Kayla Lorette (above left) is the latest winner of the $1,000 Brian Linehan Actors Award in the NSI Online Short Film Festival for her work in She Stoops To Conquer.

The jury

Lisa Haller is the senior programming associate at the Toronto International Film Festival where she considers Canadian and international short films for TIFF and selects student short films for Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival.

Jason Beaudry is the director of programming for the Atlantic Film Festival, the East Coast’s gateway to epic and unforgettable stories for the past 37 years.

Kristina Mileska is a Toronto-based filmmaker and a past winner of the Corus Fearless Female Directors Award in the NSI Online Short Film Festival.

On her performance

Lisa Haller: “Kayla Lorette is exceptional as a struggling talent-show performer. As she physically transforms for her on-stage performance and dives head-first into the role, you are immediately drawn to her bizarre and beautifully complicated character.”

Jason Beaudry: “There are as many delicate layers to Kayla performance in She Stoops to Conquer as there are to the ‘borrowed skin’ that she wears throughout. You can’t take your eyes off of her from start to finish.”

Kristina Mileska: “Kayla shines through the makeup and delivers an incredibly memorable performance.”

Kayla said, “I am delighted to receive The Brian Linehan Actors Award. I’m incredibly proud of this short film and look forward to creating more with my dear co-writer and director Zack Russell.”

She Stoops to Conquer also won the A&E Short Filmmakers Award for best film in the NSI Online Short Film Festival.