CHICAGO CRITICS FILM FESTIVAL Announces 2025 Rotten Tomatoes Audience Award Winners

A24's SORRY, BABY charms Chicago audiences;
STRANGERS IN THE SAME SHIRT named crowd favorite short film at Fest Packed with Filmmaker Guests

(Chicago, IL) — The Chicago Film Critics Association (CFCA), the Chicago-area print, online and broadcast critics group that celebrates the art of film and film criticism, today announces the Rotten Tomatoes Audience Award winners following the 12th Chicago Critics Film Festival. Audiences selected Eva Victor's heartfelt SORRY, BABY as winner of the Rotten Tomatoes Audience Award for narrative features; the film screened to a sold-out crowd during the festival’s twelfth edition at Chicago’s historic Music Box Theatre. 

Additionally, STRANGERS IN THE SAME SHIRT earned audience appreciation in the short film category.

The twelfth edition boasted several sell-out screenings and welcomed a number of special guests, including Jay Duplass, Michael Strassner and Liz Larsen (THE BALTIMORONS); Ari Gold and Ethan Gold (BROTHER VERSUS BROTHER); Dylan O'Brien and James Sweeney (TWINLESS); Alex Ullom (IT ENDS); Eva Victor (SORRY, BABY); Matthew Shear (FANTASY LIFE); Sarah Friedland and Kathleen Chalfant (FAMILIAR TOUCH); and Angus MacLachlan and Jane Levy (A LITTLE PRAYER).

An album of select images from this year’s festival is available here; all photos credit Kate Scott Photography.

The Chicago Critics Film Festival annually features a selection of acclaimed films chosen by members of the Chicago Film Critics Association, a combination of recent festival favorites and as-yet-undistributed works from a variety of filmmakers, from established Oscar winners to talented newcomers. It is the only example of a major film critics group that hosts its own festival. The next edition of the festival will return May 1-7, 2026.