Entries Sought for 8th Annual PlanetOut Short Movie Awards
Entries Sought for 8th Annual PlanetOut Short Movie Awards
- Winner to be Announced at Sundance Film Festival
- Movies to be featured on Gay.com Video Channel
- Presented by Scion
- Hosted by the Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival
SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- PlanetOut Inc. (NASDAQ:LGBT), the leading media and entertainment company exclusively focused on the gay and lesbian market, is currently seeking entries for the 8th Annual PlanetOut Short Movie Awards (POSMA), presented by Scion and hosted by the Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival (MGLFF).
The PlanetOut Short Movie Awards, the largest online awards honoring film and video shorts by, about and of interest to LGBT audiences, is an acclaimed international platform for top gay and lesbian filmmakers, such as Angela Robinson, Q. Allan Brocka and Jamie Babbitt.
Deadline for entries is Dec. 1, 2006 and information can be found on PlanetOut.com and Gay.com: www.movieawards.planetout.com and www.movieawards.gay.com.
Up to 20 finalists will be selected from all eligible submissions. Judging will be based on an equally weighted criteria consisting of the following: cleverness and originality; quality of writing, acting, and production values; innovative use of the medium; relevance of subject matter; and entertainment value.
Winners will be announced in January 2007 at PlanetOut's annual event during the Sundance Film Festival, and the Grand Prize Winner and four runners-up will be screened at a special ceremony and program in Miami as part of the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival on Sunday April 29, 2007. The Grand Prize winner will receive a $10,000 cash prize and the runners-up will split cash prizes totaling $5,000.
"The PlanetOut Short Movie Awards continues to stand out as a launching pad for independent LGBT filmmakers by providing exposure to industry professionals, a mass audience to view and celebrate their work and one of the largest cash prizes for any gay and lesbian film festival in the United States," said Jenny Stewart, manager, entertainment programming, PlanetOut Inc., and one of the judges. "As one of the country's major gay and lesbian film festivals, the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival is the perfect place for participating filmmakers to garner additional exposure. And we are extremely grateful for Scion's continued sponsorship."
Carol Coombes, MGLFF Festival Director and one of the judges, said, "With PlanetOut's marketing muscle and the continued and generous cash support of our sponsor Scion, the Short Movie Awards have profiled and platformed an impressive roster of talented and emerging LGBT filmmakers over the years.
"It is extremely gratifying to know that a number of POSMA winning directors are now making a name for themselves as feature film makers. The generous cash awards reward talent, nurturing and enabling a whole new generation of gifted short filmmakers to continue to practice their craft. A perfect example is our 2006 Grand Prize winner 'Sissy Frenchfry' which is currently being developed into a feature film. We are truly thrilled that the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival has been chosen as the host festival for the PlanetOut Short Movie Awards for the sixth consecutive year," Coombes added.
Judges also include Carmelo Pirrone, Senior Vice-President of Marketing, Sony Pictures Classics; Joseph LaPolla, Vice-President of Programming, Oxygen; and Kathy Wolfe, CEO, Wolfe Video.
"Scion is a proud sponsor of the PlanetOut Short Movie Awards for a third year," said Nancy Inouye, Scion advertising manager. "It's exciting to see emerging filmmakers honored for their creativity and vision."
More than 500 entries have been submitted over the past seven years, including submissions from Oscar and Emmy award-winning actors and filmmakers. Select entries have been featured in the Picture This! Entertainment DVD release "The First Annual PlanetOut Short Movie Awards Highlights" and on Sundance Channel.
The final date to submit entries to the PlanetOut Short Movie Awards is Dec. 1, 2006, for a $25 entry fee. An official submission form and detailed guidelines are available online at www.mglff.com or by contacting the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, 1521 Alton Road, #147, Miami Beach, FL 33139, by phone at (305) 534-9924, by fax at (305) 535-2377, or by e-mail at kareem@mglff.com. Additional rules and regulations are available online at www.movieawards.planetout.com and www.movieawards.gay.com.
About PlanetOut Inc.
PlanetOut Inc. is the leading global media and entertainment company exclusively serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.
PlanetOut's digital media brands include Gay.com, PlanetOut.com, Advocate.com, Out.com, OutTraveler.com and HIVPlusMag.com, as well as localized versions of the Gay.com site in English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. PlanetOut print media brands include The Advocate, Out, The OutTraveler and HIVPlus, as well as SpecPub, Inc. titles. Transaction services brands include e-commerce Web sites Kleptomaniac.com and BuyGay.com, travel and events marketer RSVP Vacations, and book publisher Alyson Publications, among others.
PlanetOut, based in San Francisco with additional offices in New York, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, London and Buenos Aires, offers Global 1000 and local advertisers as well as its own properties access to what it believes to be the most extensive multi-channel, multi-platform network of gay and lesbian people in the world. For more information, please visit www.planetoutinc.com.
About the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival
Entering into its 9th season, the Festival presents films and videos of all genres, lengths and formats, including dramatic, documentary and experimental works, by, about and of interest to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. With a strong international showing, it places special emphasis on works by U.S. Hispanic, Latin American and Spanish filmmakers. The upcoming 9th Annual Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival (April 27th -- May 6th 2007), hosted in the heart of fashionable South Beach, will continue its line-up of World, U.S. and South Florida premieres, with a diverse group of 40-plus programs over ten days. Directors attending the Festival will be joined by actors, distributors, critics and other special guests from around the world for a full schedule of screenings and panels, as well as social events at an array of Miami's hottest hotels, cafes, clubs and lounges.
About Scion
Scion is the newest line of vehicles from Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A., Inc. Developed with a new generation of youthful buyers in mind, Scion's mission is to provide distinctive products, the opportunity to personalize, and an innovative, consumer-driven process at the retail level. The Scion brand features three ground-breaking models. The xA is a taut subcompact five-door, featuring an athletic stance with sculpted wheel arches. The xB, an urban utility vehicle with an iconic shape, combines remarkable interior space with aggressive style. And the tC sports coupe surprises the buyer with the convenience of a hatchback and the luxury of a standard all-glass panorama moonroof, complementing the usual wide array of features on all Scions. For more information, visit www.scion.com.
Source: PlanetOut Inc.
CONTACT: James David of PlanetOut Inc., +1-415-834-6479, or
james.david@planetoutinc.com
Web site: http://www.planetoutinc.com/
http://www.scion.com/
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