8th Annual BronzeLens Film Festival Hosts Interactive Experience Designed to Empower, Entertain and Educate

ATLANTA, Aug. 22, 2017 /PRNewswire/ —ย The eighth annual BronzeLens Film Festival kicks off Sunday, August 20 and will run through Sunday, August 27, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. Festival headliners include 2017 BronzeLens Women SuperStars, Queen Latifah (Girls Trip, Bessie, Chicago),ย award-winning director, writer and producer Neema Barnetteย (“Queen Sugar,” “Being Mary Jane,” “The Breaks”), veteran television and theater actressย Crystal Foxย (“The Haves and The Have Nots,” “In the Heat of the Night”) and award-winning filmmakerย Nefertite Nguvuย (In The Morning, “U.N.I.T.Y. Re-ignighted,” Black America Again).

Substantive programming, combined with a who’s who of the film industry has established BronzeLens as one of the nation’s pre-eminent film festivals. With Georgia now No. 1 in feature film productions, BronzeLens has long attracted national and international attention to Atlanta, promoting the city as a leader in the film industry.

Lamman Ruckerย (“Greenleaf,” Why Did I Get Married?) will lead the masterclass,ย Up Close – Through the BronzeLens: The Art of Auditioning with Lamman Rucker.ย In addition, legendary stage and screen actorsย Keith Davidย (“Greenleaf”, “Community”, Crash, There’s Something About Mary, Barbershop) andย E. Roger Mitchellย (“The Quad”, Selma) will engage in insightful and revealing conversation duringย Sunday Brunch with the Brothers. They will be joined by “Queen Sugar” starsย Timon Kyle Durrettย andย Omar Dorsey. See the Festival’s

Distinguished actor Keith David of Own Network’s GREENLEAF will be a featured guest during the 2017 BronzeLens Flm Festival. (PRNewsfoto/BronzeLens Film Festival)

schedule for the complete list of informative panels about film and television production and for workshops for student filmmakers.

Over 60 films will be screened inclusive of shorts, features, documentaries and webisodes during the festival. Selected juried films represent the work of emerging and independent filmmakers from around the globe, including, theย United States, Spain, France, Australia, Colombia, United Arab Emirates,ย South Africa,ย Trinidad Tobago, Germanyย andย Switzerland.

BronzeLens events will take place in and around Atlanta including, the Westin Peachtree Plaza which serves as festival headquarters, the Auditorium at Georgia-Pacific Center,ย Plaza Theater, Auburn Research Library on African American Culture and History, Woodruff Arts Center and the Ray Charles Performing Arts Center. For a complete schedule, venue details, registration and ticket information, please visit, www.bronzelens.com.

BronzeLens Film Festival Highlights:

Wednesday, August 23
The festival heats up into high gear with the opening ofย The Filmmaker’s Lounge @BronzeLensย hosted and sponsored by the City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Film and Entertainment.ย In the evening, the kick-off screenings of official All Shorts film selectionsย begin at 5:00 PM at the Westin Peachtree Plaza.

Thursday, August 24
All Shorts All Dayย presented byย BET Networksย offers free screenings ofย 2017ย BronzeLensย short films selections at the Westin Peachtree Plaza Chastain Room.
Legal Mash-Upย series onย Content Acquisition and Rights,ย Distribution Legalities, andย Setting Up Your Film Production Company as a Businessย will be led by some of the industry’s foremost legal talents, providing critical information on what it takes to conduct business successfully within the film and entertainment industry.

Friday, August 25
Georgia Production Partnership will sponsor a workshop on theย Status of Production in Georgia. This annual signature panel discusses the amazing growth, as well as the need for production of film and television, in Georgia. Key decision makers will discuss the present and the future of this over $8 billionGeorgia industry.

Women SuperStars Luncheonย celebrates the accomplishments of women of color in the film and television industry. Honorees include Queen Latifah , filmmakerย Neema Barnette,ย actressย Crystal Fox, and filmmakerย Nefertite Nguvu.

First Glance Friday Feature Presentation: A BronzeLensย Exclusive to all festival Screening Pass holders
Attendees will get a “First Glance” of OWN Network’sย  ‘Black Love’ which highlights love stories from the black community and seeks to answer the burning question, What is the secret to making a marriage work? Husband-and-wife filmmakers Codie and Tommy Oliver present love stories from some of the most successful people in business and entertainment as well as everyday couples. Featured couples include Oscarยฎ winner Viola Davis and Julius Tennon, Hollywood power couple Meagan Good and DeVon Franklin, and more.

Saturday, August 26
Master Class โ€“ Up Close Through the BronzeLens: The Art of Auditioning with Lamman Rucker. Rucker will discuss how to jumpstart a career in the business, the audition process, and how to be sustainable in the film and television industry.

The eighth annualย BronzeLens Awards Showย will salute the “Best of Festival” filmmakers. Categories include the best in Features, Documentaries, International Films, Shorts, Student Films, and Web Series, as well as Best Actress and Best Actor.

Sunday, August 27
Sunday Brunch with the Brothersย salutes men of color in film and television who are making waves as they share lessons from their journeys.ย Insightful and revealing conversations with legendary stage and screen actorsย Keith David,ย E. Roger Mitchellย and joined by Timon Kyle Durrettย andย Omar Dorsey. Breakfast treats and hot conversation are on the menu.

Cinema and Social Justice Sunday, a unique and critical component of the festival, featuring a socially-relevant film and conversation that address issues of concern, will culminate the festival. Screening will be held at the Auburn Research Library on African American Culture and History.

About the BronzeLens Film Festival
Over the course ofย eightย days (August 20-27, 2017), film lovers, actors, andย filmmakersย will gather to share a creative platform of education, entertainment, empowerment related to film, television, and the production of both. Theย Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has approved BronzeLens as a qualifying festival for the Short Film Awards category. The short film that receives the BronzeLens Best Short Award may now be eligible to enter the Academy’s Short Subject competition for the concurrent season.ย BronzeLens Film Festival of Atlanta, Georgia, is a non-profit organization, founded in 2009, that is dedicated to bringing national and worldwide attention to Atlanta as a center for film and film production for people of color.ย Its mission is two-fold: to promote Atlanta as the new film mecca for people of color; and to showcase films and provide networking opportunities that will develop the next generation of filmmakers.

2017 BronzeLens Sponsors
Global entertainment and news company, Turner is the Premier Sponsor of the 2017 BronzeLens Film Festival.ย Additional sponsors includeย AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) and Black Leadership AIDS Crisis Coalition (BLACC),ย Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau,ย Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Film & Entertainment, BET Networks, Delta Air Lines, DeKalb Film, Music and Digital Entertainment Commission, Georgia-Pacific. Partial funding is provided by the City Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs and Fulton County Arts and Culture.

Media Credentials
Approved media representatives who haveย RSVP’dย inย advanceย andย receivedย written confirmation fromย Tina Spencerย will have access to interview areas and red carpet arrivals.ย This includes media opportunities with filmmakers, honorees, panelists, festival producers and other special guests of BronzeLens Film Festival. All media must emailย [email protected]ย to request access to cover these opportunities. For more information regarding the BronzeLens Film Festival, visitย www.bronzelens.com.

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SOURCE BronzeLens Film Festival

CONTACT: Terri Vismale-Morris, Director of Public Relations, [email protected]; Tina O. Spencer, Manager of Public Relations, [email protected]; Tandi Reddick, Media Relations Manager, [email protected]

RELATED LINKS
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