Wednesday, November 7---------The teen years are never easy. They are filled with either impossible hopes or deep-seated regret. The precariousness of life as seen by young people who have not yet learned the lessons that all things will pass can be excruciating. And film, almost more than any other artistic medium, has a long history of capturing that precious and precarious time of life known as the teen years.

A worthy addition to the canon of films on the subject has its premiere tonight at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival. STILL GREEN, directed by Jon Artigo from an original script by Georgia Menides, is the story of a group of young people who rent a beach house for one last week before they seperate for college. A tragic accident changes and tests their friendship. In this dark teen drama, everything can change in an instant. The film won a Best Film award at the recent New England Film and Video Film Festival.

Artigo directs a large cast of young actors, including himself and writer Menides, along with Doug Lloyd, Vonzell Solomon, Sarah Jones, Ryan Kelley, Douglas Spain, Noah Segan, Paul Costa, Brandon Meyer, Ashleigh Snyder, Michael Strynkowski, Nicole Komendat and Gricel Castineira. The film exposes the secret crushes, crippling insecurities, excitement for the future, rumors and secrets, and the lines that are continually being crossed between friendship and sexual attraction. The film, which is receiving its East Coast Premiere at the Festival, will be followed by a party with most of the cast attending at Revolution, a downtown Fort Lauderdale nightclub. To view the film's trailer, visit the website: http://www.stillgreenmovie.com/

Sandy Mandelberger, Fort Lauderdale FF Dailies Editor