# Harley Chamandy > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Harley_Chamandy > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Harley_Chamandy.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harley_Chamandy > Source revision: 1352870856 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) **Harley Chamandy** is a [Canadian](/source/Canada) filmmaker who is known for writing and directing *[Allen Sunshine](/source/Allen_Sunshine)* (2024), his debut feature film. Chamandy won the [Werner Herzog](/source/Werner_Herzog) Film Award in 2024 for *Allen Sunshine*.[1] ## Early life and education Chamandy was born in [Montreal](/source/Montreal) to a family of [Lebanese](/source/Lebanon) and Greek-Egyptian heritage.[1] His mother, [Chantal Chamandy](/source/Chantal_Chamandy), is a singer who emigrated from Egypt to Canada.[2] His maternal grandfather is a pianist.[2] Chamandy began making short films at a young age and briefly worked as a child actor, appearing in a [Syfy](/source/Syfy) network TV movie and other minor roles.[2][3] At 17, his short film *Mirage* (2017) led to his participation in a ten-day workshop led by [Werner Herzog](/source/Werner_Herzog) at Cuba's [Escuela Internacional de Cine y Televisión](/source/Escuela_Internacional_de_Cine_y_Televisi%C3%B3n), where he was the youngest participant.[1] Chamandy attended [New York University](/source/New_York_University) (NYU) and graduated with a degree in global liberal studies with a minor in producing, creative writing and Italian.[1] He has cited a NYU seminar on visual culture, which included works like [Roland Barthes](/source/Roland_Barthes)’s *[Camera Lucida](/source/Camera_Lucida)*, as an influence.[1] ## Career At the age of 17, Chamandy directed the short film *The Final Act of Joey Jumbler* (2018) and worked with cinematographer [Stéphanie Weber Biron](/source/St%C3%A9phanie_Weber_Biron) on the project. The film was produced by his mother.[3] In 2022, he wrote and directed the short film *Where It’s Beautiful When It Rains*.[4] His feature-film debut, *Allen Sunshine* (2024), which he wrote and directed, follows a reclusive music producer in rural Quebec.[3] The film was shot on [16 mm](/source/16_mm_film) stock in Quebec's [Eastern Townships](/source/Eastern_Townships).[5] His mother served as a lead producer through their company, Mother and Son Films, alongside Canadian co-producer Laurent Allaire of Chasseurs Films.[6] The cinematographer, Kenny Suleimanagich, provided his own 16 mm camera for the production.[5] During post-production, *Allen Sunshine* was selected for the [Karlovy Vary International Film Festival](/source/Karlovy_Vary_International_Film_Festival)’s Eastern Promises industry program, where it won the First Cut+ Award in 2023. Academy Award-winning producer Alex Coco later joined the project as an executive producer. The film premiered at the 41st [Munich International Film Festival](/source/Filmfest_M%C3%BCnchen) in June 2024.[7] The film subsequently screened theatrically in New York, Miami, London, Munich, Toronto, Halifax and [P.E.I.](/source/Prince_Edward_Island) ## Filmography **Short films** - *Mirage* (2016) - *The Final Act of Joey Jumbler* (2018) - *The Maids Will Come on Monday* (2019) - *Where It's Beautiful When It Rains* (2022) **Feature films** - *[Allen Sunshine](/source/Allen_Sunshine)* (2024) ## Recognition In July 2023, *Allen Sunshine* won the First Cut+ Award at Karlovy Vary's Eastern Promises industry forum.[6] In 2024, Chamandy received the Werner Herzog Film Award for *Allen Sunshine*, becoming the award's youngest recipient at age 25. Chamandy accepted the award in Munich in December 2024.[1] In the same year, *Allen Sunshine* was included as one of the best films of 2024 by *[The Film Stage](/source/The_Film_Stage)*.[8] ## References 1. Biondi, Dani (November 11, 2024). ["Harley Chamandy on NYU, Werner Herzog and 'Allen Sunshine'"](https://nyunews.com/arts/film/2024/11/11/harley-chamandy-qa/) 1. Kotomori, Maya. ["Harley Chamandy's 'Allen Sunshine' is a meditation on the quiet beauty of nature"](https://www.documentjournal.com/2024/11/harley-chamandys-allen-sunshine-is-a-meditation-on-the-quiet-beauty-of-nature/) 1. ["Harley Chamandy Talks "Allen Sunshine" - PAPER Magazine"](https://www.papermag.com/harley-chamandy-allen-sunshine). *www.papermag.com* 1. ["Short Film: Where It's Beautiful When It Rains"](https://www.benjaminpajak.com/shortfilm). *Benjamin Pajak* 1. ["See This Local Filmmaker's Werner Herzog Prize-Winning Movie"](https://www.miaminewtimes.com/arts-culture/miami-filmmaker-harley-chamandy-wins-coveted-werner-herzog-prize-22631163/). March 12, 2025. 1. ["Harley Chamandy's Allen Sunshine wins the First Cut+ Award at Karlovy Vary"](https://cineuropa.org/en/newsdetail/445978/). *Cineuropa - the best of european cinema*. July 5, 2023. 1. ["Harley Chamandy on Allen Sunshine, Shooting on 16mm, and Finding Inspiration Outside of Cinema"](https://thefilmstage.com/harley-chamandy-on-allen-sunshine-shooting-on-16mm-and-finding-inspiration-outside-of-cinema/). July 1, 2024. 1. Stage, The Film (December 5, 2024). ["The 50 Best 2024 Films You Might Have Missed"](https://thefilmstage.com/the-50-best-2024-films-you-might-have-missed/) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Harley Chamandy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harley_Chamandy) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harley_Chamandy?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.