The Stanley Film Festival just channeled its final release before the upcoming horror fest that runs April 30 through May 3 at the spooky Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. The organizers announced that RADIUS-TWC co-president Tom Quinn will receive its Visionary Award for his work championing the genre, most recently with his successful campaign and release of the hit horror tale It Follows. Also announced today were the jurors for the Stanley's other film awards and a host of fascinating panels added to the festival's already hemorrhaging events and film line-up. From today's release:
The Stanley Film Festival (SFF) produced by the Denver Film Society (DFS) and presented by Chiller, announced today it will honor Tom Quinn, co-president of RADiUS-TWC as its 2015 Visionary Award Winner. Quinn is behind this year's breakout horror title It Follows as well as other genre heavy hitters such as Snowpiercer, Blue Ruin and Only God Forgives. The Visionary award is given to a figure in contemporary horror who is making forward-thinking contributions that elevate the genre and provides a platform for new, innovative artists to create work. Previous recipients include Daniel Noah, Josh C. Waller and Elijah Wood, co-founders of SpectreVision (2014) and Eli Roth (2013). Quinn, along with Jason Janego, founded RADiUS which is the boutique label from the Weinstein Company (TWC).The Stanley Film Festival runs April 30 - May 3 at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. Tickets and the full schedule are available at stanleyfilmfest.com.
"Mr. Quinn is the catalyst behind some of the most groundbreaking titles in modern horror," says Denver Film Society Festival Director, Britta Erickson. "Not only does his work elevate the genre, he has been at the forefront of providing unique and innovative platforms for distribution that are changing the industry."
His credits include Let the Right One In, House of the Devil, The ABC's of Death, and The Host, as well as SFF titles Aftershock, All The Boys Love Mandy Lane and this year's Goodnight Mommy and When Animals Dream. Quinn also created the genre label Magnet Releasing. An in-room channel at the Stanley Hotel will be dedicated to showcasing Quinn's impressive body of work. The Visionary Award will be presented at the Horror Awards Brunch on Sunday Morning.
Additional awards given at the brunch include the winners of the Short Film Jury Prize. The Short Film Jury is comprised of Col Needham, founder and CEO of IMDb, the #1 movie website in the world, Jen Yamato, Entertainment Report for The Daily Beast, and Adam Krentzman, Director of Community Outreach CreativeFuture. Jurors will also award the winner of the Stanley Dean's Cup, a student showcase of short films, where two films, one local short and one non-local short, will be awarded a cash prize. Stanley Dean's Cup winners will be presented after the program ends early Sunday afternoon.
Award recipients and jurors will also participate in a variety of panels on Saturday, May 2 focusing on the business and future of horror as part of the SFF Program. Four panels round out the day; Visionary Distribution - Tom Quinn will discuss his history of championing great genre cinema and uniquely shepherding them into the world through the lens of his most recent hit, It Follows, Selling Screams - The Business of Indie Horror, Scare Tactics - Creativity in Modern Horror, and Fear of the Unknown - Horror of the Future. Fear of the Unknown will focus on virtual reality and the next generation's experience with horror storytelling. SFF attendees can experience this phenomenon throughout the weekend with Catatonic - A Virtual Reality Experience.
All panels and Catatonic are free and open to the public. Individual tickets and the full program are available at www.stanleyfilmfest.com.
Registration is now open for Dead Right Horror Trivia & the Horror Immersion Game. To register for either experience, please visit: www.stanleyfilmfest.com
ABOUT TOM QUINN
Tom Quinn is credited with having created a new distribution paradigm for such groundbreaking films as Snowpiercer and It Follows, while simultaneously championing a traditional distribution model for back-to-back Oscar winners 20 Feet From Stardom and Citizenfour.
He is the co-president of RADiUS, the boutique distribution label of the Weinstein Company.
In addition to the Academy Award winning Citizenfour and 20 Feet From Stardom, RADiUS films also include Academy Award nominee Cutie & The Boxer, record setting Bachelorette, Snowpiercer, Only God Forgives, Inequality For All, Errol Morris' The Unknown Known, Fed Up and Blue Ruin among others.
Tom Quinn
Previously, Tom spent more than seven years at Magnolia Pictures as senior vice-president and head of acquisitions. He created Magnet Releasing, Magnolia's genre arm; the Six Shooter series; and the annual Oscar Shorts program. He also helped launch Drafthouse Films by partnering on their first release, Four Lions. Over his career, Tom has acquired and distributed over 200 films including Man In Wire, Let The Right One In, Food Inc, Jesus Camp, Ong Bak, Cocaine Cowboys, Jiro Dreams Of Sushi and Freakonomics. Tom is also a programmer, having worked for Philadelphia, Atlanta, Woodstock and ActionFest, a festival he was instrumental in creating. Prior to joining Magnolia, he was at Samuel Goldwyn for seven years, eventually becoming vice-president of acquisitions, where he was responsible for acquiring RAISING VICTOR VARGAS and SUPER SIZE ME. His first industry job was working in domestic film publicity for Nancy Willen at Dennis Davidson Associates.
JURORS
Col Needham, Founder and CEO, IMDB
Col Needham is the founder and CEO of IMDb, the #1 movie website in the world. Born and living in the UK, Col has had a lifelong interest in both technology and movies. IMDb grew out of a personal database of movie information which Col created as a teenager, combined with similar data collected on the Internet in the late 1980s/early 1990s. IMDb incorporated in January 1996 with the volunteers as shareholders and IMDb became a wholly owned subsidiary of Amazon.com in April 1998. Col continues in his original role to this day, working from an office in Bristol with IMDb staff members in countries around the world. To learn more about IMDb or Col Needham, go to: www.imdb.com/press
Jen Yamato, Entertainment Reporter, The Daily Beast
Jen Yamato covers entertainment for The Daily Beast in Los Angeles. She has served as an editor and reporter at Deadline Hollywood, Movieline, and Rotten Tomatoes, among other publications, and as a chief film critic at Movies.com.
Adam Krentzman, Director of Community Outreach, CreativeFuture
For 25 years, Adam Krentzman has been involved in the packaging, producing and financing on over 50 feature films. At the Creative Artists Agency, Adam served as a motion picture agent representing Hollywood's top directors, producers, and writers and was part of a small team involved in the international financing and packaging for all CAA clients. Adam has taught or lectured at numerous universities worldwide and he is currently a part-time professor at Columbia College Hollywood. He is on the Board of the Telluride Film Festival and is a member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences.
PANELS:
SELLING SCREAMS: THE BUSINESS OF INDIE HORROR
Saturday May 2, 12:00pm
Learn the secrets of the trade in this passionate discussion of the grueling work of producers, sales agents, buyers and fans who make independent horror thrive.
Panelists: Roxanne Benjamin (Producer, V/H/S, V/H/S/2), Nate Bolotin (Partner, XYZ Films), Daniel Noah (Producer, SpectreVision), Ryan Turek (Director of Development, Blumhouse)
Moderator: Eric Kohn (Indiewire)
VISIONARY DISTRIBUTION: A CONVERSATION WITH RADIUS-TWC CO-PRESIDENT TOM QUINN
Saturday May 2, 1:30pm
2015 Visionary Award Recipient Tom Quinn discusses his history of championing great genre cinema - including Let The Right One In, House Of The Devil and The Host - and uniquely shepherding them into the world as with the recent highly innovative release strategy behind current horror breakout title It Follows.
SCARE TACTICS: CREATIVITY IN MODERN HORROR
Saturday May 2, 2:30pm
In a genre often clogged with cliché and unoriginality, new auteurs emerge with gruesome ideas and innovative executions that keep the scares fresh and unique. Learn how these exciting voices keep their vision alive while navigating the studio system.
Panelists: Karyn Kusama (The Invitation, Jennifer's Body), Todd Strauss-Schulson (The Final Girls), Leigh Whannell (Insidious CH. 3, writer of Saw 1-3 and the Insidious franchise)
Moderator: Sam Zimmerman (Shock Till You Drop)
FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN: HORROR OF THE FUTURE
Saturday, May 2, 4:00pm
Hear from the virtual reality, immersive theater, and interactive game designers pioneering the next generation's experience with horror storytelling as they embrace an audience's increasing thirst for new adventure with rapid advancements of technology.
Panelists: Jon Braver (Creator, Delusion), Julian McCrea (Founder, Portal Entertainment), Guy Shelmerdine (Director, Catatonic)
Moderator: Devin Faraci (Badass Digest)
About Catatonic - A Virtual Reality Experience
Directed by Guy Shelmerdine, Catatonic is an immersive journey through an insane asylum in which the audience, bound to a wheelchair, undergoes a sensory-shocking horror thrill ride. Participants will be ushered in by a nurse and fitted with a Samsung Gear headset and headphones for a 360° 3D immersive experience building to a cacophony of terror and depravity one has to experience to believe.
