A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and depending upon the festival's focus, can include International and Domestic releases. Some film festivals focus on a specific filmmaker, genre of film, or subject matter. Several film festivals focus solely on presenting short films of a defined maximum length. Film festivals are typically annual events. Some film historians, including Jerry Beck, do not consider film festivals as official releases of the film.
Maryam Keshavarz, is an American filmmaker, of Iranian descent. She is best known for her 2011 film Circumstance distributed by Participant Media and Roadside Attractions, which won the Audience Award at Sundance Film Festival.
Edgar Morais is an actor and filmmaker. He studied theater in Lisbon, Portugal and was a student of Ivana Chubbuck in LA and Susan Batson in NYC and has worked with globally celebrated filmmakers such as Larry Clark, Victoria Mahoney, Teresa Sutherland, Tiago Guedes and Rodrigo Areias.
The Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay is one of the annual awards given by the Film Independent, a non-profit organization dedicated to independent film and independent filmmakers. It was first presented in 1994 with David O. Russell being the first recipient of the award for Spanking the Monkey, a film he also directed.
Flavio Pimenta Alves is a Brazilian writer, screenwriter, and film director resident in America since 1998. His movies consistently feature elderly characters as protagonists. He is best known for the film The Garden Left Behind starring Michael Madsen, Ed Asner and Carlie Guevara.
Brian A. Metcalf is an American filmmaker. He wrote, directed and produced the Lionsgate crime thriller film Adverse, released in February 2021.
Withoutabox was a website founded in January 2000 by David Straus, Joe Neulight and Charles Neulight which allowed independent filmmakers to self-distribute their films. The first product launched was the International Film Festival Submission system. Withoutabox worked with film festivals and filmmakers all over the world. In January 2008, Withoutabox was acquired by IMDb, a subsidiary of Amazon.
Luke Eberl is an American actor and director best known for his role as Birn in the 2001 film Planet of the Apes and for his film Choose Connor. In 2008, Eberl was described by MovieMaker Magazine as one of the "10 Young Americans to Watch". He is currently in production on his second feature film, You Above All.
Penny Lane is an American independent filmmaker, known for her documentary films. Her humor and unconventional approach to the documentary form, including the use of archival Super 8 footage and YouTube videos, have earned her critical acclaim.
Natasha Braier is an Argentinian cinematographer. She resides in Los Angeles, California.
A Room Full of Nothing is a 2019 American independent, drama film written by Duncan Coe and directed by Coe and Elena Weinberg, starring Coe and Ivy Meehan.
Falafel Cart is a 2019 animated family short drama film produced by RoyalTales and directed by Abdullah Al-Wazzan with an original score by Dan Phillipson and sound design by Andrew Vernon. The short blends stop motion animation with traditional and some computer animation. In 2019, the film was submitted for the 2020 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film making it Kuwait's first short film to ever be submitted to the Academy Awards. In 2020 The film earned an official selection at the Hiroshima International Animation Festival in the best of the world program. In 2021 the film won best animated short at the Burbank International Film Festival. In 2019 the film won best international short film at the Los Angeles Animation Festival.
Queen of the Morning Calm is a 2019 Canadian drama film written and directed by Gloria Ui Young Kim in her feature directorial debut. The film stars Tina Jung as Deborah, a single mother in Toronto who is struggling to raise her daughter Mona while the girl's father Sarge moves in and out of their lives unpredictably and unreliably.
Jordan Wayne Long is a filmmaker, performance artist, and co-creator of the production company HCT.Media.
Clapboard Jungle: Surviving the Independent Film Business is a 2020 documentary film about working in the film business directed by Justin McConnell.
Sara Colangelo is an American film director and screenwriter known for her films Little Accidents and Worth. Filmmaker Magazine named her one of its "25 New Faces of Independent Film" in 2010.
Skin: The Movie is a 2018 American comedy film written and directed by Ronn Kilby. The film stars Mark Christopher Lawrence, Diane Sargent, Michelle Way, Merrick McCartha and "Shotgun Tom" Kelly.
Leave 'Em Laughing is a 2020 drama short film directed by Chris Cashman and written by Cashman, Carlo Coppo and Christopher Lusti. The film stars Matthew Glave, Pete Gardner and Barrie Chase. It screened at San Diego International Film Festival, The Valley Film Festival, Woods Hole Film Festival and won Best Art Design at Oceanside International Film Festival. The story is set around Dick Shawn's final act at University of California, San Diego.
Brian Savelson is an American writer, director, and producer who works in film, theater, and television.
