By Cody Mello-Klein | cmelloklein@alextimes.com

The Alexandria Film Festival came to a close on Sunday after being extended an additional week due to high demand. With the end of the festival comes AFF’s annual slate of awards given to filmmakers whose worked excelled in a variety of areas.

The festival’s top honor, the Best of Fest award, went to “I’m Fine, Thanks for Asking” from co-directors Kelley Kali and Angelique Molina. The film depicts a hectic day in the life of a homeless single mother who is trying to save up money to get a roof over her and her 8-year-old daughter. The Alexandria Times praised the film and Kali’s lead performance in its rave review.

Meanwhile, Oscar-nominated filmmaker Paula Van der Oest received the Special Jury Award for her pandemic-era romantic comedy “Love in a Bottle.”

Documentaries took home most of the awards at AFF this year.

The Audience Award went to Pat McGee’s “From the Hood to the Holler,” a documentary about politician Charles Booker’s 2020 campaign. McGee previously won for his 2018 film “American Relapse.” Kathy Kuras won the Joe Cantwell Prize for Documentary Excellence for “Open Field,” which tells the story of female professional football players and their pursuit of athletic greatness. Finally, “Tower Road Bus,” a documentary that explores the integration of schools in Prince Georges County and the experience of Black students and teachers being thrust into all-white schools, won the Best Regional Film award