Randall Okita is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

and visual artist known for creating work that involves rich visual language and innovative approaches to storytelling.

Career

His 2014

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...

short film '' The Weatherman and the Shadowboxer'' has been described as “a visually stunning tour de force.” It won the award for Best Canadian Short Film at the 2014

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

, and was named to the festival's year-end

Canada's Top Ten Canada's Top Ten is an annual honour, compiled by the Toronto International Film Festival and announced in December each year to identify and promote the year's best Canadian films."Canada's Top Ten awards will honour excellence in Canadian cinema" ...

list of the year's ten best Canadian shorts. It also won awards for Best Short Film at the

Festival du nouveau cinéma The Festival du nouveau cinéma or FNC (English: ''Festival of New Cinema'') is an annual independent film festival held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, featuring independent films from around the world. Over 160,000 people attend each year. One of ...

in Montreal, Best Experimental Short Film at both the New York Short Film Festival and

LA Shorts Fest The LA Shorts International Film Festival (LA Shorts) founded by Robert Arentz in 1997 is one of the largest international short film festivals in the world with more than 300 films screening annually. In order to qualify for a short film award at ...

, as well as Best Cinematography at the Berlin International Short Film Festival. ''Once Right Now Just Then'', Okita's 2015 performance which explored presence, the passing of time and the nature of grieving and expectation was presented as part of Sunday Drive Art Projects. Okita's 2016 feature directorial debut '' The Lockpicker'', which “explores the complexity of adolescence” and “sustains an evocative and ominous mood that complements its moments of operatic intensity,” received the Discovery Award at the

Canadian Screen Awards The Canadian Screen Awards (french: link=no, Les prix Écrans canadiens) are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media (web series) p ...

. The film won the Grand Jury Award at the

San Diego Asian Film Festival The San Diego Asian Film Festival ( SDAFF) is an annual event organized by Pacific Arts Movement (formerly the San Diego Asian Film Foundation) that takes place every November in San Diego, California. Background SDAFF is the flagship event for ...

2016, Best First Feature at 2016 the Reel Asian Film Festival, and Best Narrative Feature at the 2016 West Virginia International Film Festival. In 2016 ''Be Here Now'', an interactive multimedia installation made from feathers, wood, wire, and interactive sound and light, described as “a mirage that feels highly spiritual", was part of "a breathtaking exhibition" of artworks at the Robert Kananaj Gallery, and a part of a group exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ontario Massive Party. '' The Book of Distance'', “a lyrical, personal and moving story told with stylized figures in a 360° landscape,” is a room-scale virtual reality experience, written and directed by Okita. It was an official selection at the 2020

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

, 2020

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...

, 2020

Venice International Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

and 2020

Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival is the largest documentary festival in North America. The event takes place annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 27th edition of the festival took place online throughout May and June ...

. It won 2020 Festival du Nouveau Cinema’s FNC Explore Prix Horizon, 2020

Vancouver International Film Festival The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for two weeks in late September and early October. The festival is operated by the Greater Vancouver International Film Fest ...

’s Best in Animation - Virtual/Mixed Reality, 2020

Kaohsiung Film Festival The Kaohsiung Film Festival (KFF; ) is a film festival held annually in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northweste ...

’s VR Golden Fireball Award and 2020 Japan Prize’s Best Work in Digital Media Division. His film '' See for Me'' premiered at the 2021

.John Fink
"Tribeca Review: See For Me is a Predictable Home Invasion Thriller with a New Twist"
''The Film Stage'', June 16, 2021. In 2021, Randall directed the IFC film ''See For Me'', which screened at the

and th
BFI London Festival

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Okita, Randall Canadian male screenwriters Canadian people of Japanese descent Canadian writers of Asian descent Canadian Screen Award winners Living people Canadian Film Centre alumni Asian-Canadian filmmakers Year of birth missing (living people)