“THE FAMILY TREE" WILL OPEN THE MARINA DEL REY FESTIVAL IN LOS ANGELES

Vicky Valdivieso

Good news “The Family Tree” continues its accolades, as well as its award wins. According to its director Jorge Ameer, he is happy for the distinctions the film has received so far.

Ameer, told us that "The opening and closing Gala sections are usually reserved for very prominent films."

We have to tell you that the award-winning film by the filmmaker Jorge Ameer "The Family Tree" has been selected to open the 9th. edition of the Marina del Rey Film Festival located in Los Angeles County. The festival is presented by Roku and will feature films from around the world. Which will be held from October 2 to 8, 2020.

The filmmaker commented that "This is the first time that a Panamanian film has positioned itself in a prestigious space as the opening film of an American film festival." The film has accumulated an impressive list of awards from film festivals and international competitions.

It is important to note that this would be the first time that a Panamanian film has received such a distinction in the film industry. Where many aspire to, but few are chosen.

Musikrte, received the last minute news the film has also been chosen as a finalist of the Mont Blanc Film Festival in Paris, where it continues to compete with other films from around the world.

Jorge Ameer

Jorge Ameer noted that his film originally had a different agenda for its festival tour. "Most of my films premiere at the Cannes Film Festival." It is the best film festival in the world and my favorite film event, said the filmmaker.

Notably, "The Family Tree" was originally scheduled to have its world premiere at Marche Du Film last May 17, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the festival was canceled. For this reason, the filmmaker was forced to make alternative plans for his film.

 

 

“I started looking at other festivals and their offers. Usually my film would go straight from Cannes to its distribution channels. However, the theatrical path that my films usually follows was interrupted by the closing of theaters. The ripple effect of theater closings was the postponement and cancellations of many film festivals and events.”

Due to this, the Panamanian filmmaker had to create a new path to promote and present his film to all those involved in the majestic and competitive world of cinema.

An overwhelming amount of films from around the globe saturate the film festival circuit so much so that many festivals and competitions are now being held monthly. "Movies can no longer afford to wait a full year for their favorite festivals due in part to their financing and/or deals with distributors." Unlike fine wine, a film looses its value over time, so a timely and well planned strategy is imperative to make sure the film finds a proper home and still has enough time to be promoted through the festival curcuit. Often times as a filmmaker you must settle for festivals happening within a limited time after completion a certain window given before the film enters its distribution platforms.

The same happened with "The Family Tree". "I always leave a window for a Cannes premiere because it's my favorite Film event."

Michael Joseph Nelson y Jorge Ameer en Cannes 2019

This time around, with “The Family Tree”, Ameer noticed something peculiar.  I applied to approximately twenty festivals.  After the film won a few awards, programmers began inviting the film to submit to their festival.

The filmmaker highlighted that the film currently competes in over 100 festivals. It is always appreciated when your work is recognized, and especially when other festivals begin to notice your work for its triumph, everything is an added value.

As of the writing of this article, below is a current scorecard of the films accolades "The Family Tree."

AWARDS WINS

WEST BEGAL, INDIA

Tagore Inter. film Festival

1.-Best narrative feature film

SWEDEN - SWEDEN FILM AWARDS

2. -Better lgbt

3.- Best Actor Keith Roenke

HOLLYWOOD- HOLLYWOOD FILM COMPETITION

4.- Best Director

HOLLYWOOD - HOLLYWOOD GOLD AWARDS

5.- Best Director

TURKEY - EASTERN EUROPE MOVIE AWARDS

6.- BestFeature

NEW YORK - NEW YORK CINEMATOGRAPHY AWARDS

7.- Best Lgbt film

8.- Cinematography

NEW YORK - NEW YORK FILM AWARDS

9. - Best Original Story

ITALY - VENICE FILM AWARDS

10 - Best Feature Film / Honorable Mention

FLORENCE FILM AWARDS

11. - Best Director

LOS ANGELES FILM AWARDS

12.- Honorable Mention

13 - Best Director

SINGAPORE - WORLD CINEMA CARNIVAL

14 -Best feature film

NOMINATIONS

NEW YORK - NEW YORK FILM AWARDS

- Best Picture

SPAIN - L’HOSPITALET DE LLOBREGAT INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

- Best International Film

- Best Actor: Michael Joseph Nelson

Likewise, the film "The Tree of a Family" was a finalist

FINALIST

HOLLYWOOD - HOLLYWOOD GOLD AWARDS

-Best feature film

CANADA - CANANDIAN FILM AWARDS

- Best feature film

SEMI FINALIST

CANADA - CYRUS INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF TORONTO

- Best feature film

- Best international feature film

NEW YORK - BEST DIRECTOR AWARD

-Award to the best director

- Feature film

AMSTERDAM - EUROPEAN CINEMATOGRAPHY AWARDS

- Best feature film

- Best Movie Poster

- PARIS - MONT BLAC INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

- Feature Film

Jorge Ameer's film "The Family Tree" stars Michael Joseph Nelson, Keith Roenke and Anais Lucia and is being distributed theatrically by Hollywood Independents. It is currently scheduled to be released in theaters on November 6.

Michael Joseph Nelson, Anais Lucia and Keith Roenke

It was recently acquired by the Hollywood-based distributor Ariztical Entertainment for DVD, streaming platforms and television. It is scheduled for release late fall.

Without a doubt, the success of Jorge Ameer's film so far is proof that when you believe in your dreams, they can only be achieved if you work with dedication, care and have a good team, you will finally be able to see your vision to fruition. As the director tells us that despite believing in his film, he never thought that it would win so many awards and receive this much recognition the film currently receiving at various film competitions.