A nthony Shim’s Riceboy Sleeps has racked up the most nominations for the 2023 Vancouver Film Critics Circle (VFCC) Awards.

The drama (pictured) — written, directed, edited and produced by Shim under his banner Lonesome Heroes Productions alongside Rebecca Steele and Bryan Demore — has earned nine nods in eight categories, including Best Picture; Best BC Film; Best Female Actor for Choi Seung-yoon; Best Supporting Male Actor for Dohyun Noel Hwang, who was also nominated for One to Watch along with Shim; and Best BC Director, Best Director and Best Screenplay for Shim.

Riceboy Sleeps previously won the Windsor International Film Festival’s $25,000 WIFF Prize in Canadian Film, Best Canadian Film at the Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF), and the $20,000 Platform Prize at the Toronto International Film Festival, among others.

Meanwhile, Sophie Jarvis’ Until Branches Bend is up for six trophies, including Best BC Film; Best BC Director for Jarvis; Best Female Actor for Grace Glowicki; Best Supporting Female Actor for Alexandra Roberts; and individual One to Watch nods for Jarvis and Glowicki. The Canada-Switzerland copro — produced by Vancouver-based Experimental Forest Films, Ceroma Films and Reign Films, in partnership with Switzerland’s Cinédokké Films — previously won VIFF’s Best BC Film Award.

Clement Virgo’s Brother, based on David Chariandy’s 2017 novel of the same name, is in the running in five categories, including Best Director and screenplay for Virgo; Best Male Actor for Lamar Johnson; Best Supporting Male Actor for Aaron Pierre; and Best Supporting Female Actor for Marsha Stephanie Blake.

It is written, directed, and produced by Virgo alongside Damon D’Oliveira under their banner Conquering Lion Pictures, and Aeschylus Poulos and Sonya Di Rienzo of Toronto’s Hawkeye Pictures.

Chandler Levack’s I Like Movies, produced by Lindsay Blair Goeldner, has four nominations including Best Picture; Best Screenplay for Levack; Best Male Actor for Isaiah Lehtinen; and Best Supporting Male Actor for Percy Hynes White.

Jason Loftus’ Eternal Spring, produced by Lofty Sky Entertainment, earned three nods: Best Director for Loftus; Best Picture, and Best Canadian Documentary against Black Ice, directed by Hubert Davis, and Dear Audrey, directed by Jeremiah Hayes.

Other nominees include newly Oscar-nominated Women Talking‘s Sarah Polley for Best Director and Judith Ivey for Best Supporting Female Actor; Exile‘s Adam Beach for Best Male Actor and Camille Sullivan for Best Supporting Female Actor; Door Mouse‘s Hayley Law for Best Female Actor; and Doug and the Slugs and Me, directed by Teresa Alfeld, for Best BC Film and Best BC Director.

The winners of the Canada and B.C. section will be announced at the VFCC Awards ceremony, which takes place on Feb. 13 at the VIFF Centre, according to a news release.