Fall 2025 Winners
Nature Without Borders International Film Festival
Nature Without Borders International Film Festival
In order of importance
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NWBIFF uses a performance-based system in which films do not compete against each other, but are evaluated on their own merits. Each entry is judged individually, so your film is assessed for what it achieves, not in comparison with others.
For all practical purposes, each film "competes against itself." Every entry is scored according to an internal value scale that measures its specific strengths and qualities.
When it is your film's turn to be evaluated, the judge's full attention is on your work alone. The focus is not on other films in the queue, which helps reduce bias and ensures a fairer assessment of your artistic vision and storytelling.
Judges score entries on a performance scale. Winning projects may receive recognition as Best of Festival, Best of Show, one of two Awards of Excellence levels, one of two Awards of Merit levels, a Kudos Endeavor Award, or no award. Criteria include creativity, technical execution, originality, and overall impact.
Best of Festival and Best of Show honors are reserved for the highest-scoring works each season. Awards of Excellence highlight truly outstanding artistic and technical achievement, while notable accomplishments are acknowledged at the Merit and Kudos levels.
Your winning title is shown in the left column.
You won the award under the main award heading, i.e., Outstanding Excellence.
The right column shows any additional awards won, if any.
We live screen only Best of Festival winners.
Our screening event is to collect audience reactions to be used by our distributors. We don't conduct after-screening networking parties or seminars.
Video interviews of the viewing audience may be conducted and shown on WRPN.tv
Other award winners down to Excellence are invited to screen on WRPN.tv
in Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
OUTSTANDING EXCELLENCE: Cinematography (subcat)
For over 35 years, a dedicated team of biologists has quietly shaped one of the most enduring and impactful wildlife research programs in America. Guardians of Yellowstone takes viewers deep into the wild heart of Yellowstone National Park to reveal the hidden lives of cougars—stealthy apex predators whose presence is vital to the health and balance of the ecosystem.
Told across three distinct phases of research, the film chronicles the evolution of the Yellowstone Cougar Project, highlighting the groundbreaking science, tireless fieldwork, and unwavering passion of the biologists who are committed to understanding and protecting these elusive animals. Audiences will also get to meet specific cougars, each with their own unique story of survival, resilience, and connection, set against the stunning backdrop of Yellowstone's majestic landscapes.
Through breathtaking visuals, intimate field footage, and deeply moving storytelling, Guardians of Yellowstone celebrates not only the cougars themselves, but the human guardians who ensure their legacy endures, reminding us all of the fragile beauty and interconnectedness of life in the wild.
in Climate Change and Its Impact on Nature
Germany
in Habitats and Biodiversity
Spain
in Habitats and Biodiversity
Slovakia
in Renewable Energy and Sustainability
United States
in Climate Change and Its Impact on Nature
France
in Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Italy
in Human-Animal Interactions
France
in Environmental
Austria
in Marine Life and Oceans
Spain
in Endangered Species
in Marine Life and Oceans
United States
in Land and Water Management
United States
in TV Show or pilot
Canada
in Animal Behavior and Intelligence
Spain
in Geological Documentaries
Austria, United Kingdom
in Renewable Energy and Sustainability
United States
in Animal Behavior and Intelligence, Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
India
Outstanding Excellence: BOTH
in Human-Animal Interactions
India
in Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
India
in Biodiversity and Genetics, Endangered Species, Wildlife Conservation
United States
Outstanding Excellence: ALL
in Habitats and Biodiversity
Canada
in Habitat Restoration Efforts, Human-Animal Interactions, Indigenous Cultures and Nature, Original Score (subcat), Actress: Lead (subcat)
France
Outstanding Excellence: ALL
in Indigenous Cultures and Nature
United States
in Environmental, Marine Life and Oceans, Ocean Life Documentaries, Original Score (subcat)
United States
Outstanding Excellence: ALL
in Wildlife Conservation
Canada
in Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
South Africa
in Ocean Life Documentaries
South Korea
in Music Video, Original Song (subcat)
Canada
Outstanding Excellence: BOTH
in Ornithology Documentaries, Cinematography (subcat)
Canada
Outstanding Excellence: BOTH
in Soil Health and Agriculture
United States
in Ecotourism and Its Effects
United Kingdom
in Wildlife Conservation
Costa Rica
in Documentary, Endangered Species
United States
Outstanding Excellence: BOTH
in Human-Animal Interactions, Wildlife Conservation
United States
Outstanding Excellence: BOTH
in Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
Belgium
in Documentary, Narrative Feature Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment, Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
United States
Excellence: BOTH
in Nature and Mental Health
Israel
in Music Video
United States
in Biography
United Kingdom
in Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
in Climate Change and Its Impact on Nature
United Kingdom
in TV Show or pilot
Czech Republic, Slovakia
in Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
in Music Video
United States
in Indigenous Cultures and Nature
India
in Biography
Ecuador
in Documentary, Environmental, Habitats and Biodiversity, Indigenous Cultures and Nature
Canada
Excellence: ALL
in Youth Produced
Thailand
in Ocean Life Documentaries
Malta
in Music Video
United States
in Endangered Species
United States
in Human-Animal Interactions
United States
in Human-Animal Interactions
Spain
in Biography
United Kingdom
in Wildlife Conservation
Bolivia
in AI Films (All categories, except Screenplays)
Peru
in Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Spain
in Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
South Africa
in Indigenous Cultures and Nature, Wildlife/Nature Documentaries
Pakistan
in Experimental
Australia
in Human-Animal Interactions, Content/Message Delivery (subcat)
United States
Exceptional Merit: BOTH
in Environmental
United States
in Animal Behavior and Intelligence, Documentary, Human-Animal Interactions, Indigenous Cultures and Nature
Mongolia
Exceptional Merit: ALL
in Flora Documentary
Hungary
in AI Films (All categories, except Screenplays)
United States
in Nature and Mental Health
United States
in Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United Kingdom
in Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment, Youth Produced
Australia
Merit: BOTH
in Music Video
United States
in AI Films (All categories, except Screenplays)
India
in Human-Animal Interactions
Canada
in Narrative Short Film Centered on Animal, nature or environment
United States
in Animation, Herpetology Documentaries, Viewer Impact: Entertainment Value (subcat)
United States
in Original Song (subcat)
United States
in Original Song (subcat)
Australia
in Content/Message Delivery (subcat)
United Kingdom
in Viewer Impact: Entertainment Value (subcat)
United States
in Original Concept (subcat)
Malaysia
in Cinematography (subcat)
United States