LOYOLA MARYMOUNT SCHOOL OF FILM AND TELEVISION
ANNOUNCES WINNERS OF ‘FILM OUTSIDE THE FRAME’
STUDENT FILM FESTIVAL
The student filmmakers behind a powerful documentary about a family in crisis, a story about two strangers whose lives become inextricably twined, and a toe-tapping animated homage to music of another era were honored at Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television’s Film Outside the Frame Festival at the Directors Guild of America, October 9, 2006.
In keeping with the Festival’s theme of celebrating the new stories and the new storytellers, the prizes in all nine categories were awarded to SFTV students who created films with personal vision and compelling narratives, both fictional and documentary.
Animation pioneer, Chief Creative Officer Pixar and Disney Animation, and consummate visual storyteller John Lasseter, the gifted filmmaker responsible for such beloved films as Toy Story, The Incredibles, Finding Nemo, Monsters, Inc., A Bug’s Life and Cars, was honored with the 2006 “Infinite Power of Story Lifetime Achievement Award.”
SFTV graduate student Hung Nguyen was honored in the categories of Best Documentary Film and the Dreier Family Editing Award for his film Going Home, which focuses on his mother’s haunting remembrance of the Nguyen family’s harrowing escape from Vietnam in 1982.
Adam Burr’s provocative story of two lost souls who meet on the internet, Re: Monday, received the Best Narrative Film and Best Director honors.
Jessica Forer’s sweet, rhythmic tribute to music of the jazz age, I’m Gonna Dance Wit Da One Wot Brung Me took the prize for Best Animated Film.
Also honored were Debbie Formoso, Best Screenplay, Nagpapanggap; Laura Schmadel, Best Sound Design, A Thousand Words; David Kalman, Best Animation, The Overseers; and Jason Mann, Best Cinematography, LaocoÖn..
A Blue-Ribbon panel of judges – Oscar®-winning visual effects supervisor and director Robert Legato (Titanic, The Aviator), producer Effie Brown (In the Cut, Real Women Have Curves), director Sean McNamara (“That’s So Raven,” Raise Your Voice), film critic John Anderson (New York Times, Variety), SFTV’s full-time Festival Specialist Kathleen McInnis (director, Slamdance, Palm Springs), writer/director and SFTV film professor Greg Ruzzin (Blue Skies Are a Lie, The Hungry Bachelors Club) and Dean Schwartz (Sister Act and Beaches) – selected the honorees from outstanding student submissions.
“It is so special to recognize our remarkable student filmmakers,” Dean Schwartz says. “We believe that the winners’ stories and images dovetail brilliantly with our SFTV vision to serve as a beacon of light for master visual storytelling, grounded in humanism, innovation and diversity in all its forms. I couldn’t be prouder of our students and their work. These are truly the new stories and the new storytellers.
“I have often cited John Lasseter’s work and Pixar as the gold standard for master visual storytelling grounded in humanism where one can explore the entire complex range of the human spirit – delighting, entertaining, engaging and transforming audiences all at once,” Dean Schwartz added. “It’s a hallmark of all Pixar and John’s remarkable films, that in addition to their astonishing artistry and technology, they are so infinitely memorable for their powerful stories, richly detailed characters and heartfelt emotions. He is the pre-eminent storyteller of our time, and I can’t imagine a more deserving honoree for our SFTV 2006 Lifetime Achievement Award.”
Sponsors for the 2006 Film Outside the Frame Festival included the Dreier Family, John and Mary Cosgrove, Dick Lippin and the Lippin Group, Warner Bros. Studios and Variety. |