Count Basie Center Breakthrough Filmmaker Fest

Saturday, March 23, 2024 @ 9:30am

The Vogel
99 Monmouth Street, Red Bank, NJ 07701

Tickets: FREE WITH REGISTRATION

Spots in workshops are given on a first-come, first served basis. Secure your spot by registering to attend the Breakthrough Filmmaker Fest here.

SCREENINGS

Group A – 9:30am to 11:30am

*films are shown here in alphabetical order not screening order

Against Odds: The Life of Cinematographer James Wong Howe – Directed by Andre Paras, Howell High School

Blue – Directed by Benjamin Horner, Rutgers University

Fair Weather: 20 Minute Cut – Directed by Brooks Wieszczek, Montclair State University

First Date – Directed by Michael DeMar and Caroline Sheridan, Park Ridge High School

Home Coming – Directed by Annie Fleisch, School Of Visual Arts

just followed… – Directed by Massimo Giuseppe Daniels, Cape May County Technical High School

Let’s Make an Omelet – Directed by Selma Mehmedagic, Rutgers University

Life, Death, and Mortality – Directed by John R Stillwaggon, Howell High School

Office Life – Directed by Lance Albert Drake, Syndicate Film School

Subjective Worlds – Directed by Euridice Sagastume, East Brunswick Magnet School – School of the Arts

Take The Shot – Directed by Ryan Matteo, Communications High School

The Inbetween – Directed by Izzy Love, Montclair State University

The Rain Song – Directed by Justin Marinelli, Howell High School

You Don’t Know What It Takes to Come Home – Directed by Andre Paras, Howell High School

WORKSHOPS

10 – 11:30AM

Production Design Workshop

Presented by: Zach Miller (Zach Miller, Freelance Production Designer for Film & TV)

The production designer creates an entire visual world that characters live in. Whether it be a spaceship on a mission to mars or a dusty farmhouse in Upstate New York, a Production Designer constructs a world that supports the story that the writer and director are looking to tell.

In Zach Miller’s class, students will learn how to shape a convincing world around their characters – from the basics of how to build a flat to advanced set design and construction techniques by viewing professional examples.  Learn some fundamental skills on how to break down a script and so that you can design a set.  Zach will also talk about all the different roles within the art department, from production designer to art director, and construction coordination.

Animation Workshop

Presented by: MB McCain (Professor of Digital Animation and Design at NJIT)

Whether you’re exploring animation for the first time or are looking to check out Adobe Animate after experimenting with other animation software, this class will provide you with the foundational tools you’ll need to make a short film or even a full-blown animated piece.

Join Emmy Award Winning Producer and Director and Professor of Digital Animation and Design at NJIT, MB McCain as he takes you through the basics of how to bring your sketches to life.

INDUSTRY PANEL ON CAREER DEVELOPMENT

11:30AM – 12:30PM

Featuring:

• Tom Bernard – Co-President and Co-Founder of Sony Pictures Classics


• Cait Cavalho – Program Director (Gotham EDU)


• Stephanie Dawson – WNET Group (Producer)


• Colleen Finegan – President (Actor’s Connection NY/LA/ATL)


• Kyra Knox – Director/Filmmaker


• Samantha Uber – Picture Show Post (Senior Finishing Editor)

NETWORKING RECEPTION

12:30 – 1:30PM

The Networking Reception is an opportunity for the Directors and teams of the Official Selections and Honorable Mention films to meet with each other and the industry panelists.*

*Please RSVP to the reception by registering to attend the Breakthrough Filmmaker Fest.

WORKSHOPS

1:30-3PM

Production Design Workshop

Presented by: Zach Miller (Zach Miller, Freelance Production Designer for Film & TV)

The production designer creates an entire visual world that characters live in. Whether it be a spaceship on a mission to mars or a dusty farmhouse in Upstate New York, a Production Designer constructs a world that supports the story that the writer and director are looking to tell.

In Zach Miller’s class, students will learn how to shape a convincing world around their characters – from the basics of how to build a flat to advanced set design and construction techniques by viewing professional examples.  Learn some fundamental skills on how to break down a script and so that you can design a set.  Zach will also talk about all the different roles within the art department, from production designer to art director, and construction coordination.

Animation Workshop

Presented by: MB McCain (Professor of Digital Animation and Design at NJIT)

Whether you’re exploring animation for the first time or are looking to check out Adobe Animate after experimenting with other animation software, this class will provide you with the foundational tools you’ll need to make a short film or even a full-blown animated piece.

Join Emmy Award Winning Producer and Director and Professor of Digital Animation and Design at NJIT, MB McCain as he takes you through the basics of how to bring your sketches to life.

Breaking in as a Production Assistant

Presented by: Stephanie Dawson (Producer, WNET)

Want to learn how to break into film production? Want to know how to land that entry-level job? Join industry Expert Stephanie Dawson for a Masterclass on how to begin your career as a Production Assistant.

Stephanie Dawson is a producer, line producer and production manager for narrative, reality, and branded content. She is currently a producer for WNET and a founding member of the Women Independent Producers, a member of the New York Women in Film & TV, and the Producers Guild of America.

SCREENINGS

Group B – 1:30pm to 3:30pm

*films are shown here in alphabetical order not screening order

An Emperor of Idiots – Directed by Brandon Lang, Montclair State University

Behind the Stage: Exit 109 – Directed by Bee Wernersbach and Andie Kershner, Middletown High School South

Between – Directed by Gabby De Rugeriis, Middletown High School South

Fake Friend – Directed by Sophie Rose Burden, Holmdel High School

For Elise – Directed by Joanna Wong, Rutgers University

Fresh Kills – Directed by Caleb Sambucci, East Brunswick Magnet School – School of the Arts

Lafayette & Noble – Directed by Josias Ortiz, East Brunswick Magnet School – School of the Arts

Laundry Etiquette – Directed by Kyle Alister Berdin and Colin Clark, Rutgers University

Love and Betrayal – Directed by Antonette Madlanie Dietz, Bergen County Technical High School, Paramus

Morgan and The Waves – Directed by Andre Paras, Howell High School

Naomi – Directed by Molly Arcara, Communications High School

Phoenix – Directed by Shannon Miller, School Of Visual Arts

Reckoning – Directed by Iris Anne Lautermilch, Hopewell Valley Central High School

Shreds of Evidence (2023) – Directed by Michael DeMar and Caroline Sheridan, Park Ridge High School

Someday Is Today – Directed by Zoey Ness, Morgan Scasny, Gigi Maiorana and Kate Cashion, Middletown High School South

The Haunting of White Hill – Directed by Justin Marinelli and Ray Violett, Howell High School

The Last Call – Directed by Christian Guzzone and Luke Zeveney, Middletown High School South

The Séance – Directed by Mina Marie Bixby, Cape May County Technical High School

With My Fingers – Directed by Jose Antonio Saborio, Montclair State University

AWARDS

3:30PM