Editor

VISIONFEST 05: The Other Festival (VF05) has officially announced the (25) semi-finalists of its second annual Feature Screenwriting Competition. The scripts, which hovered closely to the 100 entries mark (representing a very prolific number of submissions considering the early growing stages of this competition), touched upon several classic movie genres, with the majority of entries being dramas and with comedies (particularly of the romantic kind) being a close second, and horror at a prominent third place. The competition, which is being primarily sponsored by InkTip.com (with the top three scripts set to earn some significant exposure on the sponsor’s Web Site), also included a large number of entries that explored thematic elements closely related to the current War on Terror and several ‘doomsday’ type sci-fiers that seemed to emulate and set the stage for this summer’s upcoming Spielberg epic, WAR OF THE WORLDS.

The semi-finalists contain stories set in WWII, graphic and violent crime dramas, two space-age sci-fi tales, several biographical epics, and a good share of comedies, dramas, and gory horror tales. VF05 Creative Director, Franco Frassetti noted “a definite rise in the variety of genres as compared to the previous year’s submissions,” adding that, “Screenwriters this year seemed more apt to take structural liberties in their writing styles. There were tons of scripts that experimented with tricky flashbacks, flashforwards, and the occasional parallel reality story.”

Clay Rivers (whose maiden screenplay, FUR, placed among the group of 25 semi-finalists), expressed his delight at discovering his inclusion in the competition by e-mailing fest staffers with a charming note that defined him as “flipping cartwheels,” calling the decision: “a wonderful pat-on-the-back for a first-time screenwriter.” VF05 plans to announce its (10) finalists by the first week of July and the top three vote-getters on July 24, during the festival’s Awards Ceremony, which will take place at the Tribeca Cinemas Lounge. The complete list of semi-finalists has been posted on the festival’s Web site at: www.domanivision.org

David Beaird’s The Civilization of Maxwell Bright, a recent Florida Film Festival Grand Jury Prize winner as the year’s Best Narrative Feature, has been slated on the line-up for this year’s Independent Vision Showcase, the festival’s competitive screenings program, which runs July 20-24, 2005, at the Tribeca Cinemas (corner of Canal & Varick streets in Manhattan).

The film features two truly memorable, star-making turns by Patrick Warburton (Puddy on NBC’s Seinfeld) and Marie Matiko (of Art of War, Sum of All Fears, and Mystery Men fame). The sharp wit and intelligent balance between comedy and drama is enhanced by the magnificent cast, which also includes: Eric Roberts (Less Than Perfect, Star 80, The Pope of Greenwich Village), Jennifer Tilly (Bullets Over Broadway, Bound), Carol Kane (Trees Lounge, TV’s Taxi), and Simon Callow (Angels in America, Three Weddings & A Funeral).

The Civilization of Maxwell Bright will be making its New York Premiere at VF05, in a prime night slot (Saturday, July 23 – exact start time yet to be determined), and will be preceded by the Susan Kraker & Pi Ware short subject, The Act, an ‘official selection’ from the 2005 Sundance Film Festival.