Hi all!
I was just emailed the Semi-Finalist list for the 2009 Screenplay Competition and wanted to get it posted as soon as I could. It will be up on our website soon as well.
I wanted to congratulate all our Semi-finalists and thank all the writers who submitted for the 09 competition. It was a really tough narrowing down the search to 15 scripts.
Congrats again!
Megen

SHORT SCREENPLAYS – SEMI FINALISTS

The Incarnate - Ken Beason
Raise You One Dead Body - Marjory Kaptanoglu
The Caper - Scott Harbison
Unlisted - Stephen Gill
Horse Seeds - Justin Whitney
Circle - Chris Liliedahl
Mortimer Smedley’s Invention - Scott Merrow
Shoe - Nick Kelly
Every Time I Go to Staten Island Something Bad Happens… - Irin Evers
Playa Fantasma - Scott Merrow
Blink - Janice Kennedy
Skag - Andrew Neary
The Shooter - Coert Voorhees
The Black Egg - Scott Merrow
The One You’re With - Mike Bennett

FEATURE SCREENPLAYS – SEMI FINALISTS

Counseling the Devil - Matthew Furman
Dark Men - Jeff Heckler
Safe and Sound - Abigail Elliott & Jane Addis Docken
The Baby Whisperer - Scott Clevenger
A Better Life Through Plastic Surgery - Donald Creed
Preemptive Strike 5-7-08 - Alan Armstrong
The Celtic Knot - Louise Luster
Chasing Echoes - Bill Schreiber
The Whistler - Greg Woodland
The Real Thing - Beth Hoover
Words of War - Nancy Noever
Einstein’s Daughter - Jim Ryan
Survival High - Aaron Mento
Trash - Timothy Armstrong
Stolen Sky - Dan Fabrizio

Hey all!
Just wanted to throw a quick note up here to give you the deadlines for getting your films in for the 09 fest. The next deadlines are: December 1st, December 15th and the absolute final deadline is December 31st. Your films must be submitted through www.withoutabox.com by the date of the deadline you are sending your film in for. Don’t wait, submit now!
A couple tips to help you out:
-Don’t feel that you have to submit through Fedex or UPS to get your film to us on time, save some money and use the regular old Post Office. As long as you put your film in the mail by the deadline, so it is postmarked on the deadline date, it will be in consideration.
-Many filmmakers make cool sticker labels to put on their dvds, though they look awesome, they are often the main reason our screeners have trouble viewing films. If they’re not put on just right, they can cause the film to skip or freeze. Just write the name of the film and the withoutabox number in permanent marker on the dvd.
We’re excited to see your films!

Friday was a marathon of movies. Each house was booked back to back with competing Features, Docs, Shorts, Student Films and more. Most of the films were extremely well-received: early audience favorites included The Listening Project, Fix, and especially the beloved Summerhood.

Audiences were pleased with the programs and engaged in the Q&As — most of the filmmakers were in attendance and shared interesting insights and anecdotes about the making of their individual films and film making in general.

At 4 pm filmmakers, Festival staff, and friends gathered at the Larkspur for a champagne reception. The staff especially was pleased and encouraged by the positive response to the first few hours of the Festival. The consensus was that we had a smooth and tight Festival on our hands this year, and the mingling involved a lot of schedule-checking and recommendations.

Opening night of the 2008 VFF went off like fireworks. The mood in Vail was one of anticipation and excitement, and the opening night film — Diminished Capacity — did not disappoint. The film, starring Matthew Broderick, Alan Alda and Virginia Madsen was heartwarming and hilarious and the crowd ate it up like a Flying Burrito.

Meanwhile, across town …

The opening night party at the Donovan Pavillion was a BLAST. Filmmakers, fans, and Festival staff were in high attendance, greeted at the door by fire dancers and throbbing drums. The food — provided by HAPA — was scrumptious and the wine and cocktails were even better. Friends and connections were made, debauchery commenced, the the Fest began in true VFF spirit.

For all those filmmakers submitting to the festival this year, we’re so excited to see your films!
Regarding mailing your films, we would prefer if you sent them via the good ol’ Post Office vs FedEx or UPS. As long as you submit your film through withoutabox before the deadline you’re trying to make, then you can send your film regular mail, if you want. Plus, I know the Post Office has services so you can track your package if you want to do that.
The next deadlines are:
December 1
December 15
December 31

Thanks!
Megen