Awards and nominations

2026 Northern Ontario Music and Film awards - Outstanding Feature Film (Nominee) / Drive Back Home

2025 SilverWave Film festival – Best Feature Film / Drive Back Home

2024 Calgary Int’l Film Fest - Audience award - Best Canadian Narrative Feature / Drive Back Home

2025 Palm Springs Int’ Film Fest - Best of the Fest selection / Drive Back Home

2024 San Diego Film Festival - Artistic Director’s Award/ (Drive Back Home

2017 National Screen Institute A&E Award – Best Short film / Four Eyes

2017 SilverWave Film festival – Best Int’lSshort Film / Four Eyes

2015 Bessies / Don Award - Best newcomer to film production in Canada

Biography

Michael Clowater is an award-winning Canadian film director, screenwriter, and commercial director. Long recognized for his prolific and highly acclaimed work in television advertising. His 2024 self-penned debut feature film, Drive Back Home, stars Alan Cumming and won numerous awards and was released in the US in 2025. It can be streamed in most parts of the world on Amazon and Apple TV. He started directing in 2013 with Smuggler and moved to Skunk in 2024.

Education

Judith Weston workshops and acting classes

Maine Media Workshops – The art of visual storytelling