School Of Visual Arts Kicks-Off 21st Annual DUSTY Film & Animation Fest 5/2

The 21st annual Dusty Film and Animation Festival and Awards kicks-off Sunday, May 2 and continues through Friday, May 7 and highlights over 100 films by students graduating from the BFA Film, Video and Animation Department at the School of Visual Arts (SVA). The program includes screenings of short films, videos and animations; and an awards ceremony and gala with notable presenters from the film industry. This year's Screenwriters Night is a proud collaboration with The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in which SVA graduating screenwriters will have selected scenes performed live by alumni from The Neighborhood Playhouse. All festival screenings, awards and screenwriters night events take place at the SVA Theatre (333 West 23rd Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues). Many events are FREE and open to the general public. More event info. available at www.sva.edu/dusty.

"We are pleased to kick-off our week-long DUSTY Film and Animation FestiVal May 2," said Reeves Lehmann, chair of the BFA Film, Video and Animation Department at SVA. "With the Tribeca Film Festival all around the city - sharing our amazing state-of-the-art SVA Theatre, (opening with Shrek Forever After, with screenwriting credit from SVA alumnus Darren Lemke [BFA 1992 Film and Video]), we celebrate a great year for our filmmakers and animators. Our festival offers movie-going audiences the chance to see remarkable ‘up and coming' new talent for free, prior to many of them heading off to film festivals all around the world. You'll be able to say, we saw them first at the DUSTYS!"

Screenwriters Night, Monday, May 3, 2010, is presented in collaboration with The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre and The Real Theatre Company, and in association with Back Stage and Final Draft. Twelve five-minute scenes by SVA's screenwriting thesis students are set to be performed live on stage, featuring alumni from The Neighborhood Playhouse, the internationally-regarded acting conservatory. Screenwriters Night will be directed by award-winning filmmaker John Gallagher, a faculty member at both SVA and The Neighborhood Playhouse, and produced by film producer and SVA faculty member Annie Flocco.

Notable presenters for the DUSTYS MAY 6 Awards ceremony include Actress Patricia Clarkson (2-time Emmy Award winner and Academy Award nominee) presenting the Outstanding Director Award; Animator John D. Dilworth (Producer, Director and Creator of the animated TV series, Courage the Cowardly Dog, and SVA alumnus [BFA 1985 Animation]) the Traditional Animation Awards; Media Personality Phil Donahue (9-time Emmy Award winner, The Phil Donahue Show) the Outstanding Documentary Award; Actor James Gandolfini (Emmy, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild Award-winner -The Sopranos) the Outstanding Film Award; Production Sound Mixer Chris Newman (3-time Oscar Winner, The Exorcist, Amadeus, The English Patient) the Sound Award; Editor Stephen Rotter (Enchanted, Yours, Mine and Ours, What Women Want) the Editing Award; Cinematographer Nancy Schreiber (November, Butter, Serious Moonlight, A Beautiful Life and Independent Spirit Award Nominee) the Cinematography Award; and Screenwriter James C. Strouse (The Winning Season, New York, I Love You, Grace is Gone) the Screenwriting Award. Additional presenters for the invite-only event are to be announced. Past DUSTYS presenters have included SVA alumni, industry notables and award-winners such as Danny Aiello, Ellen Burstyn, Sean Combs, Wes Craven, Griffin Dunne, Harvey Keitel, Kevin Kline, David Koepp, Mira Nair, Bill Plympton, John Patrick Shanley, Bryan Singer, and Treat Williams.

The DUSTY awards are presented to the winning thesis students from the BFA Film, Video and Animation Department at the School of Visual Arts. The 2010 DUSTY Film and Animation Festival and Awards are produced by film producer and SVA faculty member Annie Flocco, with co-producer Meredith Engstrom.

Over its two-decade history, the DUSTYS has introduced many graduates of the BFA Film, Video and Animation Department who have gone on to earn international recognition on the film scene. This year's Academy Award winners included SVA alumnus Michael Giacchino (BFA 1990 Film and Video) for Music (Original Score) for the Pixar animated film Up; Giacchino was previously nominated for his score for the animated film Ratatouille. Other SVA alumni to be recognized recently for outstanding filmmaking include Lynn Shelton (MFA 1995 Photography and Related Media), who won the John Cassavetes Award at the Film Independent Spirit Awards for her film Humpday, and Brenton Cottman (BFA 2003 Illustration), who won a Visual Effects Society (VES) Award for Outstanding Matte Paintings in a Feature Motion Picture for his work as lead matte painter on the film Avatar. In addition, SVA alumnus Kevin Asch (BFA 1998 Film and Video) was represented at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival with Holy Rollers; Jake Armstrong (BFA 2009 Animation) won the Best Undergraduate Award at the Ottawa International Animation Festival for his short, The Terrible Thing of Alpha-9; and Chris Dimino (BFA 2002 Graphic Design), who creates animations for CBS's The Late Show with David Letterman, made a recent appearance on air with the show's host for a graphics-driven comedy bit.

2010 Festival Schedule

Sunday, May 2 - Wednesday, May 5: Screenings*

SVA Theatre

333 West 23rd Street - Time TBA

Monday, May 3: Screenwriters Night

SVA Theatre, 6:30pm

Tuesday, May 4: Animation Screenings*

SVA Theatre - 7 - 11:30pm

Thursday, May 6: Awards Ceremony and Gala

Awards Ceremony: SVA Theatre 6:30PM

Gala: 9 - 11pm - Visual Arts Gallery

Friday, May 7: Winner's Circle*

SVA Theatre, 6 - 10pm

RSVP is required for Screenwriters Night, Awards Ceremony and Gala. For public inquiries regarding tickets, please contact 212.592.2124. Events marked with an asterisk * above are free and open to the public. Updated event information will be available on the SVA/DUSTY website: www.sva.edu/dusty

The 2010 Dusty Film and Animation Festival and Awards headlining sponsors are Eastman Kodak, CAVA - SVA Computer Store, National Board of Review, New York Women In Film and Television, Act Zero Films, AJA Video Systems, Animation Magazine, Arri/CSC, Avid, Back Stage, Foto Care, Future Media Concepts, Gotham Sound, Keslow Television, Nice Shoes, Panavision and SCS Agency, Inc.

The Dusty Film and Animation Festival and Awards began in 1990 when the BFA Film, Video and Animation Department sought to bring its year-end screenings of student thesis films to a wider audience. With sponsorship, a venue, and the support from the film industry, the event came to life. To pay tribute to School of Visual Arts founder Silas H. Rhodes, the event was named "Dusty" - after the nickname Mr. Rhodes had as a soldier in World War II.

School of Visual Arts is widely regarded as one of the finest art schools in the United States for its innovative curriculum, unparalleled faculty of more than 1000 creative professionals and its participation in the larger arts community of New York City. SVA alumni have received accolades from such renowned institutions and organizations such as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; Sundance Film Festival; International Animated Film Festival in Annecy, France; American Film Institute; Women in Film; National Board of Review and many others. Find more information at www.sva.edu/dusty

School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York City is an established leader and innovator in the education of artists. From its inception in 1947, the faculty has been comprised of professionals working in the arts and art-related fields. SVA provides an environment that nurtures creativity, inventiveness and experimentation, enabling students to develop a strong sense of identity and a clear direction of purpose.