...And That's a Wrap on VFF15!

North Hollywood, CA - The Valley Film Festival (VFF) lowered the curtain on another showcase of thought provoking cinema so independent it could only be found in L.A.'s San Fernando Valley.

DIRTY BEAUTIFUL and SLINGSHOT took home the top Narrative and Documentary Jury Awards, respectively, while FRUITCAKE and NUMBER 2: I AM MARILYN tied for the juried short film.  Additional short film Audience Award winners included: DOG BOWL, PRETTY GOOD DAY, and TOM IN AMERICA.

JURIED “10 DEGREES HOTTER” AWARDS:

Feature – DIRTY BEAUTIFUL (Tim Bartell)

Documentary  - SLINGSHOT (Paul Lazarus)

Short – FRUITCAKE (Sarah Baker and Seth Sherwood)

Tied with – NUMBER 2: I AM MARILYN (JC Falcon)

AUDIENCE AWARDS:

DOG BOWL (Gordy Hoffman)

PRETTY GOOD DAY (Beth Einhorn)

TOM IN AMERICA (Flavio Alves)

The 5-day festival, which ran October 21-25 at Laemmle NoHo7, opened with a special screening of FORBIDDEN ZONE (Richard Elfman), complete with pre-show, and screened 40 of today’s most provocative films from 9 countries, including Afghanistan, Italy, and Serbia to name a few.

With a mission further the education, production, and distribution of filmmaking in The Valley, VFF continues to promote local independent production with over eighteen films made by Angelenos, Vals, and shot in or about the glamorous San Fernando Valley this year. Local films with LA premieres included BONED, THE WRISTWATCH, FRUITCAKE, MARILYN & I, and PRETTY GOOD DAY.

Founded in 2000, The Valley Film Festival, a non-profit project of Community Partners ®, is the first and longest continually running film festival in the San Fernando Valley. VFF has screened over 500 shorts, features, documentaries, animated films, experimental works, and music videos from around the world. While emphasizing independent film, the festival also screens studio productions, including BOOGIE NIGHTS, CHINATOWN, ENCINO MAN, FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH, MAGNOLIA, TERMINATOR 2, VALLEY GIRL, and WORLD TRADE CENTER.  In addition to screenings, the Festival provides educational panels and networking opportunities throughout the year.

Looking ahead, The Valley Film Festival will begin accepting submissions for VFF16 in January. More information available at ValleyFilmFest.com

VFF15 - Announcing Our Feature Film Selections

For more than six months, 30 volunteers watched and reviewed over 1000 submissions, in addition to our 2014 shortlist, to dig out the cinema treasures that best represent the spirit and mission of The Valley Film Festival. It's been a long road and a journey we're very happy to finally share with you:

VFF15 FEATURE FILM SELECTIONS

(Listed in Alphabetical Order)

7 DAYS IN SYRIA (Documentary/75 mins/2015/USA & Syria) 
Directed by Robert Rippberger
A documentary feature unlike any other as Newsweek Middle East editor, Janine di Giovanni, risks it all to show us the human side of war.

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ACTOR FOR HIRE (Comedy/90 mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Marcus Mizelle
Being a bald, out of work actor and desperate to be seen, Jesse discovers the power of persona in the form of a cheap wig. Wearing a part to play the part can be hairy business in this industry satire where status, celebrity, and friendship are all on the line. 

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ALL IN TIME (Dramatic Comedy/97 mins/2014/USA)
Directed by Chris Fetchko and Marina Donahue
Charlie quits his job in New York to move home to Pennsylvania to manage his favorite hometown rock band, firmly believing the band’s glory days are ahead of them. His supportive girlfriend shares his love for the band, but the band’s guitarist, who has experienced the harsh reality of the music business, doesn’t share Charlie’s wide-eyed optimism. His attitude derails Charlie’s best efforts to bring the band success and sends Charlie spiraling into an emotional, financial, and romantic tailspin. Charlie hits rock bottom when he loses both the band and his girlfriend, but gets some unexpected help from his elderly neighbor who sets him back on his path.

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BONED (Comedy/84 mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Laura Lee Bahr
A struggling actress must play the role of a detective in order to save an adorable Maltese puppy from a murderous group of Goth thugs, a Devilish Dominatrix, and a handsome, lying doctor.

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CONGO BEAT THE DRUM (Documentary/57 mins/2014/Israel)
Directed by Ariel Tagar
Two musicians from Tel Aviv travel to Jamaica to record an album with forgotten reggae artists from the past. The film follows Ariel Tagar (Kalbata) and Uri Wertheim (Mixmonster), from their basement studio in Tel Aviv, all the way to the Kingston ghettos, looking for their favourite singers of days gone by. In Jamaica, they encounter a strange, often challenging culture while trying to achieve their goal. A unique musical journey into the forgotten corners of reggae of the seventies and eighties, and a rare glimpse into the smoky, dusty world of Rub-a-Dub and its past champions.

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DIRTY BEAUTIFUL (Dramatic Comedy/95 mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Tim Bartell
A lonely artist brings a young, drifter woman back to his tiny apartment to live with him. Between his obsessive tendencies and her non-stop drinking, something strange happens…they start to care for each other.

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IT PLAYS LIKE LOVE (Dramatic Comedy/70 mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Jeremy Waltman and Adam Lucas
A theatre company unravels when its director casts his two lead actors, both working to save their broken marriage, in a self-indulgent play that makes them recreate the director's recently-failed relationship.

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SLINGSHOT (Documentary/90 mins/2015/USA)

Directed by Paul Lazarus

A quirky genius with a sharp wit and a provocative worldview, Dean Kamen is our era’s Thomas Edison. He takes on the world’s grand challenges one invention at a time. Best known for his Segway Human Transporter, Kamen has reconceived kidney dialysis, engineered an electric wheelchair that can travel up stairs (the iBot), reworked the heart stent, built portable insulin pumps, founded FIRST robotics to inspire young students, and on and on. Holder of over 440 U.S. and foreign patents, Kamen devotes himself to dreaming up products that improve people’s lives. For the last 15 years, he has relentlessly pursued an effective way to clean up the world’s water supply. SlingShot focuses on Segway inventor Dean Kamen, his fascinating life, and his work to solve the world’s water crisis.

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THE WRISTWATCH (Drama/88mins/2015/USA)
Directed by Gino Gaetano and Devin Dilmore
Four characters lives are transformed when they come into contact with a supernatural wristwatch that reveals the light and darkness within and brings forth a higher level of consciousness.

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The 2015 Valley Film Festival runs October 21-25 at Laemmle NoHo7. Full schedule and tickets available shortly.