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Hollywood, CA.--August 11, 1998 -- The 2nd Annual Hollywood Film
Festival's "Hollywood Awards" ceremony, honoring emerging
independent filmmakers and established Hollywood professionals, was held
last night before a standing-room-only audience of over 700 Hollywood
Film Festival attendees at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills.
Special honors went to legendary actress Shelley Winters for her
lifetime contribution to the art of film, as well as to such acclaimed
filmmakers as Richard Zanuck, David Brown, and Norman Jewison. In
addition, award-winning film composers Dave Grusin and Stewart Copeland
were similarly honored.
In accepting her honor, Ms. Winters said, "This award is bigger than
the Oscars! It's about time Hollywood started to pay less attention to
special effects and violence, and more attention to human beings and
relationships."
Mr. Zanuck said, "My father once told me there were five important steps
to becoming a great producer. They are: aim very high when selecting a
subject, listen to your gut, never give up, keep your eye on the story,
and find a great partner!!"
Mr. Brown said, "Hooray for Hollywood . . . and the Hollywood Film Festival.
It's about time that Hollywood itself would finally produce its own
major film festival."
Mr. Jewison said, "I would like to give my thanks to this new
festival. Talent is the engine that feeds everything in this town. We
have to nurture it. This festival conveys an incredible idea . . .that
Hollywood would actually be nurturing talent."
Mr. Grusin said, "Music is the lifeblood of cinema. To take a musical
thought and actually be allowed to place it into a final film, is a
great opportunity."
And Mr. Copeland added, "My award as a 'music visionary' has a nice ring
to it. I'm not trying to reinvent the wheel, I'm just trying to keep my
balance on it."
The Hollywood Film Festival honored the independently produced feature
films "The Sugar Factory" and "Paradise Falls" with the awards "Best
Feature Over a Million" and "Best Feature Under a Million, respectively.
"The Sugar Factory," which tells the story of a teenage nonconformist's
rite of passage, was written and directed by Australian filmmaker Robert
Carter. "Paradise Falls," was directed by Nick Searcy, and is set in
the Appalachian Mountains during the Depression.
The Hollywood Film Festival was founded in 1997 by Carlos de Abreu and
Janice Pennington, "New York Times" best-selling authors and producers.
Regarding the conclusion of the 2nd annual festival, Mr. de Abreu said,
"We are delighted by the response we have received from Hollywood and
the independent filmmaking community during the course of this past
week. Our conferences were packed and our screenings were
well-attended. Last night's gala awards ceremony was truly an
extraordinary 'Hollywood' moment."
In addition to the feature film awards, the festival presented actress Penelope Ann Miller with a special jury award for "Best Acting in a Feature" for her performance in the film "Rhapsody in Bloom." "Goreville U.S.A." was voted the
Hollywood Film Festival's Best Documentary. The festival also named
"Holiday Romance," by English filmmaker JJ Keith, as Best Short Film,
and "Return of the Sun Devil," by director Steven Ayromlooi, as Best
Animated Film.
In other awards categories, the World Premiere feature "Next Time" by
director/writer L. Alan Fraser, was the recipient of the "Hollywood
Independent Filmmaker Award," a new award at this year's fest that was
judged by a panel of ten independent filmmakers. "Next Time" also received the "Hollywood 16mm Discovery Award" for the best feature shot and projected on 16mm. Twenty-four-year-old filmmaker
Steven Ayromlooi was honored with the "Hollywood Young Filmmaker Award"
for his World Premiere short film entitled "Nathan Grimm." Rob Legato
and Crystal Dowd's digital visual effects work on "Titanic" was
awarded the festival's "Hollywood Digital Award," an honor bestowed upon
the best theatrically released film of the year that featured truly
outstanding effects. Entertainment Tonight Online received the fest's
"Hollywood CyberAward" as the best entertainment website.
Celebrities and Hollywood notables who attended the 6 day-long fest
included James Brolin, Martin Landau, Penelope Ann Miller, "Deep Impact"
director Mimi Leder, Rod Steiger, Sydney Pollack, Connie Stevens, Lesley
Ann Warren, "Titanic" producer Jon Landau, Diane Ladd, Dorian Harewood, actor/director Peter Berg,
directors Ted Kotcheff and Mark Rydell, to name some. Attendees at the
gala awards presentation Monday evening were treated to the music of
renowned bandleader Johnny Crawford and his eight-piece orchestra, as
well as the vocal ensemble Millennium Dream, which, under the direction
of Grammy nominee Howard McCrary, performed a choral adaption of
director Mark Rydell's "On Golden Pond."
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