Christian Filmmakers – Page 3

Rev. Eugene Peterson

The Rev. Eugene Peterson, a Presbyterian minister, biblical scholar and author whose writings have shaped the thinking of pastors and church people and whose colloquial translation of the Bible, “The Message,” has sold millions of copies, died Oct. 22 at his home in Lakeside, Mont. He was 85. We are very sad to hear of his passing, but we are grateful for his contribution to the Kingdom of God.

An 18 minute documentary was recently produced by Award Winning/Multi-Nominated Documentary & Music Video Director, Greg Fromholz from Ireland. The film received several nominations from the Great Lakes Christian Film Festival. The film is entitled Peterson: In Between The Man and The Message

Go to the portfolio page of the film to read more about Eugene and Greg [ read more ]

October 23, 2018October 23, 2018 by Shawn Patrick Greene Categories: Film, News, Nominees, Official Selections, UpdatesTags: 2018, Bible, Buffalo Premiere, Christian Filmmakers, Death, Directors, Documentary, Eugene Peterson, GLCFF2018, Great Lakes Christian Film Festival, Greg Fromholz, Ireland, Minister, Nominees, Obituary, Presbyterian, Producers, Selections, Short Film, Spotlight

#GLCFF2018 It’s A Wrap!

SUCCESS!!

GLCFF Festival Founder and Director – Shawn Patrick Greene

What a fantastic time we had this weekend at the Millennium Hotel in Buffalo, New York for the 4th annual Great Lakes Christian Film Festival, with over 80 films screened during the 4 day event (August 2-5, 2018).

We kicked it off at the Bread of Life Church in South Buffalo screening many foreign, student, shorts films, capped off with a stand up comedy documentary. The remainder of the festival was held at the Hotel from Friday to Sunday with a jam packed schedule, screening 14 hours of film on Friday and again on Saturday, then 8 more hours on Sunday before the finale.

Saturday afternoon, we had some incredible speakers and guests, each sharing their unique workshops on various topics, including Hollywood Exposed (Tina Marie Griffin), Kindness Activity (Phillip E Walker), Screenwriting (DonnaMarie Vaughan), and Marketing for Movies (Sharon Wilharm). We also had a great group discussion on the Film Financing and Distribution, with various industry professionals, Producers, Directors, Writers, and Marketing people. We ended the workshops with a Buffalo-style dinner with Pizza and Wings from a local Pizzeria called Johnny’s.

Mercedes E Wilson hosted the Awards Ceremony Sunday Night giving us a glimpse of her vocal talent leading us in a song to our Lord Jesus. The ceremony was very intimate as we came together after a long weekend to celebrate each other and congratulate the selections, nominees, finalists, and winners of this year’s festival.

We have already see the fruit of our labor as many films over the years have been picked up for distribution or broadcasting, as well as, listing as a top seller on streaming websites, like Genesis: Paradise Lost (GLCFF 2018 winner of Best Producer for a Documentary and Best Narration). We are excited when these hardworking production teams get their reward for their efforts.

THANK YOU

“I personally want to thank the volunteers that helped us throughout the festival that made it a success.” says Shawn Patrick Greene, Executive Director and Founder.

Carl Bailey (Photographer/Filmmaker) helped us tremendously Saturday during the workshops, assisting the presenters and documenting the sessions. He was also on last year’s Producer/Director Panel Discussion for 2017.

Linda Mesi (Actress/Production Assistant) was instrumental in keeping things organized during Sunday Night’s Awards Ceremony. She has participated and supported our festival from day one in 2015.

Gary Rubrick is a member of the Bread of Life Church and has assisted, since the inaugural year in 2015, in the production, programming, and organization behind the scenes of Sunday Awards Ceremony.

Rosemarie Feliciano for her help in transporting equipment and materials to and from the event. Another one that has helped since day one, not to mention the mother of my autistic daughter Moriah.

Sean Brennan (TCT Studio Manager, Buffalo) believed in our vision and mission and gave us an opportunity to be a guest on TCT’s local programming twice, to promote our festival. Sean also donated his audio equipment for the workshops this year.

We want to thank all of our partners, sponsors, supporters, promoters, members, volunteers, attendees, judging panel, presenters, and everyone that made this event a complete success. It couldn’t be done without your help.

All Glory and Honor goes to our King and our God, Jesus the Christ!

SAVE THE DATE!!

August 8, 2018August 9, 2018 by Shawn Patrick Greene Categories: Festival, News, Recap, UpdatesTags: 2018, Awards, Blog, Bread of Life Church, Buffalo Premiere, Christian Filmmakers, Christian Films, Festival, Festival Attendees, GLCFF2018, Great Lakes Christian Film Festival, Judging Panel, Members, Partners, Presenters, Promoters, Recap, Sponsors, Supporters, Volunteers, Winners, Workshops

Press Release: 2018 Great Lakes Christian Film Festival, Buffalo, NY

Buffalo to host 4th annual Christian Film Festival

Buffalo, NY (July 19, 2018) – The 2018 “Great Lakes Christian Film Festival” will be hosted at The Millennium, 2040 Walden Ave, Buffalo, NY 14225 between Friday August 3^rd – Sunday August 5^th, 2018. The festival organizers have selected over 100 films as Official Selections and will screen over 80 films from around the world, representing over 15 countries, screening narrative feature and shorts films, documentaries, student films, and music videos, as well as, many up and coming film trailers. Workshops are also scheduled on Saturday afternoon with a variety of speakers on various topics. The festival is open to the public and offers an array of subject material for any viewer, from Action and Drama, to Animation and Biographies – there is something for everyone to enjoy.

This year 8 films were nominated for Best Feature Film, including “Summer of ’67”, the story of two sisters that surviving in the shadow of their mother’s suicide, struggling to live their lives and protect their loved ones in the face of the Vietnam War. This film, Written and Directed by Sharon Wilharm, is a fictional look at the Vietnam War based on the perspective of the wives, girlfriends, and mothers of those men aboard the USS Forrestal.

Also showing, the Buffalo Premiere of the award winning feature “A Heart That Forgives” – a great story of God’s love through the healing power of forgiveness, with an all-star cast including, Carl Anthony Payne (actor and producer, known for the Martin TV Series), Lorey Hayes (actress known for her work on Dreamgirls and NCIS), and Charles Malik Whitfield who has starred in dozens of prime-time shows and feature films, but one of his proudest professional moments so far is his leading role in the Emmy-winning mini-series, “The Temptations.”

The Great Lakes Christian Film Festival also brings an assortment of fantastic Documentaries of a wide range of topics and biographies, including the wonderful story of two women in China in “Song of the Wilderness”. 70-year-old Mother Xu travelled 200 km to the mountain area of Yimeng, Shandong province, far way from her own children. She lived in a cottage without a rooftop while taking care of Fan Jianxiu, a paralytic. Despite the sarcasm and ridicules, she persevered in looking after Fan for ten years as if it was one day. Yet still the sound of her praises spread out and rising from the wilderness.

The festival includes a diverse group of workshops, like one that special guest speaker Tina Marie Griffin will present called “Hollywood Exposed” – a behind-the-scenes look at the influences in today’s Pop Culture through entertainment and media, such as, Television, Gaming, Social Media and Music.

Buffalo is a city on the rise! An All-American City known not only for sports obsession, but for having the “Best Food in America”, as well as, a growing world-class medical and research community. Innovative developments are happening around town such as Canalside, which is home to a collection of restaurants, shops and seasonal outdoor activities. Plus, Buffalo is just 30 minutes away from location of one of the 7 wonders of the world, Niagara Falls. In recent years, more and more Hollywood producers are using the Buffalo area as a backdrop for their film projects, such as “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”, “Marshall” and “The First Purge”.

The Great Lakes Christian Film Festival was created in May 2014 by Founder and Executive Director Shawn Patrick Greene. Since its inception, over 500 films have been submitted in hopes of being selected and screened in front of the visiting guests and local Western New York attendees. Over 100 films are Official Selections in this year’s film festival. Walk-up registration begins Friday August 3^rd at 9 am and is $35 for all 3 days or $15 for a single day. Registration and tickets sales are open online now on the website.

Information for the entire festival, including accommodations, tickets, schedule, and sponsorship opportunities, is on the official website: http://www.GLCFF.com

Downloadable Press Release: [GLCFF-2018-pressrelease]

July 19, 2018July 26, 2018 by Shawn Patrick Greene Categories: Film Festival, News, Press Release, WorkshopsTags: 2018, Actors, Awards, Best Films, Buffalo, Buffalo Niagara, Buffalo Premiere, Christian, Christian Filmmakers, Christian Films, Directors, Festival, Film, Film Festival, filmmakers, GLCFF2018, Great Lakes, Great Lakes Christian Film Festival, Movies, New York, NY, Producers, Screenwriters, Screenwriting, Selections, Short Film, Summer Festival, Workshop

Entering our 4th Festival Season!

A WORD FROM OUR TEAM

Greetings friends, fans, and family of the Great Lakes Christian Film Festival,

It’s been a exciting journey so far since our inception in May 2014. We took the first year to research and prepare to launch our first Film Festival in August 2015. Starting from scratch, we have had to learn the hard way on how an event of this magnitude is conducted. We’ve had steady growth in 2016 and tested the waters at a new venue in 2017 at the Millenium Hotel with great success. We are not where we want to be just yet but we are making great strides to provide an exceptional event for your enjoyment.

We’ve premiered films in our market, upgraded our awards, added new merch, provided quality workshops, and network opportunities, and made many new friends and colleagues along the way. In 2018, we will continue to improve upon all the great ideas we’ve implemented and have some great new surprises for our attendees for this season.

Our festival is an international event yet we have a warm local feel with superb customer service and hospitality. We love our regional film community, and our state has been very film-friendly to the industry here in Western New York, not to mention accommodating to turism. We are very excited for the future of this event as we expand our horizons and add new leadership to the GLCFF team. We’ve had great support in our market from our Faith-based media outlets, like TCT TV and WDCX Radio and continue to partner with them this season.