Bel-Air Film Festival

 RETURN TO A HIDING PLACE

“RETURN TO A HIDING PLACE” is the top winning film of the 2013 Bel-Air Film Festival (BAFF) which was held October 7th to13th throughout Los Angeles.  RETURN TO A HIDING PLACE is the winner of the Jury Awards for Best Jury Feature Film, Best Jury Feature Film Cinematography, and Best Jury Feature Film Directing. Written and directed by Peter Spencer, the film is based on a true story about a group in Holland called The Resistance that fought against the Nazis to save lives and help the Jews during the World War II Era.

“THE BOARDER” won Best Audience Feature Film Award. The film’s lead actor Andy Scott Harris won Best Jury Feature Film Lead Actor. Written by Jane Ryan, and directed by Jolene Adams, the film is a story about a family that adopts a child who has Reactive Attachment Disorder. Based on a true story and life experiences of the film’s writer Jane Ryan. The Boarder is an honest portrayal of the real life experiences of families with children who have experienced trauma at an early age in their life. Cast includes Leslie Stevens, Carlton Wilborn, Andy Scott Harris, and Dee Wallace.

“UNCLAIMED,” directed by Emmy Award Winner Michael Jorgensen, received Best Jury Documentary Award. Embarking on a routine missionary trip, veteran and missionary, Tom a former Vietnam Veteran, discovers a man, John Robertson, claiming to be an MIA (missing in action) vet surviving in the jungle for decades. 40 years after the war that radically altered his life as a young man, Tom returns to Vietnam to reunite Robertson with his family in the United States.

“ANTARCTICA: A YEAR ON ICE” received Best Jury Documentary Film. Written and directed by Anthony Powell, this feature-length documentary film reveals what it is like to live and work at the bottom of the planet, in Antarctica, for a full year. The story is not from the point of view of scientists, but of the people who spend the most time there; the everyday workers who keep the stations running in the harshest place on the planet. The film explores unparalleled access, and never before seen stunning footage of the deep Antarctic winters.

“THE GUN, THE CAKE, AND THE BUTTERFLY” won both Best Jury Documentary Film Editing Award and Best Audience Documentary Award. Written and Directed by Amanda Eliasch. An experimental and stylish docudrama portrait of London socialite/fashion editor/poet/writer/artist, Amanda Eliasch. Using a variety of actresses as Eliasch’s alter egos, this seductive glimpse into her life spans childhood in the English countryside to her adult years looking for fulfillment in all corners of the globe. A woman full of character and complexity, Eliasch inhabits a modern world of luxury and heartache.

“SUCCESS DRIVEN” won Best Audience Short Film Award. Executive Produced by Lloyd Klein and written and directed by Scott J. Harris. “Success is a journey, not a destination.” The closing line of the Bel-Air Film Festival Best Audience Short Film Winner, Success Driven, pretty much sums up not only the protagonist of film’s journey, but also the film itself. The original concept, a brainchild of fashion mogul Lloyd Klein and new recording artist Mohammad, was developed into screenplay form by Scott J. Foster. A team was soon assembled, placing Yancey Arias of NYC Films at the helm as director, with Klein, Arias and Foster producing. The film, starring Mohammad Molaei, nom d’arte Mohammad, is a breathtaking semi-autobiographical saga of a Middle Eastern singer who lands in America to become the most sought after musical talent in the world. The cast is rounded out quite elegantly, with Hollywood stars Steven Bauer (Scarface, Traffic) and Serena Scott Thomas (The World Is Not Enough). “The entire cast and crew are delighted that Success Driven garnered such a prestigious award in the company of so many wonderful films this year at the BAFF,” says Executive Producer Lloyd Klein.

“DELAROSA” won Best Audience Student Short Film Award. Written and directed by student filmmaker Blake Simon, the film follows the story of a man, Don, who comes home one day to find a note from his wife saying that she has left him. The note contains his wife’s destination, and the film follows Don as he embarks out to recover his wife, meeting many people along the way who attempt to discourage Don’s journey. Don however, will stop at nothing to get back what he wants.

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[caption id="attachment_1806" align="alignnone"]Best Jury Feature Film Award and Best Feature Film Directing Award: Wedding Party[/caption]

The Fourth Annual Bel-Air Film Festival was held in from October 12th-17th, and included screening 36 Feature, Documentary, Short, and Student Films.  “The 2011 Bel-Air Film Festival is proud to have showcased the work of filmmakers that have expressed their creativity and innovative spirits, and we are pleased to announce this year’s winners.” –Melody Storm, President of Bel-Air Film Festival.

2011 Bel-Air Film Festival winning film includes:

Best Audience Feature Film Award: My Father’s Will
Written, directed, and produced by Fraydun Manocherian and starring actors Victor Alfieri and Ione Skye. The film is a story about a wealthy and successful businessman, Ferro Olivetti, enjoys the privileges and perks of his social stature, but on his father’s deathbed he promises to obey “his father’s will” and spend one month away from his identity and money.

Best Audience Jury Documentary Award: Once I Was a Champion
Written and directed by Gerard Roxburgh. The film debuts the story of Evan Tanner. Tanner was an adventure seeker, fighter, philosopher, writer and alcoholic died on September 8th, 2008 in the desert north of Brawley, California.

Best Audience Short Film Award: Women
Directed by Ashley Scott and George Mays and written by Ashley Scott. The film stars Kevin Scott Allen, Lena Biggerstaff, and Evyh Cerhus. “Women,” depicts the age-old dilemma of the feminine role is society. Set in a beautiful nether-France, two exquisite young ladies argue the merits of conforming to society’s idea of femininity versus what women might do if they made their own rules.

Best Jury Feature Film Award and Best Feature Film Directing Award: Wedding Party
Directed by Amanda Jane and written by Christine Bartlett. The film stars Josh Lawson, Isabel Lucas, and Steve Bisley. The Wedding party is a modern day love story taking place in Australia. The storyline reviews the struggles between a groom and his bride is a family of misfits and the love of his life

Best Jury Screenwriting Award: Face to Face
Written, directed, and produced by Michael Rymer and starring Vince Colosimo, Luke Ford, and Matthew Newton. The feature film is about a group of Australians from diverse backgrounds gather to decide the fate of a violent young man. An Australian ’12 Angry Men’, only there’s ten men, and four women.

Best Jury Documentary Film Award and Best Jury Film Documentary Award: Beatboxing: The Fifth Element of Hip Hop
Written and directed by Klaus Schneyder featuring artists Adam Matta, Archangel, Baba Israel, Morganics, Bee Low, Bellatrix and the Boxettes, Butterscotch, Click88, David Eaton, and DJ Shark. The documentary reviews how the late 70s youth culture evolved in the poorer parts of New York which combined several disciplines under the name of Hip Hop. Apart from the four classic elements of Graffiti writing, DJing, Breakdancing, and Rapping, the musical side of this culture was enhanced by a fifth element called, “Beatboxing.”

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The 2010 Bel-Air Film Festival (BAFF) held its third annual event October 14th-19th. The festival screened 58 films; venues included the UCLA James Bridges Theater and Clarity Theaters, Beverly Hills. Opening night included a special screening of Walk a Mile in My Pradas starring Tom Arnold. Actress Christina Collard hosted the evening and honored Brian Austin Green (Beverly Hills 90210) with the “Best Actor Award,” Kathy Najimy (Sister Act, King of the Hill ) with the “Best Actress Award” and Salaam Remi (Alicia Keys, Amy Winehouse, Sex and the City) with the “Best Music in Film Award,” .Comedian Phyllis Diller was recognized with a “Lifetime Achievement Award,” and Mark Rydell was honored with the ‘Legendary Filmmaker Award’ by Kat Kramer. After parties were held at the Soho House, W Hotel and Hotel Palomar.

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