Review: PG Film Festival: Take Two; A Huge Success For Prince George’s County, MD; Full Gallery Inside
The 2nd Annual Prince Georges County Film Festival effectively called “Take Two,” hosted by the Prince George’s Arts and Humanities Council (PGAHC) as well as the Prince George’s Film Office, was a huge success this past week. The film festival ran from Thursday September 28th through October 1st and was held in PG County Maryland. The events spanned between The Performing Arts Center in Largo, MD, The Sunset Room at the National Harbor, Bowie State University, and The MGM Hotel in Oxon Hill, MD.
This years ambassador was Acclaimed Actor Lamman Rucker, who’s best known for his roles and contribution in ‘Why Did I Get Married?,’ ‘Greenleaf,’ ‘Meet The Browns,’ as well as many other memorable roles and the Keynote Speaker was Emmy award winning Lynn Whitfield, who’s roles in ‘The Josephine Baker Story,’ ‘Eve’s Bayou,’ ‘A Thin Line Between Love And Hate,’ ‘Madea’s Family Reunion,’ ‘Greenleaf,’ and most recently, ‘The Chi’ brought out the entire community of aspiring actors, screenwriters, and filmmakers within the DMV to learn and network.
Opening night kicked off with a bang by hosting a a star-studded red carpet event for an inspiring and informative talk with WUSA 9’s Lesli Foster and Lamman Rucker and then immediately following, a film screening of Tressa Smallwood’s latest film, ‘A Deadly Getaway’ starring Yandi Smith-Harris, Jason Weaver, Jeff Logan, and Princess Love Norwood and a panel to discuss making the film with Producer Tressa Smallwood, Director Charles Jones, Writers Eric Dickens and Chad Quinn, and Actor Jeff Logan.
Day two was the first of two days of panels all hosted by a great host and moderator Rhett Butler, beginning with panels such as Take 1…Take 2: The Fundamentals of Directing and Producing, The Write Stuff: I Got A Story To Tell, Pitch Conference: Going Once Going Twice, Sold, Marketing Your Film: Creating A Following, and Global Exchange: Building Bridges To Cross Cultural Partnerships With The African Film Industry.
Day three was the second day of Panels as well as a live actors workshop led by Mark Mckinnon of McKinnon’s Acting Studio and Denise Joy Hart. Some of the other panels included: Soul in Motion: Animation, Representation, and Technology, Film and Fashion: Costume Designer & Wardrobe, From Sketch to Screen, Actors Study: An Actors Intensive Course Study, Making Money Moves: Gotta Get That Cash, The Business of Making Movies: All Things Legal, Breaking into the Business: Careers Below the Line, and Distribution: It’s in the Can, Now What. There were also film screenings held throughout the entire day.
Day four was the icing on the cake as the final day was the awards ceremony. Everyone returned and gathered for brunch at the MGM as the nominated films and the respective winners were announced in front of an audience of industry insiders and their peers. The ceremony was hosted by Comedian and Television / Radio Personality Joe Clair. He kept the room entertained as he presented the nominees of each film category. The notable winners of this years film festival were student film “Heist, Heist Baby, ” narrative film '“Forgetting Christmas” by Cadell Cook, International film “The Coal Women” by Renee Green, and animated film “Opal.”
Lastly, the event ended with an amazing talk with Lynn Whitfield about her journey, the roles she has taken on over the years, her highs and lows, and some insightful Q&A with the audience.