AWFJ To Present EDA Awards @ Whistler Film Festival 2015 – Katherine Brodsky reports
The Alliance of Women Film Journalists Inc. (AWFJ) is partnering with Whistler Film Festival 2015, held from December 2 to 6 in Whistler, British Columbia, to present juried AWFJ EDA Awards for Best Female-Directed Fiction Feature and Best Female-Directed Documentary Feature. This is the third consecutive year of the partnership between Whistler Film Festival and AWFJ to recognize and honor excellent work by female directors. Read on…
Films eligible for the awards are part of the festival’s regular program, and are being nominated in both narrative and nonfiction categories by Whistler Film Festival’s administration and programmers. The nominees will be announced at a later date.
Jury panels for both EDA Awards categories are drawn from the AWFJ membership, with five jurors assigned to each panel. Chairperson for the narrative feature panel is Vancouver-based Katherine Brodsky, and chairing the documentaries panel is New York-based Jennifer Merin, who is also AWFJ’s president.
The members of the Best Female-Directed Fiction Feature jury are:
- Katherine Brodsky (Chair), Vancouver, Variety
- Lexi Feinberg, Berkeley, Big Picture Big Sound
- Leba Hertz, San Francisco, San Francisco Chronicle
- Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles, FilmFestivals.com
- Kimberley Jones, Austin, Austin Chronicle
The members of the Best Female-Directed Documentary Feature jury are:
- Karen Martin, Little Rock, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
- Jennifer Merin (Chair), New York, Women’s eNews
- Janice Page, Boston, Boston Globe
- Lynn Venhaus, St. Louis, Belleville News Democrat
- Dorothy Woodend, Vancouver, The Tyee
“The Alliance of Women Film Journalists applauds Whistler Film Festival’s outstanding programming and fabulous filmmaker-friendly atmosphere. We are delighted and honored to have an ongoing partnership with the festival to present EDA Awards in recognition of women’s outstanding achievements in filmmaking. Here’s to a great 2015 festival!” said Jennifer Merin, AWFJ’s president and chair of the Documentary Feature jury.
The EDA Awards will be presented to winners at the Whistler Film Festival’s awards ceremony on December 6, 2015. During the EDA Awards presentation at the 2013 Whistler Film Festival, actress Melissa Leo famously funded the next project of the Best Female-Directed Fiction Feature winner, Toronto-based filmmaker Ingrid Veninger.
For additional articles about AWFJ @Whistler Film Festival, click here.
ABOUT THE AWFJ and EDA AWARDS
The Alliance of Women Film Journalists, Inc. (AWFJ), a not-for-profit corporation, is an international association of leading professional female movie critics, reporters and feature writers working in print, broadcast and online media, in the US, UK and Canada. The organization is dedicated to supporting film work by and about women – both in front of and behind the cameras – through intra-group promotional activities, outreach programs and by presenting the annual AWFJ EDA Awards in recognition of outstanding accomplishments (the best and worst) by and about women in the movies. In 2012, AWFJ launched a new program to present EDA Awards to women filmmakers in partnership with select film festivals and organizations. Film festivals to date include the Whistler Film Festival, IDFA – Internatonal Documentaries Festival Amsterdam, Edinburgh International Film Festival, St Louis International Film Festival, Sheffield Doc/Fest and Salem Film Fest. In 2013, a special EDA Award was presented as part of the Museum of Modern Art’s 25th anniversary celebration of P.O.V., the renowned documentary series that airs on the national Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in the United States.
ABOUT WHISTLER FILM FESTIVAL
2015 marks the 15th anniversary of ‘Canada’s coolest film festival’ and ‘Whistler’s Best Arts & Cultural Event.” The Whistler Film Festival combines an esteemed international film competition with a concentrated onscreen industry Summit organized to address the ever-evolving landscape crossing borders and platforms in the digital age. Featuring over 80 innovative and original films from around the world, this year’s festival will be action-packed with premieres, honoured guests, lively celebrations, and unique industry initiatives. Plus the fest will feature an expanded two-day Music Café featuring up to 10 British Columbian artists, the annual Celebrity Challenge Ski Race, the new L’Oréal Men Expert Bobsled Race, and more. WFF expects to attract 12,000+ attendees including 1,000+ industry insiders and 48 Canadian artists selected to participate in annual project development programs. Best of all, it is set in North America’s premier mountain resort, offering endless play in a winter wonderland.
