Waterfront Film Festival

The Waterfront Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in the state of Michigan.

Ranked as one of the Top 5 film festivals in the world by SAGIndie in the Screen Actors Guild Magazine, the Waterfront Film Festival draws thousands of movie lovers and filmmakers to the small resort town of Saugatuck. It has bolstered large support from the community and has become a fast growing tradition to view over seventy independent movies at seven unique and picturesque venues around the town. It takes place the second weekend in June and runs for four days. The festival accepts entries of shorts, animations, full length features and documentaries nationwide and also holds a competitive screenwriting competition, as well as a Michigan Lodge focused on showcasing Michigan filmmakers. Additionally, the festival hosts a number of educational seminars ranging from documentary filmmaking to promoting movie making in Michigan.

Sponsors for the festival include Kodak, MGM, National Endowment for the Arts and the ScreenActors Guild. Some of the high-profile Midwestern Premieres that Waterfront hosted in the recent past include: 2006 Academy Award Winner "March of the Penguins", "Napoleon Dynamite", "Grizzly Man", "Pittsburgh", "Open Water", "The Descent", "Harold and Kumar go to WhiteCastle", Sundance Grand Jury Winner "Primer", Academy Award Nominees "Murderball" and "The Story of the Weeping Camel" and a Michigan Premiere of the Academy Award Winner "Born into Brothels". Past guests include Academy Award Nominated Director Jason Reitman as well as actors Justin Long, Jonathan Silverman, Wendie Malick, and Mary Lynn Rajskub.

Waterfront is a 100% volunteer-run non-profit event. All donations and proceeds from ticket and merchandise sales go directly to the operational budget of the festival. All donations are fully tax deductible and allow for the continuation of the festival in the following years.

History

The Waterfront Film Festival was founded in 1999 by siblings Hopwood DePree, Dori DePree, and Dana DePree, along with Kori Eldean and Judy Smith. The founders, with help from L.A. and New York entertainment professionals, created theWaterfront Film Festival to provide a “middle coast” venue for independent filmmakers eager toshow their work to sophisticated audiences. The festival is not judged or adjudicated but rather anopportunity for filmmakers to informally connect with their audiences.

Prior to the festival, the pleasant coastal town of Saugatuck did not even have a theatre, but welcomed the festival with open arms. A variety of cozy inns surround the venues that show the films and everything is within walking distance, allowing the traffic to remain light and keeping the laid-back feel that is synonymous with the festival intact.

Links

* [http://www.waterfrontfilm.org Waterfront Film Festival Official Website]

References

* [http://www.waterfrontfilm.org Waterfront Film Festival Official Website]
* [http://www.nextcat.com/WaterfrontFilmFestival Nextcat.com]