The 20th annual Dusty Film and Animation Festival and Awards will highlight more than 100 films by students graduating from the BFA Film, Video and Animation Department at the School of Visual Arts (SVA). The program includes screenings of short films, videos and animations; and an awards ceremony and gala with notable presenters from the film industry. This year's Screenwriters Night is a collaboration with the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in which SVA graduating screenwriters will have selected scenes performed live by alumni from the Neighborhood Playhouse.
Each year, film achievement awards are presented in the following categories: documentary, screenwriting, cinematography, editing, directing and outstanding film. Animation achievement awards are presented for traditional, stop-motion, and experimental animation. The Best Director Award will be presented by Academy Award winner Kevin Kline (A FISH CALLED WANDA). The Best Screenplay Award will be presented by Academy Award winner John Patrick Shanley (MOONSTRUCK and nominated for DOUBT). The Best Cinematography Award will be presented by Academy Award Winner Robert Elswit (THERE WILL BE BLOOD). The Best Documentary Award will be presented by Nina Rosenblum, nominated for the Academy Award for LIBERATORS: FIGHTING ON TWO FRONTS IN WORLD WAR II.
The Best Film Award will be presented by: Randall Emmett, producer of 55 films including RIGHTEOUS KILL, RAMBO V, THE WICKER MAN, THICK AS THIEVES, DAY OF THE DEAD, FAKE IDENTITY, HOME OF THE BRAVE. (SVA Alumnus, BFA 1994 Film and Video) The Best Editor Award will be presented by: Barbara Tulliver, whose film credits include BROOKLYN'S FINEST, SIGNS, THE WINSLOW BOY, REDBELT, HEIST, SPARTAN.
The Best Animation Award will be presented by Tom Sito, veteran of film animation. Directed OSMOSIS JONES; animated the Beast in BEAUTY AND THE BEAST; the Genie in ALADDIN; story artist for ANTZ, THE PRINCE OF EGYPT, SHREK and DINOSAUR. (SVA Alumnus, BFA 1977 Animation).
2009 Festival Schedule:
Monday, May 4 through Friday, May 8: Screenings* Visual Arts Theater 333 West 23rd Street, 12-11 p.m.
Tuesday, May 5: Screenwriters Night Visual Arts Theater, 6:30 p.m.
Thursday, May 7: Animation Screenings* Visual Arts Theater, 7-11 p.m.
Saturday, May 9: Awards Ceremony and Gala Awards Ceremony: Visual Arts Theater, 6 p.m. Gala: Marquee, 8-11 p.m. 289 10th Avenue, NY, NY 10001
Sunday, May 10: Winner's Circle Visual Arts Theater, 12-6 p.m.
RSVP is required for Screenwriters Night, Awards Ceremony and Gala. For public inquiries regarding tickets, contact 212.592.2124. Events marked with an asterisk * above are free and open to the public).
Screenwriters Night, May 5, 2009, is held in collaboration with The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre and The Real Theatre Company. Eleven five-minute scenes by SVA's screenwriting thesis students are set to be performed live on stage, featuring alumni from The Neighborhood Playhouse, the internationally regarded acting conservatory. Screenwriters Night will be directed by award-winning filmmaker John Gallagher, a faculty member at both SVA and The Neighborhood Playhouse, and will be produced by film producers Annie Flocco and Heidi H. Hamelin
The Dusty Film and Animation Festival and Awards began in 1990 when the BFA Film, Video and Animation Department sought to bring its year-end screenings of student films to a wider audience. With sponsorship, a venue, and the support from the film industry, the event came to life. To pay tribute to School of Visual Arts founder Silas H. Rhodes, the event was named "Dusty" -- after the nickname Rhodes had as a soldier in World War II.
