November 1, 2006
LOS ANGELES, CA — Directors Guild of America President Michael Apted today announced the winners of the DGA 2006 Student Filmmakers Awards for African American, Asian American, Latino and women filmmakers. The awards are designed to honor, encourage and bring attention to outstanding minority and women film students in California film schools and other select universities across the country. Prizes of $2,500 from the DGA along with a product grant valued at $1,000 provided by Kodak's Worldwide Student Film Program are awarded to the winner in each group, and a product grant valued at $500 is awarded to each honorable mention. This is the 12th year the DGA Student Film Awards have been handed out.
“The DGA Student Filmmakers Awards allow the Guild to recognize the next generation of director talent while encouraging diversity in the filmmaking community,” Apted said in announcing the winners. “These individuals represent the best in student filmmaking today and we look forward to seeing more of their work in the near future.”
The 2006 winners, selected by panels consisting of DGA members from the respective groups (African American, Asian American, Latino and women), are:
BEST AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDENT FILMMAKER:
- Winner: Matthew Jones of Biola University for Be the Man
- Honorable Mention: Hezekiah Lewis of UCLA for Memoirs of a Smoker
BEST ASIAN AMERICAN STUDENT FILMMAKER:
- Winner: Vineet Dewan of USC for Clear Cut, Simple
- Honorable Mention: Arvin Chen of USC for Mei
BEST LATINO STUDENT FILMMAKER:
- Winner: Xochitl Dorsey of UCLA for Tears & Tortillas
- Honorable Mention: Erika Bagnarello of Florida State University Film School for The Melting Pot
BEST WOMAN STUDENT FILMMAKER:
- Winner: Daphne Lambrinou of USC for Paperboat
- Honorable Mention: Diane Lisa Johnson of USC for Swimming
The awards rules and procedures mandate that competing films must have been made in the 2005/2006 school year (September 2005 through August 2006), and must have been produced for course credit or under the supervision of a faculty member. Dramas, documentaries and experimental films are all eligible — animated films are not. Applicants must be enrolled in, or be a recent (one year) graduate from, an accredited post-secondary four-year institution in California or other selected university offering a degree in film or television. Eligible films are those in which a student held every major crew position. Productions in which a non-student, professional or a faculty member served as cinematographer, camera operator, sound recordist, editor, lighting director or screenwriter may be disqualified.
The award-winning films will be screened and the awards presented at the 2006 DGA Student Film Awards on Tuesday, November 14, 2006 at 7:30 p.m., in Theatre 1 at DGA Headquarters, 7920 Sunset Boulevard. The screenings and awards presentation are open to the public. To RSVP, please call (310) 289-5373.