The 13th annual DTLA Film Festival, announced its Filmmaker Awards, and the sci-fi thriller "Catalyst" was awarded three top tier awards after making its world premiere at the Festival at Regal Cinemas at LA Live in Los Angeles.
The Awards include:
Best Ensemble Cast
"Catalyst": David Bianchi, Chris Michael Wood, Joni Bovil, Darin Cooper, Steve Eastin, Noel Gugliemi, Patrick Kilpatrick, Umar Khan, Melanie Liburd, Jermaine Love, Enrico Natale, Michael Roark.
Best Visual Effects
"Catalyst" : Ryan Urban of Turncoat Pictures
Best Cinematography
"Catalyst" : Juan Esco and Matthew Plaxco
"I'm ecstatic that such a long running festival has honored the years of work we put into this film," says director Christopher Folkens. Established in 2008, the DTLA Film Festival is dedicated to diversity in cinema. "Catalyst is not only an exceptional film, but it's also full of diverse faces and touches on real social issues that need addressing," Festival director Henry Priest told us.
Producer Enrico Natale adds, "I am incredibly proud of our cinematographers, who shot this entire film in nine days over the course of four years and were able to seamlessly match the look even though neither of them have ever actually met. This award is also a testament to the cohesive vision and tireless work of our director in ensuring a unified visual approach to the entire film from concept to completion."
"We shot a substantial portion of the film improvised on the spot. This award is a testament to the bond we shared (as actors) in the moment. We had to deliver every moment with honesty. There was no turning back. We had one shot to get it right," said David Bianchi, lead actor and a producer of the film.
Writer/Director Christopher Folkens says, "The visual effects team at Turncoat worked tirelessly to tell this story with all the rich environments and compelling effects in an organic and seamless way. Our VFX supervisor, Turncoat's owner Ryan Urban, is a consummate professional and storyteller in his own right. It was truly a labor of love and passion for both our team and theirs."
Catalyst is continuing its festival run and is scheduled for North American release in 2023.
Simian Gets An Evolutionary Boost For Collaboration, Reveals “Teams”
Simian, the showreel-building, review & approval, and production asset management platform used globally by creative leaders, is kicking off this fall season with a substantial leap forward for collaboration and project management – with more updates on the way during the holidays!
The new feature, aptly dubbed “Teams”, makes it easier than ever for users to give project responsibilities to team members and clients alike. “You can never have too many options when it comes to permission levels,” says Jay Brooks, Simian’s Chief Technology Officer. “Teams provides a streamlined way to assign multiple users to a project at once.”
“Teams are very powerful, but creating one is effortless,” Brian Atton, Simian’s Chief Operating Officer explains. “Simply enter a Team name, add members, and then apply the newly made Team to any desired project. You can even invite temporary guests without changing settings for other projects or needing to create a new Team.”
“We love helping our clients by providing efficient tools to improve their workflow, and this has been a frequently requested feature as of late,” shares Kellie Atton, Head of Sales at Simian. “It feels great to get Teams out into the wild because I know it’s going to be tremendously helpful to everyone who uses it”.
Teams is now available exclusively to Simian’s enterprise clients. Simian plans to release more product upgrades and enhancements during Q4 2024 and 2025 for enterprise and non-enterprise users, continuing its ongoing evolution as the industry’s leading production asset management solution.
For more information on Simian upgrades and features, visit https://www.gosimian.com/
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