Cedar Rapids Independent Filmmakers Announce
Film Festival Award Winners!

The Cedar Rapids Independent Filmmakers held their Tenth Annual Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival on Friday and Saturday, April 9 and 10 at the Collins Road Theatres in Marion, Iowa. The festival showcased the work of filmmakers from across the state and around the country. In accordance with the CRIFM's stated mission, all the films screened featured stories or filmmakers with strong connections to the Hawkeye State.

Festival co-founder Scott Chrisman became wistful when asked to reflect on the event's landmark anniversary. "What I love the most is that after ten years we've really helped create and nurture a community. The festival has become a nice touchstone for those we've welcomed into this crazy extended family over the years," Chrisman said.

Gold and Silver Eddy Awards were presented to professional, professional-amateur and student filmmakers in Feature, Short Form, Documentary, and Freestyle categories.

And the Eddys Went To...

Professional Feature:
Gold Eddy: Splatter: Love, Honer, Paintball - Lonnie Schuyler & Bruce Heppner
Silver Eddy: Paper Mache - Elliot Diviney (Plymouth, MN)

Professional Short Form:
Gold Eddy: The Nine Thirty - Scott Thompson (Mondovi, WI)
Silver Eddy: Nothing - Scott Thompson - (Mondovi, WI)

Professional Documentary:
Gold Eddy: A Year in the Life - Adam Burke (Solon, IA)
Silver Eddy: Ghost Player: Relive the Magic - Dreamcatcher Production & Metro Studios

Professional Freestyle:
Gold Eddy: Silent Kingdom - Kevin Railsback (Fairfax, IA)
Silver Eddy: Prairie - Kevin Railsback (Fairfax, IA)

(In addition to their awards, Gold Eddy winners in each of the professional categories received a copy of Gorilla Film Production Software, courtesy of Jungle Software. For more information on Jungle Software and their products, please visit www.junglesoftware.com)

Pro-Am Feature:
Gold Eddy: Driver's Ed Mutiny - Brad Hansen & Collateral Damage Productions
Silver Eddy: Coasting - Michael P. Noens & CNGM Pictures

Pro-Am Short Form:
Gold Eddy: Hidden Hearts - Caity Birmingham (Sherman Oaks, CA)
Silver Eddy: A Young Heart - Brooke Lemke (Minneapolis, MN)

Pro-Am Documentary:
Gold Eddy: The Next Act - Rob Merritt (Cedar Rapids, IA)
Silver Eddy: Love and Valor: The Intimate Civil War Letters - Charles Larimer & Jennifer Stolte

(In addition to their awards, Gold Eddy winners in each of the Pro-Am categories received an IndiSlider dolly device, coutresy of Studio 4 Productions. For more information on Studio 4 and their IndiSystem line of products, please visit www.indisystem.com)

Student Long Form:
Gold Eddy: In the Silence - Adam Orton (Chicago, IL)
Silver Eddy: Diary of a Superhero - Andrew Kline (Austin, TX)

Student Short Form:
Gold Eddy: The Sneakers - David W. Wells & Wes Ford
Silver Eddys (tie):Hitmom - Joe Clarke (Iowa City, IA)
What Else Would I Do? - Owen Wade (Iowa City, IA)

Student Documentary:
Gold Eddy: Kelsey - Christopher Peck (Marion, IA)

Student Freestyle:
Gold Eddy: Pigface - John Nodorft (Marion, IA)
Silver Eddy: Iowa State Fair Rap - Eva Andersen & Patrick Berry

(In addition to their awards, Gold Eddy winners in each of the student categories received a $250 scholarship, courtesy of The Cedar Rapids Independent Filmmakers and the Iowa Motion Picture Association. For more information on the IMPA and their efforts to "promote and enhance the talents and skills of Iowa's film, video and multimedia production community," please visit www.impa.tv.)

Special Awards and Scholarships:

In addition to the competitive awards, The Cedar Rapids Independent Filmmakers, their sponsors and fans honored three films with special distinctions:

The $500 Collins Road Theatres Scholarship is awarded each year to a student filmmaker in order to further the recipient's filmmaking education and career. This year's scholarship went to Owen Wade in recognition of his film What Else Would I Do? To find out more about Collins Road Theatres, please visit www.collinsroadtheatres.com

Studio 4 Productions provided approximately $5,000 worth of equipment to a filmmaker whose work was deemed especially skillful and creative but who the judges believed could most benefit from the gift of a professional filmmaker's tools. Studio 4 presented the Indi Gear Award to Christopher Peck on the basis of his documentary Kelsey.

The Iowa Connection Award is given each year to the film that best portrays the state's physical beauty and the strong sprit of its people. This year's award was given to Caity Birmingham for her film Hidden Hearts.

The Audience Choice Award is announced each year at the close of the festival and it is given to the film the festival attendees have acclaimed as their favorite as determined by secret ballot. This year's popular choice was Splatter: Love, Honor, Paintball.

About the Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival

The Eddy Awards are named after Thomas Edison who, among other things, was a pioneer in motion picture technology. The term eddy is also defined as "a current moving contrary to the direction of the main current," a suitable description for independent filmmakers, who often go against the current trends in mainstream cinema.

For additional information, please visit www.crifm.org/festival.html, e-mail Scott Chrisman at scott@crifm.org, or call (319) 431-1320.

The Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival was created to provide a venue for Iowa filmmakers to screen their work for peers and general audiences. The organization’s primary goals are to encourage Iowa independent filmmakers to continue improving their craft, to provide a place to specifically showcase Iowa-connected films, present a unique cultural event to the community, and to offer networking opportunities for the purpose of building the Iowa film industry.