The Kanbar Institute of Film and Television at the Tisch School of the Arts hosts the 68th annual First Run Film Festival, New York’s oldest continuous film event, April 8-11.
Over 100 Films Competing for $50,000 in Cash Awards
Public Screenings at NYU’s Cantor Film Center
The Kanbar Institute of Film and Television at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts has announced the 68th annual First Run Film Festival will take place April 8-11, 2010. First Run, New York’s oldest continuous film festival, premieres the work of some of the country’s top student filmmakers. This year’s annual spring showcase will feature 113 advanced films, videos, multimedia, and animation projects. The films and videos compete for over $50,000 in cash awards presented by the Charles and Lucille King Family Foundation.
In a departure from past years: First Run will announce the annual Craft Award winners at the daily screenings; each screening will have its own theme, title, and subtitle (3:30 – 9:30 pm blocks only); and the King finalists will be announced at the end of Festival at the Awards Ceremony and Screening. Screenings are open to the public and will take place at the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Film Center, located at 36 E. 8th Street in Manhattan. Screenings are: April 8-11 at: 3.30 p.m., 5:30 p.m., 7:30 p.m., and 9:30 p.m.; Apr 10 & 11 have additional screenings at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Admission is $5; students with ID, $3. No tickets will be sold in advance. For more detailed information, call 212.998.1795; or visit www.firstrunfestival.com.
The four days of screenings will culminate in the Wasserman Awards Ceremony featuring the Charles and Lucille King Family Foundation Awards and screening of the winning films. The ceremony will take place at the Regal Union Square, located at 850 Broadway, on Tuesday, April 13 at 5 p.m. A private reception will follow immediately at The Forum Lounge.
Each year, following First Run, the finalist film and videos are screened in Hollywood for industry professionals and the public. This year’s Los Angeles showcase will be held June 24 at the Director’s Guild of America.
Underwriting support for First Run Festival 2010 has been provided, in part, by a grant from the Charles and Lucille King Family Foundation for the creation of 10 awards. They are, for both graduate and undergraduate divisions: 1st place, $10,000; 2nd place, $7,000; and 3rd place, $5,000. In addition, two Wasserman Awards for $2,000 each for Best Director and two King Awards for $3,000 each for Best Screenplay will be presented in the graduate and undergraduate divisions. A distinguished panel of judges representing the film industry will select the winners.
First Run is the debut venue for most Kanbar student films, and many will later go on to screenings at international film festivals, cable television, and Sundance. This year’s entries range from traditional dramas and documentaries to experimental shorts and animation. Most are 15 minutes or more in length and are finished in video format with others completed in 35-mm. Coming of age stories chronicling the misadventures of youth and relationship-driven dramas predominate as well as comedic approaches to slice-of-life stories.
The Kanbar Institute of Film and Television at the Tisch School of the Arts provides an intensive and professional education in filmmaking. The program shared first place in recent U.S. News and World Report rankings of the nation’s film programs; since 1992, sixteen Student Academy Award gold medals have been presented to NYU student filmmakers by the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences. At the 1998 Sundance Film Festival, Kanbar Institute students and alumni walked away with an unprecedented seven awards in virtually every top-prize category. At the 2005 and 2006 Sundance Film Festivals, Kanbar filmmakers walked away with 10 prizes. Approximately 150 graduate and 1,050 undergraduate film students pursue degrees in film and television production, photography, cinema studies, dramatic writing, and interactive telecommunications. Distinguished alumni of the Kanbar Institute include Joel Coen, Chris Columbus, Billy Crystal, Martha Coolidge, Ernest Dickerson, Amy Heckerling, Jim Jarmusch, Ang Lee, Spike Lee, Brett Ratner, Nancy Savoca, Martin Scorsese, Susan Seidelman, and Oliver Stone, among many others.