WFA Films

Where Extraordinary Filmmakers are Recognized

ABOUT THE FILMS
FRIDAY, MARCH 1 2013
Winter Film Awards 2013 Independent Film Festival runs from February 28 - March 2 2013 and consists of three days of film screenings and after-party events, followed by an Awards Ceremony. We have an exciting and diverse selection of 58 films of all types - animation, feature, short, horror, music videos, documentaries and foreign language films.

Click here for schedules and ticket information
See the Festival Trailer HERE

	ANCESTRAL DELICATESSEN Spain / Short Film / 15 minutes / Spanish w/Subtitles Director: Gabriel Folgado Producer: Gabriel Folgado More: *http://gabrielfolgado.webnode.es/* "All that exists is made of time, from the galaxies to chestnuts; only the rhythm changes" – José María Merino. Families living in the region of El Bierzo Spain still maintain many aspects of their traditional way of life, especially those related to their work on the land and their relationship with Nature. Despite an increasing use of machinery, some of these tasks are still carried out as they always have been, keeping their ancestral essence alive. Such is the case of the harvesting of chestnuts. ' 'Marrons glacés', made from chestnuts, are one of the most famous confectionery products of France. Festival De Cortos Zinexin De La Roda (Spain) --- Premio Zinexin Al Mejor Cortometraje --- Zinexin Award For The Best Short Film --- Certamen Internacional De Cortometrajes "Roberto Di Chiara" Florencio Varela (Argentina) --- Mejor Cortometraje Documental Best Short Documentary GABRIEL FOLGADO (Albares de la Ribera, Spain,1970) He has a degree in cinema from the University of Leon. In 2004 he directed his first short film "Vilapicardo" followed by "La embajada toscana" in 2005. He has also spent time teaching at León University. His first documentary ”Interior landscapes” has been shortlisted and awarded in over 30 worldwide film festivals. Amongst others, it received seven nominations in the 2011 Goya Awards and the prestigious “Golden Botillo” prize. “Ancestral delicatessen” is the second documentary he has directed with Catoute Films, his production company.
	BREEDS OF MEN United States / WFA 48-Hour Film Challenge Winner / 6 minutes / English Director: Richard Lobrovich More: www.youtube.com/user/aphoristicfilms After robbing a train, a gang of bandits regroup and begins to question each others' methods. Greed can cause a man to do terrible things, but none as bad as what is to come of the gang of bandits. HONORARY AWARD, 2012 Winter Film Awards 48 Hour Film Challenge Rich graduated from Full Sail University in 2010 with a B.S. degree in Film. Soon after graduation, he began to pursue his career in New York City, where he works on reality and documentary TV shows for both local and national networks. While working on large projects, Rich is also no stranger to directing independent projects from TV. Pilots to skit comedy.
	CLAY United States / Short Film / 12 minutes / Bengali and English Director: Sush K Parmar Producer: Sush K Parmar More: www.cuttingchaiproductions.com Clay is a meditation on the understanding of life and death, of the form and the formless. The film follows a young woman's journey through love and loss, juxtaposed with images of the Indian God Ganesha, symbolizing detachment. This film is sponsored and partially funded by Austin Film Society and the City of Austin Cultural Arts Division. HONORABLE MENTION, 2012 Columbus Film + Video Fest Sushma Khadepaun-Parmar (Sush) was born in Mumbai, India and raised in a small town on the west coast. She graduated with a degree in Mass Communication from Mumbai and started her career as a Production Intern. It was then that she discovered her love for filmmaking, but it was not until 2009 that she quit her job to pursue her passion full-time. Sushma has directed, produced and edited several short films, commercials and corporate videos. In May 2010, Sushma initiated a local group called Austin South Asian Creatives, which promotes visual & performing arts within the local South Asian community.
	DAR HE: THE LYNCHING OF EMMETT TILL United States / Feature Film Competition / 70 minutes / English Director: Rob Underhill Producer: Rob Underhill, Aravind Ragupathi, Mike Wiley More: *www.RobUnderhill.com* Days after stepping off the train, 14-year old Emmett Till from Chicago goes missing in Money, Mississippi. Later, the boy's mutilated body is found in a river. In an acting tour de force, one man performs 36 roles in the telling of the Emmett Till tragedy. In DAR HE: The Lynching of Emmett Till, experience the true story, trial, and unbelievable confessions of those accused of Emmett's murder in this riveting drama. BEST FEATURE, JURY AWARD, 2012 Hollywood Black Film Festival --- BEST FILM, 2012 Black International Cinema Berlin --- BEST FEATURE FILM, 2012 San Francisco Black Film Festival --- BEST EXPERIMENTAL FILM, 2012 Newark Black Film Festival --- BEST FEATURE FILM, 2012 Charlotte Black Film Festival --- BEST FILM, 2012 North Carolina Black Film Festival --- BEST OVERALL DRAMA, 2012 New Bern Independent Film Festival --- BEST EDITING & BEST ACTOR, 2012 Real to Reel Film Festival --- BEST ACTOR, 2012 North Carolina Black Film Festival --- BEST FEATURE 3rd PLACE, 2012 Tupelo Film Festival --- JUDGE'S AWARD for CREATIVE VISION, 2012 Secret City Film Festival ROB UNDERHILL is director, producer and co-screenwriter of the film, DAR HE: The Lynching of Emmett Till. His short-film, Wolf Call, won 12 Best Film awards, won nominated for a Black Reel award, and, in January 2013, was selected for national TV syndication. His films have screened at over 100 festivals across the globe.
	DISSENT Mexico / Horror Short Film / 35 minutes / English Director: Helmut Dosantos Producer: Helmut Dosantos, Vincenzo Mistretta More: www.dissent-themovie.com An old father, still a tyrant despite his age. Edward, the son, devoured by his Oedipus complex. And Karla, the young woman betrothed to Edward, whose dream is to see her future husband break free from the yoke of his father and assert his own will. However, reality dwells between nightmares and dreams and will ultimately lead to a fatal descent. AWARD OF EXCELLENCE, 2012 The Indie Fest --- HONORABLE MENTION, 2012 Los Angeles Movie Awards --- BRONZE PALM AWARD, 2012 Mexico International Film Festival --- AWARD OF EXCELLENCE, 2012 Accolade Competition --- BEST EDITING/SHORT FILM, 2012 Downtown Film Festival Los Angeles --- HONORABLE MENTION, 2012 Vegas Cine Fest Helmut Dosantos (born in Rome, Italy) moved to Prague in 2005, where he was admitted to FAMU, the National Academy of Cinema and TV of Czech Republic. In 2007, he carried on with his studies at the EICTV (Escuela Internacional de Cine y TV) in San Antonio de los Baños, Cuba. Since 2010, he lives in Mexico City.
	ELEGY FOR A REVOLUTIONARY South Africa / Short Film / 24 minutes / Afrikaans, English and Zulu Director: Paul van Zyl Producer: Stacy Ekstein More: www.elegy-movie.com Based on a true and personal story. Encouraged by his friend, a young, idealistic journalist joins the African National Congress (ANC) to protest apartheid. When their acts of sabotage turn to murder, the relationship falls apart. With a country divided and loyalty strained, two men are forced to choose sides and suffer their fate. AWARD OF MERIT, 2012 Accolade Competition --- BEST POLITICAL STATEMENT MOVIE, 2012 Action on Film International Film Festival --- BEST SHORT FILM, 2012 Action/Cut Short Film Competition --- JURY PRIZE SHORT FILM, 2012 CineVegas International Film Festival --- BEST SHORT FILM, 2012 Dixie Film Festival Paul Van Zyl graduated from Rhodes University in South Africa with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Speech & Drama and Visual Communications. There, he did projects with the South African Broadcasting Company, Elton John and Michael York. Independently, he directed for the stage, and wrote and directed 5 short films. In the U.S., he completed the Directing program at AFI and interned with David Cronenberg, Karl Shenkel and Curtis Hanson. On stage, he reprised Stillborn and Big Boys.
	FABULA Argentina / Short Film / 13 minutes / Spanish Director: Agustín Falco Producer: Cecilia Diez One summer afternoon, on the bank of a river, a boy and a girl are starting to meet each other. Meanwhile, landscape and distance will become the stage for a possible beginning. AWARD OF MERIT WINNER, 2012 Accolade, Film, Television, TV, Video, Contest, Contests, Awards 2012 --- HONORABLE MENTION AWARD IN SHORT FILM, 2012 Love Unlimited Film Festival Agustín Falco is a young director, writer, producer and professor in many institutions. He is an Argentine filmmaker trained at the Film Institute of Santa Fe (Argentina), birthplace of the New Latin American Cinema. He is also an academic formed in visual arts and philosophy.
	FINDING FIRE PRINCESS United States / Short Film / 6 minutes / English Director: Rebecca Kalin Producer: Rebecca Kalin A mysterious gift leads to an investigation of a front-page, 1929 double suicide–or was it murder-suicide? Of Josephine Rotch, a young Boston bride, and Harry Crosby, an eccentric Paris poet, both married, but not to each other. A series of serendipitous events leads to the discovery of the motive that has been missing for 80 years. This short is the backstory to the screenplay, Fire Princess, which reveals the circumstances of the death of Harry Crosby, a charismatic, self-proclaimed death cultist, and the woman who–to the surprise of all–died in his arms. Ms. Kalin, a lifelong storyteller, has worked as an artist and animator, hitchhiked across South America dressed as a boy, made clothes for animals on SNL, taught scriptwriting to Africans, founded and run a successful non-profit and written 4 original screenplays including Fire Princess.
	HAVE A CUP OF TEA United States / Music Video / 6 minutes / English Director: Alicia Maye Weary of the outside world, a young woman seeks quiet and consolation. Upon closing her eyes, she finds that she is not alone. Sometimes your only friend is within. Alicia Maye is a Smith college graduate and independent filmmaker.
	HELENA'S FLUSHING United States / Short Film Competition / 28 minutes / English Director: Dae Hoon Kim Helena, a screenwriter who screams a lot, gets into tiffs and shouting matches with her classmates, teammates, best friends, homeless people and most often with Max, a chauvinistic foreigner in her class who brashly challenges her story in her own home of Flushing, NY. Dae Hoon Kim is a New York filmmaker who has written and directed multiple short films, and a no-budget mini-feature, BROTHERS (2011) — a guerilla style, urban-stoner comedy. In 2012 he shot footage for web documentary, working title LAR20, about young people inspired from the 1992 LA Riots to create art, and is in post production. HELENA'S FLUSHING (2013) is his most recent short film. He is currently finishing development on his proper feature debut, targeted to shoot later this year and working title WE ARE RAGGA ZOOMBIEZ!, a dark dramedy/musical about long-lost cousins starting a doomed reggae band. Dae Hoon got his MFA in film production from Tisch NYU, JD from Georgetown and Econ BA from Pomona College. He is also the founder of the Korean American Film Festival New York.
	INCIDENT ON HIGHWAY 73 United States / Horror Short Film / 27 minutes / English Director: Brian Thompson Producer: Michael Kirk + Brian Thompson More: www.facebook.com/incidentonhighway73 On Christmas Eve of 2005 Jeff and Kelly took a trip through the desert and mysteriously disappeared. This is the account of their final hours. BEST SHORT FILM, 2012 Screamfest Skully Brian Thompson is an award-winning director from Campo, California. As a child, Thompson read Jaws, The Lord of the Rings and Pet Cemetery for his grade school's reading rainbow program. These books served as the catalyst for his directing career ahead and sparked his interest in storytelling.
	PECHORIN Russia / Foreign Language Film / 95 minutes / Russian w/Subtitles Director: Roman Khrushch Producer: Leonid Litvak More: www.romanfilm.ru/en/ "The final action of an intelligent and outstanding man is judging oneself without mercy." Based upon the Russian classic Mikhail Lermontov novel “Hero of Our Time”, events are as reflected in the mind of the dying hero, as a series of irrevocable mistakes and interpreted anew: it is either reconsideration or repentance. Recollections make our main hero torment himself over his own past pretenses that seem ridiculous now, agonize and despair over his perfect indifference to everything except himself and see the horrible aspect of killing his friend, a greenhorn and a show-off. BEST FEATURE FILM, 2012 London Film Awards Roman Khrushch was born in Kharkov (Ukraine) in 1960. He graduated from VGIK (1981, Russian State Institute of Cinematography) and VKSR (1998, Higher Courses for Scriptwriters and Directors).
	PIANOFORTE United States / WFA 48-Hour Film Challenge Winner / 6 minutes / English Director: Jerry Jean Producer: Jerry Jean, Angelica Vanessa, Jennifer Painter More: www.jerryjean.com www.angelicavanessa.com www.jenniferpainter.com Pianoforte is a short horror film about a beautiful, disturbed piano player. When her neighbors, a young couple, complain about the noise level of her unique Chopin interpretations, she takes action to make sure that they never complain again. FAN FAVORITE, 2012 Winter Film Awards 48 Hour Challenge Producers of Pianoforte include director / composer Jerry Jean, videographer / editors Angelica Vanessa & Jennifer Painter, all NYC based. The trio first began working together shooting music videos for Jerry's gigs and projects. Angelica & Jennifer both honed their craft at FIT, and Jerry was a music major at NYU/Columbia. Pianoforte is their first short film collaboration!
	QWERTY United States / Feature Film / 91 minutes / English Director: Bill Sebastian Producer: Nat Dykeman More: www.qwertythemovie.com QWERTY tells the story of two lonely humans trying to figure out how to experience love. Before introverted word-nerd Zoe gains the courage to enter the National Scrabble Championship, she meets her emotional match in Marty, an irascible recluse. She finds him equally pitted against the opposing forces in her life – other people – including family, co-workers and a couple particularly irksome adversaries standing in the way of her dream to become the world's 2nd female National Scrabble Champion. BEST DRAMA, BEST OF FEST, 2013 Trail Dance Film Festival --- BEST FILM MUSIC, HONORABLE MENTION, Nashville Film Festival --- BEST FEATURE, East Lansing Film Festival – Lake Michigan Film Competition --- 2ND PLACE COMEDY, Secret City Film Festival Bill Sebastian directed and starred in his first feature film about an unemployed ninja when he was 19. He is much older now and less nimble. In 2007 he helmed the feature film "Midlothia," which was critically acclaimed on the independent film festival circuit. Last year he directed 4 episodes of "Dwelling" a web-series created by Anthony Q. Farrell, writer for "The Office", and just wrapped a lead acting role in "The Black Sea", an independent film shot in Oregon. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and child.
	SNOWFLAKE United States / WFA 48-Hour Challenge Winner / 8 minutes / English Director: Daniel Florio Producer: Chris Sciacco More: www.grapedutches.com Snowflake was created for the 2012 Winter Film Awards 48-Hour Film Challenge. Snowflake is about a lonely young man trying to find himself in a big city. BEST SCREENPLAY, 2012 48-Hour 48-Hour Challenge Daniel Florio is the director, writer and co-producer of "Snowflake". He is also the founder of the sketch troupe The Grape Dutches of York, who have had shorts in festivals in Austin,TX and New York. Daniel won Best Screenplay for "Snowflake" at the Winter Film Awards 48-Hour Film Challenge.
	STRANGERS United States / Short Film / 10 minutes / English Director: Kabir Chopra Producer: Ashley Hufford More: www.facebook.com/Strangersshort While waiting for his Internet date to arrive at the bar, Sam starts chatting with a strange man sitting next to him. When she fails to show up, Sam begins to fear that this man is actually his date. OFFICIAL SELECTION, 2012 New York Indian Film Festival Kabir Chopra is a filmmaker from New York, with a BFA in Dramatic Writing from NYU's Tisch School of The Arts. He has written and directed several short films, and is currently directing a web series about video game addiction called “Addicted,” which will release in Spring 2013.
	THE COOKIE RUSH United States / WFA 48-Hour Film Challenge Winner / 7 minutes / English Director: Seong Kim Producer: Motiondreamers Production More: www.Motiondreamer.com Three friends move to a new apartment. After their hard moving, three friends start to argue to get the biggest room in the apartment. BEST PICTURE, 2012 WFA 48-Hour Film Challenge Motiondreamers Production makes Films, Wedding Videos, Commercials, Music Videos and Event Videos in New York and New Jersey. We always try to make new and innovative videos, collaborating with talented artists near New York.
	TXIKI Spain / Short Film / 27 minutes / Spanish w/Subtitles Director: Sergio San Martin Producer: Orianna G. Muccio TXIKI is a documentary piece structured around artist Txiki Medina (1958) and focused on the creative process of an oil painting. In order to put together his peculiar geometry, the artist takes inspiration from urban spaces and spoilt aspects of Nature, places filled with elements which, rather than sought, have been encountered. There is also a drive towards introspection, towards revealing the human interior where silence plays a key role. The trace that the passing of time leaves on each image. Painting as a metaphor of the velocity of time. HONORABLE MENTION, Encuentros Jóvenes Artistas de Navarra (SPAIN) --- BIFF Beloit Intern'l Film Festival (USA) --- Festival De Cine Independiente De Iquique (Chile) --- ATLANTIDOC (URUGUAY) --- Dawn Breakers Int'l Film Festival (Switzerland) --- Cimameriche Film Festival (ITALY) --- Festiwalu Euroshorts (POLAND) --- Cine Septiembre Film Festival (MEXICO) --- Cinetoro Film Festival (COLOMBIA) --- Enkarzine Short Film Festival (SPAIN) --- Festival de Cortometrajes de Barquisimeto (VENEZUELA) Sergio San Martín Cerezo was born in Pamplona and earned a degree in Audiovisual Communication at the University of Navarre. Since graduation, he has worked exclusively in the audiovisual world. He combines his work as a filmmaker and editor of videos for several companies with his own freelance work in documentaries, experimental videos and music videos. In total, his videos have been selected in more than thirty Audiovisual Festivals or Presentations all over the world.
	YEARNING Bahrain / Foreign Language Film / 12 minutes / Arabic w/Subtitles Director: Eva Daoud Producer: Eva Daoud The film deals with the complex psychological interactions that occur in the mind following severe emotional shocks. Science is still at a loss today to explain how our brains generate phantasms, justifications and hallucinations to deal with such traumas; as in the language of the mind and its interactions with the world, there is no such thing called impossible. Rose is faced with an emotional crisis that affects her ability to be rational and has started to confuse those who are dead in her life from those who are still living. Eva Daoud is a Syrian citizen living in Bahrain. She is a prolific poet and journalist with a strong interest in world ancient history and mythology. Eva has worked in several diverse fields including Sports Newscasting (ART network), Journalism, shipping line management and Education & Marketing Management. Her work has won awards in festivals in Abu Dhabi, the United States, Canada, Egypt, Oman, Morocco and Iraq.

Winter Film Awards
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