2013 Phoenix Film Festival Screenplay Contest

Congratulations to the winners and finalists for the 2013 Phoenix Film Festival Screenplay Contest Winners. Below is a list of this year's winners.

First Place: $300 Cash, a prize pack and listing on Phoenix Film Festival website, two VIP Passes to the 2013 Phoenix Film Festival (accommodation and air fare not included).

Second Place: A prize pack, listing on Phoenix Film Festival website, two VIP Passes to the 2013 Phoenix Film Festival (accommodations and air fare not included).

Third Place: A prize pack, listing on the Phoenix Film Festival website, a VIP Pass to the 2013 Phoenix Film Festival (accommodations and air fare not included).

Ten Finalists: Ten Finalists to be posted on the Phoenix Film Festival website.

 

2013 Phoenix Film Festival Screenplay Search

 

Results

1st Place          Daddy’s Girl                              Lee Olivas

2nd Place         This Modern Man is Beat   David Schroeder

3rd Place          Eleven Eleven                        Chris Redish

 

Remaining Top 10 in alphabetical order by title:

 

Baby on Board                        Steven Laflamme

Marriagehood                         John Harris

Peculiar Taste                         Philip Sedgwick

The Sidekick Rules                 Chris Warner

Sidewalker Surfer                   Pamela Ryan-Hick

Something Incredible           Megan Breen

The Taking of the King          Nelson Blish

 

Passes to the 2013 Phoenix Film Festival on sale now

2013 Poster GothicPasses for the 2013 Phoenix Film Festival are now on sale. There are so many ways to enjoy this year's festival from individual tickets all the way up to the VIP Passes. This year we'll have over 140 screenings of new films including features and shorts. For more information on purchasing passes, click here
Many films have already been announced and scheduled. You can start planning your festival itinerary by visiting our films page here
And to get all of the inside information on festival happenings, be sure to Like us on Facebook

Opening Night Event - Celebrate the Art of Food and see The Spectacular Now

The Opening Night Event features a cocktail party with a dozen restaurants participating, a screening of the Opening Night Movie and presentation of the Visionary Award.

Tickets are $60 and can be purchased here . Ticket price includes food, drink, entertainment and the film.

 

Opening Night Cocktail Party in The Arizona Republic Party Pavilion

Thursday, April 4th at 5:00pm

 

The 2013 Phoenix Film Festival kicks off in style with the Opening Night Cocktail Party where we’ll be celebrating the art of food. We’ve got a dozen restaurants on board to satisfy your appetite and sweet tooth.

 

In addition to food, entertainment will be provided by Colton Avery. You can find out more about Colton at facebook.com/pages/colton-avery

 

The Opening Night Event is also a fundraiser for the non-profit Phoenix Film Foundation which operates the Phoenix Film Festival and other film organizations. This is your opportunity to help support their student education programs through the silent auction and raffle.

 

Restaurants participating include: America's Taco Shop, Carlos O'Briens, Grimaldi's, Kiki's Custom Cupcakes, Outback Steakhouse, Postino, Roy's, Short Leash Hot Dogs, Sprinkles, TK's Tavern, Tommy Bahama and Whole Foods,

 

Then at starting at 7:00, we'll head over to the theatre for a screening of the Opening Night Film with director James Ponsoldt in attendance for a post-screening Q&A.

The Spectacular NowThe Spectacular Now

Directed by James Ponsoldt

Run Time: 1 hour 40 minutes

Cast:

Shailene Woodley, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Miles Teller

Synopsis:

Sutter Keely lives in the now. It's a good place for him. A high school senior, charming and self-possessed, he's the life of the party, loves his job at a men's clothing store, and has no plans for the future. A budding alcoholic, he's never far from his supersized, whiskey-fortified thirst-master cup. But after being dumped by his girlfriend, Sutter gets drunk and wakes up on a lawn with Aimee Finicky hovering over him. She's different: the "nice girl" who reads science fiction and doesn't have a boyfriend. While Amy has dreams of a future, Sutter lives in the impressive delusion of a spectacular now, yet somehow, they're drawn together.

 

Celebrity Guests

Every year at the Phoenix Film Festival, we invite celebrity guest to help us celebrate the art of film. 2013 will be no different. This year we have several guests on tap to help us make 2013 special. They include D. B. Sweeney, Natalie Imbruglia, Melora Walters and Teller.  

 

Hardball PremiereD. B. Sweeney

D.B’s big break came in Francis Ford Coppola’s Gardens of Stone where he played a gung-ho Vietnam enlistee alongside screen legends James Caan, Anjelica Huston, and James Earl Jones.  Sweeney subsequently made a big impression in the classic romantic comedy The Cutting Edge as Doug Dorsey, a tough hockey player who turns to figure skating after an eye injury.  Perhaps his most memorable role was Shoeless Joe Jackson in Eight Men Out, costarring John Cusack, David Staitharn, and Charlie Sheen. Sweeney also starred in World War II thriller Memphis Belle alongside Mathew Modine and Eric Stoltz in the B17 bomber crew on their final dangerous mission into Germany and alongside the great Peter Falk in Roomates.  Some of his many other films include Hear No Evil, Spawn, and No Man’s Land.  Sweeney recently made his debut as a screenwriter, director, and producer with Two Tickets to Paradise. A founding board member of Los Angeles’ celebrated Blank Theatre who has appeared in over forty plays on Broadway and around the country, D.B. enjoys returning frequently to the theatre.

 

Natalie ImbrugliaNatalie Imbruglia

Triple threat Natalie Imbruglia was born in Sydney, Australia and grew up in a small beach town. At 17, the actress/singer/songwriter was catapulted into the public¹s consciousness when she appeared as Beth Brennan on the hit Aussie TV series “Neighbours,” a role she would inhabit for two years (1992-1994). Imbruglia followed her small screen success with a move to London where her music career flourished. Quickly becoming an anthem of the time, “Torn” - Imbruglia¹s first single - was released in 1997 and broke air play records across the globe. Four studio albums followed with Imbruglia selling over nine million albums worldwide to date. Throughout her musical success, Imbruglia¹s passion for acting never waned. In 2003 she appeared onscreen in the British spy spoof “Johnny English,” and she starred in the critically acclaimed 2009 drama “Closed for Winter.” Of her performance in the film, Variety wrote: “Believably expressing what it must be like to live with ungovernable sorrow, the actress proves to have much more than just a face the camera adores.” A global ambassador for charity organization Virgin Unite, Imbruglia splits her time between London and Los Angeles. 

 

Melora WaltersMelora Walters

 MELORA WALTERS was born in Saudi Arabia. She grew up there, as well as in Holland. She is a graduate of Pratt Institute in New York City. Melora is also an actress. She has collaborated with such filmmakers as Paul Thomas Anderson, Taylor Hackford, John McNaughton, and Anthony Minghella to create memorable characters and performances. She most recently starred in HBO’s critically acclaimed series Big Love and this year she was seen in the independent features Case 219 and Missing Pieces as well as on Showtime’s Californication. Her upcoming credits include the independents Lonely Boy, Underdogs and Short Term 12.  She has studied writing with Kim Calder and Chiwan Choi. Last year, Finishing Line Press published her first book of poetry Sonnets and Failures with some of her wood block prints.

On June 21, 2011 Writ Large Press published her two books entitled In the Painting Heraclitus Wrings His Hands Above the World and Appears to be Crying and The Siren. In July Launch LA presented a show that included the original art shown in the books, Lying Chicken Man and the Muse. The Lying Chicken Man series of paintings will accompany her next book, The Man and the Woman.

She lives in Los Angeles with her two children, Tom and Joanna.

TellerTeller

Teller has been the smaller, quieter half of renowned magic duo Penn & Teller since 1975.

An Emmy, Writers Guild Award, Obie and Drama Critics Circle winner, Teller with partner Penn Jillette, has enjoyed successful runs on Broadway, sold-out world tours and is the current longest-running headline act in Las Vegas.

In 2008, Teller conceived and co-directed a bloody, supernatural thriller-inspired stage version of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth,” that toured the East Coast to raves from the New York Times and Wall Street Journal. In 2010 he co-wrote and directed the critically acclaimed Off-Broadway hit “Play Dead.” Conceived as an ode to the classic midnight spook shows of the mid-20th Century, he again received raves from the New York Times and Wall Street Journal and earned a Drama Desk nomination for “Unique Theatrical Experience.” A filmed version of the play is currently screening on the horror film festival circuit to great acclaim.

 

Most recently, he consulted on the magic and effects for Los Angeles’ Geffen Playhouse production of “The Exorcist.”  Teller has starred in his own television series and specials, has written five books and has a prolific career as a magic consultant for live theater, television and films.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Closing Night Movie - Stuck in Love

  Closing out the 2013 Phoenix Film Festival will be Stuck in Love on Thursday, April 11th.  It's one last chance to experience the festival and you won't want to miss it.

Click here to purchase tickets

 

stuck in loveStuck in Love

Directed by Josh Boone

Cast:

Greg Kinnear, Jennifer Connelly, Kristen Bell, Lily Collins, Logan Lerman

Screening Time:

Thursday, April 11 at 7:30 pm

 

Synopsis:

Greg Kinnear, Jennifer Connelly, Lily Collins, Kristen Bell and Logan Lerman star in this touching comedy-drama about a successful novelist whose obsession with his ex-wife has sent his perplexed family into a tailspin.

The first round of films announced for the 2013 Phoenix Film Festival

The 2013 Phoenix Film Festival has announced its films scheduled to be included in this Festival’s film lineup. The lineup features some of the brightest new talent the industry has to offer.  See some highlighted titles below but see more by clicking here

LOS WILD ONES, the Wild Records Documentary directed by Elise Salomon making its debut at SXSW, who produced the 2009 hit PAPER HEART.

 

UPRISING, directed by Fredrik Stanton, which tells the inside story of the Egyptian revolution from the perspective of its principal leaders and organizers, including four Nobel Peace Prize nominees.

 

WAKING, directed by Ben Shelton, about an engaged man on the verge of success, who meets a beautiful woman who he can connect with in his dreams.

 

THE STORY OF LUKE, directed by Alonso Mayo, a comedy about Luke, a young man with autism who is on a quest for a job and a girlfriend.

 

THE RETRIEVAL, the Civil War era film, directed by Chris Eska, about a boy is sent north by a bounty hunter gang to retrieve a wanted man, which will also be debuting at SWSW.

 

PUTZEL, directed by Jason Chaet, which is about a young man named Walter Himmelstein endearingly known as Putzel, whose life literally doesn’t go beyond his family’s fish store and his community on the upper west side of Manhattan.

 

LONELY BOY, directed by Dale Fabrigar, about the romantic misadventures of a schizophrenic bachelor.

 

FAVOR, directed by Paul Osborne, a film about true friends and the things they do for each other, which will be having its World Premiere at the Festival.

 

DOWN AND DANGEROUS, directed by Zak Forsman, an action crime thriller, also having its World Premiere at the Festival.

 

MUSIC CITY USA, directed by Chris McDaniel, which is a documentary about Nashville, and is also having its World Premiere at the Festival.

 

The full synopsis and trailer of each film is now available at the Phoenix Film Festival’s website. “We're very excited about how this year's lineup is shaping up,” says Jason Carney, Executive Director of the Phoenix Film Foundation. “Having three world premieres is a great start and we're excited about other potential films joining our lineup."

The 13th Annual Phoenix Film Festival occurs this year from Thursday, April 4th to Thursday, April 11th. Continually breaking attendance records since its inception, last year’s festival saw over 23,000 attendees and there are hopes to pull in even more film enthusiasts this year.  The week-long Festival will be held once again at Harkins Scottsdale 101 Theaters located at 7000 E. Mayo Blvd. Phoenix, AZ 85054.

Who will win the 2013 awards? Here's who won last year.

Every year on Sunday night of the festival, awards are handed out for the competition features and shorts. The winners of the film awards are determined by members of the Phoenix Film Critics Society. With films now announced, we can start speculating on who is going to be this year's winners. Here's a look back at last year.  

The 2012 Phoenix Film Festival Award Winners:

International Horror and Sci-Fi Film Fest Awards

Best Sci-Fi  Short Film - Secret Identity Best Sci-Fi Feature Film - Pig Best Horror Short Film - Brutal Relax Best Horror Feature Film - It’s In The Blood

Short Film Awards

Best Grade/HS Short Film - Trolley Best College Short Film - The Life Smugglers Best Arizona Short Film - Parallax Best Documentary Short Film - Sacred Poison Best Live Action Short Film - Play By Play Best Animated Short Film - Masks

World Cinema Awards

World Cinema Short Film - La Media Pena World Cinema Documentary - Wolves Unleashed World Cinema Director - Ruggero Dipaola, Apartment in Athens World Cinema Best Picture - Apartment in Athens World Cinema Audience Award Winner - Lidice

Foundation Awards

Arizona Filmmaker of the Year - Diane Dresback Volunteer of the Year - Tiffany Hutson Board Member of the Year - Lori AlderferFeature

Film Awards

Dan Harkins Breakthrough Filmmaker Award - Gary King, How Do You Write A Joe Schermann Song Best Documentary - We Run Sh*t Best Ensemble - Searching for Sonny Best Director - Kurt Kuenne, Shuffle Best Screenwriting - Andrew Disney, Searching for Sonny Cox Audience Award - How Do You Write A Joe Schermann Song Best Picture - Shuffle

Make a tax deductible donation

 

Make a donation for our youth education programs

All donations are tax deductible Now is the time to help support the Phoenix Film Foundation's youth education programs. We are at 75% of our goal and can use your support to help us meet our goal for the 2013 event. Here's a description of the programs and what your support means.

Click here to make a donation online or call 602-955-6444

Kids' Day: Kids' Day is a special event that takes place on Saturday of the Phoenix Film Festival. Kids' Day is geared towards children from ages 5 to 12 and features hands-on film activities. The kids learn how green screens work, special effects are edited, sound effects are created and many other fun film stuff. Then they get to see a family film of their choice.There is no other film festival in the country offering this program to children and this is your chance to support it.

Your donations support handout materials, a USB drive that they get to take home and film programming.

Student Educational Outreach: This program is also unique to the Phoenix Film Festival. Middle school and high school students have the opportunity to participate in four day-long film workshops. The first day, they participate in panel discussions with filmmakers that are attending the film festival from around the world. The filmmakers talk about how they get involved in film and how they've completed their projects. On day two, the students learn about screenwriting. With the help of mentors they create a short film script. Then on day three, the focus is on acting for film with casting directors and professional actors sharing their experiences and the students participating in exercises. On the fourth and final day, the students produce a short film using a script created on the screenplay day. The students will break out into crews and assist in the production.This program has been in existence for nine years and is one of our favorite programs. Your donations assist us in providing guest speakers, creating handouts and having equipment on hand for the students to use.
Arizona Student Film Festival: The Arizona Student Film Festival is a showcase of films exclusively from Arizona students. From students in third grade all the way through college, students have the opportunity to see their work up on the big screen. In addition to short films, students are also given a topic to make a public service announcement about. The films are then screened for the public and awards are handed out.We always look forward to seeing what the next generation of filmmakers are creating. Your donations help support printing materials, the event program and prizes for the winning filmmakers.

Click here to make a donation online or call 602-955-6444