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KOLOBOS Named Best Picture at 2002 ScreamFest Awards

‘KOLOBOS’ NAMED BEST PICTURE AT 2002 SCREAMFEST AWARDS

Wes Craven Joins Awards Ceremony



Los Angeles, October 22, 2002 – SCREAMFEST wrapped its 2002 four day genre film festival on Sunday, October 20, 2002 with an awards ceremony and dinner at Maggiano’s at the Grove. The festival’s director Rachel Belofsky and industry heavy weights such as Wes Craven honored independent filmmakers from around the globe. The winners received a glass skull mounted on a marble base playfully nicknamed ‘Osgrrr’. The winners also received software packages from Movie Magic and a camera rental package from Moviola, both sponsors of the festival.



KOLOBOS was the big winner taking home three awards for Best Picture, Best Director(s) Todd Ocvirk and Daniel Liatowitsch and Best Make-Up (Jason Collins and Elizabeth Villamarin). Slamdunk Film Festival Audience Pick and Malibu Film Festival Best of Fest winner R.S.V.P. brought home two SCREAMFEST honors for Best Cinematography (Thom Stukas and Christian Grosselfinger) and Best Actor (Rick Otto). The award Best Actress went to Marianne Hayden of GHOSTWATCHER which was brought to the fest by a group of Filmmakers from Baltimore. Best Special Effects went to director (FRIDAY THE 13th PART 7, WATCHERS) and special effects master (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Lawnmower Man) John Carl Buechler for his film CURSE OF THE FORTY NINER. Filmmaker John Coven, who held three nominations, including one for best screenplay, won Best Horror Short for his film REPOSSESED, which starred Jo Beth Williams (POLTERGIEST) and Juliet Landau (best known as Drusilla from television’s BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER). THE GRUDGE, a Japanese film which inspired THE RING, took home the prize for Best Foreign Film. PUPHEDZ: THE TATTLETALE HEART by Jurgen Heiman won for Best Animation. The best documentary went to ISPR INVESTIGATES: THE GHOSTS OF BELGRAVE HALL by Daena Smoller and Dr. Larry Montz. Robert Benson’s THE BAD FATHER, starring independent scream queen Brinke Stevens won the Best Horror Comedy Short and Columbia student Tyler Polhemus won the Best Student Category for his thriller OFF.

In the screenplay competition, William Scheck of Cleveland, Ohio (Sheck placed in the top ten percent of the 2001 Nicholl’s Fellowship) took home Best Horror Comedy for his script RAVENNA, Jamie Deise won Best Horror Screenplay for BLOODLINES and Best Horror Short Screenplay went to RESET by Andrew Hunt and Christina Hall.



The films were judged by a panel which included; Drew McWeeny of Ain’t It Cool News, Michael Grady of Dimension Films; Rod Gurino of Rue Morgue Magazine; actress Honey Lauren and director David Ellis. While Jessie Berdinka of Dimension Films, Soyun Kim of Genesis and Susan Hart of Hart Literacy took on the task of choosing the winning screenplays.



Guests dined on 5 courses including Chicken Parmesan, Stuffed Mushrooms, Tiramisu provided by Maggiano’s and got a taste of Vampire Wine and Vodka, a festival sponsor. Local Los Angeles DJ’s Sektor 1 and Mr. E provided a backdrop of original music. Tickets to the affair were $50. Winners were interviewed by The London Times, SCI-FI Road Show, Horrorscope Radio and DarkWorlds.com in a press room across from the banquet.



The four day festival held at the Laemmles Fairfax featured a Q&A with William Friedkin and a closing night guest panel on censorship. The panel included Wes Craven, John Carl Buechler, Robert Koehler (Daily Variety), well known civil liberties and pro family attorney and author Craig Parshall, Douglas Downs (Focus on Films and ChristianSpotlight.com) and was moderated by LAFCA member Henry Sheehan. Other highlights included several Los Angeles premieres and a screening of Sam Rami’s THE EVIL DEAD followed by a Q&A with Theresa Tilly and Betsy Baker, two of the notorious LADIES OF THE EVIL DEAD. Several distributors and production and development companies such as the Radmin Company are asking to read the screenplays and contact the 2002 winners and SCREAMFEST participating filmmakers.



SCREAMFEST is an annual internationally recognized and participated in genre film festival honoring independent filmmakers and screenwriters from around the globe. Producer, SCREAMFEST founder and director Rachel Belofsky began the festival in 2001 to provide an outlet for the independent filmmakers specializing in the genre of horror, thriller and science fiction films.

Updated: 10/29/2002

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