Jessica Chastain awards House Shorts prize for House Cocktail at Soho House New York

Soho House last night announced the winner of the House Shorts film competition, a platform committed to discovering the next generation of filmmakers from across the UK, USA and Germany. James Kibbey was crowned the winner at a screening and announcement ceremony at Soho House New York, attended by the nine finalists, as well as Hollywood actress Jessica Chastain – who was part of the judging panel for the competition.

Jessica Chastain who announced James as the House Shorts 2012 winner with his submission House Cocktail said: “I picked House Cocktail because of the playfulness, creativity and relationships established in the short.”

The finalists faced an illustrious panel including Harvey Weinstein, Paul Haggis, Paul Greengrass, Joe Wright, Jessica Chastain and current House Shorts winner Sean Gray following their submission of a two-minute film each reflecting the theme, imagination, set and shot in one of the international Soho Houses. The final filmmakers were chosen out of the many entries and awarded funding to produce the short films.

On winning, James Kibbey said: “The House Shorts competition has so many inspiring people and great brands attached. The opportunity to make one of the nine films for this competition has been great, but to be endorsed by judges of that calibre is incredible.”

Guests were treated to Bombay Sapphire Cocktails at the newly refurbished private members’ club and bedrooms in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District. The house covers six floors and is built over 45,000 square feet of a converted warehouse building in Manhattan’s vibrant Chelsea area. The club offers extensive amenities including the Restaurant, Club Bar, Drawing Room, Pantry Bar, a 44-seater cinema, Cowshed Spa and a heated rooftop pool. In addition, Soho House New York has 26 spacious bespoke designed rooms.

As a result of winning House Shorts 2012, James will now receive a series of “money can’t buy” private mentoring sessions with each of the esteemed judging panel, providing guidance that will help shape his career, as well as full international Soho House membership. James will also benefit from international exposure, as his film will be screened across all Soho House cinemas and screening rooms worldwide, plus receive support from the House Shorts Industry partners; BAFTA (particularly with promotion through guru.bafta.org), The Hollywood Reporter and Bombay Sapphire.

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Photo: Courtesy of Soho House

Watch House Cocktail here: