Nashville Film Festival to Screen Hundreds of Films from Around World Starting April 14

Nashville Film Festival 2016 Overview:

         It's almost time for the Nashville Film Festival, and we can't wait! This year looks to be better than ever with a wide range of outstanding films from all over the world. Add the Red Carpet, panels and parties to the mix, and you have one of the best arts events in Nashville. The festival is adding a Nashville Writers Conference this year. From April 14-23, Music City Arts Network will be providing updates at www.MusicCityArtsUpdate.com and @MusicCityArts on the various social networking sites. 

         To learn more about the festival and to buy movie tickets, visit http://www.NashvilleFilmFestival.org. You can visit the box office at the Regal Green Hills 16 starting on April 13 (Wednesday). The festival will begin on April 14 (Thursday).

         Here's the latest news from the festival office in Nashville...

         NASHVILLE -- Nashville Film Festival completes its full slate of films for the 2016 season with the additions of Kirtsen Johnson's "Cameraperson" and Ben Wheatley's "High-Rise", starring Tom Hiddleston and Jeremy Irons.

        

         Highlights of the festival: 

         271 Films

         99 Feature Films

         172 Shorts

         42 Countries

         62 Features in Competition 

         48 World/North American/U.S. Premieres

Special Presentations:

American Epic/United Kingdom, USA (Director: Bernard MacMahon)

Born in Bristol/USA (Director: Chusy)

High-Rise/United Kingdom (Director: Ben Wheatley) 

Hunt for the Wilderpeople/New Zealand (Director: Taika Waititi)

Little Men/USA (Director: Ira Sachs)

The Lobster/Greece, United Kingdom, Ireland (Director: Yorgos Lanthimos)

Louder than Bombs/Norway, France, Denmark (Director: Joachim Trier)

Love & Friendship/Ireland, Netherlands (Director: Whit Stillman)

Morris from America/USA, Germany (Director: Chad Hartigan)

Sing Street/Ireland (Director: John Carney)

Smokey & the Bandit/USA (Director: Hal Needham)

A Tale of Love and Darkness/Israel (Director: Natalie Portman)

Weiner/USA (Director: Josh Kriegman, Elyse Steinberg)

Spectrum:

April and the Extraordinary World/France (Director: Christian Desmares, Franck Ekinci)

A Blossom of Love in Gannan/China (Director: Liqiang Gao)

Cameraperson/USA (Kirsten Johnson)

Cemetery of Splendor/Thailand (Director: Apichatpong Weerasethakul)

Chevalier/Greece (Director: Athina Rachel Tsangari)

Dheepan/France (Director: Jacques Audiard)

He Hated Pigeons/Canada (Director: Ingrid Veninger)

Hearing Implant/China (Director: Junliang Fang)

Lo and Behold, Reveries in a Connected World/USA (Director: Werner Herzog)

A Noble Spirit/China (Director: Yue Miao)

Presenting Princess Shaw/Israel (Director: Ido Haar)

Promise/China (Director: Lin Sheng, Yong Li)

Sunset Song/United Kingdom, Ireland (Director: Terence Davies)

Tickled/New Zealand, USA (Director: David Farrier, Dylan Reeve)

Bridgestone Narrative Competition:

Before the Sun Explodes/USA (Director: Debra Eisenstadt)

collective:unconscious/USA (Directors: Lily Baldwin, Frances Bodomo, Daniel Patrick Carbone, Josephine Decker, Lauren Wolkstein)

Demimonde/Hungary (Director: Attila Szász)

Fireworkers/USA (Director: Christina Bennett Lind)

Five Nights in Maine/USA (Director: Maris Curran)

Free in Deed/USA (Director: Jake Mahaffy)

The Great & the Small/USA (Director: Dusty Bias)

Hunky Dory/USA (Director: Michael Curtis Johnson)

I Promise You Anarchy/Mexico (Director: Julio Hernández Cordón)

It Had to Be You/USA (Director: Sasha Gordon)

The Lure/Poland (Director: Agnieszka Smoczynska)

Magallanes/Peru, Argentina, Chile (Director: Salvador del Solar)

Neptune/USA (Director: Derek Kimball)

Song of Songs/Ukraine (Director: Eva Neymann)

The Alchemist’s Cookbook/USA (Director: Joel Potrykus)

Documentary Competition:

Accidental Courtesy: Daryl David, Race & America/USA (Director: Matt Ornstein)

The Bad Kids/USA (Directors: Keith Fulton, Lou Pepe)

The Bandit/USA (Director: Jesse Moss)

Chicken People/USA (Director: Nicole Lucas Haimes)

Holy Hell/USA (Director: Will Allen)

Hooligan Sparrow/USA (Director: Nanfu Wang)

Learning to See/USA (Director: Jake Oelman)

Mother’s Wish/Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Portugal (Director: Joonas Berghäll)

Oriented/United Kingdom, Israel (Director: Jake Witzenfeld)

SEED: The Untold Story/USA (Directors: Taggart Siegel, Jon Betz)

The Seer: A Portrait of Wendell Berry/USA (Director: Laura Dunn)

Thank You, Del: The Story of the Del Close Marathon/USA (Director: Todd Bieber)

To the Moon and Back/USA (Director: Susan Morgan Cooper)

Tony Robbins: I Am Not Your Guru/USA (Director: Joe Berlinger)

When Two Worlds Collide/Peru (Directors: Heidi Brandenburg, Mathew Orzel)

A Good American/Austria (Director: Friedrich Moser)

New Directors Competition:

The 4th/USA (Director: Andre Hyland)

Banana/Italy (Director: Andrea Jublin)

The Elk/France (Director: Etienne Labroue)

The Fits/USA (Director: Anna Rose Holmer)

Spa Night/USA (Director: Andrew Ahn)

Tamago/Japan (Director: Koji Hirano)

Transpecos/USA (Director: Greg Kwedar)

The Violators/United Kingdom (Director: Helen Walsh)

To Keep the Light/USA (Director: Erica Fae)

Music Films/Music City Competition:

Artist & Repertoire/United Kingdom (Director: Matthew Jones)

Colin Hay – Waiting for My Real Life/USA (Directors: Nate Gowtham, Aaron Faulls)

A Fat Wreck/USA (Director: Shaun Colón)

Honky Tonk Heaven/USA (Directors: Brenda Greene Mitchell, Sam Wainwright Douglas)

SHU-DE!/USA (Director: Michael Faulkner)

Sidemen: Long Road to Glory/USA (Director: Scott Rosenbaum)

A Song For You: The Austin City Limits Story/USA (Director: Keith Maitland)

Syl Johnson: Any Way the Wind Blows/USA (Director: Rob Hatch-Miller)

What Would Beethoven Do?/USA (Director: Jonathan Keijser)

Tennessee First Competition:

The Dust Storm/USA (Directors: Ryan Lacen, Anthony Baldino)

Josephine/USA (Director: Rory Feek)

Mom Jovi/USA (Director: Rachel Lambert)

The Polar Bear Club/USA (Director: Brett Price)

Soul/USA (Director: James King)

What’s the Matter with Gerald?/USA (Director: Matt Riddlehoover)

Graveyard Shift Competition:

Be My Cat: A Film for Anne/Romania (Director: Adrian Tofei)

A Beginner’s Guide To Snuff/USA (Director: Mitchell Altieri)

Curtain/USA (Director: Jaron Henrie-McCrea)

The Eyes of My Mother/USA (Director: Nicolas Pesce)

Inside Scarlett/USA (Director: Carter Mays)

The Lure/Poland (Director: Agnieszka Smoczynska)

Maskoun/Lebanon (Directors: Sharif Abdunnur, Krystle Houiess)

Baskin/Turkey, USA (Director: Can Evrenol)

Community Cinema:

24|7|365: The Evolution of Emergency Medicine/USA (Director: Dave Thomas)

Broke* – 5 Years Later/USA (Director: Will Gray)

No Greater Love/USA (Director: Justin Roberts)

No Matter Where/USA (Director: Kevin Johnson)

Peace Officer/USA (Director: Brad Barber, Scott Christopherson)

Saving Banksy/USA (Director: Colin Day)

Nashville Film Festival and ScreenCraft to Present First Annual 'Nashville Writers Conference'

            NASHVILLE, Tenn. –The Nashville Film Festival and ScreenCraft will present the first annual Nashville Writers Conference to be held in conjunction with the Nashville Film Festival.  

            The Nashville Writers Conference just announced its slate of A-list Hollywood screenwriters, producers and agents who will anchor the event. They are as follows: Andrea Berloff (Straight Outta Compton, World Trade Center), Max Borenstein (Godzilla, Minority Report) Oscar-Winner Diana Ossana (Brokeback Mountain), Mark Bomback (Insurgent, The Wolverine, Rise of the Planet of the Apes), Chad Hayes & Carey Hayes (The Conjuring, The Conjuring 2) Jeb Stuart (Die Hard, The Fugitive) Shauna Cross (Bad Santa 2, Whip It, If I Stay, What to Expect When You’re Expecting), Phil Hay (Clash of the Titans, Ride Along, Aeon Flux) and Keya Khayatian, senior agent at Universal Talent Agency (UTA) whose clients wrote Stick It, Dallas Buyers Club, Brokeback Mountain, and Serendipity, among others.

            “We are thrilled to partner with ScreenCraft to create and bring this new event to writers and screenwriting communities worldwide,” said Ted Crockett, Executive Director of the Nashville Film Festival. “We are bringing new content, speakers, panels and opportunities to Nashville on a level that this city has never seen before.”

            The conference will provide expertise on the craft and business of writing for film and television, with many of the entertainment industry’s top professionals.  The conference is open to up-and-coming screenwriters as well as seasoned writers. The conference will be an uncensored, writer-focused deep-dive into the real machinery of Hollywood. It includes, “The Big Pitch” event, offering writers the chance to practice their pitch with top professional screenwriters, then pitch their scripts to producers, executives, agents and managers. In addition to panels, workshops and keynote speakers, the conference also offers live table reads and small group mentorships and private parties. 
 

            Nashville Writers Conference is the inaugural co-production of two leading film and screenwriting organizations: the Nashville Film Festival, now 47 years old and one of the largest film festivals in the U.S., and ScreenCraft, a platform dedicated to the craft of writing for screenwriters and story-tellers in all industries.  The Nashville Writers Conference is scheduled to occur from Wednesday, April 20 through Friday, April 23, and will take place at the Nashville Film Festival.

            To learn more or register, visit https://screencraft.org/nwc.

Nashville Film Festival Announces Screenwriting Competition Awards

         NASHVILLE – The Nashville Film Festival has announced the winners of the 2015 Screenwriting Competition. 

         The competition garnered more than 1,350 submissions from all over the world. Finalists and semi-finalists won all-festival passes to attend the festival, network with filmmakers and industry, and attend educational panels and presentations.

         “I was especially pleased to see that our panels were sold out,” said Debra Pinger, director of the competition.  “It shows how passionate writers are about developing their craft. With screenwriters from Ireland, Russia and China in attendance, as well as student and professional screenwriters, we are proud that Nashville is attracting quality scripts and talented writers.  The script, after all, is the foundation of every film.”

OVERALL WINNER

Brian MacEvilly

FEATURE

Drama

Winner: Oil and Water – Alfred Catalfo & Morgan Dudley

Runner-up: Independence Pass – Brian MacEvilly

Comedy

Winner: The Full Irish – Brian MacEvilly

Runner-up: My Bad Day in Hell – Eric Carlson

Music-Inspired

Winner: Blind Boone – Moss Hall & Max Morath

Runner-up: Chris Gaines Saves the World – Donald Driscoll

Sci-Fi

Winner: No Man’s Land – Michelle Davidson & Jeffrey Field

Runner-up: Eden – Jessica Chou

Inspirational

Winner: Heart Stringz – Barbara Ashdown

Runner-up: In-Between – Sandra Smith

Animated

Winner: My Monster Burrufu – Alberto Corral

Runner-up: The Mythfitz – Nicholas Julius

Historical

Winner: Kid Convict – Julie Umbreit

Runner-up: Samson – Shawn Hoffman

Family

Winner: Eleven Days – Jaginder Singh

Runner-up: Darby Petty and the Lost Treasure – DC Sayre

Action/Adventure

Winner: The Third Bomb – Phillip Parker

Runner-up: Guns and Grace – Odin Ozdil

Thriller/Horror

Winner: A Texas Story – David Martin-Porras & Julia Fontana

Runner-up: Bad Blood – Billie Bates

Tennessee

Winner: The Last Drop – A.D. Smith

Runner-up: Sink Swim – Elvis Wilson

TELEPLAY

Drama

Winner: Long Lost – Deanna Shumaker

Runner-up: Limbo – Jessica Chou

Comedy

Winner: Star Pupils – Tom Ruprecht

Runner-up: The Knot – Adam Rosenbaum

SHORTS

Drama

Winner: Illuminate – Robert Pawloski

Runner-up: Which Spoke of Freedom – Aria Marrogi & Chris Germiller

Comedy

Winner: U Got Tagged – Andrew Roxby

Runner-up: That Other Crazy Thing You Do – Michelle Leibel

Genre

Winner: Lumen 18 – Darren Tibbits

Runner-up:  Guest – Charles Dillon Ward

Family Friendly

Winner: Wiindigoo the Cannibal – Michael O’Rourke & Winona LaDuke

Runner-up: The Home of Rock – Brian MacEvilly

Tennessee

Winner: The Incident at Broadway and Grand – Francis Wolff

Runner-up: The Ice Road – Taylor Albertson

Young Screenwriter

Winner: The Pride Club – Kirill Dyshlovoy

Runner-up: The Favor – Jack Fossett

Nashville Film Festival Announces Screenwriting Competition Finalists

            NASHVILLE -- The Nashville Film Festival (NaFF) has announced the Screenwriting Competition finalists for the 46th Nashville Film Festival, April 16 – 25 at Regal Green Hills Cinema.

            “The finalists for this year’s Screenwriting Competition represent the best in undiscovered writing talent,” said Ted Crockett, NaFF executive director. “They presented everything from hilarious comedies to terrifying horror films, and we are thrilled to be a venue to jumpstart their careers.”

            The 65 finalists were selected from nearly 1,300 international entries. The Nashville Film Festival Screenwriting Competition is unique among thousands of screenwriting competitions in the U.S. because it offers a category for young screenwriters as well as more categories for short screenplays than any other competition.

            “Placing in a screenwriting competition assists up and coming talent with an important step in their careers,” continued Crockett. “It can help them as they establish themselves and their films, whether that’s gaining financing, exposure or both.”

            Top scripts, selected from NaFF winners, will be read by Blossom Films, Nicole Kidman’s Academy-Award nominated production company; noted casting director Laray Mayfield; Sycamore Pictures CEO Ben Nearn; Rich Peluso, senior vice president of AFFIRM Films; famed limit-breaking director/producer Harmony Korine; Lewis Bogach, Emmy-winning vice president of CMT-TV; and Abso Lutely Productions, producer of six current comedy TV hits.

            To learn more about the Nashville Film Festival, visit https://nashvillefilmfestival.org/ .

FINALISTS, listed alphabetically by title:

DRAMA FEATURE         

"Code Blues" - Gary Wallach           

"Glen Sherley" - Joe Rassulo, Robert Gibson

"Independence Pass" - Brian MacEvilly        

"Oil and Water" - Alfred Thomas Catalfo, Morgan Webster Dudley

"Shadowman" - Mike Miller             

"The Acadian" - David Vincent       

"The Oracle of Jerald's Bay" - Sarah Bewley

                                 

COMEDY FEATURE                       

"Alliance" - Charlie Robinson, Carla Robinson

"Canadian Holiday" - David Rocchio            

"Miss Loving" - Bernard Smith        

"My Bad Day in Hell" - Eric Carlson              

"Poe Boys" - David Van Hooser      

"The Full Irish" - Brian MacEvilly

MUSIC INSPIRED FEATURE      

"Blind Boone" - Moss Hall, Max Morath

"Chris Gaines Saves the World" - Donald Driscoll        

"Stride" - Rick Whelan       

FAMILY FEATURE                         

"Darby Petty and the Lost Treasure" - DC Sayre         

"Eleven Days" - Jaginder Singh        

"The Creepy House" - Shoshana Rosenbaum              

INSPIRATIONAL FEATURE                        

"Heart Stringz" - Barbara Ashdown

"In-Between" - Sandra Webb Smith               

"One Small Step" - Patrick Sherman

ANIMATED FEATURE                   

"My Monster Burrufu" - Alberto Corral         

"The Mythfitz" -  Nicholas Julius    

ACTION/ADVENTURE FEATURE                             

" D.T."    - Ken Comer        

"Guns and Grace" - Odin Ozdil        

"The Third Bomb" - Phillip Parker   

                                 

HISTORICAL FEATURE                               

"In Spite of It All" - Rebecca Boyd 

"Kid Convict" - Julie Umbreit           

"Samson: A Savior Will Rise" - Shawn Hoffman, Michael Hoffman

SCIENCE FICTION FEATURE                    

"Bioterror Conspiracy" - Louis Lio  

"Eden"   - Jessica Chou     

"No Man's Land" - Michelle Davidson, Jeffrey Field

"Populous" - Michael Quintero

                                 

THRILLER/HORROR FEATURE                               

"A Texas Story" - David Martin-Porras, Julia Fontana               

"Bad Blood" - Billie Bates

"Empathy" - Elvis Wilson 

"Ginseng" - Josh Barkey    

"Lifers"  - Phil Burdette     

"The Apocalypse Chronicles" - Nathan Ludwig, Charles Hill

"Why the Willow Weeps" - Dwight Jolivette  

"Zombie Ward"    - Harry Oxnard   

                                 

TENNESSEE SCREENWRITER FEATURE                            

"Empathy" - Elvis Wilson 

"Sink Swim" - Elvis Wilson               

"The Acadian" - David Vincent       

"The Last Drop"   - A. D. Smith        

                                 

DRAMA TELEPLAY

“Limbo” - Jessica Chou

“Long Lost” - Deanna Shumaker

“Renegades” - Conway Preston

“Tip & Keeper” - Carol Caldwell

COMEDY TELEPLAY

“It Could Be Worse” - Tracy Reilly

“The Knot” - Adam Rosenbaum

“Star Pupils” - Tom Ruprecht

COMEDY SHORT

“That Other Crazy Thing You Do” - Michelle Leibel

“U Got Tagged” - Andrew Roxby

DRAMA SHORT

“Illuminate” - Robert Pawloski        

“Which Spoke of Freedom” - Aria Marrogi, Chris Germiller

FAMILY SHORT

“The Home of Rock” - Brian MacEvilly       

“Wiindigoo the Cannibal” - Michael O'Rourke, Winona LaDuke

GENRE SHORT

“Guest” - Charles Dillon Ward

“Lumen 18” - Darren Tibbits

TENNESSEE SCREENWRITER SHORT

“The Ice Road” - Taylor Albertson

“Incident at Broadway and Grand” - Francis Wolff

YOUNG SCREENWRITER SHORT

“The Favor” - Jack Fossett

“The Pride Club” - Kirill Dyshlovoy                 

'For The Love of Music' Tells Nashville's Story With 'Authentic' Hits and Misses

By Chuck Whiting

MCAU Editor

          During the 2013 Nashville Film Festival, Nashville CVB head Butch Spyridon exclaimed: "This is the coolest damn city in the world." 

          Just about all of us would agree. But when it comes to telling Nashville's story, the CVB's documentary "For The Love of Music"  has "authentic" hits and misses. It moves us... kinda.

          The hits: "For the Love Of Music" features an impeccable cast of artists, including The Black Keys, Fisk Jubilee Singers, Kings of Leon, Kris Kristofferson, Emmylou Harris, and a barefooted Vince Gill. All do an excellent job raving about Nashville's emergence as an "authentic, multi-genre city".

Kris Kristofferson

          
          The movie is likely to make musical and tourist waves in certain places when it airs on CMT. But it doesn't tell the whole story. Missing are a number of key ingredients: The Symphony's impact on the collaborative wonder of Nashville's musical landscape... the appreciation of CCM/gospel greats like Amy Grant (although Michael W. Smith was quoted briefly in the film)... the multitude of struggling songwriters who take nightclub stages every night (not just at the Bluebird) with the dream of landing a label or publishing deal. 

          The movie's focus is on the musicians and songwriters who've already made it. While this is probably the best direction to promote the city overall, it leaves a few "emotional" gaps in Nashville's story for me and some of the writers/musicians I work with. That opens the door for a sequel.

Tennessee Filmmakers Honored at Nashville Film Festival

            NASHVILLE -- The Nashville Film Festival honored the winners of the Ground Zero Tennessee Spirit Awards and the Tennessee Horizon Audience Awards at NaFF Cinema at Walk of Fame Park in downtown Nashville on Wendesday. 

            The Ground Zero Tennessee Spirit Awards were presented by Bob Jackson, owner of Ground Zero.  The Tennessee Horizon Awards were presented in partnership with the Tennessee Film, Entertainment and Music Commission, Native Magazine and NaFF. 

            "Nashville Film Festival offers both seasoned and first time filmmakers the opportunity to have their films shown on the big screen," said NaFF Artistic Director Brian Owens. “We are thrilled to have been able to create another way to partner with the Tennessee Film, Entertainment and Music Commission by offering these awards."

Ground Zero Tennessee Spirit Awards:

            * Best Feature Film: Jace Freeman & Sean Clark, "The Ballad of Shovels and Rope"

            * Honorable Mention Best Feature: Paul Harrill, "Something, Anything" 

            * Best Narrative Short: Steven Wesley Miller, "Shadowland"

            * Best Documentary Short: Eric Byford, "Straight Up: Tennessee Whiskey"

TN Horizon Audience Awards:

            * First Place: Drew Langer, "Lower Broads"

            * Second Place: Riley Hooper, "Elvis Loses His Excess…"

            * Third Place: Motke Dapp, "Sorry About Tomorrow"

            * Fourth Place: Chad McClarnon, "Bear With Me"

            To learn more about the Nashville Film Festival, visit www.NashvilleFilmFestival.org.

Actors Learn the Auditioning Ropes at Nashville Film Festival

By Chuck Whiting

MCAU Editor

            Some of Nashville's most successful actors provided invaluable insights to fellow actors during a special interactive session ("The Art of Auditioning") during the Nashville Film Festival. Leading the panel were moderator Susannah Devereaux, JesseJames Locorriere, Christopher Close, J.Karen Thomas, Jason Marsden, and Robin Dougherty. Following is an overview of what we learned (in their own words):

* Before the Audition:

            "Don't over-rehearse." -- JesseJames Locorriere

            "If you are preparing for a period piece, they might ask you to use a foreign accent. Conduct research to know what the scene is about. IMDb is an excellent online resource for information and trailers." -- Christopher Close

            "Take it seriously, and be prepared (but find a back story so you can be playful). When I rehearse, I read the script five to 10 times. It's important to understand the relationship between the character you're portraying and the other characters in the story. Know who's going to be there, learn more about them, and understand the style of the movie or show. That helps you build relationships." -- J.Karen Thomas

            "Don't obsess." -- Jason Marsden

            "Your agent's reputation is on the line, so be accountable. Do your research. You don't want to be seen in a bad light. Don't share audition news on Facebook. What if you don't land the part?" -- Robin Dougherty

* When You Audition:

            "Sometimes casting directors have pet peeves. Some hate things like flip-flops and smoking." -- Susannah Devereaux

            "Know why you're being seen for this role. They want to see who you are. You aren't competing. The stakes are higher when you're auditioning live in front of a casting director. Always go 'live' if you can. When you're nervous, you often do better. Taping can make you lazy. Show them your easy-to-work-with side." -- JesseJames Locorriere

            "If they say do it bigger, then go bigger. Otherwise, don't. Be natural. Sometimes the casting director knows if you're right for the part the moment you speak. Don't shake hands when you come into an audition (unless they extend theirs). Use your nerves to make your audition better." -- Christopher Close

            "In the movie 'The Identical', I portray a poor, uneducated black Southerner in 1936. It's important to allow the muse or emotion to flow through you. During rehearsal, I spoke her line with a crack in my voice. The crack came naturally. I used it again during the audition and landed the part. Don't change the words. Stick with the text. But be prepared if you're instructed to ad lib." -- J.Karen Thomas

            "Nashville auditions are warmer than LA, which can be brutal. The only thing you should pay for is gas (and occasionally a meal). Never review your audition." -- Jason Marsden

            "Listen to what they tell you to do. Always follow directions (don't do it your way). Don't go to the audition in character. An agent once had an actor go to an audition with cow udders, and it was a disaster." -- Robin Dougherty

How to Handle Rejection:

            "When I get a part, it means others have been rejected, too." -- JesseJames Locorriere

            "Sometimes you know (if you got the part) right away, but most of the time you don't. Don't stew if you don't land it. It's a one-in-a-hundred kind of thing. Most of the time, you're not going to get it. When I don't, I just tell myself they had poor judgment in not casting me. Don't take it personally. Go canoeing. Then get back to your job. You can't get it right every time." -- Christopher Close

            "I take the Zin point of view: Do your best, and let it go. Remember that you've made an investment. Something even better will come along. Enjoy the process." -- J.Karen Thomas

            "Sometimes you think you did everything right, but you still don't get the part. You have to move on." -- Jason Marsden

On Self-Taping:

            "You will need a 6-foot tripod. You can buy them at Consumer Depot for only $13." -- JesseJames Locorriere

            "If you have to shoot with poor quality (when you're on the road), then do it. Performance is the most important thing." -- Christopher Close

            "Don't worry about outdoor scenes (most of the time). They like an even playing field, so taping in a room is fine. The set is not as important. They are looking at the acting." -- J.Karen Thomas

            "Have a good agent, and be able to self-tape. Don't use an iPhone (if it's unsteady). You will need decent lights and clamps to hold them. You can find painters' lights at low prices at area hardware stores. You will need a good camera with quality sound. Dollar Tree sells smaller tripods. Wax paper can be used to tone down the lights. Shoot 'tits up' (not the whole body)." -- Robin Dougherty

Other Tips:

            "The Internet is huge. It's important to have a great site." -- JesseJames Locorriere

            "I have agents in both Nashville and Atlanta." -- J.Karen Thomas

            "It's a good time to be an actor with an affectation (like a stutter). Embrace it. Be endearing with it." -- Jason Marsden

           

            For more information about the Nashville Film Festival, visit www.NashvilleFilmFestival.org.

Nashville Film Festival Announces Winners of 2014 Short Film Division

            NASHVILLE -- The Nashville Film Festival has announced the winners of the Short Film Division for 2014. 

            The top six short films by Tennessee filmmakers were also announced. Winners will be announced at at 6 p.m. April 23 (Wednesday) at the TN Horizon Awards at NaFF’s downtown location at Walk of Fame Park.

            “We had more short films entered in our festival this year, than ever before," said NaFF Artistic Director, Brian Owens.  “Word has gotten around to filmmakers that NaFF is the festival to enter because winners in the short documentary, narrative and animation competitions are automatically given Academy Award consideration."

            As an Academy Award Qualifying festival, several NaFF films have gone on to earn nominations, including Academy Award-winner Shawn Christensen for "Curfew", Sean Durkin for "Mary Last Seen", Jamie Travis for "The Armoire", and Denis Villeneuve for "Next Floor". Recent NaFF selections that went on to Oscar nominations include "Buzkashi Boys", "Kavi", "Miracle Fish", "The Pig", "Instead of Abracadbra", and "West Bank Story".

Narrative Shorts:

Grand Jury Prize: "Rhino Full Throttle" – Erik Schmitt

Honorable Mention: "Afronauts" – Frances Bodomo

Honorable Mention: "I’m a Mitzvah" – Ben Berman

Documentary Shorts:

Grand Jury Prize: "The Last Days of Peter Bergmann" – Ciaran Cassidy

Honorable Mention: "Love. Love. Love." – Sandhya Daisy Sundaram

Animation Shorts:

Grand Jury Prize: "Rabbit and Deer" – Peter Vacz

Honorable Mention: "Yearbook" – Bernardo Britto

Special Jury Prize for Acting:

Ed Oxenbould: "The Amber Amulet & All God’s Creatures"

Women In Film & TV:

"Helpless" – Christene Hurley

Student Shorts:

Grand Jury Prize: "Pink Helmet Posse" – Kristelle Laroche, Benjamin Mullincosson

Honorable Mention: "Into the Silent Sea" – Andrej Landin

Young Filmmaker:

"Overflow" – Ruby Drake

The TN Shorts Finalists are:

"Bear With Me" – Chad McClarnon

"Elvis Loses His Excess…" - Riley Hooper

"Lower Broads" – Drew Langer

"Shadowland" – Steven Wesley Miller

"Sorry About Tomorrow" – Motke Dapp

"Straight Up: Tennessee Whiskey" – Eric Byford

            The Nashville Film Festival will continue through April 26. To learn more, visit www.nashvillefilmfestival.org.