sept. 4-6. A distinct animation category has been added to the festival for the 2026 iteration.
