The People of PFF: Deb Hildebrandt!

It's time to learn more about the people who help make the festival happen. Meet Deb Hildebrandt, our Director of Student Programming!

Who are you? 

Deb Hildebrandt

What do you do (for the festival)? 

I’m the Director of Student Programming.  I put together the programs for College Shorts and Grade/High School Shorts.  I’m also responsible for programming the Arizona Student Film Festival.

How did you end up doing that? 

8 years ago I attended a Phoenix Film Society screening and decided I wanted to be involved in the organization.  I’d previously volunteered for Cinequest in San Jose and The New Orleans Film Festival.  I started working with the Volunteer Coordinator in that department, eventually becoming the Volunteer Director.  I was excited to explore other areas of the festival so I spent a few years as a Short Film Programming Director.  Over the years I’ve also enjoyed volunteering with IFP Phoenix and working with the International Horror and Sci-Fi Festival as the Filmmaker Relations Director.

What do you love most about your role? 

I really love movies!  All kinds.  I get to screen a lot of them.  Every year there seems to be a common theme or mood to the films submitted based on what’s happening in the world.  I enjoy the different points of view and it’s exciting to see such original work from talented, new filmmakers.

What's the biggest challenge? 

Putting the programs together can be challenging.  Sometimes we’re spoiled for choice and I’m unable to program a film I’ve really, really enjoyed.  It’s difficult to decline a submission from a talented filmmaker.  I also find it’s crucial to keep very specific notes on the films I see.  The movies may make a strong impression when I see them, but after going through so many submissions, it’s difficult to supply the feedback a filmmaker deserves without strong notes to refer to.

What's the movie you're most excited for this year? 

I’m looking forward to “Paranoia”.  We’re very lucky to have so many talented filmmakers in Phoenix.  Bivas Biswas has been made quite a few short films I’ve really enjoyed.  He was the Arizona Filmmaker of the Year in 2008.  He has a lot of talent and I’ve been looking forward to a feature film. I’m excited to see it screen at the festival!

What are your three favorite movies featuring a primate in a leading role? 

King Kong (1933), King Kong (1976), King Kong (2005)

The People of PFF: Jason Carney!

Happy Saturday! First - an introduction: We'd be lying if we told you we didn't love being Arizona's largest film festival. It gives us the ability to throw a great party every year and show you hundreds of amazing films. We're fortunate to be where we are.

But size and reach aren't everything. We take a lot of pride in the fact that our festival retains a "home-grown" attitude. It's run by real people - not a large media company or conglomerate. In fact, nearly every staff member you see at the festival is a volunteer. They do it for the love of film.

In this series, The People of PFF, you'll get to know some of our awesome staff members and volunteers. Maybe you'll even learn a little more about our festival. So, without further delay, we present Jason Carney.

What do you do?

I'm the Festival Director and the Executive Director for the Phoenix Film Foundation, the 501c3 organization that produces the festival.

How did you end up doing that?

About two weeks before the very first festival, my old pal Greg Hall (PFF Program Director) asked me if I wanted to come out and help work on the film festival. I was there a couple of hours and I was hooked. You cannot beat the adrenaline rush of the film festival. Over the few years, I did many things with the festival until becoming the Festival Director in 2005.

What do you love most about your role?

I love that we get to expose the Phoenix community to films that they can't see anywhere else. It's a great feeling to give these independent films the attention they deserve. To get to see the filmmakers at the festival and the pride they have in their films is pretty cool. So just to think we got to play a small part in making that happening is awesome.

What is the biggest challenge?

This is going to sound weird, but the festival ending is often my biggest challenge. My brain is going 150 miles per hour for the month leading up to the festival and 200 miles per hour the week of the festival. So slowing down afterwards is very difficult. My brain just doesn't want to quit.

If you want a more process-based challenge, I would go with juggling everything at once. There's just so many things going on during the opening weekend, it can sometimes get a little crazy to be in so many places.

What's the movie you're most excited for this year?

The politically correct answer is that I'm most excited about all of the movies. But secretly, I can't wait to see FDR: American Badass. It looks ridiculously amazing. The movie I'm most excited about is a film that we can't quite announce yet. It looks amazing. How's that for a tease?

What are your three favorite movies featuring a primate in a leading role?

1- Every Which Way But Loose

2- Any Which Way You Can

3- Going Ape

The Schedule is Coming!

"So, what's playing at the festival?" We've heard some version of that question over the past few weeks. We're listening!

While we can't release the full schedule quite yet, we can assure you that you'll be able to plan your festival week very, very soon. But feel free to keep asking! It makes us feel special.

In the meantime, here are a couple choice selections:

Hollywood to Dollywood - A documentary about two brothers with a special fondness for Dolly Parton and an incomparable drive to get their screenplay into her hands.

How Do You Write a Joe Schermann Song - After landing an opportunity to write for an Off-Broadway musical, Joe is forced to cast either the love of his life or his newly discovered muse.

Hit our Facebook for more announcements and keep checking back for more!

Welcome to Our Brand Spankin’ New Website

Listen…do you smell something? That intoxicating scent now permeating your olfactory glands is new website smell. We’ve taken it upon ourselves to modernize the PFF website for your surfing pleasure. At the top of the page you’ll notice we’ve simplified our navigation, making it easier for you to get the information you want, when you want it.

We’ll also be sharing film news and updated festival info on our shiny new blog, so be sure to bookmark it and check back at least semi-often. We get lonely when you don’t come around.

Go on and take it for a test drive.

**Special raise-the-roof (do people still do that anymore?) shout-out to Marty Freetage for his time and phenomenal design skills.**

2012 Oscar Poster Hits The Web

Much like taking down the tree and realising that you’ve still got far too much turkey left over, there are a few traditions that always seem to arrive from Hollywood between Christmas and New Year. One is the arrival of the poster for the Academy Awards Ceremony, which you can slide your eyes over below. It’s not exactly the most exciting Oscar image to ever strike the world, but the Academy is clearly looking to play up the themes of movies as a celebration and honour/tradition, which, as we all know, is the way to attract young audiences. The tagline "celebrate the movies in all of us" is also a little odd, unless the target audience is toddlers who have somehow swallowed a Blu-Ray.

Sticking in strictly safe territory with a bunch of past Best Picture winners (and one Best Director anomaly), the poster features the usual gold statuette alongside images from Forrest Gump, The Sound Of Music, Gone With The Wind, Driving Miss Daisy, Giant (the aforementioned anomaly), Gladiator and Casablanca.

The awards will be handed out at the 84th ceremony on February 26, with Billy Crystal overseeing the event.

2011 Phoenix Film Festival Promo

Phoenix Film Festival 2011 from Bob Marquis on Vimeo.

2010 Phoenix Film Festival Opener

Volunteer for the Phoenix Film Festival!

The Phoenix Film Festival is looking for fellow movie-lovers to volunteer for the upcoming festival!  PFF 2012 will be held March 29 - April 5, 2012. The Phoenix Film Festival features the finest in independent film from around the world as well as celebrities, seminars, and parties all week long!  In exchange for a commitment of a least 24 hours, volunteers will receive a festival t-shirt and a full festival pass. Get on board early by emailing volunteer@phxfilm.com. Orientation dates to be announced soon!