The 2020 Allegra Audience Choice Award for Best Short Film has been awarded to Toronto filmmaker Tyler J. Seguin for his hilarious film, ADVANCES.

The film, which played Sunday January 26th ahead of the Icelandic feature film WOMAN AT WAR, stars Helen Juvonen and Paul Rivers as a couple invited to an important dinner party with Juvonen’s boss. But when a well-meaning colleague suggests that the boss and his wife have a secret, every word and gesture takes on a double meaning.

Seguin was on hand to introduce the film, along with his two stars, and later thanked the Festival committee for bringing ADVANCES to Milton. “We were so thrilled to have such a great audience at the festival. They were warm and generous and enthusiastic. They laughed so hard they missed some of the jokes!”

“Seguin’s film is probably one of the outright funniest we have had at the Festival,” noted Festival founder and director Jennifer Smith. “And of course we were thrilled to welcome actor and producer Paul Rivers back this year, after he presented his hugely popular short film 45 at the 2018 Festival.”

Director Tyler J. Seguin is a Toronto-based creator, director, and performer who is making his debut as a film director with Tyler J. Seguin is a Toronto-based creator, director, and performer who is making his debut as a film director with Advances. Known mostly for starring in the award-winning web series, Just Passing Through, Tyler has spent the bulk of his career in live theatre. In addition to directing independent productions with the Toronto theatre company Thought For Food, Tyler’s experience includes work with The Stratford Festival of Canada, The St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival, and The Sudbury Theatre Centre.

The Allegra Audience Choice Award is generously sponsored by the Anders family of Allegra Marketing.Print.Mail and includes a $100 cash award. Audience members at each screening are asked to rate the short films from one to five stars on a ballot, and the winner is chosen by the highest average rating.