LAGFF Announces 2013 Jury; Industry and Project Discovery Participants

The organizers of the Seventh Annual Los Angeles Greek Film Festival, which runs June 6-9 at the Writers Guild Theater  have announced the members of the 2013 Jury. Former President of the Hellenic Film Academy and veteran Greek film director, Tassos Boulmetis, will serve as the jury’s Chairman, which includes: Shorts Showcase CEO Leanna Bonamici, veteran film marketer John Butkovich, film critic Robert Koehler and award-winning actor Anthony Skordi.

“We are honored to have such distinguished jurors and panelists this year, and we believe they will be some of the first to recognize the Festival’s unique developing identity, which coincides with a slew of new films coming from the creatively agitated minds of Greek filmmakers in Greece, Cyprus and the world,” states Ersi Danou, LAGFF Co-Founder and Artistic Director.

The five jurors will select the Best Feature, Best Documentary, and Best Short Film to receive the Festival’s ORPHEUS AWARD. The Awards will be presented on Sunday, June 9, at the Festival’s Closing Night Gala. In addition to the Jury Awards, the festival will also announce the winner of the Audience Choice Award, selected by Festival attendees.

This year’s industry panel – THE ARTS OF HOLLYWOOD PRODUCTION – will include producer Casey Cannon, Academy Award-winning director of photography Russell Carpenter, award-winning production designer Nelson Coates, and documentarian/executive producer Paul Deason. The panel will be moderated by former board member and LAGFF Co-Founder Angeliki Giannakopoulos.

Sponsored by Pabst Brewing Company and the Metropoulos Family, the Industry Panel will take place on Saturday, June 8, at 11:00 am, at the Real D Screening Room in Beverly Hills.

This is the inaugural year for the previously announced PROJECT DISCOVERY FORUM (PDF) competition, also sponsored by Pabst Brewing Company and the Metropoulos Family.

“Our aim is to encourage the production of international projects and to promote the Greek filmmakers who are currently doing groundbreaking work and are beginning to be recognized in European film festival circles,” states PDF Director Araceli Lemos.

PDF panelists include ON GLOBAL PICTURES Co-Founder & Senior Partner, Manos Gavras; President of Branded Pictures Entertainment, J. Todd Harris (THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT); Little Studio Films Partner, Alexia Melocchi; Vice President of Production and Development at Electric City Entertainment, Crystal Powell; Manager for the Feature Film Program’s international work at Sundance Institute, Matthew Takata; and 1821 Pictures’ COO, Alexis Varouxakis.

Assisting the finalists with their project presentations will be well-known writer, Jim Uhls (FIGHT CLUB), Adam Sigel. Providing one-on-one feedback to the finalists will be writers Christos Gage (Law and Order: Special Victims Unit), story editor Spiro Skentos (Grimm), and Bill Taub.

Project Discovery Forum is closed to the public but the winner of the Aegean Award will be announced during the June 9 Orpheus Awards at the Writers Guild Theater.