For this year’s PLURAL+ Youth Video Festival. Videomaker partnered with the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to spotlight emerging video talents worldwide. The selected recipients receive the PLURAL+ 2024 Videomaker Recognition and a free Videomaker Plus Professional subscription. It was an immense privilege for us here at Videomaker to view every entry. We saw talent from all corners of the world — from Nigeria to Japan to Belgium to Mexico to Vietnam — and every entry should be proud of the work they submitted.
After having reviewed every entry, we’ve selected nine of our favorite films to honor with the PLURAL+ 2024 Videomaker Recognition. We judged the short films on six criteria: the quality of the storytelling, cinematography, audio/ music quality and usage, editing and the effectiveness of the message being told.
Now, without further ado, here are our picks for the PLURAL+ 2024 Videomaker Recognition.
“Todos Vão Lembrar Do Meu Nome”
- Thiago Gomes
Coming from Brazil, this “day in the life” film really grabbed us; its cinematography and editing are excellent. The story moves along quickly, designed to work like many rap songs do. Gomes is able to capture the feeling of Brazil through his shots and edits as well. We felt as if we were on the streets of the Brazilian city.
We also appreciate the cut to New York City (NYC) and the video’s portrayal of visitors in NYC. We feel it captures the visitors in NYC perfectly without showing the stereotypical Times Square and Statue of Liberty-type shots. Instead, we got housing projects as a backdrop.
“Who Am I?”
- Carole Faria
The message of this short film from Timor-Leste is simple yet powerful: “We are all different but the same.” This short video is a promo for the organization English Conversation Course Timor Leste, and we love the overall message it conveys, “In this world, you can be anything or nothing, but always remember that we all are human.”
Emotional piano music, diverse camera work, excellent attention to background imagery and happy, smiling young people of different ethnicities and professions all add to the success of this short.
Eroding Horizons
- Jawhara Rahman Jorgia
- MD. Taufiqul Islam
“Eroding Horizons” shines brightly thanks to its outstanding cinematography, storytelling and music. All of these elements add emotion and strengthen the overall viewing experience. The film tells the story of the Jamuna River, which provides for the Bangladeshi people who live on its banks. However, the river also erodes the banks, destroying farms and villages. This destruction is leading to climate-induced migration.
The use of slow-motion cinematography, aerial footage, shallow depth-of-field interviews, dynamic camera movement and animated lower thirds all add to the high quality of this short. The narration ties this piece together to deliver a strong message about our changing world, which is partially due to climate change.
“The Two Sides Of One War”
- Ivan Kholodnikov
- Alexander Koreshkov
- Margarita Vdovichenko
- Mikhail Kholodnikov
In this fast-paced short, Rita, 18 years old, Ukrainian, and Alex, 19 years old, Russian, both explain their difficult exodus from Ukraine and Russia, respectively, to Israel and the hardships they encountered once getting there. The short also explains the difficulties displaced Ukrainians have while interacting with displaced Russians, and visa versa. The two youths come to realize, over time, that despite their many difficulties and differences, they can come together and hope for a brighter future together.
The film is simple, professional and impactful.
“Fidi”
- Tai Tanzania
Through animation, we met Fidi, a young boy living with autism in the United Republic of Tanzania. This film mixes well-made animation with a few live-action clips to tell its story. The short animation shows the struggles of Fidi and his compassionate mother as they try to navigate everyday life.
The way this film is animated it quite effective. Also, the music enhances the dramatic story well. The voice actors are excellent and the drama hits the mark. Ultimately, this film teaches us that autistic people are important members of society and does so brilliantly.
“Live Culture”
- Luciano Villanueva
- Eloísa Emiliano
- Carlo Villanueva
- Erick Monroy
- Silvana Villanueva
- Andra Ruiz González
Discrimination against indigenous Mexican people is the subject of this short film. The cinematography is excellent, the voices of young Mexicans ground the message, and the dramatic music adds to the emotion and uplifts the film’s meaning.
The voiceover in the film states, “This [indigenous] heritage makes us unique.” Shots of the indigenous art and artifacts in the museum and the positivity of the narrator and the subjects in the film make us want to board an airplane immediately to fly to Mexico to learn more about the indigenous people of the country.
“Old Times”
- Chaela Tordillo
- Kervin Quieta
This Philippines short film oozes professionalism. From its cinematography, lighting, editing, color, etc., the film’s team achieves really impressive results.
That said, this is excellent storytelling. The opening few shots are so well composed and lit. Additionally, the shallow depth-of-field extreme close-ups are another hint at its professionalism, as are the excellent b-roll shots. The emotions felt by the actors felt real. Many of the shots made me feel as if we were there with them.
“Building a World of Union”
- Ana Laura Righi
This music video, sung by 11-year-old Ana Laura Chamoun Frota Righi, immediately brought tears to our eyes. The simple, passionate piano music adds to the emotion, but Ana’s singing and lyrics captivate the viewer, “In life’s journey, one single nation, migration, diversity, inclusion, the solution.”
The three-minute 42-second music video has a simple setting in what looks like a home music studio, but the effect is impactful. The camera keeps moving, often showing Ana in a medium close-up or close-up shot, drawing the viewer into the young girl’s emotional lyrics.
We dare you not to tear up while watching this short music video from Birigui, São Paulo, Brazil.
“Resorting to Sleep”
- Tawfiq Rashad Ali Al Absee
An abstract, monochromatic, birds-eye shot with the voice-over of a young girl, “I don’t want to wake up from my sleep. I want to stay in bed every day. If I wake up from my sleep, things and situations will happen to me in the house that I do not like to happen.” The title of the film then follows, “Resorting to Sleep.”
This film features stunning cinematography that utilizes shallow depth-of-field and extreme close-ups to draw viewer-ins. The monochromatic images, often with dramatic lighting, keep the viewer’s attention. Beautiful, dramatic music plays as the young female narrator explains that she cannot study, play or dream. She must stay silent and marry, or she will be killed. The film is slow, simple and impactful.
Congratulations to all PLURAL+ 2024 Videomaker Recognition recipients
We would like to congratulate all nine of the PLURAL+ 2024 Videomaker Recognition recipients and the rest of those who entered film submissions. Additionally, we would like to thank the UNAOC and IOM for showcasing these wonderful works and for including us in help honoring them. They all tell important stories that all people around the world should experience and learn from.
Contributing editors to this article include: Morgan Paar and the Videomaker Editors
