Inaugural 'SCENE FIRST' National Student Film Festival Announces 2007 Film Award Winners

Inaugural 'SCENE FIRST' National Student Film Festival Announces 2007 Film Award Winners

COLUMBIA, S.C., June 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Film aficionados, student filmmakers and film industry leaders from across the world descended upon one of North America's premier film production locations for the inaugural SCENE FIRST student film festival, held June 14-16, 2007 in Wilmington, N.C.

At the close of the three-day festival, bragging rights and a plethora of prizes were awarded to student filmmakers in seven different film categories, including the Grand Jury Award, the festival's top film honor.

The Grand Jury Award was presented to American Deluxe, directed by Aaron Brownlee and produced by Matthew Chai from the University of Central Florida. As Grand Jury Award winners, the two up-and-coming filmmakers received a cash prize, software package from Avid and a DVD package from Video Labs worth $5,000. The package included encoding, static menu, authoring, a DVD master, 25 DVD copies and a concept call with a Video Labs multimedia specialist. A subscription to Film Movement Magazine was also included in the winnings.

Since graduating from the University of Central Florida, Brownlee is working as a production assistant at CBS/Paramount. He is currently working with Slamdance Media Group, who is showcasing his film, American Deluxe, in the hopes of further development.

The following film category winners were also awarded:

Best Narrative - Deacon's Mondays, directed and produced by Lowell Frank, Destin Cretton and Kenny Laubbacher, San Diego State University

Best Documentary - ... and then there were four, directed and produced by Leah Bell, University of North Texas

Best Comedy - Lemonade Stand, directed and produced by John Moore, University of North Carolina - Wilmington

Best Experimental Film - Metacarpus, directed and produced by Nicole Triche, University of North Carolina - Greensboro

Best Animated Film - Sycamore Eve, directed by Evan Viera, Hampshire College of Massachusetts

Best Music Video - Cast Shadows in Technicolor, directed by Ken Mikals- Adachi and produced by Pamela Ryan, Northwestern University

Best PSA/Commercial - Women Against Domestic Violence, directed by Jennava Laska, Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles

"SCENE FIRST proved to be an enormous success this year, with the all of the directors and producers of the winning films showing great promise," said Mark Hall, president and CEO of Campus Entertainment, which produces the Festival. "The three-day event provided a unique opportunity for young filmmakers to showcase their work and learn from some of the most talented people in the industry."

Presented by Campus Entertainment, LLC and in partnership with EUE/Screen Gems Studios and the department of film studies at the University of North Carolina - Wilmington, SCENE FIRST student film festival drew more than 300 attendees and brought together first-time filmmakers from across the country for three days of film screenings, studio tours, and educational programming. The festival provided young filmmakers the opportunity to network with industry professionals, receive hands-on training from experts in the film industry, and a venue to showcase films before a live, national audience.

SCENE FIRST is dedicated to providing young filmmakers with the tools they need to take the next step in their careers. Throughout the festival, interactive workshops and seminars were designed to provide students with hands-on experiences in areas such as filmmaking, production design, feature film producing and payouts and directing the narrative feature.

About SCENE FIRST

Together with EUE/Screen Gems Studios - the largest full service motion picture facility in the United States east of California - and the department of film students at UNC Wilmington, Campus Entertainment has created SCENE FIRST to provide student filmmakers "access without attitude." For more information, visit www.scenefirstfestival.com.

About Campus Entertainment

Campus Entertainment is a joint venture between the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) and TRP Sports & Entertainment Marketing. NACA is the largest campus activities organization in the world with more than 1,000 college and university members across the country. Founded in 1960, NACA has almost 50 years of experience with entertainment and educational programs targeting college students. For more information, visit www.campusentertainment.net.

Source: SCENE FIRST

CONTACT: Contact: Stephanie Jones at (803) 233-2432 or
Stephanie.jones@cnsg.com Sarah Waldman at (803) 233-2435 or
sarah.waldman@cnsg.com

Web site:

http://www.campusentertainment.net/
http://www.scenefirstfestival.com/

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