First Asheville Film Festival Held at A-B Tech
A-B Tech Community College hosted the first Asheville Film Festival on October 15, a one-day celebration of independent films from around the world that screened more than 30 films in one day.
The festival is an outgrowth of the Eastern NC Film Festival held at Pitt Community College.
“The Asheville Film Festival came at a great time,” said A-B Tech graduate and UNC Asheville student Brandon Priester. “I’ve watched around five films already and they are inspiring creativity for my future projects. The films I saw today were awesome.”
Offering a first look at some of the best local, national, and international films, the AFF is a champion of local filmmakers, committed to bridging the gap. Eno River Media Productions and the Asheville Area Arts Council were among the sponsors of the festival.
“We attract some of the biggest players in film from around the world. All of our film selections are chosen with our community in mind and our special events are designed to bring us, the independent film industry, all together,” said Ron Cooper with Kaleigh Group Entertainment, who spearheaded the festival.
The winners of the 2016 Asheville Film Festival were: Best Supporting Actress, Anna Nalepka for Where We’re Meant To Be; Best Supporting Actor, Austin Frye for In Critical Condition; Best Actress, Nancy Daly for Coming to Terms; Best Actor, Jacob Crickenberger for A Thousand Acres; and the Judge’s Award presented to My Luchador.
“Our goal is to showcase thought-provoking films and offer a venue where movie lovers who appreciate independent vision can celebrate this unique art form,” Cooper said. “We are dedicated to bringing unique, interesting, quality, challenging and entertaining films to Western NC by providing a cultural hub for an emerging film artists community to showcase their works to the region’s top producers, peers, investors and viewers.”
For more information, please visit www.ashevillencfilmfestival.com.
