05.20.13

Built around one of the most prestigious screenwriting competitions in the country, Austin Film Festival and Screenwriters Conference attracts groundbreaking producers, agents, managers, and development execs, as well as countless working screenwriters and filmmakers. Hitting its 20th anniversary this year, the Conference is as devoted as ever to nurturing creativity – a rare oasis in a rough-and-tumble business.  The access and intimacy is unmatched with registrants and speakers under one roof, attending panels, parties and screenings in Austin, a city known for its creative culture, big heart, and zero pretensions.

This October 24-31, join the minds behind such films as THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, BIG FISH, A BEAUTIFUL MIND, DONNIE DARKO, MUD, THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES, LOOPER, SHREK, BLAZING SADDLES, ZOOLANDER, 500 DAYS OF SUMMER, NOW YOU SEE ME, A TIME TO KILL, ON THE ROAD, BILL & TED’S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE, LITTLE WOMEN, FIGHT CLUB, and television shows Breaking Bad, Curb Your Enthusiasm, House of Cards, Fargo, Treme, The Wire, John Adams, The Office, and Boardwalk Empire… to name a few!

A sampling of the panels already planned for the Conference…

As part of the continuing “Conversation with” series, join in-depth, one-on-one conversations with top filmmakers as they discuss their experiences in the industry, including: Jonathan Demme, Vince Gilligan, Akiva Goldsman,  Beau Willimon,  Mark Johnson, Robin Swicord, Leslie Dixon, and more!

Staged Script Reading of Vince Gilligan’s 2-FACE

A special staged script reading of Vince Gilligan’s dark comedy script, 2-FACE.

Crowdfunding Case Study: VERONICA MARS movie project with Rob Thomas

As our world becomes more connected and technologically developed, filmmakers are finding numerous avenues and opportunities to get their projects off the ground. Join Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas as he discusses his record-breaking Kickstarter campaign for the upcoming VERONICA MARS movie and how crowdfunding is quickly changing the ways films are getting made.

The Throw with Terry Rossio

Terry Rossio will lead a presentation on “The Throw,” otherwise known as the transition between scenes.  He will discuss very practical, actual writing techniques, and show film clips to demonstrate successful (and not so successful) throws.

Scriptnotes LIVE!

For the second year, veteran filmmakers John August and Craig Mazin will record a live presentation of their incredibly informative screenwriting podcast, Scriptnotes, in which they discuss craft and career, complete with audience questions and other surprises.

The Psychology of Storytelling

Producer Lindsay Doran will explore the secrets of creating a satisfying script and what psychology can teach us about making mood-elevating movies.

Advance Sign-Up Opportunity: This Thursday, May 30^th

Script-to-Screen with Rian Johnson: BRICK*

With script in hand and film clips on the screen, writer/director Rian Johnson will dissect his critically acclaimed film BRICK, discussing his writing process – what worked, what didn’t, what needed to be changed for film production – and why.

*Austin Film Festival will be opening an advance sign-up for current Conference and Producers badgeholders to Rian Johnson’s Script-to-Screen panel on Thursday, May 30^th.  Be sure to look out for the weekly AFF Wednesday newsletter for further instructions!

Don’t miss your opportunity to take part in the 20^th Annual Austin Film Festival and buy your badge before prices go up on June 1^st!  For more information on Badge pricing, and to purchase, click here.

05.08.13 | Celina Guerrero

Austin Film Festival is excited to partner with ATX Television Festival for “Season Two” of the TV centric celebration this June. In addition to offering AFF followers 15% off any badge level (use code ATXAFF15), we will be co-presenting panels at each festival! First up, AFF presents “Face Off: Movies vs. TV, Presented by Austin Film Festival” on Saturday, June 8th with AFF alums Rob Thomas (Veronica Mars and the upcoming offshoot film of the series) and Kyle Killen (Awake, THE BEAVER) to be joined by ATX panelist Jonathan Prince (creator of American Dreams and director of the beloved ’90′s Camp Nowhere).

The panel will focus on the demands and benefits of writing both for film and television, the differences between the two mediums, and how to navigate transitioning from one to the other. Feature film screenwriters and successful showrunners will discuss the art, craft and business of their diverse careers, with a special focus on how they have been affected by the changing landscape of television. For more information on panelists and events at ATX, click here.

Terry Rossio

Robin Swicord

Jim Uhls

The 20th Annual Austin Film Festival will run October 24th-31st, 2013, once again magnetically attracting the most talked about, prolific, outlaw and legendary filmmakers and screenwriters in the entertainment industry. Plans are well under way to produce another exceptional Conference to inspire, educate and entertain you. Just some of the panelists already confirmed for the 2013 Conference:

• Terry Rossio, writer SHREK, DÉJÀ VU, THE MASK OF ZORRO, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN franchise
• John August, writer FRANKENWEENIE, CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, BIG FISH, CHARLIE’S ANGELS I & II, GO
• Peter Craig, writer THE TOWN, FATHERS AND GUNS, BAD BOYS 3
• Lindsay Doran, producer STRANGER THAN FICTION, NANNY MCPHEE, NANNY MCPHEE RETURNS, SENSE AND SENSIBILITY
• Jim Hart, writer HOOK, BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA, CONTACT, TUCK EVERLASTING, THE LAST MIMZY, AUGUST RUSH
• Robin Swicord, writer MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA, LITTLE WOMEN, PRACTICAL MAGIC
• Dan Sterling, producer Girls, The Office, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, writer, The Sarah Silverman Program, King of the Hill, South Park
• Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver, writers/producers RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, THE HAND THAT ROCKS THE CRADLE, writers THE RELIC
• Barry Josephson, Josephson Entertainment
• Nicholas Kazan, writer MATILDA, AT CLOSE RANGE, BICENTENNIAL MAN
• Franklin Leonard, Overbrook Entertainment, creator of The Black List
• Jim Uhls, writer FIGHT CLUB, SEMPER FI, JUMPER
• Craig Mazin, writer IDENTITY THEFT, TURKEYS, THE HANGOVER PART II, SCARY MOVIE 3 & 4, ROCKETMAN
• Alvaro Rodriguez, writer MACHETE, SHORTS, FROM DUSK TILL DAWN 3: THE HANGMAN’S DAUGHTER, ALLIED FORCES
• Daniel Petrie, Jr., Enderby Entertainment, creator/producer Combat Hospital, writer BEVERLY HILLS COP, THE BIG EASY, SHOOT TO KILL, writer/director FRAMED, former WGAw President
• Rick Dugdale, Enderby Entertainment

We’ll be announcing more of our confirmed panelists and events for the 2013 Conference in the coming months. Please know that we also greatly value your input and if you have suggestions for panel discussions, please send them to our Conference Director Erin Hallagan at erin@austinfilmfestival.com. Our goal is to provide you with the best writing and filmmaking conference yet.

Click here to get your 2013 AFF Badge!

All panelists are confirmed, schedules permitting. All speakers and events are based on permitting schedules and subject to change and/or cancellation without notice.

The 2013 Weekend Badge is the perfect opportunity to get away for a weekend full of great film, inspiring panels, and a meeting of the minds. Whether you’re driving in from Dallas or taking the red-eye from LA, you can experience all that AFF has to offer without missing a beat.

Now, if you buy your Weekend Badge before January 1st, you’ll be entered to win a 2-night hotel stay at the Holiday Inn Austin – Town Lake during the Festival!

Click here to purchase your Weekend Badge and on January 4th, we’ll announce the lucky winner!

The Holiday Inn Austin is located right on Town Lake, with beautiful views and access to the jogging and biking paths around the lake. Amenities include an outdoor pool and fitness center, bar and lounge, and free wi-fi. The hotel also offers free shuttles to and from the airport and downtown Austin.

We are thrilled to announce that AFF has been awarded a $25,000 Film Festival Grant from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The grant funds will go towards 20^th Anniversary programming, including our Retrospective Screening Series, which honors acclaimed screenwriters and filmmakers and their historic films through revelatory, educational screenings for the public.

AFF’s Retrospective Screenings offer the rare opportunity for veteran screenwriters and filmmakers to present one of their renowned works to the public, shedding new light on the film and their career through candid discussion during the event. Through the Retrospective Series, we aim to connect the viewer to the filmmaker, to open dialogue between artist and audience, and to promote the education of classic cinema.

Some Retrospective Screenings over the years have included: Joel and Ethan Coen present Blood Simple, Robert Altman presents Nashville, Frank Pierson presents Dog Day Afternoon, John Landis presents American Werewolf in London, Danny Boyle presents Shallow Grave, Lawrence Kasdan presents Body Heat, Sydney Pollack presents Tootsie, Shane Black presents The Long Kiss Goodnight, Steven Zaillian presents The Falcon and the Snowman, Whit Stillman presents Metropolitan, Oliver Stone presents Born on the Fourth of July, and Eric Roth presents The Insider.

The Academy Foundation – the Academy’s cultural and educational wing – annually distributes more than $1 million to film scholars, cultural organizations and film festivals throughout the U.S. and abroad.  The Foundation also presents the Academy’s rich assortment of screenings and other public programs each year.

Sold out!

Skip the crazed Black Friday crowds. This Friday, November 23rd, Austin Film Festival will sell a very limited number of 2013 Producers Badges for $475 ($650 value).

The 2012 Festival was filled with incredible experiences…

• Watching some of the year’s best films and Oscar® contenders like SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK, FLIGHT, NOT FADE AWAY, and JAYNE MANSFIELD’S CAR at the Paramount Theatre…
• Absorbing words of wit and wisdom from AFF 2012 Awardees Frank Darabont (SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION), Eric Roth (FORREST GUMP) and Chris Carter (The X-Files)…
• Feeling inspired, enthralled, educated and amused by the words of Paul Feig, Terry Rossio, Marti Noxon, Alec Berg, Phil Rosenthal, Scott Z. Burns, Aline Brosh McKenna, Rob Thomas, I. Marlene King, and all the many fantastic panelists…
• Enjoying Salt Lick BBQ, drinks in the Driskill Bar, brunch at Ranch 616, the view of downtown Austin at the Conference Wrap Party, and great conversation through it all.

Just imagine what you’ll experience next year at Austin Film Festival’s 20th Anniversary!

Be inspired. Be a part of the conversation. Be the first to see this year’s award-winning movies and discover tomorrow’s star filmmakers (Jason Reitman, James Franco and Craig Brewer all screened their short films at AFF). Break into the business. Eat good barbecue. Have a beer. Go ahead, have another one.

Most importantly, don’t miss it.

How to purchase

Black Friday Producers Badges will go on sale at midnight EST Thursday night/Friday morning, November 23rd.

Click here to visit our online store. Add a Producers Badge to your cart and when checking out, enter the coupon code BLACKFRIDAY. Once they run out, the code will no longer be valid.

Hurry, they go fast.

We are proud to announce the 2012 Audience Award winners presented by Esurance. Throughout the week of the Festival and Conference, audience members were invited to numerically rate films by ballot following each film’s screening. The winners are as follows:

Marquee Feature Audience Award:

SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK

Writer/Director: David O. Russell

Narrative Feature Audience Award:

JUNK

Writers: Kevin Hamedani, Ramon Isao

Director: Kevin Hamedani

Documentary Feature Audience Award: (Tie)

SPINNING PLATES

Writer/Director: Joseph Levy

and

RISING FROM ASHES

Director: T.C. Johnstone

Comedy Vanguard Audience Award:

THE MUSLIMS ARE COMING!

Directors: Negin Farsad, Dean Obeidallah

Dark Matters Audience Award:

SATURDAY MORNING MASSACRE

Writers: Jory Balsimo, Aaron Leggett, Jason Wehling

Director: Spencer Parsons

Narrative Short Audience Award:

ASAD

Writer/Director: Bryan Buckley

Narrative Student Short Audience Award:

THE TELEPORTED MAN

Writer/Director: Zach Endres

Animated Short Audience Award:

HEAD OVER HEELS

Writer/Director: Timothy Reckart

Documentary Short Audience Award:

GOOD KARMA $1

Directors: Jason Berger, Amy Laslett

The 2012 Film Competition and Screenplay/Teleplay winners have already been announced – read about them here.

Last year’s Audience Awards included The Artist and The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, both of which won Academy Awards®. The 2009 Out of Competition Audience Award Winner was Jason Reitman’s Up in the Air, which was nominated for several Academy Awards®, including “Best Picture” and “Best Director.”2008 AFF Audience Award winner, Slumdog Millionaire, presented by director Danny Boyle, went on to win 8 Oscars®, including “Best Picture”, “Best Director” and “Best Screenplay.”

The AFF Audience Award Film Series is sponsored by Esurance, the direct-to-consumer car insurance company. Esurance has been a longtime supporter of filmmakers and artists who help bring compelling stories to life.

We’ve also announced our dates for the 20th Annual Austin Film Festival & Conference, October 24-31, 2013. To purchase your Badge at the early discounted prices, click here.

Announcing Austin Film Festival’s 2012 Screenplay, Teleplay, and Film Competition Winners!

Film Competition Winners

Young Filmmakers – CRUMBS, Director: Nicco Vasquez, Writer: Keith Limon

Documentary Short – SEE THE DIRT, Directors: Chelsea Hernandez, Erik Mauck

Documentary Feature – INFORMANT, Director: Jamie Meltzer

Animated Short – HEAD OVER HEELS, Writer/Director: Timothy Reckart

Narrative Student Short – HATCH, Writer/Director: Christoph Kuschnig, Writer: Karl Goldblat

Narrative Short – ASAD, Writer/Director: Bryan Buckley

Narrative Feature – SPARROWS DANCE, Writer/Director: Noah Buschel

Screenplay/Teleplay Competition Winners

Sitcom Spec – Modern Family: “Earthquake Party”, Writer: Abi Wurdeman & Phil Wurdeman

One Hour Spec – Dexter: “The Second Coming”, Writer: David Radcliff

Sitcom Pilot – Katie and Becca: “Grow Up”, Writer: Leila Cohan-Miccio

One-Hour Pilot – Horizon, Writer: B.D. Flory

Comedy Screenplay – The P.A.N.D.A. War, Writer: Daniel Shea

Drama Screenplay presented by Writer’s Guild of America, East – Clouds of Sorrow, Writer: Jack Davidson

Enderby Entertainment Award – The Break-Up Nurse, Writer: Adelline Colangelo

Dark Hero Studios Sci-Fi Award – The Domain, by Michael Raymond

Congratulations to these incredibly talented winners for their outstanding work.  This year we received a record number of submissions in all categories and were blown away by the level of talent and hard work reflected.  We look forward to getting submissions for next year!

Print them out! Pin them up! Put them in your pocket!

Below are PDFs of the 2012 Film Schedule grid and Conference Schedule grid.

2012 AFF Film Schedule

2012 AFF Conference Schedule

Another edition of Short Focus by Lauren Means featuring the Documentary Short Competition Films.

THE BRONZER

Possibly the last traveling salesman in America comes to you on the big screen in this powerfully told story.  Stue Larkin isn’t just your average salesman.  He is easily the most passionate person about his job that I have ever seen and has a personality all of his own.  Stue doesn’t sell cars or magazine subscriptions, he sells bronzed baby shoes.  A trendy tradition in the 80s but lost in today’s world, Stue tries to make bronzing mementos popular again.  Come feel his passion in the Documentary Shorts Program 12 at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20 7:15pm, or Tuesday, October 23 3:00pm.

THE DEBUTANTE HUNTERS

In The Debutante Hunters, Director Maria White provides an intimate look into a way of life most people perceive as a man’s domain: hunting.   One woman eats only the meat she kills herself, another uses it as a way to spend time with her mom, while yet another goes out alone to become one with nature.  You’re sure to fall in love with this film as the people at Sundance Film Festival did giving it the Audience Award.  Come see it in the Documentary Shorts Program 12 at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20 7:15pm, or Tuesday, October 23 3:00pm.

GOOD KARMA $1

Lock the doors, don’t make eye contact, pretend to look at your phone.  People deal with homeless people in different ways.  More often than not it involves ignoring them.  However, praised ad-guru Alex Bogusky approaches the situation in an unusual way.  He collects the homeless signs as a way to understand one of the world’s most simple forms of communication.  Along his journey, he makes friends and learns a heart-warming lesson.  See my this Audience Award winner of the DC Shorts Festival in the Documentary Shorts Program 12 at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20 7:15pm, or Tuesday, October 23 3:00pm.

ILLEGAL

Everyone has different opinions about illegal immigrants, but what about their children?  This documentary short offers an interesting perspective on their unique position through a series of interviews with the children, policymakers, and educators.  Director John X. Carey seeks to raise the consciousness level of the public concerning the significance of immigration reform beginning with the Dream Act.  If you feel passionate about the issue after watching the film like I did, feel free to check out their mission statement at illegalmovie.org after seeing it in the Documentary Shorts Program 12 at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20 7:15pm, or Tuesday, October 23 3:00pm.

JEWPHORIA

It’s not often one finds a good comedy documentary short.  But comedian Randy Kagan’s Jewphoria is exactly that.  In a personal account of his trip to Israel, Randy finds not only laughs but also adventure.  He manages to both confirm and break Jewish stereotypes.  Come see this World Premiere and laugh out loud in the Documentary Shorts Program 12 at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20 7:15pm, or Tuesday, October 23 3:00pm.

SEE THE DIRT

Baseball cards, superhero figurines, stamps – we all collect different things.  But one boy has taken his passion in a different direction.  Scott MacMillan collects vacuums.  In fact, he has hundreds of the bulky, loud machines.  At age 14, he has found a hobby to last a lifetime when most never find hobbies at all.  This documentary short delves into the lovable quirks that everyone has.  Scott brings out the goofy, awkward kid in me all over again.  Don’t miss the chance to see it in the Documentary Shorts Program 12 at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20 7:15pm, or Tuesday, October 23 3:00pm.

UNRAVEL

What happens to all the clothes you throw away?  This short follows your unwanted clothes all the way to Panipat, Northern India where they are shredded and recycled back into yarn.  The story centers on Reshma, a kind and bright woman, and the other women workers of the factory.  Our unwanted clothes are tales of the West to them.  They use their imagination of how an American could have worn a dress that has a neckline down to the belly button.  This beautifully shot film opened my eyes to how a foreign country might view us.  See how our trash can become someone’s treasure in the Documentary Shorts Program 12 at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20 7:15pm, or Tuesday, October 23 3:00pm.

UNWIELDY BEAST

Piano + Bike = Piano Bike?  Pianist Gary Frank Skaggs roams around the streets of San Francisco playing his distinctive piano, which happens to be on top of a bike.  This unwieldy beast is St. Frankenstein; a piano that Gary found on it’s way to the dump.  Transformed with different parts, hence it’s name, it provides this fun documentary short with original music that is sure to put you in a good mood.  Come see it play before RISING FROM ASHES at the Imax, Thursday, October 18 7:30pm, or at the Texas Spirit, Wednesday, October 24 8:00pm.

WRITER/DIRECTOR BILLY BOB THORNTON IN ATTENDANCE

NEW FILM ADDITIONS INCLUDE

FRANCOPHRENIA WITH JAMES FRANCO IN ATTENDANCE

HYDE PARK ON HUDSON, WHOLE LOTTA SOLE, AND DEADFALL

We are happy to announce our Closing Night Film JAYNE MANSFIELD’S CAR with writer/director/actor Billy Bob Thornton in attendance on October 25^th.

Set in 1969 Alabama, JAYNE MANSFIELD’S CAR is a rich, heartfelt drama about two clashing families brought together by the death of a woman who was married first to the Alabaman Jim Caldwell and then to the British Kingsley Bedford. The result is a culture clash of the Sixties, and of the Old World versus the Old South. Directed by Billy Bob Thornton and written by Thornton and Tom Epperson, the film stars Robert Duvall, Kevin Bacon, John, Hurt, Robert Patrick, and Thornton.

Also of note: our Opening Night feature is David Chase’s NOT FADE AWAY on October 18^th with Chase in attendance. This year’s Centerpiece film is Robert Zemeckis’ FLIGHT starring Denzel Washington. Other recently added films to the lineup include FRANCOPHRENIA, comprised of footage from James Franco’s appearances on “General Hospital,” with Franco in attendance at the screening. HYDE PARK ON HUDSON, WHOLE LOTTA SOLE, and DEADFALL described below are also new additions to the schedule. To view the full film schedule, go here.

FRANCOPHRENIA

James Franco in attendance

Writers: Ian Olds, Paul Felten

Directors: Ian Olds, James Franco

With: James Franco, Kalup Linzy, Owen Renfroe, Steve Burton, Dominic Zamprogna, Julie Berman

This wholly unique documentary follows James Franco’s time on the set of General Hospital, utilizing a thrilling experimental style to focus on Franco’s experiences as an established movie star joining a long-running soap opera and as “Franco,” the performance artist he portrayed on the show. Franco in attendance.

HYDE PARK ON HUDSON

Writer: Richard Nelson

Director: Roger Michell

Cast: Bill Murray, Laura Linney, Olivia Williams, Samuel West, Olivia Colman

In June 1939, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Murray) and his wife Eleanor (Williams) host the King and Queen of England for a weekend at the Roosevelt home at Hyde Park on Hudson, in upstate New York – the first-ever visit of a reigning English monarch to America. With Britain facing imminent war with Germany, the Royals are desperately looking for FDR’s support. But international affairs must be juggled with the complexities of FDR’s domestic establishment, as wife, mother, and mistresses all conspire to make the royal weekend an unforgettable one.

WHOLE LOTTA SOLE

Writers: Terry George, Thomas Gallagher

Director: Terry George

Cast: Brendan Fraser, Colm Meaney, and David O’Hara

This latest film from writer/director Terry George (Hotel Rwanda, In the Name of the Father, The Boxer, Reservation Road), is a charming Irish crime caper starring Brendan Fraser as an unwitting hostage caught up in the schemes of a hapless criminal. Featuring a delightful group of character actors, including Colm Meaney and David O’Hara.

DEADFALL

Writer: Zach Dean

Director: Stefan Ruzowitzky

Cast: Eric Bana, Charlie Hunnam, Olivia Wilde, Kris Kristofferson, Sissy Spacek, Kate Mara

Siblings Addison (Bana) and Liza (Wilde) are on the run from a casino heist gone wrong. When a car accident leaves their wheel man and a state trooper dead, they split up and make a run for the Canadian border in the worst of circumstances – a near whiteout blizzard.

We’re thrilled to announce that this year’s Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Awardee is Frank Darabont, director of film favorites THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, THE GREEN MILE, THE MAJESTIC, THE MIST, and more. Darabont will accept the award at the Festival’s annual Award Luncheon on Saturday, October 20 at the Austin Club.

Frank Darabont is a three-time Academy Award® nominee (director, writer, and producer) and is one of only six filmmakers in history to have had their first two feature films as director receive Oscar® nominations for Best Picture, with 1994’s THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION and 1999’s THE GREEN MILE. Both these films were adaptations based on works by Stephen King, and both garnered Oscar® nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay. He is also the director of 2001’s THE MAJESTIC starring Jim Carrey and another Stephen King adaptation, 2007’s THE MIST starring Thomas Jane. Darabont most recently is credited as the creator of the critically acclaimed AMC television series, The Walking Dead.

The award winner will contribute to this year’s Conference in “A Conversation with Frank Darabont,” which will take an in-depth look inside Darabont’s career in both film and television as a writer and director.

The Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award recognizes outstanding filmmakers for going above and beyond with their consistently exceptional bodies of work. Frank Darabont will join the ranks of past recipients, which include the likes of John Lasseter (TOY STORY), Robert Rodriguez (SIN CITY), Ron Howard (THE DA VINCI CODE), Danny Boyle (127 HOURS), Oliver Stone (PLATOON), and Sydney Pollack (OUT OF AFRICA).

Another installment of Short Focus – a new blog series by AFF’s Film Department interns highlighting this year’s Short Film Line-Up.

Narrative Short Competition Films, by Alex Gadway.

My Left Hand Man

As the title suggests, MY LEFT HAND MAN shows a twisted tale of unhealthy co-dependence and tumultuous relationships.  Samuel, 17, Beckett, 19, and their father, Warren, are living in a world of debt controlled by loan sharks.  They are constantly trying to play catch-up, performing Shakespeare in the street as a means to scrap by while still finding time to escape their dismal lives; Samuel secretly reads his “Cardinal Comet” comic, and his father drinks and gambles. The aesthetic of the shots alone make this film successful.  Having previously dabbled in photography and oil painting, writer/director Antonia Bogdanovich’s intuition and creativity shine.  This short also stars Thomas Drodie-Sangster, who is unbelievable in this film, and who I am sure you’ll recognize from LOVE, ACUTALLY and NOWHERE MAN. Despite the film’s dramatic genre, it is still accessible to everyone. Bogdanovich teaches us that we always have hope and can learn to persevere onto better things.  See it in Shorts Program 3 – Postcards from the Battlefield at the Hideout Theatre, Sunday, October 21 7:15pm, or Tuesday, October 23 9:30pm.

Asad

This film is a fantastic coming-of-age fable about one Somali boy, Asad.  Writer/director Bryan Buckley made it his mission to tell this story after coming across thousands of displaced Somalis in Kenya during his work on a short subject documentary (NO AUTOGRAPHS) in 2010.  While the Somalis’ stories of escape and survival were harrowing, Buckley and his crew found their sense of pride and humor astounding. This film’s entire cast is composed of Somali refugees who fled to South Africa.  Harun and Ali Mohammad, the two leading boy actors in the film, come from a family of sixteen children.  Before the start of this film they had never attended school.  Imagine being completely illiterate and having to memorize nineteen pages of dialogue in front of a camera crew and for a director who only knew how to say “yes” and “no” in Somali! ASAD has already screened at multiple festivals, and has won the “Audience Award” at the Los Angeles Film Festival as well as “Best Narrative Short” at the Tribeca Film Festival. See it in Shorts Program 6 – The World Comes of Age at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20 4:30pm, or Monday, October 22 5:30pm.

Peter at the End

This film is universally relatable because it takes place at home during a dysfunctional family Thanksgiving.  Peter (Jon Heder, from NAPOLEON DYNAMITE) returns home after an unexplained absence. As Peter looks for ways to connect with those he left behind, the audience can undoubtedly feel anxiety and frustration as his friends and family don’t realize that there is an “end.”  Director Russ Lamoureux allows Peter’s “end” to remain somewhat abstract and ambiguous, but what’s important is that there is an imminent one.  Overall, this film gives a hard look at the flaws of humanity.  As much as we have experienced our own “ends,” we may never truly grasp something’s significance until it’s truly gone.  Like the end of this film, with or without concrete resolution, the end inevitably always comes. See it in Shorts Program 2 – The Search for Ourselves at the Hideout Theatre, Friday, October 19 7:15pm, or Thursday, October 25 6:30pm.

Yardbird

In short, Yardbird tells the tale of a small girl who takes on the town bullies that come to torment her dad.  But the way this film came to fruition has an even more rewarding back story.  Director Michael Spiccia (who studied design at the Western Australian School of Art and Design) and writer Julius Avery met through mutual friends and colleagues at Cannes (Julius Avery’s film Jerrycan screened at Cannes in 2008).  Both hail from Western Australia.  Both are the same age.  Both have uncannily similar upbringings.  That is, neither considered himself a “cool” or “tough” kid, and so both were inspired to use their childhood as a means to focus on themes like control and bullying.  Main character Ruby (Mitzi Ruhlmann) portrays a perfect mix of both, without using a single world of dialogue.  Yardbird was an official selection at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year.  It is Michael Spiccia’s first film at Cannes.  Even better?  It’s his first film. Period.  See it in Shorts Program 2 – The Search for Ourselves at the Hideout Theatre, Friday, October 19 7:15pm, or Thursday, October 25 6:30pm.

Friday

Struggling to come to terms with his mother’s tragic death one year later, FRIDAY is an emotional, intense, and thrilling short.  This is no cookie-cutter plot.  Director Sebastian Rice-Edwards starts the film with many things left unsaid.  It’s what makes this film so intriguing, and it’s what allows us to put the pieces together as the plot unfolds.  Just like the main character’s emotions, our feelings toward him fluctuate between sympathy (for his mother’s death) and hatred (towards his own intolerances).  But despite our own judgments, this piece remains very current and relevant. See it in Shorts Program 6 – The World Comes of Age at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20 4:30pm, or Monday, October 22 5:30pm.

Buzkashi Boys

This fascinating film transcends Western media’s portrayal of war to show that life continues beyond.  This film focuses on the lives of unlikely friends: a charismatic street boy, Ahmad, and a defiant blacksmith’s son, Rafi. Director Sam French inspires his audience by showing the boys’ determination to realize their dreams, despite their chosen destinies and despite their war-torn country. This film was shot entirely on location in Kabul, Afghanistan, by an alliance of Afghan and international filmmakers.  It was produced through the Afghan Film Project, a non-profit foundation that tells Afghan stories and builds its country’s film industry.  Through the creation of this film, more than a dozen Afghan filmmakers learned new skills and techniques in which they have been able to continue building their film industry. See it in Shorts Program 6 – The World Comes of Age at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20 4:30pm, or Monday, October 22 5:30pm.

La Vitesse du Passé

Translated as THE SPEED OF THE PAST, here writer/director Dominique Rocher toys with our concept of time in a completely new way.  While some films show time through a series of non-chronological events, this film portrays it at varying speeds.  While Margot and Joseph are renovating their countryside home, Joseph’s sense of time freezes as he’s falling off the roof.  On the other hand, Margot’s life continues on normally.  This scientific phenomenon is bizarre, imaginative, and thought-provoking.  Rocher’s shots and editing are aesthetically pleasing and put the past, literally, right in front of us. While such a loss would stay with us emotionally, in this film it is physically present as well.  Rocher succeeds in showing the mortality of humans, and more importantly, the fleeting (or not) nature of time. See it in Shorts Program 1– The Space Between Us at the Hideout Theatre, Sunday, October 21 9:30pm, or Tuesday, October 23 5:30pm.

Atlantis

When N.A.S.A. closed its shuttle program on July 8, 2011, the last launch (Atlantis) brought about a public audience unseen since the days of the Apollo moon missions.  In this movie, specifically, we see “hope” as two people — a photographer and a 10^th grade science teacher (played by Kate French and Jason Ritter, respectively) — come together.   ATLANTIS strongly portrays nostalgia using a grainy aesthetic and black and white images. The film’s informative and inspiring nature transported me back to my middle school days where I dreamt of becoming an astronaut.  The film also portrays the N.A.S.A. Program itself as well as the unknown future of Titusville, previously a thriving factory town.  I found ATLANTIS to be enjoyable and also accessible to all audiences. See it in Shorts Program 1– The Space Between Us at the Hideout Theatre, Sunday, October 21 9:30pm, or Tuesday, October 23 5:30pm.

Damaged Ones

DAMAGED ONES suitably describes the story of these teenagers.  The plot is relatively simple; the beautiful Bella has a new boyfriend, but her friend Cissi always finds herself one step behind. However, it is Bella who makes one bad decision and is completely unaware of the terrible consequences that are to follow.  Director Johanna Paulsdotter allows the audience to harshly judge these teens.  But what we all must remember is that being a teenager is really a game of survival filled with angst, confusion, and frustration.  Never forget, we’ve all been there too. See it in Shorts Program 4 – Dirty Laundry at the Hideout Theatre, Thursday, October 18 9:40pm, or Monday, October 22 9:45pm.

Pray

PRAY exists in an alternate reality, where a girl can be sentenced to be buried-alive.  Everything writer/director Theylia Petraki portrays is realistic.  Everything, that is, except that this death sentence is so commonplace.  Petraki places heavy emphasis on the inevitability of her looming death, and the girl seems to be the only one with the common sense and desperation to save herself.  Even though the girl is able to escape home to research survival tactics, inevitably her hearse arrives to take her to the cemetery.  It’s like a nightmare: no matter how fast you run (always in slow motion, of course), the person chasing you always catches up.  You can try and escape, but Petraki successfully lures you into this bizarre reality that you can’t help but experience. See it in Shorts Program 2 – The Search for Ourselves at the Hideout Theatre, Friday, October 19 7:15pm, or Thursday, October 25 6:30pm.

The 2012 AFF Film Schedule is up!

Click here for the Schedule

Powered by Festival Genius, you can search the schedule by day, film category, event type (panel, film, party), venue, or use the grid view. You can customize your own schedule, as well as download the iPhone app so you can keep your schedule at your fingertips.

New additions:

HYDE PARK ON HUDSON

(UK, 95 min)
Writer: Richard Nelson
Director: Roger Michell
Cast: Bill Murray, Laura Linney, Olivia Williams, Samuel West, Olivia Colman

In June 1939, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Murray) and his wife Eleanor (Williams) host the King and Queen of England for a weekend at the Roosevelt home at Hyde Park on Hudson, in upstate New York – the first-ever visit of a reigning English monarch to America. With Britain facing imminent war with Germany, the Royals are desperately looking to FDR for support. But international affairs must be juggled with the complexities of FDR’s domestic establishment, as wife, mother, and mistresses all conspire to make the royal weekend an unforgettable one. Seen through the eyes of Daisy (Linney), Franklin’s neighbor and intimate, the weekend will produce not only a special relationship between two great nations, but, for Daisy – and through her, for us all – a deeper understanding of the mysteries of love and friendship.

DEADFALL

(USA, 94 min)
Writer: Zach Dean
Director: Stefan Ruzowitzky
Cast: Eric Bana, Charlie Hunnam, Olivia Wilde, Kris Kristofferson, Sissy Spacek, Kate Mara

Siblings Addison (Bana) and Liza (Wilde) are on the run from a casino heist gone wrong. When a car accident leaves their wheel man and a state trooper dead, they split up and make a run for the Canadian border in the worst of circumstances – a near whiteout blizzard. While Addison heads cross-country, creating mayhem in his wake, Liza is picked up by ex-boxer Jay (Hunnam), en-route for a Thanksgiving homecoming with his parents, June (Spacek) and retired sheriff Chet (Kristofferson). It’s there the siblings are reunited in a terse and thrilling showdown that pushes the bonds of family to the limit.

Our talented Film Department interns have created a new blog series, Short Focus, highlighting this year’s Short Film Line-Up.

First up, Lauren Armstrong explores the 2012 Animated Short Competition Films.

Head Over Heels

In ten minutes, director Timothy Reckart manages to steal the heart of even the most cynical viewer with his film HEAD OVER HEELS. In this endearing animated short, made using stop- motion animation, Reckart tells the story of an old married couple who has grown apart, literally. She occupies the ceiling of the house and he lives on the floor.  I found myself “awwww-ing” at the husband’s cute attempts to reignite the flame between him and his wife.  The fact that absolutely no dialogue is used to tell the story is even more impressive.  The animation of the character’s faces conveys all the emotion and words would have been superfluous in this sweet and charming short.  See it in Shorts Program 1 – The Space Between Us, at the Hideout Theatre, Sunday, October 21^st, 9:30 pm or Tuesday, October 23^rd, 5:30 pm.

Sleight of Hand

SLEIGHT OF HAND has recently been nominated for Best Animation at the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts, and it’s no wonder why. This charming animated short was created using the stop-motion technique, in which the puppet is moved frame by frame. It takes 25 separate moves to create one second of the movie… that’s over 14,000 individual shots for this one, 9-minute short. The film is essentially a tongue-in-cheek movie about the technique itself and follows a puppet trying to create what writer/director/animator Michael Cusack did in creating the puppet himself. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the technique come to life on the screen, and the puppet’s facial expressions are truly a work of art. AFF is proud to feature this patiently created stroke of genius.  See it in Shorts Program 7 – A Glimpse Into Another World, at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20^th at 9:30 pm, and Wednesday, October 24^th at 7:30 pm.

From A to B and Back Again

FROM A TO B AND BACK AGAIN stands out amongst competition because of the unique story it tells. The film is part of BBC’s ‘Seeking Refuge’ series that seeks to tell real-life stories of asylum seekers in the UK. Director Andy Glynne tells the story about a young girl and her family fleeing from religious persecution. In a world where animated film is often used for fairy tales or stories for kids, I found it refreshing to see an animated short with such a relevant message behind it. The story compels the audience to care about the family and their issue at hand, while also raising awareness in an interesting way, in this case, through animated re-telling of a true story.  See it in Shorts Program 6 – The World Comes of Age, at the Hideout Theatre, Saturday, October 20^th at 3:30 pm or Monday, October 22^nd at 5:30 pm

Jamón

If you enjoy animated films that are more on the bloody side and involve mature themes of questionable nature, then JAMÓN is the film for you. A graduation film from Iria López, the film follows a teenage pig, José, who is struggling with his identity as the only pig in his family. When a questionable neighbor moves in and involves himself with “interesting” activities, José learns that he may have more in common with the neighbor than he thought. The film uses traditional animation technology and silkscreen printed backgrounds that allow for a very classy look and a thoroughly enjoyable experience.   See it in Shorts Program 2 – The Search For Ourselves, at the Hideout Theatre, Friday, October 19^th at 7:15 pm,  or Thursday, October 25^th at 6:30 pm.

Pasteurized

PASTEURIZED is a cute animated film about a cow making pasteurized milk in space. When a cat in a space shuttle comes to check out his laboratory, his world is rocked, literally. Director Nicolás P. Villareal is also a published children’s author- and it shows. The film brought out my inner child and took me on a ride to outer space with a mischievous cat (is there any other kind?) and an interesting-looking green cow. The film has no dialogue, and the score provides all the sound needed. I found myself bouncing along with the cat and the cow on their boisterous, 7-minute journey and was reminded how fun animated movies can be.  See it in Shorts Program 11 at the Alamo Drafthouse Village on Saturday, October 20^th at 1:00 pm or at the Hideout Theatre on Sunday, October 21^st at 3:30 pm.

Buy Buy Baby

In our recent recession, what can be more relevant than an animated short about a baby hanging out at a Wall Street office and unknowingly tearing the place apart? Kids will love the funny anecdotes in the short, and adults will enjoy the not-so-subliminal message of the stock market tumbling with Baby Betty on the loose in the roaring twenties. Gervais Merryweather directed this as his graduation film, and has since won accolades at film festivals all over the world. I was really amused by this film and enjoyed the animation style, as it brought me back to the old school cartoon days. See it in Shorts Program 11 at the Alamo Drafthouse Village on Saturday, October 20^th at 1:00 pm or at the Hideout Theatre on Sunday, October 21^st at 3:30 pm.

Snack Attack

In four minutes and thirty-five seconds, director Andrew Cadelago manages to draw two very distinct characters, an old lady and a punk teenager! I found myself laughing through SNACK ATTACK, and curious to see how it all ends for the bitter old lady. The film has a very professional, Pixar-like feel to it (Cadelago has worked in the animation department at Pixar), which should make it a fan favorite. The old lady even resembles the beloved character, “Carl,” from UP.   See it in Shorts Program 11 at the Alamo Drafthouse Village on Saturday, October 20^th at 1:00 pm or at the Hideout Theatre on Sunday, October 21^st at 3:30 pm.

Can’t wait until the Festival to take a look at this year’s Program Book? Download a digital copy!

2012 Program Book

 Please note that we have already made a few changes to the schedule since the Program Book was designed. For the most up-to-date schedule, visit our Conference Schedule page and Film Schedule page.

David Chase to Present NOT FADE AWAY as Opening Night Film

Film Line-Up Includes SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK, THE SESSIONS, FLIGHT, QUARTET, THE SAPPHIRES, SHADOW DANCER, A LATE QUARTET, IT’S A DISASTER, THE FITZGERALD FAMILY CHRISTMAS, and FREE SAMPLES

We’re thrilled to announce today this year’s full feature-length film lineup! This year’s films include David Chase’s Not Fade Away (Opening Night Film) with Chase in attendance; the previously announced Centerpiece Film Flight; the new film by David O. Russell Silver Linings Playbook, fresh off its Audience Award-winning premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival; The Sessions starring John Hawkes, Helen Hunt, and William H. Macy; Dustin Hoffman’s directorial debut Quartet; The Sapphires; Shadow Dancer starring Clive Owen; Edward Burns’ The Fitzgerald Family Christmas, and the world premieres of Spinning Plates, To Kill a Memory, The Muslims Are Coming!, The Rep, Ex-Girlfriends, and Mar Del Plata.

Below is a listing of AFF’s film lineup which includes Marquee Screenings; the new Guest Programmers series, featuring films selected and presented by panelists and filmmakers like Paul Feig, Phil Rosenthal, and Chris Carter; Comedy Vanguard; Dark Matters; Family Films; Passport to Africa, comprised of four documentary stories about this endlessly fascinating continent; and Texas Independents, a showcase for Texas filmmakers.

AFF 2012 Film Line-Up

Marquee Screenings

NOT FADE AWAY – David Chase (Writer/Director); David Chase in attendance

FLIGHT – John Gatins (Writer), Robert Zemeckis (Director)

SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK – David O. Russell (Writer/Director); Julia Stiles in attendance

THE SESSIONS – Ben Lewin (Writer/Director)

QUARTET – Ronald Harwood (Writer), Dustin Hoffman (Director)

SHADOW DANCER – Tom Bradby (Writer), James Marsh (Director)

THE SAPPHIRES – Tony Briggs, Keith Thompson (Writers), Wayne Blair (Director)

A LATE QUARTET – Seth Grossman, Yaron Zilberman (Writers), Yaron Zilberman (Director)

IT’S A DISASTER – Todd Berger (Writer/Director); Julia Stiles and America Ferrera in attendance

THE FITZGERALD FAMILY CHRISTMAS – Edward Burns (Writer/Director)

FREE SAMPLES – Jim Beggarly (Writer), Jay Gammill (Director)

A.K.A. DOC POMUS – William Hechter, Peter Miller (Directors)

ANN RICHARDS’ TEXAS – Keith Patterson (Writer), Jack Lofton, Keith Patterson (Directors)

CONGRATULATIONS – Juan Cardarelli, Brian Dietzen, Eric M. Levy, Abby Miller (Writers), Juan Cardarelli, Eric M. Levy (Directors) – World Premiere

THE EYES OF THAILAND – Windy Borman, Tim O’Brien (Writers), Windy Borman (Director)

GLOW: THE STORY OF THE GORGEOUS LADIES OF WRESTLING – Bradford Thomason (Writer), Brett Whitcomb (Director)

I DO – David W. Ross (Writer), Glenn Gaylord (Director)

IDOL IS DEAD – Yukihiro Katô (Writer/Director) – US Premiere

THE KITCHEN – Jim Beggarly (Writer), Ishai Setton (Director)

LAST WILL. & TESTAMENT – Laura Wilson, Lisa Wilson (Directors) – US Premiere

ONLY THE YOUNG – Elizabeth Mims, Jason Tippet (Directors)

THE REP – Morgan White (Writer/Director) – World Premiere

SAMPLE THIS – Dan Forrer (Writers/Director), Robert Burris (Producer) – World Premiere

SPINNING PLATES – Joseph Levy (Writer/Director) – World Premiere

TO KILL A MEMORY – Dustin Rikert, William Shockley, Philip Tiboni (Writers), Dustin Rikert (Director) – World Premiere; star and musician Kix Brooks (of the country music duo Brooks and Dunn) in attendance

Guest Programmers

Chris Carter (2012 Outstanding Television Writer Awardee) presents… Murder by Decree; episodes from “The X-Files” and “Millennium”

Eric Roth (2012 Distinguished Screenwriter Awardee) presents… The Insider

Paul Feig presents… The Human Tornado

Phil Rosenthal presents… Broadway Danny Rose

Comedy Vanguard

BAD PARENTS – Caytha Jentis (Writer/Director)

THE BITTER BUDDHA – Steven Feinartz (Director) – Comedian Eddie Pepitone in attendance

EX-GIRLFRIENDS – Alexander Poe (Writer/Director) – World Premiere; Jennifer Carpenter (“Dexter”) in attendance

THE EXQUISITE CORPSE PROJECT – Adam Conover, Chioke Nassor, Dave Segal, Joel Clark, Raphael Bob-Waksberg (Writers), Ben Popik (Director)

LAST MAN(S) ON EARTH – Aaron Hultgren (Writer/Director)

MISSED CONNECTIONS – Kenny Stevenson (Writer), Eric Kissack (Director)

THE MUSLIMS ARE COMING! – Negin Farsad, Dean Obeidallah (Directors) – World Premiere

PICTURES OF SUPERHEROES – Don Swaynos (Writer/Director) – World Premiere

Dark Matters

BONEBOYS – Kim Henkel (Writer), Duane Graves, Justin Meeks (Directors)

IT’S IN THE BLOOD – Scooter Downey, Sean Elliot (Writers), Scooter Downey (Director)

SATURDAY MORNING MASSACRE – Jory Balsimo, Aaron Leggett, Jason Wehling (Writers), Spencer Parsons (Director)

VAMPIRA AND ME – R.H. Greene (Director)

Family Films

FLATLAND 2: SPHERELAND – Dano Johnson (Writer/Director)

MURT RAMIREZ WANTS TO KICK MY ASS – Dan Lee (Writer/Director) – World Premiere

R.L. STINE’S THE HAUNTING HOUR – Episodes presented by Billy Brown and Dan Angel (Writers/Producers)

Passport to Africa

THE FADE – Andy Mundy-Castle (Director)

FINDING MERCY – Robyn Paterson (Director)

PUNK IN AFRICA – Keith Jones, Deon Maas (Writers/Directors)

RISING FROM ASHES – T.C. Johnstone (Director)

Texas Independents

THE GIRL – David Riker (Writer/Director)

SATELLITE OF LOVE – Jonathan Case, Will Moore (Writers). Will Moore (Director)

SPRING EDDY – George Anson (Writer/Director) – World Premiere

Narrative Feature Competition

ALLEGIANCE – Michael Connors (Writer/Director)

COME MORNING – Derrick Sims (Writer/Director) – World Premiere

JUNCTION – Tony Glazer (Writer/Director)

JUNK – Kevin Hamedani, Ramon Isao (Writers), Kevin Hamedani (Director) – World Premiere

LAST STOP: SALVATION – Baris Pirhasan (Writer), Yusuf Pirhasan (Director)

LIARS FIRES AND BEARS – Jeremy Cloe (Writer), Jeremy Cloe, Lundon Boyd (Directors)

MAR DEL PLATA – Ionathan Klajman (Writer), Ionathan Klajman, Sebastian Dietsch (Directors) – World Premiere

SPARROWS DANCE – Noah Buschel (Writer/Director)

Documentary Feature Competition

ELEMENTAL – Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee (Director)

FOUR HORSEMEN – Ross Ashcroft (Director) – US Premiere

INFORMANT – Jamie Meltzer (Director)

LAST DAY AT LAMBEAU – Michael Neelsen (Director)

THE MISSING PIECE: THE TRUTH ABOUT THE MAN WHO STOLE THE MONA LISA – Joe Medeiros (Director)

MR. CAO GOES TO WASHINGTON – S. Leo Chiang (Director)

PLIMPTON! STARRING GEORGE PLIMPTON AS HIMSELF – Thomas Bean, Luke Poling (Directors)

WHERE HAVE ALL THE MERMAIDS GONE? – Nathaniel Kramer (Director) – US Premiere

For the full list of short films playing at the Festival, download the PDF below:

2012 Shorts Line-Up

Note: the Shorts Line-Up does not include the Young Filmmakers Competition Shorts.

Eric Roth – 2012 Distinguished Screenwriter Award Recipient

We’re so proud to announce that Eric Roth, screenwriter of THE INSIDER, FORREST GUMP, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON, EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE, MUNICH, and more, will receive our 2012 Distinguished Screenwriter Award! Roth will accept the award at the Festival’s annual Award Luncheon held on Saturday, October 20, 2012 at the Austin Club.

Eric Roth won an Academy Award® and a Writers Guild of America Award (WGA) for his screenplay FORREST GUMP, the Oscar®-winning Best Picture directed by Robert Zemeckis. Roth received his second Oscar®, Golden Globe and WGA Award nominations for the screenplay for the Best Picture-nominated film THE INSIDER. He garnered both Oscar® and Golden Globe nominations for the screenplays of Steven Spielberg’s drama MUNICH and more recently for David Fincher’s THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON. His other screenwriting credits include Michael Mann’s ALI, Robert De Niro’s THE GOOD SHEPHERD, Robert Redford’s THE HORSE WHISPERER and many more.

More recently, he wrote the screenplay for the Oscar®-nominated film EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE, based on the novel by Jonathan Safran Foer. For the small screen, Roth served as executive producer and wrote two episodes for David Milch’s HBO drama Luck, starring Dustin Hoffman and Nick Nolte. Currently, Roth is executive producer, with David Fincher, on Netflix’s first original television series, House of Cards, starring Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright, which premieres in January 2013. Roth is also writing the screenplay for the epic film CLEOPATRA, starring Angelina Jolie. In 2012, Roth received the Writers Guild’s prestigious Laurel Award for Lifetime Achievement in Screenwriting.

At this year’s Conference, Roth will present “A Conversation with Eric Roth,” giving an inside look into his films and career. He will also host a retrospective screening of his 1999 film, THE INSIDER.

For his full bio, click here.

Don’t forget to get your Awards Luncheon ticket when you buy your Conference or Producers Badge to see Roth and Chris Carter accept this year’s awards!

We’re thrilled to announce that writer /director /producer Robert Rodriguez will serve as honorary chair for the 10^th anniversary celebration of AFF’s annual Film & Food Party, benefitting AFF’s Young Filmmakers Program. Film & Food will be held on Wednesday, October 17, 2012 at the Driskill Hotel in Austin, TX and kicks off the 19^th Annual Festival & Conference.

In addition to attending Austin Film Festival for years, Rodriguez has a long history of supporting young filmmakers and the arts in Austin.  A Texas native, Rodriguez grew up in San Antonio, later attending the University of Texas.  Over the course of his dynamic career, he has produced over 16 films, including iconic titles such as DESPERADO, FROM DUSK ‘TIL DAWN, ONCE UPON A TIME IN MEXICO, MACHETE, SIN CITY, GRINDHOUSE, and the popular SPY KIDS franchise.  Rodriguez continues to produce his films outside of the Hollywood system setting production in Austin at Troublemaker Studios.

Film & Food is an evening dedicated to honoring Austin as both a nationally recognized thriving film industry and a renowned culinary hotspot.  Held in the glamorous and historic Driskill Hotel, this evening of specialty cocktails by Twin Liquors and innovative cuisine, presented by some of Austin’s hottest restaurants, brings together Austinites and visitors alike to celebrate the arts. Live and silent auctions present the very best in luxury items, trips and experiences. It’s also a great time to rub elbows with some of the top filmmakers and screenwriters in town for the Festival.  The event will be a gathering of creative minds, with industry icons joined by the culinary talents behind Foreign & Domestic, Olive & June, Swift’s Attic, Haddington’s, TRACE, Trento, and many more.

10^TH annual Film & Food Party

Wednesday, October 17th, 2012

7pm – 10pm

Driskill Hotel ~ Austin, TX

Tickets are $90 in advance ~ $100 at the door

$75 tickets available for AFF Members and Badge Holders

Click here to get your tickets

Interested in ticket packages or sponsorship? Click here!

Proceeds from the event benefit AFF’s Young Filmmakers Program. The Young Filmmakers Program was founded to encourage students, ages 9 – 18, to explore their creativity and improve their literacy skills through the arts of screenwriting and filmmaking. Programs are offered free through AISD schools and partner organizations and grant more than 300 students and teachers scholarships to the annual Austin Film Festival & Conference.

This year, Austin Film Festival hosted its first film poster competition, encouraging artists to choose a film in AFF’s year-round film program and re-envision the movie poster for that film. For each of the films, AFF chose a winning poster and printed a limited edition run, sold at the screening. Now, the artists of the five winning posters (below) have a chance to win a Producers Badge to this year’s Festival! The winning poster will also be printed and sold at the Festival.

Vote for your favorite by selecting your favorite poster and clicking “submit your vote”. Don’t forget to click “like” and send the contest to your friends!

Voting closes September 21st at 5pm CST.

2012 AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL EARLY 10 FILMS

INCLUDING CENTERPIECE FILM – FLIGHT

We’re thrilled to announce today the first 10 films included in our 2012 lineup! From world premieres to the highly anticipated films that will compete for Oscars®, these ten films represent the unique and diverse films that will screen at this year’s festival.

AFF 2012 EARLY 10 FILMS

• FLIGHT

Centerpiece Film

Writer: John Gatins

Director: Robert Zemeckis

In this action-packed mystery thriller, Academy Award winner Denzel Washington stars as Whip Whitaker, a seasoned airline pilot who miraculously crash-lands his plane after a mid-air catastrophe, saving nearly every soul on board. After the crash, Whip is hailed as a hero, but as more is learned, more questions than answers arise as to who or what was really at fault, and what really happened on that plane? Directed by Robert Zemeckis, the highly anticipated new film also stars John Goodman, Don Cheadle, and Melissa Leo.

• FREE SAMPLES

Writer: Jim Beggarly

Director: Jay Gammill

A Stanford law school dropout named Jillian escapes to the anonymity of Los Angeles to figure out what she wants to do with her life, and on the day of her college boyfriend’s birthday, she finds herself stuck running an ice cream truck fending off locals and oddball friends alike. This one day spent in a truck on the streets of LA will wake Jillian from her aimless daze and make her see that life doesn’t stop just because you want it to. Starring Jess Weixler, Jesse Eisenberg, Halley Feiffer, Jason Ritter, this great new comedy is directed by Baylor University film school grad Jay Gammill.

• IT’S A DISASTER

Writer/Director: Todd Berger

Four couples meet for Sunday brunch only to discover they are stuck in a house together as the world may be about to end. Starring Julia Stiles, America Ferrera and David Cross. Julia Stiles and America Ferrera will present the screening at AFF.

• LAST WILL & TESTAMENT

US Premiere

Directors: Laura Wilson, Lisa Wilson

It’s the greatest literary mystery of all time; who wrote the works of William Shakespeare?  Although the official story of a Stratford merchant writing for the London box office has held sway for centuries, questions over the authorship of the plays and poems have persisted. Mark Twain, Sigmund Freud and Charlie Chaplin are among the many famous figures who doubt that a grain-dealer from Stratford was England’s “Star of Poets”. From Executive Producer ROLAND EMMERICH, DEREK JACOBI leads an impressive cast featuring VANESSA REDGRAVE and MARK RYLANCE on a quest to uncover the truth behind the world’s most elusive author and discovers a forgotten nobleman whose story could rewrite history.

• PICTURES OF SUPERHEROES

World Premiere

Writer/Director: Don Swaynos

A young maid is asked by her employer to pretend to be his wife as part of a highly questionable business scheme. Meanwhile, she meets the comic book superhero artist living in her employer’s home (seemingly without the employer’s knowledge or permission), and she begins to wonder if there is something more to life than fake marriages and carpet cleaners. Produced by Kelly Williams, and starring Kerri Lendo, John Merriman, Byron Brown and Chris Doubek.

• RISING FROM ASHES

Director: T.C. Johnstone

Two worlds collide when cycling legend Jock Boyer (first American to compete in the Tour de France) moves to Rwanda and teams with Tom Ritchey (inventor of the mountain bike) to help a group of struggling genocide survivors pursue their dream of a national team. As they set out against impossible odds, both Jock and the team find new purpose as they rise from the ashes of their past. Narrated by Forest Whitaker and directed by Austin native T.C. Johnstone, this remarkable story culminated at the 2012 Olympics in London when one of the subjects of the film, Adrien Niyonshuti, competed in the Games and became Rwanda’s first Olympic cyclist.

• SHADOW DANCER

Writer: Tom Bradby

Director: James March

Single mother Collette McVeigh is a Republican living in Belfast with her mother and hardliner IRAbrothers. When she is arrested for her part in an aborted IRA bomb plot in London, an MI5 officer (Mac, played by Clive Owen) offers her a choice: lose everything and go to prison for 25 years or return to Belfast to spy on her own family. With her son’s life in her hands, Collette chooses to place her trust in Mac and return home, but when her brothers’ secret operation is ambushed, suspicions of an informant are raised and Collette finds both herself and her family in grave danger. Starring Clive Owen, Andrea Riseborough, and Gillian Anderson.

• SPINNING PLATES

World Premiere

Writer/Director: Joseph Levy

Spinning Plates is a feature documentary film about three restaurants, extraordinary for what they are today as well as the challenges they have overcome. A cutting-edge restaurant named the seventh best in the world whose chef must battle a life-threatening obstacle to pursue his passion… a 150-year-old family restaurant still standing only because of the unbreakable bond with its community… a fledgling Mexican restaurant whose owners are putting everything they have on the line just to make enough to survive and provide for their young daughter. Features Chef Grant Achatz of Chicago’s Alinea and Chef Thomas Keller of California’s The French Laundry.

• TO KILL A MEMORY

World Premiere

Writers: Dustin Rikert, William Shockley, Philip Tiboni

Director: Dustin Rikert

A respected US Marshal is imprisoned after being suspiciously involved in a bank robbery gone wrong. When he learns that the other bank robbers may be going after his wife, the Marshal must escape prison and catch them before it’s too late. This low budget indie Western features an astonishing lead performance from country western singer Kix Brooks of Brooks and Dunn. Kix Brooks will present the screening at AFF.

• PAUL FEIG PRESENTS: THE HUMAN TORNADO AND BRINGING UP BABY

This year, AFF is excited to introduce an all new Guest Programmer section, which invites some of our highly regarded panelists and guest filmmakers to program and present films that inspired them. Paul Feig (director of BRIDESMAIDS, creator of “Freaks and Geeks,” also directed episodes of “Arrested Development,” “The Office,” “Mad Men,” “30 Rock” and more) has chosen two very different films: the blaxsploitation Dolemite adventure THE HUMAN TORNADO and Howard Hawks’ immortal screwball comedy BRINGING UP BABY. Don’t miss an opportunity to hear how these two wildly diverse films influenced one of the most in-demand directors in Hollywood today.

Chris Carter

We’re proud to announce that this year’s Outstanding Television Writer Award recipient - The X-Files creator Chris Carter!

Described by Time Magazine as a “televisionary,” Chris Carter created four ground-breaking television series for Fox: The X-Files, Millennium, Harsh Realm, and The Lone Gunmen. Carter is best known for his longest running series, the award-winning sci-fi drama The X-Files, which ran for nine seasons on Fox and spawned two feature films. He’s currently developing a new series for cable.

Carter’s participation during the Conference will include “A Conversation with Chris Carter,” where he will share stories from his long career in television and film. Carter will also present special retrospective screenings of The X-Files and Millennium episodes and, as a guest programmer, will host a screening of one of his favorite films for Festival audiences. And, stay tuned for details on The X-Files marathon at the Alamo Drafthouse!

Carter joins Paul Feig and Brian Helgeland as part of AFF’s new Guest Programmer section of the Festival, giving highly regarded filmmakers an opportunity to screen and discuss the films that influenced them. These filmmakers will shed new light not only on these classic films but also on their own work.

Carter is the most recent addition to the list of AFF’s Outstanding Television Writer recipients Hart Hanson (Bones), David Simon (The Wire), Mitchell Hurwitz (Arrested Development), Greg Daniels (The  Office, Parks & Recreation) and many more.

Announcing the latest Advance Sign Up for the 2012 Austin Film Festival and Conference!

Come experience the famous “Hart Chart” first hand. James V. Hart (HOOK, CONTACT, AUGUST RUSH, BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA) will explore how to better develop characters and stories by getting to the “heart” of the script. Using notable films as examples, join us in this breakdown of establishing main character desires, their progress toward their goal and how to create a successful resolution. Through the Hart Chart’s guidelines for implementing craft, learn to embrace structure as a friend, not enemy, and how to flesh out ideas for the screen.

Open to all Conference and Producer Badges.

JAMES V. HART’s writing/producing credits include; HOOK, directed by Steven Spielberg based on an idea by Hart’s then 6 year old Son, Jake, BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, MUPPET TREASURE ISLAND, directed by Brian Henson, and CONTACT, directed by Robert Zemeckis.

Other writing/producing credits include: MARY SHELLEY’S FRANKENTSEIN, TUCK EVERLASTING, SAHARA, JACK AND THE BEANSTALK: THE REAL STORY, LARA CROFT: TOMBRAIDER – THE CRADLE OF LIFE, and AUGUST RUSH

Hart is currently in production on the animated feature EPIC with children’s book illustrator and home town friend, SMU graduate, William Joyce, and director-animator Chris Wedge, who created ICE AGE and ROBOTS with Joyce for release in 2013.

Click here to sign up!

We’re thrilled to announce our initial round of 2012 Conference panels, along with over 30 new panelists including top screenwriters, directors and more.

This year’s Conference panels delve into a wide variety of topics ideal for writers and filmmakers of all levels, while also providing an entertaining and intriguing look behind the curtain for the general public.

Click here for all confirmed panels

Here are just some of the fantastic panels we’re offering this October:

Some of the new exclusive opportunities we’ll provide to advancing writers in this year’s teleplay competition include:

A Special Roundtable Workshop Session for the Sitcom Pilot Winner

For the first time, we are very excited to offer the 2012 Sitcom Pilot winner the invaluable opportunity to have his or her winning pilot read aloud and workshopped during a special Roundtable Session. These roundtables are popular and famous in Hollywood for punching up the story and comedy of a script with a team of professional writers. Whatever jokes or changes the pros throw out, the winning writer will be able to cherry-pick those they think might be helpful to his or her script.

Just some of the industry pros on board to run the roundtable include:

• Alec Berg, writer THE DICTATOR, EUROTRIP, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Seinfeld
• Kell Cahoon, writer/producer The Larry Sanders Show, Newsradio, Just Shoot Me, King of the Hill, Method and Red, and Psych
• Etan Cohen, writer MEN IN BLACK III, TROPIC THUNDER, IDIOCRACY, King of the Hill, Beavis and Butt-Head
• Jay Wade Edwards, television producer and editor Aqua Teen Hunger Force
• Chris Kelly, writer Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim: Squidbillies, Stroker & Hoop, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law
• Jeff Lowell, writer/producer Inside Schwartz, Just Shoot Me!, Spin City, Cybill
• Tim Talbott, writer South Park

Lunch with TV Industry Pros

From this year’s pool of Second Rounders (top 10%) in the teleplay competition, we’ll randomly select a group of lucky winners to have lunch with these TV industry pros during the Conference*.

• Phil Rosenthal (writer/director EXPORTING RAYMOND, creator/executive producer Everybody Loves Raymond, Coach, Down the Shore) will have lunch with 5 Second Rounders in the Sitcom Pilot category
• Hilary Winston (writer/producer Happy Endings, Community, My Name is Earl) will have lunch with 5 Second Rounders in the Sitcom Spec category

Submit today and if your script advances, you’ll be entered to win this invaluable opportunity to pick the brains of these industry pros. And… AFF will pick up the tab!

*Only Second Rounders registered for the Conference will be eligible for this opportunity

Some of this year’s TV panelists confirmed for the 2012 Conference include:

• Jane Francis, Senior Vice President of Creative Affairs, Fox 21
• Matthew Gross, Gross Entertainment
• Barry Josephson, Josephson Entertainment
• Kyle Killen, creator/producer Awake, Lonestar, writer THE BEAVER
• Peter Murrieta, head writer/executive producer Wizards of Waverly Place, Hope & Faith
• Marti Noxon, writer/producer Glee, Mad Men, Private Practice, Grey’s Anatomy
• Phil Rosenthal, writer/director EXPORTING RAYMOND, creator/executive producer Everybody Loves Raymond, Coach, Down the Shore
• Liz Tigelaar, creator/executive producer Life Unexpected, writer/producer Brothers & Sisters,
• American Dreams, Once and Again, Once Upon a Time, Revenge
• Hilary Winston, writer/producer Happy Endings, Community, My Name is Earl

For a current list of this year’s Conference panelists click here.

The Teleplay Competition

2009 Outstanding Television Writer Award recipient Mitchell Hurwitz

AFF puts your script in front of the right people. Semifinalist and Finalist teleplays are evaluated directly by representatives from major television studios, producers, and showrunners (2012 judges to be announced soon). Advancing writers will also be included in the 2012 Producers Book which is distributed to more than 300 agents, production companies, and studios.  Previous teleplay entrants have been staffed on shows such as The Finder, Justified, Gossip Girl, and Samantha Who?.  What show will you get staffed on?

Click here to find out more about AFF’s Teleplay Competition

Screenplay and teleplay winners will be announced at the 2012 Austin Film Festival and Conference held October 18 – 25, 2012.

For more information, contact Matt Dy, Screenplay & Teleplay Competition Director at 1.800.310.3378 or matt@austinfilmfestival.com.

Click to view larger version

We are excited to announce our first of five Film Poster Competition winners!

Stefanie Patten won with her macabre design for THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS. We will sell a limited run of the poster at our screening of THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS this Sunday, March 25th at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum. The posters will be signed by the film’s Academy Award-winning screenwriter Ted Tally!

Stefanie recently graduated from California State University, Sacramento with a B.A. in Digital Film/Video Production. She is a freelance Graphic Designer as well as a Cinematographer, 2nd Cameraman, and Storyboard Artist at And1 Productions. You can see more of her work on her website.

Stay tuned as we pick our other four winners in the coming months.

** We’ve had a few requests to extend the deadline for our poster competition. See below for the deadlines for each film. **

The Austin Film Festival is excited to announce their first ever Film Poster Competition! AFF has chosen a series of five films from their 2012 year-round programming to feature the art of Austin’s local artists. Interested designers can choose one of the films in the series and create an original film poster. AFF will choose one winner for each film, and a limited number of each winning poster will be displayed and sold at the screenings.

In addition, audience members and online voters will have a chance to vote on their favorite film poster in the series. The artist of the winning poster will receive a Producer’s Badge to the 2012 Austin Film Festival & Conference ($695 value) and their poster on display at the Festival. This showcase is an invaluable opportunity to have your artwork seen by tens of thousands of people and viewed by an audience of filmmakers eager to find their next poster artist!

The Films:

• The Silence of the Lambs– March 18th VIEW THE WINNING POSTER!
• Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars – March 30th VIEW THE WINNING POSTER!
• Party Down (TV Pilot)– April 10th VIEW THE WINNING POSTER!
• The Black Stallion– May 20th
• The Iron Giant– June 15th

To submit your film poster, please send a high-res PDF  to taylor@austinfilmfestival.com

Questions?
Contact Taylor Cumbie
taylor@austinfilmfestival.com
512.478.4795

AUSTIN, TX (October 7, 2011)—The Austin Film Festival (AFF) announced today that Actress Alexis Bledel has been named honorary co-chair for the 9th Annual Film & Food Gala, benefitting AFF’s Young Filmmakers Program. Previously announced honorary co-chair, Actress and Producer America Ferrera is no longer able to attend due to a work schedule conflict. Bledel will be joined by writer/director Ryan Piers Williams (The Dry Land).

A native of Houston, Bledel is a versatile actress in both film and television. She starred as “Rory Gilmore” in the critically acclaimed series “Gilmore Girls.” She recently appeared with James McAvoy and Robin Wright Penn in Director Robert Redford’s period drama “The Conspirator.” Next, Bledel stars opposite Saoirse Ronan in Oscar winner Geoffrey Fletcher’s directorial debut “Violet and Daisy.” The film centers on a pair of teenage assassins who are lured into what is supposed to be just another quick and easy job, only to find complications as the man they’re supposed to kill is not what they expected. Bledel’s additional film credits include “Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants,” “Tuck Everlasting” and the Robert Rodriguez film “Sin City,” which was filmed in Austin.

The Gala will be held on Wednesday, October 19, 2011 at the Driskill Hotel in Austin, TX and kicks off the 18th Annual Festival and Conference. For more information, please visit www.austinfilmfestival.com/.

9TH ANNUAL FILM & FOOD GALA
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2011
7PM – 10PM
DRISKILL HOTEL / AUSTIN, TX
Tickets are $90/$75 for AFF Members and Badge Holders
Call 512.478.4795 or visit austinfilmfestival.com for tickets
Benefitting Young Filmmakers Program

All chairs are confirmed based on permitting schedules and are subject to change and/or cancellation without notice. Proceeds from the ticket sales and event auctions benefit Austin Film Festival’s Young Filmmakers Program, which was founded to encourage students, ages 9-18, to explore their literacy skills through the arts of screenwriting and filmmaking. Programs are offered free through AISD schools and partner organizations.

Sponsors of the Film & Food Gala include Whole Foods Market, KVUE, Twin Liquors, Dos Equis, Shweiki Media Printing, Livestrong Austin Marathon & Half Marathon, and United/Continental Airlines.

More information on the 18th annual Austin Film Festival is available at www.austinfilmfestival.com/ or call 1-800-310-FEST (3378). For regular updates, follow AFF on Facebook at facebook.com/AustinFilmFestivaland Twitter @austinfilmfest.

About Austin Film Festival
The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art and craft of filmmaking by inspiring and championing the work of screenwriters, filmmakers, and all artists who use the language of film to tell a story.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Dos Equis, KVUE, KUT 90.5 FM, United/Continental Airlines, Esurance, and Wells Fargo Advisors.

A NOIR SCRIPT BY SHANE BLACK & ANTHONY BAGAROZZI. READ BY PROFESSIONAL ACTORS WITH BLACK DIRECTING.

SUNDAY, OCT. 23RD AT THE ROLLINS THEATER IN AUSTIN, TX

AUSTIN, TX (August 30, 2011) – The Austin Film Festival (AFF) announced today an exclusive staged reading of Shane Black and Anthony Bagarozzi’s noir script, “The Nice Guys,” during the Festival. The script will be read by professional actors with Black and Bagarozzi in attendance, with Black directing. The reading will be Sunday, October 23rd at 4:30pm at the Rollins Theatre at The Long Center for the Performing Arts in Austin, TX.

It’s going to be a production you won’t want to miss during the Festival, as these two seasoned screenwriters give film fans a first glimpse at this dark murder mystery read live by actors. “The Nice Guys” follows last year’s wildly popular and successful reading of Maggie Carey’s “The Hand Job.” AFF’s script readings are energetic and considered some of the Conference’s most beloved events, bringing the page to life with comedic, dramatic and exciting performances.

ABOUT THE NICE GUYS
In smoggy 1970s Los Angeles, Jackson Healy (muscle-for-hire, recovering alcoholic) and Holland March (private eye, practicing alcoholic) are brought together by the suicide of a fading porn star. Problem is, the dead girl’s aunt is convinced she saw her niece alive and well, AFTER the highly publicized incident. March needs money, takes the case-and within days, it’s blossomed into a far-reaching murder conspiracy, bizarrely rooted in smog and the U.S. auto industry.

Shane Black has had tremendous success in creating a number of box office blockbusters, including the first two “Lethal Weapon” movies and 1991’s “The Last Boyscout.” In 1990, Shane sold his espionage script “The Long Kiss Goodnight” for a record sum of money. His directorial debut, the romantic thriller “Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang” re-teamed him with producer Joel Silver. Black was the recipient of the 2006 Austin Film Festival’s Distinguished Screenwriter Award. Next, he’s writing and directing “Iron Man 3” starring Robert Downey, Jr., scheduled for release May 2013.

Anthony Bagarozzi broke into the business with the sale of “Tick Tock,” an original screenplay, which he co-wrote with Chuck Mondry. Along with writing “The Nice Guys” with Shane Black, Bagarozzi is currently working on a “Doc Savage” screenplay for Sony Pictures, as well as adapting the best selling manga “Death Note” for Warner Brothers. Next year he plans to make his directorial debut with the supernatural thriller “Deathless,” co-written by Chuck Mondry and produced by Modern Pictures.

Past Austin Film Festival script readings include works by Anne Rapp, Ya’Ke Smith, Jim Dauterive, Tim McCandlies, Bill Wittliff, Larry Wright, Mike Fry, Kat Candler, the late Bud Shrake and, most recently, the 2009 Black List scripts “By Way of Helena” by Matthew Cook with Jeff Fahey, D.B. Sweeney and others, and “The Hand Job” by Maggie Carey, with performers Aubrey Plaza, Bill Hader, Jessica Alba, Colin Hanks, and others.

Film Passes and Festival Badges are currently on sale at a discounted rate until September 30th and can be purchased athttp://austinfilmfestival.myshopify.com/collections/2011-badges-film-passes. Right now, Film Passes are only $42. All Badges and Passes grant admission to the script reading.

AFF has also announced the early 10 films screening at the festival this year, as well as this year’s award winners and the confirmed Conference panelists. These announcements and general information on the 18th annual Austin Film Festival is available atwww.austinfilmfestival.com/ or call 1-800-310-FEST (3378). For regular updates, follow AFF on Facebook at facebook.com/AustinFilmFestival and Twitter @austinfilmfest.

About Austin Film Festival
The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art and craft of filmmaking by inspiring and championing the work of screenwriters, filmmakers, and all artists who use the language of film to tell a story.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Dos Equis, KVUE, KUT 90.5 FM, United/Continental Airlines, and Esurance.

INCLUDING JEFF WHO LIVES AT HOME, PUSS IN BOOTS, BENEATH THE DARKNESS, ALBERT NOBBS, HAROLD’S GOING STIFF, ECSTASY OF ORDER: THE TETRIS MASTERS, AND MORE

FULL LINEUP COMING MID-SEPTEMBER

AUSTIN, TX (August 23, 2011) – The Austin Film Festival (AFF), the premiere film festival recognizing writers’ and filmmakers’ contributions to film, television and new media, announced today the first 10 films included in the 2011 lineup of Festival film screenings October 20-27. AFF annually hosts over 170 film screenings and special events, and the Conference boasts more than 100 speakers participating in panels and roundtable discussions.

Included in the early 10 films announced are Jeff Who Lives At Home, a new comedy by the Duplass brothers starring Jason Segel; Ecstasy of Order: The Tetris Masters (world premiere), a documentary about the obsession of the masters at the 2010 Classic Tetris World Championship; Harold’s Going Stiff (U.S. premiere), a contemporary and affecting zombie film; UCB dance film Freak Dance (world premiere); the gender-blurring tale of Albert Nobbs, starring Glenn Close, with director Rodrigo Garcia in attendance; Puss in Boots, the animated film about the swashbuckling feline; American Teacher, an inspiring documentary about U.S. educators; We Need To Talk About Kevin, a gripping drama starring Tilda Swinton and John C. Reilly; and the Southern Gothic tale Restive.

One of the films announced, Beneath the Darkness, was birthed out of the 2003 Festival when writer Bruce Wilkinson and director Martin Guigui met following a screening of Guigui’s film Swing. This meeting at the Festival allowed Wilkinson to achieve a life dream before his passing following the film’s completion. This will be the world premiere of Beneath the Darkness, which stars Dennis Quaid as a psychopathic killer. Quaid, along with the director and much of the cast, will be in attendance.

The 2011 film lineup includes several World, U.S., and regional premieres in all genres ranging from comedy to horror, documentary to drama. Filmmakers from around the world and Texas alike showcase everything from obscure indie films to big-budget Oscar®-bound productions.

The complete list of films screening at AFF this year, including short films and competition titles, will be announced in mid-September. Cast and crew attendance is subject to change and based on permitting schedules

AFF’S 2011 EARLY 10 FILMS ARE:

ALBERT NOBBS
Writers: Glenn Close, John Banville
Director: Rodrigo Garcia (in attendance)
Cast: Glenn Close, Mia Wasikowska, Aaron Johnson, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Brendan Gleeson
Glenn Close stars as a woman who must disguise herself as a male butler in order to find work in 19th century Ireland.

AMERICAN TEACHER
Director: Vanessa Roth
Narrator: Matt Damon
Regional Premiere
Weaving interviews of policy experts and startling facts with the lives and careers of four teachers, Matt Damon narrates the collective story by and about those closest to the issues in our educational system—the 3.2 million teachers who spend every day in classrooms across the country.

BENEATH THE DARKNESS
Writer: Bruce Wilkinson
Director: Martin Guigui (in attendance)
Cast: Dennis Quaid, Tony Oller, Aimee Teegarden, Stephen Lunsford, Brett Cullen (entire cast listed will be in attendance)
World Premiere
After watching their best friend get murdered, a group of teens struggle to expose a local hero (Dennis Quaid) as the psychopathic killer and keep from becoming his next victims.

ECSTASY OF ORDER: THE TETRIS MASTERS
Director: Adam Cornelius
World Premiere
This video game documentary brings world-record-holding Tetris players together for the 2010 Classic Tetris World Championship. Witness the Masters as they reveal their secrets, recount their obsession with the game, and enter the transcendental state required to reach the highest levels known as the ‘Ecstasy of Order’.

FREAK DANCE
Writer: Matt Besser
Directors: Matt Besser, Neil Mahoney
Cast: Michael Cassady, Megan Heyn, Amy Poehler, Matt Besser, Ian Roberts, Matt Walsh, Tim Meadows, Andy Daly, Horatio Sanz
World Premiere
The Upright Citizens Brigade unleash their unique take on the dance film with this funky, epic dance floor battle, featuring several past and present members of the popular sketch comedy group.

HAROLD’S GOING STIFF
Writer/Director: Keith Wright
Cast: Stan Rowe, Sarah Spencer, Andy Pandini, Lee Thompson, Richard Harrison, Phil Gascoyne
US Premiere
Lonely pensioner, Harold Gimble, has become the first man to suffer from a new neurological disease that is slowly turning him into a zombie-like state. Harold’s hermit-like existence is shaken up when a vivacious nurse, Penny Rudge, is sent along to alleviate his stiffness.

JEFF WHO LIVES AT HOME
Writers/Directors: Jay Duplass, Mark Duplass
Cast: Jason Segel, Ed Helms, Susan Sarandon, Judy Greer, Rae Dawn Chong
Regional Premiere
Jeff (Jason Segel) is living in his mother’s (Susan Sarandon) basement and waiting for destiny to fall right into his lap. When he goes out on a simple errand, he runs into his estranged brother (Ed Helms) and starts to see the signs that may point him toward a new life.

PUSS IN BOOTS
Writers: Brian Lynch, David H. Steinberg, Tom Wheeler, Jon Zack
Director: Chris Miller
Cast: Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Zach Galifianakis, Billy Bob Thornton, Amy Sedaris
Regional Premiere
Way before Puss (Antonio Banderas) ever met Shrek, our suave and furry feline hero goes on a swashbuckling ride, as he teams with mastermind Humpty Dumpty (Zach Galifianakis) and the street-savvy Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek) to steal the famed Goose that lays the Golden Eggs.

RESTIVE
Writer/Director: Jeremiah Jones
Cast: Christopher Denham, Connor Hill, Michael Mosley, Marianna Palka, Ivan Sandomire
Regional Premiere
A mother deals with emotional and physical abuse from her mentally unstable husband as the narrative twists and turns in this thrilling Southern Gothic tale.

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN
Writers: Lynne Ramsay, Rory Kinnear
Director: Lynne Ramsay
Cast: Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly, Ezra Miller
Regional Premiere
Two parents (Tilda Swinton and John C. Reilly) try to come to terms with the horrifying atrocities committed by their young son in this wrenching drama from acclaimed filmmaker Lynne Ramsay.

The 2011 Conference will offer registrants the opportunity to attend informative and inspiring discussions, including A Conversation with John Lasseter, Chief Creative Officer for Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios, and Academy Award®-winning director and executive-producer of Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, Ratatouille, Toy Story 3, and more. Also on tap is A Conversation with “Bones” and upcoming “The Finder” show creator Hart Hanson, as well as A Conversation with Caroline Thompson, writer of Edward Scissorhands and The Nightmare Before Christmas. There will be in-depth Script-To-Screen discussions on The Graduate with writer Buck Henry, Fight Club with writer Jim Uhls, and “Veronica Mars” with show creator Rob Thomas, as well as a panel on Zombies, Apes & Vampires: Breathing New Life Into Old Subjects with Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver (Rise of The Planet of The Apes, The Relic), Alvaro Rodriguez (Machete, From Dusk Till Dawn 3), and Rhett Reese (Zombieland). Full panel schedule coming soon.

This year’s Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award recipient is John Lasseter (Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios). Along with Distinguished Screenwriter Awardee Caroline Thompson (screenwriter of Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas) and Outstanding Television Writer Awardee Hart Hanson (creator, writer, executive producer of “Bones,” “The Finder”), they will receive their awards at the annual Award Luncheon on Saturday, October 22, 2011 at the Austin Club.

Film passes and Festival badges are currently on sale at a discounted rate until September 30th and can be purchased athttp://austinfilmfestival.myshopify.com/collections/2011-badges-film-passes. Right now, Film Passes are only $42. All badges and passes grant admission to films.

For more information on the 18th annual Austin Film Festival, panels, film screenings and special events, visit the official website atwww.austinfilmfestival.com/ or call 1-800-310-FEST (3378). For regular updates, follow AFF on Facebook at facebook.com/AustinFilmFestival and Twitter @austinfilmfest.

About Austin Film Festival
The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art and craft of filmmaking by inspiring and championing the work of screenwriters, filmmakers, and all artists who use the language of film to tell a story.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.
Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Dos Equis, KVUE, KUT 90.5 FM, United/Continental Airlines, and Esurance.

INCLUDES FIGHT CLUB WITH JIM UHLS, THE GRADUATE WITH BUCK HENRY, AND “VERONICA MARS” WITH ROB THOMAS

PLUS, ADDITIONAL CONFERENCE PANELISTS ANNOUNCED

AUSTIN, TX (AUGUST 4, 2011) – The 18th annual Austin Film Festival (AFF) announced today this year’s Script-To-Screen panels during the Festival Conference, which will take place October 20th-23rd. Also announced, are many of the AFF’s 2011 Conference panelists, including many film and television writers, producers, directors, show creators and more.

The 2011 Script-To-Screen conversations include examinations of FIGHT CLUB with screenwriter Jim Uhls, THE GRADUATE with screenwriter Buck Henry, and “Veronica Mars” with creator Rob Thomas. During the Script-To-Screen section of the Conference lineup, film and television writers go in depth about their triumphs and tragedies as they worked to bring the project from script to screen. Audience members gain insight into some of their favorite productions as well as get an accurate picture of what it takes to bring a film or show from original idea to completion.

2011 SCRIPT-TO-SCREENS

FIGHT CLUB with Jim Uhls
In 1997, Chuck Palahniuk’s manuscript for the soon to be published FIGHT CLUB had made the rounds all over town and been rejected by everybody as being “unadaptable.” But, with the help of Laura Ziskin, then the executive running Fox 2000, screenwriter Jim Uhls and director David Fincher, the film went on to become one of the most controversial and talked-about films of 1999, turning the book into an instant cult classic.

With script in hand and film clips on the wall, screenwriter Jim Uhls (FIGHT CLUB, SEMPER FI, JUMPER) will dissect his critically acclaimed screenplay FIGHT CLUB, discussing his writing process, what worked, what didn’t, what needed to be changed for film production and why.

THE GRADUATE with Buck Henry
Ranked as the seventh greatest film of all time on AFI’s 100 Years… 100 Movies, THE GRADUATE is a 1967 classic comedy-drama directed by Mike Nichols and based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Charles Webb. Prolific writer Buck Henry wrote the screenplay, and was nominated for an Academy Award for his adaptation.

At the Conference, Buck Henry will dissect his critically acclaimed screenplay THE GRADUATE, discussing his writing process and the film’s production, what worked, what didn’t, what needed to be changed and why.

“Veronica Mars” with Rob Thomas
Rob Thomas’ critically acclaimed TV series “Veronica Mars,” starring Kristen Bell in the title role, premiered on September 22, 2004 during television network UPN’s final two years, and ended tragically prematurely on May 22, 2007. During the series’ run, it was nominated for two Satellite Awards, four Saturn Awards, five Teen Choice Awards and was featured on AFI’s TV Programs of the Year for 2005.

With the original pilot script in hand and film clips on the wall, television producer, screenwriter, and author Rob Thomas (“Veronica Mars,” “Party Down,” “Cupid,” “90210″ ’08) will dissect his pilot episode of “Veronica Mars.” Using this episode as a case study for how a TV show comes together, he will discuss how the idea for the show came about, the research and staff writing process, and other aspects of the show’s production.

More panels and discussions during AFF’s 2011 Conference will be announced soon, but you can find more information online atwww.austinfilmfestival.com//new/2011_panelists. Many of this year’s participating panelists have been announced below, including many of the industry’s top writers, directors, producers, show creators and more. More details on their specific panels to come shortly.

2011 CONFIRMED PANELISTS

-Elizabeth Avellan, producer Sin City, Machete, Predators, Shorts, Grindhouse
-Henry Bean, writer Internal Affairs, Deep Cover, The Believer
-Alec Berg, writer “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” Eurotrip, “Seinfeld”
-Pen Densham, Trilogy Entertainment Group, author Riding the Alligator, writer Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Moll Flanders, Houdini
-Rodrigo Garcia, Albert Nobbs, “In Treatment,” Mother and Child
-Pamela Gray, writer Conviction, A Walk on the Moon, “Once and Again”
-Buck Henry, writer The Graduate, To Die For, Catch-22
-Jim Herzfeld, writer Meet The Fockers, Meet The Parents, Tapeheads, writer/producer “Married… With Children”
-Laeta Kalogridis, executive producer Avatar, writer Shutter Island, Alexander, Night Watch
-Lawrence Kasdan, writer Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, Body Heat, The Big Chill, The Accidental Tourist
-Mike Mitchell, director Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chip-Wrecked ’11, Shrek Forever After, Surviving Christmas
-Rhett Reese, writer Zombieland, GI Joe 2, Deadpool
-Alvaro Rodriguez, writer Machete, Shorts, From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman’s Daughter
-Terry Rossio, writer Shrek, Déjà Vu, The Mask of Zorro, Pirates of the Caribbean franchise
-Amy Talkington, writer Valley Girl ’12, Private Benjamin ’12, Night of the White Pants
-Rob Thomas, creator/writer “Veronica Mars,” “Cupid,” “Party Down,” developer/writer “90210,” writer “Dawson’s Creek”
-Jim Uhls, writer Fight Club, Semper Fi, Jumper
-Kyle Killen, creator/producer “Awake,” “Lonestar,” writer The Beaver
-Ric Roman Waugh, writer Snitch, Bobby Martinez, Felon

*All panelists are confirmed, schedules permitting and are subject to change. The complete list is available atwww.austinfilmfestival.com/, or upon request.

AFF will take place October 20-27, 2011 in Austin, Texas and will host more than 170 exciting film screenings and events. AFF will also include a conference lineup with over 100 panelists participating in 90 plus panels and roundtable discussions. Film screenings, additional panelists and special events will be announced in the coming months. Attendance of Conference speakers is schedule permitting and subject to change without notice.

Austin Film Festival’s 2011 award recipients have already been announced, including John Lasseter (Chief Creative Officer of Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios), who will receive the Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award; Caroline Thompson (screenwriter of Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas) receiving the Distinguished Screenwriter Award; and Hart Hanson (creator, writer, executive producer of “Bones”) receiving the Outstanding Television Writer Award. They will accept their awards at AFF’s annual Award Luncheon held on Saturday, October 22, 2011 at the Austin Club.

To purchase passes or badges to the 2011 Austin Film Festival (October 20 – 27, 2011), go tohttp://austinfilmfestival.myshopify.com/collections/2011-badges-film-passes.

For regular updates, follow AFF on Facebook at facebook.com/AustinFilmFestival and Twitter @austinfilmfest.

About Austin Film Festival
The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art and craft of filmmaking by inspiring and championing the work of screenwriters, filmmakers, and all artists who use the language of film to tell a story.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.
Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by United Airlines and Esurance.

CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER OF WALT DISNEY AND PIXAR ANIMATION STUDIOS JOINS DISTINGUISHED SCREENWRITER AWARDEE CAROLINE THOMPSON AND “BONES” CREATOR HART HANSON, OUTSTANDING TELEVISION WRITER AWARDEE

John Lasseter appears courtesy of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Visiting Artists program.

AUSTIN, TX (June 14, 2011) – The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is proud to announce that this year’s recipient of the 2011 Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award will be John Lasseter, Chief Creative Officer, Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios. He will accept the Award, along with the other awardees, at AFF’s annual Award Luncheon held on Saturday, October 22, 2011 at the Austin Club. The Awards Luncheon is presented by the Alice Kleberg Reynolds Foundation. Lasseter will also speak on panels during the Conference, including “A Conversation with John Lasseter” and “The Art of Storytelling with Caroline Thompson, Hart Hanson and John Lasseter.”

Lasseter is a two-time Academy Award®-winning director and creatively oversees all films and associated projects from Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios. His executive-producing credits include “Monsters, Inc.,” “Finding Nemo,” “The Incredibles,” “Ratatouille,” “WALL•E,” “Bolt” and last year’s critically acclaimed “Up,” the first animated film ever to open the Cannes Film Festival and the recipient of two Academy Awards® for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Score. Lasseter also served as executive producer for Disney’s Oscar®-nominated films “The Princess and the Frog” and “Tangled” as well as Pixar’s most recent Academy Award® winner for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song, “Toy Story 3.”
Under Lasseter’s supervision, Pixar’s animated features and short films have earned a multitude of critical accolades and film industry honors.

Lasseter joins Caroline Thompson who will receive the 2011 Distinguished Screenwriter Award and Outstanding Television Writer Awardee Hart Hanson. Thompson’s writing credits include “Edward Scissorhands,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Corpse Bride,” “The Addams Family,” “The Secret Garden” and more. Hanson is most well known in his role as creator, writer and executive producer of the popular television series “BONES,” which just got picked up for a 7th season on Fox.

The Austin Film Festival annually recognizes outstanding filmmakers for going above and beyond with their consistently exceptional body of work with the Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award. Previous recipients of the award include Robert Rodriguez (’10), Ron Howard (’09), Danny Boyle (’08), Oliver Stone (’07), and the late Sydney Pollack (’06.)

The inclusion of Lasseter in the 2011 Conference will round out an impressive list of animation writers, filmmakers, and executives attending and speaking at the Festival, helping make this an outstanding year for animation at AFF. Below are a few of the confirmed names in film and television and their animation credits taking part in AFF 2011.

• Jonathan Aibel & Glenn Berger, writers “Kung Fu Panda,” “Kung Fu Panda 2,” “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel,” “Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chip-Wrecked,” “Monsters vs. Aliens,” “King of the Hill”
• Rita Hsiao, writer “Toy Story 2,” “Mulan”
• Jason Eaton, writer “Ice Age 3”
• Lisa Fragner, 20th Century Fox Animation/Blue Sky Studios, Inc.
• Tim McCanlies, writer “The Iron Giant”
• Mike Mitchell, director “Alvin and The Chipmunks: Chip-Wrecked,” “Shrek Forever After”
• Nancy Pimental, writer “South Park”
• Rhett Reese, writer “Dinosaur”
• Tim Talbott, writer “South Park”

AFF will take place October 20-27, 2011 in Austin, Texas and will host more than 170 exciting film screenings and events. AFF will also include a conference lineup with over 100 panelists participating in 90 plus panels and roundtable discussions. The complete list is available at www.austinfilmfestival.com/, or upon request. Film screenings, additional panelists and special events will be announced in the coming months. Attendance of Conference speakers is schedule permitting and subject to change without notice.

Awards Luncheon tickets are $50 each and are available for purchase by Conference and Producers Badge holders only. For additional information on the 18th Annual Austin Film Festival, panels and film screenings, and how to purchase everything from a Producers Badge to a Film Pass, visit the official website at www.austinfilmfestival.com/ or call 1-800-310-FEST (3378).

About Austin Film Festival
The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art and craft of filmmaking by inspiring and championing the work of screenwriters, filmmakers, and all artists who use the language of film to tell a story.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.
Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Continental and United Airlines, KVUE, KUT 90.5, and Dos Equis.

Click here to buy your Badge today!

AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL & BALLET AUSTIN PRESENT A SPECIAL SCREENING OF CENTER STAGE
FOLLOWED BY A BALLET CLASS TAUGHT BY A BALLET AUSTIN COMPANY MEMBER AT BUTLER DANCE EDUCATION CENTER SUNDAY, JULY 24TH

FINAL EVENT IN DANCE FILM SERIES

Who: Austin Film Festival & Ballet Austin
What: Screening of the 2000 film Center Stage
When: Sunday, July 24, 2011 at 3pm / $10 (free for AFF members with RSVP)
Where: Ballet Austin’s AustinVentures StudioTheater (501 W 3rd Street)
Tickets: All tickets are $10 and include admission to Ballet class ($17 value) immediately following the screening. Visitwww.balletaustin.org/film

AUSTIN, TX (June 13, 2011) – Austin Film Festival (AFF) and Ballet Austin announce a special dance film screening of Center Stage (2001) followed by a free Beginning Ballet class for all attendees on July 24th at Ballet Austin. In addition, a pair of ballet shoes signed by the Ballet Austin Company will be given away to a lucky audience winner.

The screening at Ballet Austin’s AustinVentures StudioTheater (501 West 3rd St) offers a special treat for ballet fans as well as film buffs looking to expand their artistic horizons and get moving with a dance class following the film. With the event, AFF and Ballet Austin hope to engage new arts audiences outside of their genres and bring them a new appreciation for both dance and film.

About Center Stage:
This story follows the challenges that a group of young talented dancers face when they enroll in the American Academy Ballet in New York. Each student is talented and ambitious, but how far will they go to achieve their dream?

Austin Film Festival and Ballet Austin came together for special screenings of the film Fame on Sunday, May 22nd with a free Jazz Class workshop, as well as The Company on Sunday, June 26th with a free Ballet Fit Class. AFF and Ballet Austin first worked together on the screening of Black Swan during the 2010 Austin Film Festival, and everything went so well, they decided to create other opportunities to collaborate for a full artistic experience. They have been working together as part of the Austin Shared Service group, which is a collection of local arts organizations collaborating to increase awareness, participation and excitement for the arts as well as arts education in Austin.

All proceeds benefit the Ballet Austin Academy Scholarship Program.

AFF members must RSVP in advance of the screening. All RSVP information will be posted at www.austinfilmfestival.com/ shortly. All non-AFF members are able to purchase $10 tickets at www.balletaustin.org/film

For more information on Austin Film Festival’s year round events, go to www.austinfilmfestival.com//new/events

For more information on Ballet Austin’s year round events, go to www.balletaustin.org

About Austin Film Festival
The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art and craft of filmmaking by inspiring and championing the work of screenwriters, filmmakers, and all artists who use the language of film to tell a story.
The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts.
Special support for Summer Film Camp is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Austin High School, Shweiki Media, KVUE, and Whole Foods Market.

About Ballet Austin
As distinctive and dynamic as the city it calls home, Ballet Austin welcomes audiences near and far to participate in its “classically innovative” vision for the democratization of dance. With a rich history spanning five decades, acclaimed productions, and one of the nation’s largest classical ballet academies, the organization is poised for an even greater future. From their new home at the Butler Dance Education Center and Community School in downtown Austin, Ballet Austin and artistic director Stephen Mills actively engage the community, dancers, and audiences alike. The New York Times proclaims Ballet Austin “a company with big ambitions” originating work that is “absorbing.”

AUSTIN, TX (April 11, 2011) – Austin Film Festival and KLRU-TV, Austin PBS, announced today the new 12-episode series “On Story: Presented by Austin Film Festival” will premiere on Saturday, April 16, 2011, on KLRU Q.

The new half-hour series will focus on the inspiration and creative process at the conception of the filmmaking process and air right after “Roger Ebert presents: At the Movies” and just before the station’s new movie package at 8pm. “On Story” will include new interviews and footage from past Austin Film Festival panels and screenings of screenwriters and filmmakers discussing their craft and films. Each episode will pair these conversations with a short film from a Texas filmmaker, which has previously screened at the Austin Film Festival. “On Story” is produced by Austin Film Festival co-Founder and Executive Director Barbara Morgan.

“Austin Film Festival is quite proud of the new series, and we’re so happy to be working with KLRU on it,” says Barbara Morgan. “We’ve been working on concept for a while and are thrilled to finally be able to give local audiences a taste of the Festival.”

The filmmakers and screenwriters appearing on the show include Lawrence Kasdan (EMPIRE STRIKES BACK), Shane Black (LETHAL WEAPON), Ed Burns (THE BROTHERS MCMULLEN), Randall Wallace (BRAVEHEART), John Lee Hancock (THE BLIND SIDE), David Peoples (BLADE RUNNER), Judd Apatow (KNOCKED UP), Ron Howard, and more.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE
April 16, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 1
Footage: Lawrence Kasdan, Shane Black, and Randall Wallace at Austin Film Festival
Short film: FRENTE NORESTE by Angela Torres Camarena

April 23, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 2
April 30, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 3
May 7, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 4
May 14, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 5
May 21, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 6
May 28, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 7
June 4, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 8
June 11, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 9
June 18, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 10
June 25, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 11
July 2, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 12

The show airs on KLRU-Q broadcast channel 18.3, which is available free over the air in KLRU’s 18 county viewing area including Travis, Hayes, Bastrop, Williamson and Caldwell counties. KLRU-Q is also available to digital cable subscribers of Time Warner (channel 20 or 225) or Grande (channel 284).

Episodes will also be available online at klru.org the Sunday following the broadcast.

For more information on the Austin Film Festival, visit www.austinfilmfestival.com/. And, go to www.klru.org to find out more about the station and for programming schedules.

About Austin Film Festival
Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art and craft of filmmaking by inspiring and championing the work of screenwriters, filmmakers, and all artists who use the language of film to tell a story.

Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts. Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Continental Airlines, KVUE, KUT 90.5, and Dos Equis.

About KLRU
KLRU-TV, Austin PBS, reflects, celebrates and inspires Central Texas through creative excellence, community engagement and lifelong learning. In addition to providing locally produced and quality national television programming, KLRU is also a non-profit organization helping to build a stronger community through educational workshops, community engagement projects and public events. Known as the producing station of the longest-running live music television show “Austin City Limits,” KLRU has also worked on several other national productions including the documentaries CITIZEN ARCHITECT and LAST BEST HOPE. Get more information about KLRU at www.klru.org.

SCREENWRITER OF EDWARD SCISSORHANDS, THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS, CORPSE BRIDE, THE ADDAMS FAMILY AND MORE JOINS HART HANSON, RECIPIENT OF THIS YEAR’S OUTSTANDING TELEVISION WRITER AWARD

AUSTIN, TX (April 5, 2011) – Austin Film Festival (AFF) proudly announced today this year’s recipient of the 2011 Distinguished Screenwriter Award will be Caroline Thompson, screenplay writer of EDWARD SCISSORHANDS, THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS, CORPSE BRIDE, THE ADDAMS FAMILY, THE SECRET GARDEN, BLACK BEAUTY, and more. Thompson will accept the award at the Festival’s annual Award Luncheon held on Saturday, October 22, 2011 at the Austin Club. Thompson will also speak on panels during the Conference.

Caroline Thompson published her first novel, First Born, in 1983, and adapted it for the screen with director Penelope Spheeris. Although the film was never made, Thompson discovered her love for writing screenplays, and her first film was 1990’s EDWARD SCISSORHANDS, which was immediately followed by THE ADDAMS FAMILY in 1991. She went on to write HOMEWARD BOUND: THE INCREDIBLE JOURNEY, THE SECRET GARDEN, THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS, BLACK BEAUTY, BUDDY, SNOW WHITE: THE FAIREST OF THEM ALL, CORPSE BRIDE and CITY OF EMBER. She is currently working on adaptations of Melissa Marr’s novel Wicked Lovely and Mikhail Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita. Eager to encourage the strange and idiosyncratic in young filmmakers, Caroline and her husband Steve Nicolaides founded and run the website Small & Creepy Films at www.smallandcreepy.com.

Thompson joins Hart Hanson, who is set to receive AFF’s Outstanding Television Writer Award at this year’s Festival. Hanson is best known as the creator, writer and executive producer of the popular television series “Bones,” which is currently in it’s 6th season on Fox. Hanson’s other credits include creator/showrunner for “Traders,” which was nominated for multiple Gemini Awards (Canadian Emmy’s), as well as writing for “Judging Amy,” “Joan of Arcadia,” and more. Presenting Hanson with his award will be “Bones” stars David Boreanaz and Emily Deschanel. Still to be announced is this year’s recipient of the Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award.

The Austin Film Festival annually recognizes outstanding filmmakers and screenwriters for their accomplished bodies of work and contributions to filmmaking. Previous recipients of the Distinguished Screenwriter Award include David Peoples, Steven Zaillian, Harold Ramis, Lawrence Kasdan, Barry Levinson, Frank Pierson, James L. Brooks, Richard LaGravenese and Horton Foote, among others.

Since 1994, Austin Film Festival has been dedicated to furthering the art and craft of filmmaking by inspiring and championing the work of screenwriters, filmmakers, and all artists who use the language of film to tell a story. The Austin Film Festival’s Conference offers over 80 panels, craft sessions and roundtable discussions led by more than 100 top professionals in the television and film industries. Focusing on the art, craft and business of film and television writing and production, it provides registrants unparalleled access to the best writers and filmmakers in the field. Just some of the speakers confirmed for 2011, schedules permitting, include:

• Alec Berg, “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” “Seinfeld”
• Jon Aibel & Glenn Berger, KUNG FU PANDA 1 & 2, ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS 2 & 3, MONSTERS VS. ALIENS
• Shane Black, IRONMAN III ‘12, KISS KISS, BANG BANG, LETHAL WEAPON
• Lindsay Doran, producer STRANGER THAN FICTION, NANNY MCPHEE, SENSE AND SENSIBILITY
• Rodrigo Garcia, writer/director “In Treatment,” MOTHER AND CHILD
• Pamela Gray, writer CONVICTION, A WALK ON THE MOON
• Ted Griffin, creator “Terriers,” writer OCEAN’S ELEVEN, RUMOR HAS IT…, MATCHSTICK MEN
• Noah Hawley, creator “My Generation,” writer/producer “The Unusuals,” “Bones”
• Jim Herzfeld, writer MEET THE FOCKERS, MEET THE PARENTS, TAPEHEADS
• Rita Hsiao, writerTOY STORY 2, MULAN
• Elizabeth Hunter, writer BEAUTY SHOP, THE FIGHTING TEMPTATIONS, “ER”
• Lawrence Kasdan, writer RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, RETURN OF THE JEDI, THE BIG CHILL, THE ACCIDENTAL TOURIST
• Kyle Killen, writer THE BEAVER, creator “Lonestar”
• Luisa Leschin, writer “Are We There Yet?,” “Everybody Hates Chris,” “George Lopez”
• Craig Mazin, writer THE HANGOVER 2, SCARY MOVIE 3 & 4
• Tim McCanlies, director ALABAMA MOON, writer SECONDHAND LIONS, THE IRON GIANT
• Mike Mitchell, director ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: CHIP-WRECKED ’11, SHREK FOREVER AFTER, SURVIVING CHRISTMAS
• Peter Murrieta, creator “Wizards of Waverly Place,” “Hope and Faith”
• Nancy Pimental, writer “South Park,” THE SWEETEST THING
• Rhett Reese, writer DEADPOOL ‘12, ZOMBIELAND, GI JOE2, MONSTERS, INC.
• Howard A. Rodman, writer AUGUST, SAVAGE GRACE, JOE GOULD’S SECRET
• Alvaro Rodriguez, writer MACHETE, SHORTS, FROM DUSK TILL DAWN 3
• Alex Smith, co-writer/director DANCE WITH THE ONE, THE SLAUGHTER RULE
• Dana Stevens, writer “What About Brian,” LIFE OR SOMETHING LIKE IT, FOR LOVE OF THE GAME
• Amy Talkington, writer VALLEY GIRL ‘12, PRIVATE BENJAMIN ‘12, NIGHT OF THE WHITE PANTS
• Beau Thorne, writer MAX PAYNE
• Donald Todd, writer/producer “Samantha Who?,” “Caroline in the City,” “Dave’s World,” “ALF”

The Conference will also include representatives from Overbrook Entertainment, 20th Century Fox Animation/Blue Sky Studios, Josephson Entertainment, di Bonaventura Pictures, CAA, UTA and many more. The complete list is available at www.austinfilmfestival.com/, or upon request. Film screenings, additional panelists and special events will be announced in the coming months. Attendance of Conference speakers is schedule permitting and subject to change without notice.

Awards Luncheon tickets are $50 each and are available for purchase by Conference and Producers Badge holders only.

Click here to buy your Badge today!

CREATOR OF “BONES” COMES TO AUSTIN WITH EMILY DESCHANEL AND DAVID BOREANAZ

HANSON WILL LEAD THIS YEAR’S LINEUP OF TELEVISION WRITERS & SHOW CREATORS AT THE CONFERENCE

AUSTIN, TX (February 14, 2011) – Austin Film Festival (AFF) proudly announced today that this year’s recipient of the 2011 Outstanding Television Writer Award will be Hart Hanson, creator, executive producer, show runner, and writer of 20th Century Fox Television’s “BONES.” “BONES” stars Emily Deschanel (Cold Mountain, Glory Road) and David Boreanaz (“Angel,” “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer”) will present Hanson with the Award at the Festival’s annual Awards Luncheon held on Saturday, October 22, 2011 at the Austin Club. “I am thrilled the Austin Film Festival is recognizing the talents of Hart Hanson,” said Deschanel. “He is such a gifted writer and storyteller, and is truly the voice of our show. It’s been a joy to work with him, and it’s a great honor to celebrate his work.”

Hart Hanson is perhaps best known for his current work on the highly acclaimed television series “Bones,” now in its sixth season, where he serves as creator, executive producer, and show runner.

A native Canadian, Hanson received a B.A. from the University of Toronto and an MFA from the University of British Columbia. He began his writing career on the iconic Canadian show, “Beachcombers” and went on to write and produce episodes of many acclaimed Canadian shows including “North of 60,” “Road to Avonlea,” “The Odyssey,” “Ready or Not,” “Poltergeist,” “Street Legal,” “Neon Rider,” and the made for television movies “Trust in Me,” “Whale Music,” “Guitarman,” and “African Sky.” Hanson created and ran the show “Traders”, which was nominated for multiple Gemini Awards (Canadian Emmy’s).

Upon moving to the United States, Hanson served as a writer and producer on the television shows “Joan of Arcadia,” “Judging Amy,” “Snoops,” “Cupid,” “Stargate SG-1,” and “The Outer Limits.” He is a CTU fellow at the Banff Television Festival, A Trustee for the Humanitas Foundation, and an Advisor to the Canadian Film Centre.

Hanson will speak on panels during the Conference, including ‘A Conversation with Hart Hanson’ moderated by producer – and Austin Film Festival board member – Barry Josephson (LIFE AS WE KNOW IT, ENCHANTED, HIDE AND SEEK). In addition, Hanson, Josephson, Deschanel, and Boreanaz will present a special screening of an episode of “Bones.” The show is produced by Far Field Productions and Josephson Entertainment in association with 20th Century Fox Television. Hanson, Stephen Nathan, Ian Toynton and Barry Josephson are executive producers. In honoring Hanson, the Austin Film Festival is especially pleased to reach out to and be involved with the Canadian screenwriting and filmmaking community and the Writers Guild of Canada.

The Austin Film Festival annually recognizes an Outstanding Television Writer for their elevation of and impact on television writing and contributions to the culture of television. Previous recipients of the award include David Simon (“The Wire”), Mitchell Hurwitz (“Arrested Development”), Greg Daniels (“The Office”), David Milch (“Deadwood”), Garry Shandling (“The Larry Sanders Show”), David Chase (“The Sopranos”), Tom Fontana (“Oz”), Darren Star (“Sex and the City”), and Mike Judge (“King of the Hill”), among others.

Since 1994, Austin Film Festival has been dedicated to furthering the art and craft of filmmaking by inspiring and championing the work of screenwriters, filmmakers, and all artists who use the language of film to tell a story. The AFF’s Conference offers over 125 panels, craft sessions and roundtable discussions led by more than 100 industry professionals. Focusing on the art, craft and business of film and television writing and production, it provides registrants unparalleled access to the best writers in the field. Some of the speakers confirmed for 2011, schedules permitting, include:

• Alec Berg, “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” “Seinfeld”
•Shane Black, KISS KISS, BANG BANG, LETHAL WEAPON, THE LONG KISS GOODNIGHT
•Lindsay Doran, producer Nanny McPhee, Nanny McPhee Returns, Sense and Sensibility
•Rodrigo Garcia, “In Treatment,” MOTHER AND CHILD
•Ted Griffin, OCEAN’S ELEVEN, MATCHSTICK MEN
•Lawrence Kasdan, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, BODY HEAT, THE BIG CHILL
•Luisa Leschin, “Are We There Yet?,” “Everybody Hates Chris,” “George Lopez”
•Craig Mazin, THE HANGOVER 2, SCARY MOVIE 3 & 4
•Tim McCanlies, ALABAMA MOON, SECONDHAND LIONS, THE IRON GIANT
•Peter Murrieta, “Wizards of Waverly Place,” “Hope and Faith”
•Pamela Ribon, “Samantha Who,” “Romantically Challenged”
•Alvaro Rodriguez, MACHETE, FROM DUSK TILL DAWN 3: THE HANGMAN’S DAUGHTER
•Alex Smith, DANCE WITH THE ONE, THE SLAUGHTER RULE, SON OF THE GUN
•Donald Todd, “Samantha Who?,” “Caroline in the City,” “Dave’s World,” “ALF”

The Conference will also include representatives from Overbrook Entertainment, 20th Century Fox Animation/Blue Sky Studios, Fortis Films, CAA, UTA, and many more. The complete list is available at www.austinfilmfestival.com/ or upon request. Film screenings, additional panelists and special events will be announced in the coming months. Attendance of Conference speakers is schedule permitting and subject to change without notice.

Awards Luncheon tickets are $50 each and are available for purchase by Conference and Producers Badge holders only.

Click here to buy your Badge today!

AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL’S FILM PASS FRENZY

STARTS SATURDAY, JULY 17^TH

ENTER TO WIN A VARIETY OF PRIZES BY PURCHASING 2 AFF FILM PASSES

AUSTIN, TX (July 14, 2010) – The 17^th annual Austin Film Festival announces the Film Pass Frenzy with 17 days of giveaways starting Saturday, July 17^th. Anyone who purchases two Film Passes to this year’s Austin Film Festival (October 21-28, 2010) during the 17 days of the Film Pass Frenzy, which ends Monday, August 2^nd, will have the chance to win a variety of cool prizes.

Each day, those who purchase two AFF Film Passes online between the hours of 12am and 11:59pm will be entered into that day’s drawing, with winners chosen at random from an AFF hat, to win the prize pack of the day. Prizes range from tickets to Fun Fun Fun Fest to Bird’s Barbershop swag to a free night’s stay at Lakeway Resort and Spa to an AFF badge upgrade that grants you further access to the Festival’s panels and parties. Each day’s winner will be announced via AFF’s twitter (@austinfilmfest) and Facebook page at 9:00am the following day, at which time that day’s prizes will also be announced. So, keep an eye on AFF’s social media sites to find out what you could win.

Right now, Film Passes are only $42 each, granting admission to all eight nights of film screenings and the Paramount Theatre Film Pass Party at Aces Lounge on Tuesday, October 26th where Film Pass holders can purchase$2 Dos Equis from 10pm – midnight.  The Festival boasts an outstanding program of Oscar©-winning studio and independent films each year, and due to AFF’s very accessible and open atmosphere, Film Pass holders are likely to be in close contact with many of the famous and award-winning filmmakers, screenwriters and actors in attendance. Past film screenings have included JUNO, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE, UP IN THE AIR, PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL ‘PUSH’ BY SAPPHIRE, and AN EDUCATION. The Film Pass price increases to $50 on August 1^st.

Many of this year’s amazing panelists for the conference have already been announced, as well as this year’s recipient of the Outstanding Television Writer Award. Stay tuned for updates on films to be screened this year and other news. For additional information on all things AFF and the Film Pass Frenzy, go to www.austinfilmfestival.com/ or call 1-800-310-FEST (3378). Follow AFF on Twitter @austinfilmfest and become a Facebook fan.

About Austin Film Festival

The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. The AFF champions the work of aspiring and established writers and filmmakers by providing unique cultural events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging dynamic and long-lasting community partnerships.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Continental Airlines, KVUE and Dos Equis.

DAVID SIMON TO RECEIVE

OUTSTANDING TELEVISION WRITER AWARD

AT 2010 AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL

CREATOR OF “THE WIRE” AND “TREME,” WRITER/PRODUCER OF “HOMICIDE: LIFE ON THE STREET”

WILL LEAD THIS YEAR’S STELLAR LINEUP OF TELEVISION WRITERS & SHOW CREATORS AT THE CONFERENCE

AUSTIN, TX (June 30, 2010) – The Austin Film Festival (AFF) proudly announced today this year’s recipient of the 2010 Outstanding Television Writer award will be David Simon, creator of HBO’s “Treme” and “The Wire.” Simon will accept the award at the Festival’s annual Award Luncheon held on Saturday, October 23, 2010, at the Austin Club. In addition, Simon will speak on panels during the Conference.

David Simon is perhaps best known for his work on the HBO series “The Wire,” where he served as creator, executive producer, head writer and show runner for the duration of the series. He also worked as a journalist for The Baltimore Sun for many years and wrote the narrative non-fiction book Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets and co-wrote The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood. The NBC series “Homicide: Life on the Street” was based on the former, and Simon adapted the latter into a mini-series for HBO called “The Corner.” He also adapted the non-fiction book Generation Kill, chronicling the experience of a battalion of Marines in Iraq during the 2003 invasion, into an HBO miniseries under the same name, where he also served as show runner.

The Austin Film Festival annually recognizes outstanding filmmakers and screenwriters for their accomplished bodies of work and contributions to filmmaking. Previous recipients of the Outstanding Television Writer Award include Mitchell Hurwitz (“Arrested Development”), Greg Daniels (“The Office”), David Milch (“Deadwood”), Garry Shandling (“The Larry Sanders Show”), David Chase (“The Sopranos”), Tom Fontana (“Oz”), Darren Star (“Sex and the City”), and Mike Judge (“King of the Hill”), among others.

The Festival offers some of the best panelists and speakers from television and film during the Conference, and several of those already scheduled this year include Allan Loeb (Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps), Peter Murrieta ( “Wizards of Waverly Place”), Jon Lucas & Scott Moore (The Hangover), John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side), Phil Hay (Clash of the Titans I & II), Larry Doyle (“The Simpsons” ), John August (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), Randall Wallace (Braveheart), and many more.

Since 1994, AFF has been dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers while recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. Last year, Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award recipient Ron Howard presented a special retrospective screening event of Apollo 13 with archival footage from NASA and a panel discussion that followed featuring cast and crew.  Danny Boyle was named the 2008 Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award recipient and he premiered critically-acclaimed Slumdog Millionaire at the Festival.  AFF prides itself on bringing great movies from independent writers and directors to Austin, Texas. Diablo Cody and Jason Reitman (writer and director, respectively) of the break-out film Juno attended the festival in 2007, and Reitman returned in 2009 to premiere Up in the Air.

The AFF’s Screenwriters Conference offers over 65 panels, craft sessions and roundtable discussions led by more than 100 industry professionals. Focusing on the art and commerce of film and television writing and production, it provides registrants unparalleled access to the best writers in the field. Past participants include Damon Lindelof (Star Trek, “Lost”), Matthew Weiner (“Mad Men”), Harold Ramis (Groundhog Day), Wes Anderson & Owen Wilson (Rushmore), John Milius (Apocalypse Now), Sydney Pollack (Tootsie), Robert Altman (Nashville), Joel & Ethan Cohen (Fargo), Russell Crowe (Gladiator), Bryan Singer (X-Men), and Oliver Stone (Platoon).

Already confirmed screenwriter and filmmaker speakers, schedules permitting, for the 2010 Screenwriters Conference include:

•  John August, Corpse Bride, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Big Fish, Charlie’s Angels

•  Shane Black, Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, Lethal Weapon, The Long Kiss Goodnight, The Last Boyscout

•  Michael Brandt & Derek Haas, Wanted, 3:10 to Yuma, 2 Fast 2 Furious

•  Larry Doyle, I Love You, Beth Cooper, “The Simpsons,” “Beavis and Butt-Head”

•  John Lee Hancock, The Blind Side, A Perfect World, The Rookie

•  Phil Hay, Clash of the Titans 2, Clash of the Titans, AEon Flux

•  Peter Hedges, About a Boy, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Pieces of April

• Allan Loeb, Cheaters, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, The Switch

•  Jeff Lowell, Over Her Dead Body, John Tucker Must Die, “Just Shoot Me,” “Spin City”

•  Jon Lucas & Scott Moore, The Hangover, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Four Christmases

•  Craig Mazin, The Hangover 2, Scary Movie 4, Scary Movie 3

•  Peter Murrieta, “Hope and Faith,” “Wizards of Waverly Place”

•  Dan Petrie, Jr., Beverly Hills Cop, The Big Easy, Shoot to Kill

• Alvaro Rodriguez, Machete, Shorts, From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman’s Daughter

•  Tim Talbott, “South Park”

•  John Turman, Hulk, Fantastic Four II: Rise of the Silver Surfer

•  Randall Wallace, Secretariat, The Man in the Iron Mask, Braveheart

•  Jorge Zamacona, “Wanted”, “Homicide: Life on the Street”, “The Unusuals”

The Conference will also include representatives from Pixar Animation Studios, Paramount Pictures, Touchstone/ABC, Josephson Entertainment, Disney Animation Studios, di Bonaventura Pictures, Fortis Films, Focus Features, UTA, WME, APA, Inc., Mosaic Media, Depth of Field, 20th Century Fox and many more.  Complete list available at www.austinfilmfestival.com/ or upon request.  Film screenings, more panelists and special events will be announced shortly.  Attendance of Conference speakers is schedule permitting and subject to change without notice.

Awards Luncheon tickets are $45 each and are available for purchase by Conference and Producers Badge holders only.  For additional information on the 17^th Annual Austin Film Festival, panels and film screenings, and how to purchase everything from a Producers Badge to a Film Pass, visit the official website at www.austinfilmfestival.com/ or call 1-800-310-FEST (3378).

About Austin Film Festival

The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. The AFF champions the work of aspiring and established writers and filmmakers by providing unique cultural events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging dynamic and long-lasting community partnerships.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Continental Airlines, KVUE and Dos Equis.

Austin Film Festival Hosts a Conversation in Film with Emmy® Award-Winning Comedy Writer Chuck Sklar!

AUSTIN, Texas – June 24, 2010 – Join comedy writer Chuck Sklar (“The Chris Rock Show” and the Chris Rock-produced documentary Good Hair) for a Conversation in Film on how to turn your funny ideas and stories into comedy material for the screen. In this workshop, Chuck will discuss writing for sketch comedy, sitcom and late night, as well as the changing landscape of television at Cap City Comedy Club on Sunday, July 25, 2010, from 2:00pm – 3:30pm.  Ticket prices are $8 for AFF members and $10 for non-members.

Chuck is an Emmy® Award-winning comedy writer whose credits include “Weekends at the DL,” with D.L. Hughley, the ABC family sitcom “Roommates,” “The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn,” “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” “Politically Incorrect” and “Everybody Hates Chris.”   He was head writer on “Scratch and Burn” and “The Man Show” in 2001. Sklar also worked on “The Chris Rock Show” from 1996-2000. Most recently, Chuck wrote the Chris Rock-produced documentary Good Hair, which won the Black Reel Award, Gotham Award, Image Award, and Sundance Special Jury Prize for Best Documentary.  The screenplay was nominated for a WGA Award.

Created in 2007, Conversations in Film is a year-round series of film seminars that provide the public with the unique experience to interact with local and visiting filmmakers.  Cap City Comedy Club is located at 8120 Research Blvd # 100, Austin, TX 78758.

To purchase tickets with your AFF membership, please call (512)478-4795.  Non-members may purchase tickets and find out more about AFF memberships, by visiting www.austinfilmfestival.com/ or by calling.

About Austin Film Festival

The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. The AFF champions the work of aspiring and established writers and filmmakers by providing unique cultural events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging dynamic and long-lasting community partnerships.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Continental Airlines, KVUE and Dos Equis.

For press inquiries, contact:

Elaine Garza / Giant Noise / 512-382-9017 / elaine@giantnoise.com

William Mills / Giant Noise / 512-382-9017 / will@giantnoise.com

Spiderwood Studios to Sponsor Narrative Feature Film Award at Austin Film Festival 

State-of-the-Art Production Studio Backs Film Competition at Festival Focused on Discovering New Talent

AFF Film Competition Submission Deadline July 14

AUSTIN, Texas – June 16, 2010 – The Austin Film Festival announced today that Austin-based motion picture, music and animation production facility Spiderwood Studios will award the Narrative Feature Winner, a sub-category of the AFF Film Competition, a $5,000 cash prize as well as $5,000 toward services at their studios. 

For seventeen years, AFF has provided emerging filmmakers with a platform for screening their films in front of an audience of almost 30,000 and exposure to industry professionals. The Festival is among the select events accredited by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences®, and all award winning narrative short and animated short films are also eligible for an Academy Award®. The 2010 Austin Film Festival will be held Oct. 21-28, 2010, and winners of the Film and Screenplay Competitions will be announced in Austin at the Annual Awards Luncheon on Saturday, Oct. 23, 2010, at The Austin Club.

In addition to the $5,000 cash prize, Spiderwood Studios will also donate $5,000 towards services at their studios, which could include Soundstages, Jumbor Cyclorama Wall, Edit Bay, Back Lot, and much more.

“Austin Film Festival is delighted that Spiderwood Studios is sponsoring the 2010 Narrative Feature Award.  The ability to offer a larger cash award, in addition to use of their studio space for potential future projects, will hopefully assist the winning filmmaker in the promotion of their current film,” said Kelly Williams, Film Program Director for the Austin Film Festival.

1^st Place Winners receive a cash prize of $5,000; $5,000 toward services at Spiderwood Studios; reimbursement (up to $500) of one round-trip airfare to Austin to attend the 2010 AFF; reimbursement (up to $500) for stay at an AFF hotel during the Film Festival; and the AFF Typewriter Award.

About Spiderwood Studios

SPIDERWOOD STUDIOS is a state-of-the-art, motion picture, music and animation production facility situated on 200-acres of diverse terrain along the banks of the Colorado River.  Spiderwood Studios is fully equipped with sound stages, full service audio suites, production offices, 24’ x 100′ cyclorama wall, edit bays, render farm, R.V. park and 200 acres groomed for production backlot.

About the Austin Film Festival Film Competition

The AFF Film Competition encourages and advocates the work of new and talented filmmakers.  One of the most respected competitions in the country, the AFF Film Competition provides emerging filmmakers the means to expose their work to major players in the entertainment industry.

Categories include: Narrative Feature, Narrative Short, Narrative Student Short, Animated Short, Documentary Feature, and Documentary Short.  The film competition has a late postmark deadline of July 2^nd, and a very late postmark deadline of July 14, 2010.

Films can be submitted to the Austin Film Festival Competition three ways: on-line at www.austinfilmfestival.com/, through www.withoutabox.com or by Entry Form, available by calling 800-310-FEST (3378.)

For additional information on the 17^th Annual Austin Film Festival and the Film Competition, including entry forms, submission fees and Competition guidelines rules, visit the official website at www.austinfilmfestival.com/ or call David Gil, Film Competition Programmer, at (512)478-4795.

About Austin Film Festival

The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. The AFF champions the work of aspiring and established writers and filmmakers by providing unique cultural events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging dynamic and long-lasting community partnerships.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Continental Airlines, KVUE and Dos Equis.

For press inquiries, contact:

Elaine Garza / Giant Noise / 512-382-9017 / elaine@giantnoise.com

William Mills / Giant Noise / 512-382-9017 / will@giantnoise.com

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TEXAS SENATOR KIRK WATSON AND THE AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL PRESENT A SPECIAL SCREENING OF “9500 LIBERTY” 

DISCUSSION AFTER THE FILM WITH SENATOR WATSON, POLICE CHIEF ART ACEVEDO, FILMMAKER ERIC BYLER, AND OTHERS WILL EXPLORE THE IMMIGRATION ISSUE IN TEXAS

Austin, TX – May 24, 2010 – Texas Senator Kirk Watson and the Austin Film Festival are pleased to announce a joint presentation of a special advance screening event of the documentary film “9500 Liberty” by award-winning filmmakers Eric Byler and Annabel Park at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum in Austin, TX. “9500 Liberty” takes an intimate look at a Virginia county that adopted a resolution similar to the controversial law recently signed by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, and the decision’s effects on the people who lived there.

Scheduled for 7:00PM on Wednesday, June 2^nd, the screening will be immediately followed by a discussion moderated by Senator Watson with filmmaker Eric Byler, Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo, Brown McCarroll LLP partner and past American Immigration Lawyers Association President Kathleen Campbell Walker, and Eddie Aldrete, Senior Vice President for IBC Bank. The discussion will also take place in the Texas Spirit Theater at the Bullock Museum, which is located at 1800 North Congress Avenue.

Byler’s timely documentary explores Prince William County, Virginia, which became ground zero in America’s explosive battle over immigration policy after elected officials adopted regulations requiring police officers to question anyone suspected of being an undocumented immigrant.

“9500 Liberty” reveals the startling vulnerability of a local government that was targeted by national anti-immigration networks with Internet-based tactics designed to frighten citizens and intimidate lawmakers.  And it documents efforts of residents to resist the sudden climate of fear and racial division, setting up a real-life showdown between those elected to represent a divided community.  Depicting many of the same highly publicized conflicts at the intersection of politics and immigration – many of which are now on display in Arizona – “9500 Liberty” brings an affecting perspective to this inflamed debate.

This special advance screening event is free and open to the public.  To reserve tickets, please visit www.austinfilmfestival.com/ or call (512)478-4795.

After a sold-out premiere in Tempe, AZ, “9500 Liberty” is opening in theaters across the country. Byler will remain in Austin for Friday’s theatrical premiere at the Landmark Dobie Theater, 2025 Guadalupe Street in the Dobie Mall.

For more information about “9500 Liberty”, go to www.9500liberty.com.

For press inquiries, contact:

Elaine Garza / Giant Noise / 512-382-9017 / elaine@giantnoise.com

William Mills / Giant Noise / 512-382-9017 / will@giantnoise.com

ABOUT AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL

The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. The AFF champions the work of aspiring and established writers and filmmakers by providing unique cultural events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging dynamic and long-lasting community partnerships. www.austinfilmfestival.com/.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Continental Airlines, KVUE and Dos Equis.

17^TH ANNUAL AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL 

ANNOUNCES LIMITED TIME PRODUCERS BADGE PROMOTION

TO KICK OFF MAY 24^TH

AND, A PEEK AT SOME OF THE CONFERENCE’S CONFIRMED PANELISTS

AUSTIN, TX – The 17^th annual Austin Film Festival (Oct. 21 – 28), the premiere film festival recognizing writers’ and filmmakers’ contributions to film, television and new media, announced today a special one-week promotion which will kick off Monday, May 24^th and run through May 31^st.

Everyone who purchases a Producers Badge during that week will be automatically entered into a drawing for lunch with John Lee Hancock, writer/director of “The Blind Side” and “The Alamo”, writer of “A Perfect World” and director of “The Rookie”. Only five winners will be selected for this intimate lunch to kick off the 2010 Conference the afternoon of Thursday, October 21^st. And, AFF will pick up the tab.

Producers Badges are only $525 until midnight on May 31^st, and then $585 through September 28^th. After that, they go up to $650. With a Producers Badge, you gain access to parties, networking events, all four days of Conference panels and you’ll be the first in line for 200+ movies during the eight days of Festival screenings.

If you have already purchased your Producers Badge, you will still be entered in the drawing.

In case you need a little more incentive to buy your Badge early, here’s a look at some of the already confirmed panelists for this year’s Conference:

JON LUCAS & SCOTT MOORE: “The Hangover,” “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past”

CRAIG MAZIN: screenwriter “The Hangover 2,” “Scary Movie 4,” “Scary Movie 3”

ASHLEY BRUCKS: Paramount Pictures

MARY COLEMAN: Pixar Animation Studios

JOHN AUGUST: screenwriter “Corpse Bride,” “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” “Big Fish,” “Charlie’s Angels”

SHANE BLACK: screenwriter/director “Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang,” screenwriter “Lethal Weapon,” “The Long Kiss Goodnight,” “The Last Boyscout”

MICHAEL BRANDT & DEREK HAAS: screenwriters “Wanted,” “3:10 to Yuma,” “2 Fast 2 Furious;” Haas is also the author of The Silver Bear and Columbus

JEFF GORIN: William Morris Endeavor Entertainment

REBECCA EWIGN: United Talent Agency

MAGGIE MALONE: Disney Animation Studios

PETER HEDGES: screenwriter “About a Boy,” “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape,” writer/director “Pieces of April”

PETER MURRIETA: showrunner “Wizards of Waverly Place,” “Hope and Faith”

Also, please note that there will be a home football game the weekend of the Conference. And, well, this being Texas, we strongly advise booking your hotel sooner rather than later. To take advantage of the substantial discounts AFF offers at surrounding area hotels, reservations must be booked through our office and you must be registered in advance. To make a reservation, please call 1-800-310-FEST (3378).

To buy your Badge or for more information on the Festival and Conference, go to www.austinfilmfestival.com/.

ABOUT AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL
The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. The AFF champions the work of aspiring and established writers and filmmakers by providing unique cultural events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging dynamic and long-lasting community partnerships. www.austinfilmfestival.com/.

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

2009 Audience Award Winners (PDF)

2009 Screenplay Winners (PDF)

2009 Film Competition Winners (PDF)

2009 Opening and Closing Night Films (PDF)

2009 AFF Film Highlights

AUSTIN, TX— August 18, 2009 — Academy Award®-winning screenwriter, director and producer Steven Zaillian will be presented with the Distinguished Screenwriter Award at the 16th Annual Austin Film Festival & Conference, October 22-29, 2009. Steven Zaillian will be presented with the award during the Awards Luncheon on Saturday, October 24th, at the Austin Club. The Awards Luncheon is funded by AKR Foundation. In addition, Zaillian will be a featured speaker during the Festival’s four-day Conference, October 22-25, 2009.

“Starting with our inaugural Distinguished Screenwriter Award recipient, Pulitzer Prize and Oscar®-winning screenwriter Horton Foote, the Austin Film Festival annually celebrates a screenwriter for their body of work and contributions to furthering the art of screenwriting,” said Austin Film Festival Executive Director and Co-Founder Barbara Morgan. “Steven’s work is revered and respected by so many screenwriters. We are delighted that he will be joining us this October.”

Steven Zaillian received an Academy Award® for his screenplay for Schindler’s List. His work on the film was also honored with a Writers Guild Award, the British Academy’s BAFTA Award and the Humanitas Prize.

His other screenplays include the Academy Award®-nominated Awakenings, The Falcon and the Snowman, Jack the Bear and American Gangster. He co-wrote Clear and Present Danger, The Interpreter and the Academy Award®-nominated Gangs of New York. He also wrote and directed Searching for Bobby Fischer, Writers Guild Award-nominated A Civil Action and All the King’s Men.

Previous Distinguished Screenwriter Award recipients were John Milius, Shane Black, Harold Ramis, Barry Levinson, Frank Pierson, Richard LaGravanese, Lawrence Kasdan, Buck Henry, Robert Altman, William Wittliff, Paul Schrader, Paul Mazursky and Horton Foote.

Also at the Austin Film Festival this year, Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Ron Howard will accept the Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award. Mitchell Hurwitz, Emmy Award®-winning creator of “Arrested Development” will accept the Outstanding Television Writer Award.

This year’s Austin Film Festival and Conference will host over 140 exciting premiere film screenings and events, and produce over 80 panels and roundtable discussions focusing on the art and commerce of film and television writing and production. The AFF and Conference provides registrants unparalleled access to the best writers and filmmakers in the industry.

Recent confirmed screenwriter and filmmaker panelists include William Broyles, Jr. (writer Flags of Our Fathers, Cast Away, Apollo 13), Damon Lindelof (co-creator “Lost”), Kirsten Smith (writer The Ugly Truth, Legally Blonde), Matthew Weiner (creator “Mad Men”), David Hayter (Watchmen, X2, X-Men), Melissa Rosenberg (Twilight, New Moon, and Breaking Dawn), Paul Feig (creator “Freaks and Geeks”), Michael Green (creator “Kings”, writer The Green Lantern ‘10, “Heroes”), and Peter Hedges (writer About a Boy, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape.)

The Conference will also include representatives from Paramount Pictures, ABC Studios, Dreamworks, Josephson Entertainment, Disney Animation Studios, Kurtzman/Orci, 20th Century Fox and many more.

For a complete list of panelists and events, for more information, click here or call 800-310-3378.

Conference badges and film passes are on sale now and can be purchased here or by phone.

About Austin Film Festival

The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. The AFF champions the work of aspiring and established writers and filmmakers by providing unique cultural events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging dynamic and long-lasting community partnerships. www.austinfilmfestival.com/

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences®, Continental Airlines, Clear Channel Radio, KVUE, Target®, and AKR Foundation.

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For more information, please contact:
Elaine Garza
Giant Noise
512.382.9017 o
917.693.7064 c
elaine@giantnoise.com

With great regret we announce the unexpected passing of Blake Snyder, bestselling author of Save the Cat!® The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need and Save the Cat!® Goes to the Movies: The Screenwriter’s Guide to Every Story Ever Told. His third book, Save the Cat!® Strikes Back: More Trouble for Screenwriters to Get Into… And Out Of, is scheduled for publication in Fall 2009. In his 20-year career as a screenwriter and producer, Blake Snyder sold dozens of scripts, including co-writing Blank Check, and Nuclear Family for Steven Spielberg — both million-dollar sales.

Blake was a dear friend of the screenwriting community and he will continue to inspire and teach writers through his books.  His enthusiasm for teaching and love of film will be greatly missed.

7th Annual Film and Food Gala (PDF)

Producer, director and actor Ron Howard is one of this generation’s most popular directors.  From the critically acclaimed dramas A Beautiful Mind and Apollo 13 to the hit comedies Parenthood and Splash, he has created some of Hollywood’s most memorable films.  Howard directed and produced Cinderella Man starring Oscar® winner Russell Crowe, with whom he previously collaborated with on A Beautiful Mind, for which Howard earned an Oscar® for Best Director and which also won awards for Best Picture, Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress.  The film garnered four Golden Globes as well, including the award for Best Motion Picture Drama.  Additionally, Howard won Best Director of the Year from the Directors Guild of America (DGA).  Howard and producer Brian Grazer received the first annual Awareness Award from the National Mental Health Awareness Campaign for their work on the film.

Howard’s skill as a director has long been recognized, starting in 1978 with his directorial debut of the comedy Grand Theft Auto.  In 1995, he received his first Best Director of the Year award from the DGA for Apollo 13.  The true-life drama also garnered nine Academy Award® nominations, winning Oscars® for Best Film Editing and Best Sound.  It also received Best Ensemble Cast and Best Supporting Actor Awards from the Screen Actor’s Guild.  Many of Howard’s past films have received nods from the Academy, including the popular hits Backdraft, Parenthood and Cocoon, the last of which took home two Oscars®.  Howard was honored by the Museum of Moving Images in December 2005, and by the American Cinema Editors in February 2006.  On January 24th, Howard, along with his partner Brian Grazer, was honored with the Milestone Award by the Producers Guild of America (PGA).

Howard’s latest film was his adaptation of Dan Brown’s best-selling novel Angels & Demons, starring Oscar® winner Tom Hanks. The film is a follow up to his internationally successful film The Da Vinci Code, also starring Tom Hanks.

Howard also produced and directed the film adaptation of Peter Morgan’s critically acclaimed play Frost / Nixon. The film, which was released in December 2009, was nominated for 5 Academy Awards® including Best Picture, and was also nominated for The Darryl F. Zanuck Producer of the Year Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures by the PGA.

Howard’s portfolio includes some of the most popular films of the past 20 years. In 1991, Howard created the acclaimed drama Backdraft, starring Robert De Niro, Kurt Russell and William Baldwin.  He followed it with the historical epic Far and Away, starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman.  Howard directed Mel Gibson, Rene Russo, Gary Sinise and Delroy Lindo in the 1996 suspense thriller Ransom.  Howard worked with Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Ed Harris, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise and Kathleen Quinlan on Apollo 13, which was re-released recently in the IMAX format.  Howard’s other films include the blockbuster Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas, starring Jim Carrey; Parenthood, starring Steve Martin; the fantasy epic Willow; and Night Shift, starring Henry Winkler, Michael Keaton and Shelley Long; and the suspenseful western, The Missing, starring Oscar® winners Cate Blanchett and Tommy Lee Jones.

Howard has also served as an executive producer on a number of award-winning films and television shows, such as the HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon, and Fox’s Emmy Award winner for Best Comedy, “Arrested Development,” for which he narrated. He is also producing the upcoming television series “Parenthood,” based on the comedy he directed.

Howard and long-time producing partner Brian Grazer first collaborated on the hit comedies Night Shift and Splash.  The pair co-founded Imagine Entertainment in 1986 to create independently produced feature films.  The company has since produced a variety of popular feature films, including such hits as American Gangster, Friday Night Lights, The Nutty Professor, The Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, Bowfinger, The Paper and Liar, Liar. Howard and Grazer produced the recently released drama Changeling, directed by Clint Eastwood and staring Angelina Jolie.

He began his career in film as an actor.  He first appeared in The Journey and The Music Man, then as Opie on the long-running television series “The Andy Griffith Show.”  Howard later starred in the popular series “Happy Days” and drew favorable reviews for his performances in American Graffiti and The Shootist.

Previous Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award recipients are Danny Boyle, Oliver Stone and Sydney Pollack.

CLICK HERE for the full press release and headshot.

AUSTIN, TX— July 14, 2009 — Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Ron Howard will be presented with the Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award at the 16th Annual Austin Film Festival & Conference, October 22-29, 2009. Ron Howard will be presented with the Award during the Awards Luncheon on Saturday, October 24th, at the Austin Club. In addition, Howard will be a featured speaker during the Festival’s four-day Conference, October 22-25, 2009.

Producer, director and actor Ron Howard is one of this generation’s most popular directors. From the critically acclaimed dramas A Beautiful Mind and Apollo 13 to the hit comedies Parenthood and Splash, he has created some of Hollywood’s most memorable films. Howard directed and produced Cinderella Man starring Oscar® winner Russell Crowe, with whom he previously collaborated with on A Beautiful Mind, for which Howard earned an Oscar® for Best Director and which also won awards for Best Picture, Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress. The film garnered four Golden Globes as well, including the award for Best Motion Picture Drama. Additionally, Howard won Best Director of the Year from the Directors Guild of America (DGA). Howard and producer Brian Grazer received the first annual Awareness Award from the National Mental Health Awareness Campaign for their work on the film.

Howard’s skill as a director has long been recognized, starting in 1978 with his directorial debut of the comedy Grand Theft Auto. In 1995, he received his first Best Director of the Year award from the DGA for Apollo 13. The true-life drama also garnered nine Academy Award® nominations, winning Oscars® for Best Film Editing and Best Sound. It also received Best Ensemble Cast and Best Supporting Actor Awards from the Screen Actor’s Guild. Many of Howard’s past films have received nods from the Academy, including the popular hits Backdraft, Parenthood and Cocoon, the last of which took home two Oscars®. Howard was honored by the Museum of Moving Images in December 2005, and by the American Cinema Editors in February 2006. On January 24th, Howard, along with his partner Brian Grazer, was honored with the Milestone Award by the Producers Guild of America (PGA).

Howard’s latest film was his adaptation of Dan Brown’s best-selling novel Angels & Demons, starring Oscar® winner Tom Hanks. The film is a follow up to his internationally successful film The Da Vinci Code, also starring Tom Hanks.

Howard also produced and directed the film adaptation of Peter Morgan’s critically acclaimed play Frost / Nixon. The film, which was released in December 2009, was nominated for 5 Academy Awards® including Best Picture, and was also nominated for The Darryl F. Zanuck Producer of the Year Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures by the PGA.

Howard’s portfolio includes some of the most popular films of the past 20 years. In 1991, Howard created the acclaimed drama Backdraft, starring Robert De Niro, Kurt Russell and William Baldwin. He followed it with the historical epic Far and Away, starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. Howard directed Mel Gibson, Rene Russo, Gary Sinise and Delroy Lindo in the 1996 suspense thriller Ransom. Howard worked with Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Ed Harris, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise and Kathleen Quinlan on Apollo 13, which was re-released recently in the IMAX format. Howard’s other films include the blockbuster Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas, starring Jim Carrey; Parenthood, starring Steve Martin; the fantasy epic Willow; and Night Shift, starring Henry Winkler, Michael Keaton and Shelley Long; and the suspenseful western, The Missing, starring Oscar® winners Cate Blanchett and Tommy Lee Jones.

Howard has also served as an executive producer on a number of award-winning films and television shows, such as the HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon, and Fox’s Emmy Award winner for Best Comedy, “Arrested Development,” for which he narrated. He is also producing the upcoming television series “Parenthood,” based on the comedy he directed.

Howard and long-time producing partner Brian Grazer first collaborated on the hit comedies Night Shift and Splash. The pair co-founded Imagine Entertainment in 1986 to create independently produced feature films. The company has since produced a variety of popular feature films, including such hits as American Gangster, Friday Night Lights, The Nutty Professor, The Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, Bowfinger, The Paper and Liar, Liar. Howard and Grazer produced the recently released drama Changeling, directed by Clint Eastwood and staring Angelina Jolie.

He began his career in film as an actor. He first appeared in The Journey and The Music Man, then as Opie on the long-running television series “The Andy Griffith Show.” Howard later starred in the popular series “Happy Days” and drew favorable reviews for his performances in American Graffiti and The Shootist.

Previous Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award recipients are Danny Boyle, Oliver Stone and Sydney Pollack.

This year’s Austin Film Festival and Conference will host over 140 exciting premiere film screenings and events, and produce over 80 panels and roundtable discussions focusing on the art and commerce of film and television writing and production. The AFF and Conference provides registrants unparalleled access to the best writers and filmmakers in the industry.

“Arrested Development” creator Mitchell Hurwitz will accept the 2009 Outstanding Television Writer Award. Recent confirmed screenwriter and filmmaker panelists include Lawrence Kasdan (writer/director The Accidental Tourist, Body Heat, The Big Chill), Damon Lindelof (co-creator “Lost”), Richard Linklater (writer/director Dazed and Confused, Before Sunset), Doug Ellin (creator “Entourage”), David Hayter (Watchmen, X2, X-Men), Gina Prince-Bythewood (writer/director The Secret Life of Bees), and Melissa Rosenberg (Twilight, New Moon, and Breaking Dawn.) The Conference will also include representatives from Paramount Pictures, ABC Studios, Dreamworks, Josephson Entertainment, Disney Animation Studios, Kurtzman/Orci, 20th Century Fox and many more.

For a complete list of panelists and events, for more information, go to www.austinfilmfestival.com/ or call 512-478-4795 or 800-310-3378. Conference Badges and Film Passes are on sale now and can be purchased on-line or by phone.

About Austin Film Festival
The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. The AFF champions the work of aspiring and established writers and filmmakers by providing unique cultural events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging dynamic and long-lasting community partnerships. www.austinfilmfestival.com/

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences®, Continental Airlines, Clear Channel Radio, KVUE, and Target®.

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For more information, please contact:

Maya Perez
Conference Director
Austin Film Festival
512-478-4795
maya@austinfilmfestival.com

“Arrested Development” Creator Heads Up Stellar List of Television Show Creators at 16th Annual Screenwriters Conference

AUSTIN, Texas — July 6, 2009 — The Austin Film Festival (AFF) proudly announces that “Arrested Development” creator Mitchell Hurwitz will accept the 2009 Outstanding Television Writer Award during the Festival’s annual Awards Luncheon on Saturday, October 24th. In addition to claiming the honor, Hurwitz will speak on panels during the Festival’s 16th Annual Screenwriters Conference, October 22-25, 2009.

Hurwitz is a television writer and producer, best known as the creator of the television sitcom, “Arrested Development,” which earned numerous Emmy Awards.  Prior to that he created “Everything’s Relative,” where he worked with Jeffrey Tambor and also co-created “The Ellen Show.”  Currently Hurwitz is partnered with Eric and Kim Tannenbaum running a television production company called Tantamount Studios – where he’s writing a project for Will Arnett, and another for Jason Biggs.  He also neither denies, nor confirms, the reality of an Arrested Development feature.

The Festival annually recognizes outstanding filmmakers and screenwriters for their accomplished bodies of work and contributions towards furthering the art and craft of filmmaking.  Previous recipients of the Outstanding Television Writer Award include Greg Daniels (“The Office”), David Milch (“Deadwood”), Garry Shandling (“The Larry Sanders Show”), David Chase (“The Sopranos”), Tom Fontana (“Oz”), Darren Star (“Sex and the City”), and Mike Judge (“King of the Hill”), among others.

Hurwitz will be joining a powerful group of television show creators confirmed to speak at the 2009 Conference that includes Matthew Weiner (“Mad Men”), Doug Ellin (“Entourage”), Damon Lindelof (co-creator “Lost”), Michael Green (“Kings”), Paul Feig (“Freaks and Geeks”), and Mike White (“Pasadena”).  Anyone else see a Brilliant but Cancelled panel in the works?

Since 1994, the AFF has been dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers while recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. AFF prides itself on bringing great movies from independent writers and directors to Austin, Texas. Both Diablo Cody and Jason Reitman (writer and director, respectively) of the break-out film Juno attended the Festival in 2007. Danny Boyle was named the 2008 Extraordinary Contribution to Filmmaking Award recipient by AFF and attended the Festival, where he screened critically-acclaimed Slumdog Millionaire.

The AFF’s Screenwriters Conference offers over 65 panels, craft sessions and roundtable discussions led by more than 100 industry professionals. Focusing on the art and commerce of film and television writing and production, it provides registrants unparalleled access to the best writers in the field.  Past participants include John Milius (Apocalypse Now), Sydney Pollack (Tootsie), Harold Ramis (Groundhog Day), Barry Levinson (Diner), Robert Altman (Nashville), Susannah Grant (Erin Brockovich), Wes Anderson & Owen Wilson (Rushmore), Joel & Ethan Coen (Fargo), Russell Crowe (Gladiator), Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio (Shrek), Bryan Singer (X-Men), Oliver Stone (Platoon), and Chris & Paul Weitz (About a Boy).

Already confirmed screenwriter speakers, schedules permitting, for the 2009 Screenwriters Conference include:

•    Jessica Bendinger (writer/director Stick It, writer Aquamarine, Bring It On)
•    Shane Black (writer/director Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, writer Lethal Weapon, The Long Kiss Goodnight, The Last Boyscout)
•    Billy Brown (writer The Haunting Hour, John Carpenter’s Body Bags, “Night Visions”, “Goosebumps”)
•    Jim Dauterive (writer “King of the Hill”, “Monsignor Martinez”)
•    Doug Ellin (creator/writer “Entourage”)
•    Paul Feig (creator/writer “Freaks and Geeks”, writer/director I Am David, writer/director Unaccompanied Minors, director “The Office”, “Mad Men”, “30 Rock”, and “Weeds”)
•    Michael Green (creator/writer “Kings”, writer The Green Lantern ‘10, “Heroes”, “Everwood”, “Smallville”)
•    David Hayter (writer Watchmen, X2, The Scorpion King, X-Men)
•    Pat Hazell (writer “Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman”, “My Life In 3D”, “Showtime’s Aspen Comedy Special”)
•    Lawrence Kasdan (writer/director The Accidental Tourist, Body Heat, The Big Chill, writer Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi)
•    Damon Lindelof (co-creator/writer “Lost”, writer “Crossing Jordan”)
•    Richard Linklater (writer/director Fast Food Nation, A Scanner Darkly, Before Sunset, Waking Life)
•    Chris McQuarrie (writer The Usual Suspects, The Way of the Gun, Valkyrie)
•    Daniel Petrie, Jr. (writer Beverly Hills Cop, The Big Easy, Shoot to Kill, writer/director “Framed”)
•    Gina Prince-Bythewood (writer/director The Secret Life of Bees, Love & Basketball, writer “Felicity”, “A Different World”)
•    Melissa Rosenberg (Twilight, New Moon, and Breaking Dawn, head writer “Dexter”)
•    Danny Rubin (S.F.W., Groundhog Day)
•    Chuck Sklar (“The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn,” “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” “Politically Incorrect,” “The Chris Rock Show”)
•    Kirsten Smith (The House Bunny, Ella Enchanted, Legally Blonde)
•    Matthew Weiner (creator/writer “Mad Men”, writer “The Sopranos”, “Dexter”)
•    Herschel Weingrod (writer Trading Places, Brewster’s Millions, producer Falling Down)
•    Mike White (producer/actor Gentlemen Broncos, writer The School of Rock, The Good Girl, Orange County

For more information about the Austin Film Festival and Conference, purchasing a Badge, and the complete list of confirmed panelists, please call 1-800-310-FEST (3378) or visit the website at www.austinfilmfestival.com/.

About Austin Film Festival

The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. The AFF champions the work of aspiring and established writers and filmmakers by providing unique cultural events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging dynamic and long-lasting community partnerships.  www.austinfilmfestival.com/

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences®, Continental Airlines, Clear Channel Radio, KVUE, and Target®.

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For more information or a jpeg of Mitchell Hurwitz’s headshot, please contact:

Maya Perez
Conference Director
Austin Film Festival
512-478-4795
maya@austinfilmfestival.com

Dark Hero Studios to Judge Austin Film Festival Sci-Fi Competition

Sci-Fi Heavyweights Preside Over Screenplay Competition at Festival Focused on Discovering New Talent

AUSTIN, Texas – May 19, 2009 - Watchmen co-writer David Hayter and producer Benedict Carver’s Dark Hero Studios will judge the 2009 Austin Film Festival (AFF) Sci-Fi Competition. The Sci-Fi Competition is a sub-category of the Screenplay Competition and includes science fiction, horror, supernatural thriller and fantasy genres.  For sixteen years AFF has provided emerging writers with exposure to and dialogue with industry professionals.  As one of the most respected festivals in the country, AFF supports participating writers by providing unique networking opportunities during the Festival and Conference, which will be held Oct. 22-29, 2009.  Screenplay and Teleplay Competition deadlines have been extended to May 22, with a late deadline of June 8, 2009.

“This is a coup for the AFF Screenplay Competition and our entrants,” said Alex McPhail, AFF Screenplay Competition Director. “David Hayter and Benedict Carver are two of the biggest names in Sci-fi and they will lend an enormous amount of expertise to the judging.  Finalists will have bragging rights not just for making it to the finals, but for having had a script read by major industry influencers.”

About Dark Hero Studios

David Hayter and Benedict Carver’s newly formed Dark Hero Studios will produce feature films, television programming, Internet content, graphic novels and videogames.  Hayter is preparing to make his directorial debut on his thriller scriptWolves, which Carver is producing.  Hayter’s previous screenwriting credits include Watchmen, X-Men, X2, and The Scorpion King. Carver has produced Doomsday and Tekken among other films. He previously was senior vice president of acquisitions and co-productions at Screen Gems, and he has also been a film reporter with Daily Variety. Dark Hero Studios’ focus on action, sci-fi and horror genres makes them an ideal partner for judging this year’s AFF Sci-Fi Competition.

About the Austin Film Festival Screenplay Competition

One of the most respected competitions in the country, the AFF Screenplay Competition provides emerging writers the means to expose their work to major players in the entertainment industry.  Past entrants have signed with Artisan Entertainment, Creative Artists Agency, Metropolitan Talent Agency, William Morris Agency, DreamWorks Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, Miramax Films, and other highly respected companies.

The Screenplay Competition has two categories: Drama and Comedy.  Prizes are $5,000 for each category, reimbursement for airfare (up to $500) and hotel (up to $500) for attendance to the Festival, and the bronze AFF Typewriter Award.  The Competition also features two sub-categories with prizes of their own: the Sci-Fi Award (science fiction, horror, supernatural thriller, fantasy, etc.) and the Latitude Productions Award (open to adult character driven drama or comedy scripts with an estimated budget of $10 million dollars or less).  In order to be considered for these prizes, a script must be entered in either the Drama or Comedy Screenplay categories.  The prizes for these are $2,500 each, reimbursement for airfare (up to $500) and hotel (up to $500) for attendance to the Festival, and the bronze AFF Typewriter Award.

The Teleplay Competition is open to any spec script from a currently airing network or cable TV show.  The two categories are Drama and Comedy, and the prizes are $1,000 each, reimbursement for airfare (up to $500) and hotel (up to $500) for attendance to the festival, and the bronze AFF Typewriter Award.

The extended early Screenplay Competition deadline is May 22 with a $40 entry fee, and the extended late deadline is June 8 with a $50 entry fee.  The Sci-Fi Competition and Latitude Competition entry fees are an additional $20 each.  The extended Teleplay deadline is June 8 and the entry fee is $30.

The AFF Film Competition continues to encourage and advocate the work for new and talented filmmakers.  Categories include: Narrative Feature, Narrative Short, Narrative Student Short, Animated Short, Documentary Feature, and Documentary Short.  The film competition has an early postmark deadline of June 3 ($45) and a late deadline of July 3 ($50).

Winners of the competitions will be announced in Austin at the Annual Awards Luncheon on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009 at The Austin Club.

For additional information on the 16th Annual Austin Film Festival and the Screenplay and Teleplay Competition and Film Competition, including entry forms, submission fees and Competition guidelines rules call 1-800-310-FEST (3378) or visit the official website at www.austinfilmfestival.com/.

About Austin Film Festival

The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art, craft and business of writers and filmmakers and recognizing their contributions to film, television and new media. The AFF champions the work of aspiring and established writers and filmmakers by providing unique cultural events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging dynamic and long-lasting community partnerships.  www.austinfilmfestival.com/

The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences®, Continental Airlines, Clear Channel Radio, KVUE, and Target®.

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CONTACTS:

Cile Montgomery
Giant Media
Tel: (512) 478-4795
cmontgomery@giantmediallc.com

Alex McPhail
Screenplay Competition Director
Austin Film Festival
Tel: (512) 478-4795
alex@austinfilmfestival.com

“From Here to Nowhere” Script Reading Invitation (PDF)

Conversations in Film with Shane Black Invitation (PDF)

By John Merriman

As one of the preeminent screenwriting festivals in the country, the Austin Film Festival has built a reputation for screening films demonstrating excellence in writing for the big screen. How then, one might ask, does the documentary format fit into our mission of celebrating the writer? The truth is that although there are many aspects of a documentary film that are out of your control, there are many important decisions that a filmmaker can make to discover and share his story.

Subject Matter

There are no rules about subject matter in the documentary film world, but here are a few guidelines. When selecting your subject matter, originality is important. This does not necessarily mean that you shouldn’t do a documentary about a subject matter that has previously been presented, but it is important to have an original approach. Just because somebody else did a documentary about penguins doesn’t mean that that’s completely out of the question, but you’d better have something new to say.

US / Mexico border policies have certainly been dealt with before, but Landon Van Soest and Jeremy Levine followed a group of anti-immigration vigilantes offering a scathing critique of border policy and a unique and powerful approach to the problem (WALKING THE LINE, AFF SELECTION, 2005).

Editing

The documentary filmmaker is well served to avoid manipulation, but one must still discover the existing story and make intelligent decisions about how to put the pieces together. Pacing and timing affect the way the audience experiences the film. The way you structure your narrative should serve the story. Again, this doesn’t mean that one should always rely on genre standards (e.g., a sports documentary should have fast cuts), but rather to pay attention to the relationship between form and content and make editing decisions accordingly.

MUSKRAT LOVELY (AFF SELECTION, 2005) told the story of a beauty contest and muskrat skinning contest that coexisted on the same stage in a small town and relied upon a slow, steady pace that expertly reflected the dry, absurd tone of the film.

Length

Often times documentary filmmakers fall in love with their footage. Sometimes there’s an amazing camera move or wonderful moment that the filmmaker simply must include. Problems can arise when these moments pile up and a documentary that might have been elegant at ten minutes, becomes repetitive at thirty. Again, the length should serve the story. It is the documentary filmmaker’s responsibility to trim the fat when necessary.

Last year’s RUN TO JAY’S turned the sports doc on its ear, playfully cutting footage of a group of friends as they try to beat each other’s times running to a convenience store and back to pick up a soda. At a quick 15 minutes, it was a lean excercise in restraint.

The fact of the matter is that the documentary filmmaker, though not a writer per se, tells her story using the grammar of film to create a narrative. I have touched on a few points here, but there are countless other times where the filmmaker makes choices. Where should I place the camera, how should I cover the scene? When should I show up and when should I leave. These are decisions that have a great deal of impact on the story and for me give creedence to the idea of documentarian as an author. Though not scripting dialogue or determining the outcome of the story, the documentary filmmaker makes choices that serve the story and craft the narrative.

Austin Film Festival held the inaugural Writers Ranch for three select writers – 2005 Screenplay Competition Semifinalists Terry Parmer (The White Caterpillar) and Benjamin Lee (Mindreader), and Finalist Jeremy Wadzinski (Ruby Blue) – this past February. All of the 2005 Screenplay Competition Finalists and Semifinalists were invited to apply to this program at no cost to them and the winners were selected after a lengthy decision-making process involving our Writers Ranch Committee made up of several producers and agents.

Terry, Ben and Jeremy arrived in Austin on February 19, 2006, for an intensive week of reworking each of their scripts. Gregg Rounds and Donna Holliday generously provided accommodations at their beautiful private ranch in Sisterdale, just outside of Austin, TX.

The first three days were spent with writer James V. Hart (Hook, Dracula, and upcoming Atlas Shrugged and Cat’s Cradle). Jim helped each writer to better develop their characters and plots by asking them to defend and define them- who they are, what they want, what their obstacles are, etc. Using his “Hart Chart”, Jim and the writers diagrammed each screenplay on an EKG-like chart, illustrating the lifelines for their main and secondary characters to better develop their characters’ development and plot lines.

The last three days were spent with Reeva Hunter Mandelbaum, VP of Story Research for John Wells Productions (“The West Wing”, “Third Watch”, White Oleander, One Hour Photo). Reeva gave a general overview of how a story becomes a produced film. One-on-one, she went over each script with the respective writer, stressing the importance of extensive research to ensure the audience’s belief in their stories. On the final day, she coached each writer through the pitching process, conducting mock pitch meetings and providing them with feedback.

On the final evening, a group dinner was arranged for the writers with special guests screenwriters Jim Dauterive (“King of the Hill”), Anne Rapp (Cookie’s Fortune, Dr. T & the Women), and filmmakers Alex Smith (The Slaughter Rule) and Andrew Shea (The Corndog Man).

Ben, Jeremy and Terry are currently rewriting their scripts in preparation for the second week of the Writers Ranch in LA to take place in May. During the second week, the writers will meet with agents, producers, studio/production company executives and managers, set up for them by the Austin Film Festival. In these meetings, the writers will have the opportunity to “pitch” their screenplays and get a first-hand feel for working the industry circuit. The goal of this second session of the Writers Ranch is to provide the writers with the best possible environment in which to establish industry contacts and network and pitch their scripts.

You can read journal entries from each of the participants here:

Terry Parmer’s Journal

Benjamin Lee’s Journal

Jeremy Wadzinski’s Journal

See more photos from the Writers Ranch here.

Preparations for the 2007 Writers Ranch have begun. This year’s committee will consider Second Round, Semifinalists and Finalists scripts from the 2006 Screenplay Competition for invitation to apply to the Writers Ranch. If you have any questions regarding this program, please email.