A transgender woman in esports has claimed top honors at the first-ever ESI Film Festival for her inspiring short documentary about her rise to success–and her dedication to leveling the playing field by championing equality in the competitive gaming arena.
Pro gamer Emma “Emzii” Rose showed her experience of being a transgender gamer–and many of the challenges that she faced due to who she is–in the 14-minute documentary Emzii: It’s for Everyone. The short film explores how gaming helped her come to terms with who she is–and how it became a platform for incredible personal triumph.
Last year, Coleraine-raised Emzii became the first trans woman to represent Northern Ireland at the 2022 Commonwealth Esports Championship in Birmingham, England, winning the tournament’s gold medal in the eFootball category. This June, she went on to claim a silver medal at the first-ever European Games Esports Championships in Katowice, Poland, narrowly losing to Italy’s Giorgia Casciaroli by a score of 3-2.
The inaugural edition of the ESI Film Festival, which was hosted tonight (October 20) at London’s Bafta 195 Piccadilly, celebrated the “champions of cinema across gaming and esports.” It was hosted by Esports Insider (ESI) and its non-profit partner ESG Gaming, and judges chose the winners from over 40 entries, including submissions from fashion brands, esports organizations, and students.
This year’s festival focused on digital inequality, diversity, and mental health, highlighting the potential for gaming and esports to make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. This was underlined by the first award, given to the winner of the community vote: the Invictus Games Foundation’s short documentary, Exploring esports for recovery, won the opening prize for showing how esports and gaming can support the health and well-being of service personnel and veterans.
Emzii, who claimed the ESI Film Festival’s top prize of £5,000 ($6,079), wasn’t the only story celebrated and rewarded in the celebration. Taking second place–and £3,000 ($3,647)–was AFK: Changing the Narrative, which delves into the life of Danish former CS:GO pro-turned-esports host Jacob “Pimp” Winneche, exploring his past struggles with physical and mental health.
Rounding out the top three with a £2,000 ($2,432) prize was Game Flow, a documentary directed by Emily E. Crawford that shows how three people with mood and anxiety disorders use gaming as a “powerful tool for self-care.”
All three winners have received invites to attend Bafta’s Games Sessions Open Day in April, which will celebrate the nominees of its annual Games Awards. Entries for next year’s Bafta ceremony, which takes place on April 11, are now open–with fairer, better rules put in place for 2024’s outing.
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