SUTTON, W.Va. – August 7, 2017 – The West Virginia FILMmakers Festival, which will be held in Sutton’s Elk Theatre the weekend of October 6, 7 & 8, 2017, is announcing its Festival Jury.
Chris Hite – Associate Professor at Allan Hancock College. His work has included the documentary GHOSTS IN THE MOUNTAIN and shorts MESMERIZED and RAINY DAY ESCAPE. MFA in Film from Hollins University. Chris’ GHOSTS IN THE MOUNTAIN will screen Saturday, October 7, 2017.
JT Arbogast – Filmmaker/Producer/Social Media Strategist. Along with his work as a Social Media and Digital Strategist, JT and his wife Kim have actively been producing films in West Virginia, including ANGEL’S PERCH and most recently AULD LANG SYNE. They are currently working on a new project in West Virginia this summer. JTs’ AULD LANG SYNE will screen Saturday, October 7, 2017.
Melissa Simpson – Executive Director of the Skyline International Film Festival. Melissa will be graduating from the University of North Georgia this fall with a Bachelor of Science in Film and Digital Media. While at UNG, she helped spearhead the recent Skyline International Film Festival. She’s very active in the state film community, and has volunteered for the Atlanta Film Festival, and most recently worked as the Presenter Coordinator at the TERMINUS Conference + Festival in Atlanta, GA.
David Smith – Associate Professor at University of North Georgia. Writer, Filmmaker, Photographer. His work has played extensively, including the WV Filmmakers Festival, and currently is finishing a film called BRAINCHILD. He has won three Telly Awards. MFA in Film from University of Georgia. David will be conducting a workshop at the festival. Please check the WVFF website for further specifics.
Jason Brown, Jury Coordinator – Assistant Professor at Valdosta State University. Actively working to grow community film productions, he currently works with the Valdosta-Lowndes Film Initiative to educate the community and encourage film production in rural Georgia. Along with his teaching and stint at Vice President of the WV Filmmakers Guild, he has produced local television and short films, received various grants and is currently finishing his documentary on John Sayles’ film MATEWAN. Jason will be presenting a workshop on Social Media for Filmmakers this year at the festival.
The jury reviewed submissions in the following categories: Best Student Short Film; Best WV Student Short Film; Best Short Documentary; Best WV Short Documentary; Best Feature Documentary; Best WV Feature Documentary; Best Short Film; Best WV Short Film; Best Feature Film; Best WV Feature Film; Best Animation; Best Music Video; Best WV Animation; and Best WV Music Video.
