(Sept. 27, 2006) FILM INDEPENDENT ANNOUNCES SECOND-ANNUAL FILMMAKER FORUM: "MAKE AND SELL YOUR FILM WITHOUT GETTING SCREWED"
LOS ANGELES (September 27, 2006) – Dawn Hudson, Executive Director of Film Independent, announced today the second-annual Filmmaker Forum will be held October 26–28 at the Hammer Museum in Westwood, giving attendees access to some of the most innovative names in indie filmmaking.
"After our successful inaugural event in 2005, we are expanding our Forum to a two-day seminar where established indie filmmakers will share their secrets — and past mistakes — on making independent films and hitting the festival circuit and the marketplace, while experts will give specific advice on how films get made, bought, and sold."

Panelists for the 2006 Forum include industry experts Peter Broderick (Paradigm Consulting), Micah Green (Creative Artists Agency), Rena Ronson (William Morris Independent), Anne Thompson (The Hollywood Reporter), and Nancy Utley (Fox Searchlight), and filmmakers Stephanie Allain (producer, Hustle and Flow), Anna Boden (writer, Half Nelson), Neill dela Llana (co-director, Cavite), Kirby Dick (director, This Film is Not Yet Rated), Ryan Fleck (director, Half Nelson), Sean Furst (producer, The Matador), Ian Gamazon (co-director, Cavite), Sam Kitt (executive producer, Sucker Free City), Peggy Rajski (executive producer, Bee Season), and Wash Westmoreland (co-director, Quinceañera).

Additional panelists will be announced on our website (FilmIndependent.org) throughout the month. The 2006 Forum is sponsored by Kodak, SAGIndie/Screen Actors Guild, Sony Pictures Classics, Axium, and Daily Variety.

This year's Forum kicks off at 7:30 pm on Thursday, October 26, with a sneak preview of Phillip Noyce's Catch a Fire at the Mann Festival Theatre in Westwood. Starring Academy Award-winner Tim Robbins and Derek Luke (Antwone Fisher), Catch a Fire is a political thriller spanning South Africa's turbulent and divided years from the 1980s to present day. Phillip Noyce (The Quiet American, Rabbit-Proof Fence) directs from a script written by Shawn Slovo (A World Apart, Captain Corelli's Mandolin). The screening will be followed by a Q&A featuring Philip Noyce, Shawn Slovo, and Robin Slovo; attendees are then invited to the Forum's opening reception at the Hammer Museum.

From 9:00 am to 6:00 pm on Friday, October 27 and Saturday, October 28, an intensive line-up of panel discussions will take place at the Hammer Museum. Topics include: The Producer-Director Collaboration; What Comes First, the Money or the Talent?; Money and Time: How to Spend It, How to Save It; Just Shoot It: Low Budget Filmmaking; I'll Never Do That Again: Cautionary Tales From the Pros; Distribution: A Lay of the Land; Choose Your Posse; Create a Buzz, Sell Your Film, and Stay Involved; A Strategy That Sells; Terms of a Deal: The Fine Print; and New School DIYstribution.

On both Friday and Saturday, prominent members of the independent film community will host Indie Community Lunch Hours from 12:30–1:30 where the experts will make themselves available for informal discussions. The Forum ends on Saturday evening with a happy hour.

An "early bird" deal is being offered on Forum passes purchased before October 16: $395 for Film Independent members or $490 for non-members. Single-day passes will be available after October 16. Anyone who purchases a pass is given access to an online forum that will be active before and after the event, providing an additional opportunity for networking with peers and experts.

The Filmmaker Forum replaces Film Independent's long-running and successful Producer Series, which ran annually for six weeks during the fall.

Notable names at the 2005 Forum included filmmakers Jeremy Coon (Napoleon Dynamite), Catherine Hardwicke (Thirteen), Greg Harrison (November), Jeffrey Levy-Hinte (Mysterious Skin), Michael London (Sideways), Dan Myrick (The Blair Witch Project), Peggy Rajski (Bee Season), and Eli Roth (Cabin Fever), along with industry experts Peter Broderick of Paradigm Consulting; Cassian Elwes of William Morris; Geoffrey Gilmore, Director of the Sundance Film Festival; Richard Klubeck of United Talent Agency; Michael Lawson of mPRm Public Relations; Linda Lichter of Lichter, Grossman, Nichols, Adler & Goodman, Inc.; and John Sloss of Cinetic Media.

For more information about this year's Filmmaker Forum, please visit FilmIndependent.org.

ABOUT FILM INDEPENDENT

Film Independent, the largest non-profit membership organization for independent filmmakers, cultivates the careers of independent filmmakers, builds the audience for independent films, and increases diversity in the film industry. Film Independent provides its members with more than 250 annual events and screenings, along with professional advice, educational programs, affordable camera and equipment rentals, and discounts to hundreds of industry-related businesses.

Film Independent also offers Filmmaker Labs, giving filmmakers the opportunity to develop their projects, and Project:Involve, a mentorship and job placement program that pairs filmmakers from culturally diverse communities with film industry professionals. Film Independent produces the Independent Spirit Awards and Los Angeles Film Festival, celebrating the best of American and international cinema. For more information, visit FilmIndependent.org.