WFF 2021 Post-Festival Update
The Woodstock Playhouse at night. Photo by Elkyn Orellana
The past 19 months brought unprecedented challenges but also presented our organization with an opportunity to explore new mediums and connect with our ever-growing community of film lovers and creatives. Whether you attended our year-round events or participated in this year’s film festival, we are extremely grateful for your continued support.
For the first time since our 20th Anniversary celebration in 2019, filmmakers and audience members attending the Woodstock Film Festival could finally interact face-to-face at the movie theater. After countless outdoor movie nights and online gatherings, getting to see all of your masked faces filling the seats of our venues was a special treat!
One of the highlights from this year’s fest was the return of WFF’s signature Maverick Awards ceremony. The evening began with opening remarks from Woodstock Film Festival Co-Founder & Executive Director Meira Blaustein and a recap of the festival’s 2021 Filmmakers Residency / Incubator program. State Senator Michelle Hinchey and U.S. Congressman Antonio Delgado both gave speeches about the importance of supporting the local arts scene and the work of artists. This year’s Honorary Maverick Award went to filmmaker and WFF alumni Roger Ross Williams (HIGH ON THE HOG, GOD LOVES UGANDA) with the Honorary Trailblazer Award going to NEON CEO Tom Quinn. Filmmaker and WFF alumni Eliza Hittman (BEACH RATS, NEVER RARELY SOMETIMES ALWAYS) received the Honorary Fiercely Independent Award. For the full list of jury award winners click here. The entire Maverick Awards ceremony is also available to watch on our YouTube channel.
Roger Ross Williams at the 2021 Woodstock Film Festival. Photo by Jason F. Vasquez
“Woodstock is my absolute favorite festival because it has everything; a beautiful and relaxing setting, a wonderful artistic community … It’s a love fest for film lovers,” said WFF 2021 Honorary Maverick Award recipient Roger Ross Williams.
State Senator Michelle Hinchey at the 2021 Woodstock Film Festival Maverick Awards. Photo by John Mazlish
“Community is us all supporting each other in really challenging moments like the ones we just faced and the Woodstock Film Festival is so profoundly important, not just to our community, not just to Ulster County, but to our entire region.” said State Senator Michelle Hinchey before presenting the Woodstock Film Festival with a New York State Senate certificate in recognition of WFF’s contributions as a cultural and economic engine for the Hudson Valley.
Lydia Dean Pilcher (left) with Honorary Fiercely Independent Award Recipient Eliza Hittman (center) and Woodstock Film Festival Co-Founder & Executive Director Meira Blaustein (right). Photo by Laura Revercomb
“I missed coming to a film festival like this one and meeting all the generous volunteers who help you navigate the streets at night when you’re lost and being exposed to such incredible films …” said WFF 2021 Honorary Fiercely Independent Award recipient Eliza Hittman after receiving her statuette. She also sent a message of support to the members of the IATSE, adding: “I’ve had really incredible crews from film to film who have put their trust in me and followed me into the darkest corners of my imagination … I’m standing with them in solidarity because they are the people who are standing with me on set and trust me the most.”
Tom Quinn at the 2021 Woodstock Film Festival Maverick Awards. Photo by John Mazlish
During his acceptance speech, Honorary Trailblazer Award recipient Tom Quinn shared some professional wisdom to the audience by stating: “Experience in this industry is entirely circular. The more you know, the less you know. That’s why everyone you work with, regardless of experience, should always sit equally at the same table.”
Some of the films and filmmakers affiliated with WFF have gone on to receive additional award nominations and recognition from media outlets:
Annalise Lockhart, whose film INHERITANCE screened as part of the 2021 Woodstock Film Festival’s Fight or Flight narrative shorts program, was recently chosen as one of Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film. Congratulations Annalise!
The list of nominees for the 2021 Gotham Awards was packed with films from WFF alumni and friends. Standout titles include WFF 2021 Centerpiece Film FLEE by Jonas Poher Rassmussen, WFF 2021 Spotlight Film THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD and Rebecca Hall’s PASSING, which was edited by WFF Advisory Board member Sabine Hoffman. Actor Reed Berney from Fran Kranz’s MASS, which won the jury award for Best Narrative Feature at WFF 2021, received a nod for Best Supporting Performance. Breakout director Questlove’s SUMMER OF SOUL was nominated for Best Documentary Feature. The Woodstock Film Festival hosted a free community drive-in screening of the critically-acclaimed music documentary this past summer. You can see the full list of nominees for the 2021 Gotham Awards here.
Multiple films from the WFF 2021 lineup were also nominated for the 6th Annual Critics Choice Documentary Awards, including THE RESCUE, FLEE, PROCESSION and THE VELVET UNDERGROUND. Leading the pack was Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s THE RESCUE, which netted five nominations in total. SUMMER OF SOUL received nominations in several award categories. Check out the full list of CCDA nominees here.
Congratulations to Set Hernandez Rongkilyo, who participated in the Woodstock Film Festival’s 2021 Filmmakers Incubator / Residency program with White Feather Farm Foundation and was recently awarded a grant from the Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program for their nonfiction project UNSEEN! Click here for more info.
Be on the lookout next month for THE SHUROO PROCESS, which was acquired ahead of its World Premiere at WFF 2021 by Gravitas Ventures for a North American theatrical release! Co-written and directed by Emrhys Cooper, this kooky comedy follows a NYC journalist who blows up her career and moves to a remote wellness retreat run by a charismatic celebrity self-help guru. The film was shot in the Hudson Valley and will hit theaters and VOD on November 24, 2021.
As the year comes to a close and awards season heats up, stay on the lookout for further updates about our year-round programming!