Broadway's Will Chase Wins Best Short Film Award at LIMEHOF Film Festival

At the inaugural LIMEHOF Music Documentary Film Festival this month, Tony Award nominee Will Chase (Once Upon a Mattress, The Mystery of Edwin Drood) won the Best Short Film Award for his film, Coming Home: The Guggenheim Grotto Back in Ireland. 

This film follows Chase as he joins the band’s return to Ireland for their first set of performances in a decade, playing sold-out shows at Dublin’s Whelan’s and Galway’s Róisín Dubh. Produced by singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson (The Notebook), the 45-minute film captures the excitement of the reunion. The film made its world premiere at the festival. In addition to the screening, musician Mick Lynch, who is featured in the film, performed LIVE music as part of the Q&A.  

"The reason I know Mick Lynch, who is part of Guggenheim Grotto, is because my girlfriend Ingrid Michaelson, who is a long-time Brooklynite, toured with Mick and Kevin back in the day, so I feel that all great musical roads lead through Brooklyn," Chase said. 

Chase said that the film's 45-minute run time made it hard to program for most film festivals and credited the LIMEHOF Music Documentary Film Festival with having the flexibility to see the uniqueness of the film and select it even with its unusual run time. 

Chase was not able to attend the awards ceremony but said in a statement: “...Thanks for curating such a wonderful group of films, for including mine in your lineup, and for this award. My entire team and I are honored to be part of this inaugural season. Thanks again and congratulations to all the artists in this room.”  

The Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame (LIMEHOF)'s first-ever LIMEHOF Music Documentary Film Festival took place August 8th - 10th at LIMEHOF’s Stony Brook location (97 Main Street, Stony Brook, NY). This film festival, which focuses exclusively on music documentaries, wrapped up with an awards ceremony held nearby at the Three Village Inn. For more information about the LIMEHOF Music Documentary Film Festival, visit here.

Full List of Film Festival Awards 

The Spirit of Independent Filmmaking Award: Hello! My Name is Blotto: THE MOVIE, Director: Robert Lichter (AKA Bert Blotto)

First Time Filmmaker Award: 40 Watts from Nowhere, Director: Sue Carpenter (Los Angeles, CA)

Social Impact Award: To My Rescue, it Was the S1Ws (A Public Enemy Story), Director: Janol Ture 

Best International Film Award: Goddess of Slide: The Forgotten Story of Ellen McIlwaine, Director: Alfonso Maiorana (Canada)

Long Island Filmmaker Award: Building the Beatles, Director: John Rose (Setauket, NY)

Best Director Award: Hung Up on a Dream: The Zombies Documentary, Director: Robert Schwartzman (Los Angeles, CA)

Best Short Film Award: Coming Home: The Guggenheim Grotto Back in Ireland, Director: Will Chase (Brooklyn, NY)

Best Feature Award: Cat’s in the Cradle 50th Anniversary: The Song That Changed Our Lives, Director: Rick Korn Accepting the award: Film producer S.A. Baron

Audience Award, Best Short: The Bronx Boys – The Evolution of B-Boy Culture, Director: Robert McCullough Jr. Accepting the award: DJ Johnny Juice Rosado (Public Enemy, Uniondale, NY)

Audience Award, Best Feature: To My Rescue, it Was the S1Ws (A Public Enemy Story), Director: Janol Ture 

About LIMEHOF

Founded in 2004, the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to the idea that Long Island’s musical and entertainment heritage is an important resource to be celebrated and preserved for future generations. The organization, which encompasses New York State’s Nassau, Suffolk, Queens, and Kings (Brooklyn) Counties, was created as a place of community that inspires and explores Long Island music and entertainment in all its forms. In 2022, LIMEHOF opened its first Hall of Fame building location in Stony Brook, New York. To date, the organization has inducted more than 130 musicians and music industry executives, and offers education programs, scholarships, and awards to Long Island students and educators.  

Photo credit: Deborah Lopez