This past weekend I had the privilege of attending the first annual Ozark Mountain Film Festival at the beautiful Chateau on the Lake Hotel and Resort in Branson, Missouri.
The event was organized by local Branson writer, director and producer, Deborah Watson with Studio 2.22 Films and I have to say that it was a complete success with the help of volunteers: Lindsay Rehmert, Todd Badley, Elijah McIntyre, Evan McGregor, Joe Inman, Rachel Fua and Colby Baer.
Attendees came from Athens, Greece; Ontario, California; Macon, Georgia; Austin, Texas, Kansas City and around the southwest Missouri region.
We had the honor of meeting, and learning from outstanding speakers such as:
Mark Minnella – Founder and President of Integrity Investors (who taught about how to get the attention of investors for upcoming film and TV projects).
Randall Oliver – Actor/Stunt Man/Producer, with over 67 credits to his name (who talked about the different options of SAG/Aftra, Fi-Core, SAG-E, etc.)
Isaac Hernandez – an Executive with Parables TV Network (he talked about the future of faith-based films and how to go about obtaining distribution)
The awards ceremony was excellent, featuring the following winners:
Best Short Film – Christmas Anti-Fable, by Eythimis Hatzis
Best Animation – Saint Gerasimos the Jordanite, by Thodoris Sarafis and Christos Maragoudakis
Best Music Video – AMRAK, by Sean Roberts
Best Music Score Composer – Charles King – A Beautiful Life
Best Full Feature – Corky and Bob Get a Job, by Ed & Leah McKelvey
Best Director – Amir Shahata – The Mediator
Best Young Actress – Marley Cabral – Tuned In
Best Supporting Actress – Debbie Sutcliffe – South of Swan Creek
Best Lead Actress – Gina Tichelkamp – South of Swan Creek
Agape Award Winning Film – South of Swan Creek, by Debbie Sutcliffe
Overall, it was a great two days of learning, laughing and lauding some very creative people. We got to meet many new filmmakers and re-connect with others.
