By Terrell Sandefur, Macon Film Festival

“The Friendliest Little Film Festival in the Country” kicks off its seventh annual event on Thursday, Feb. 16 at three venues in historic downtown Macon.  The festival will continue through Sunday, Feb. 19,with screenings, workshops, special guests and raucous after parties.

The Macon Film Festival was created to celebrate the art of the moving image and to give up-and-coming filmmakers an opportunity to showcase their work in Central Georgia. 125 films from 15 countries were selected to screen, including one film directed by an 11-year-old which will mark the youngest director ever screened at the festival. The diverse subject matter of the films, ranging from innocent to provocative to very adult in nature, offers something for everyone and provides local movie buffs the opportunity to see films that will likely never be shown at Macon movie theatres. They also have opportunities to meet filmmakers from all parts of the world.

The Macon Film Festival has been well received by independent filmmakers from across the country. “It isn’t the biggest festival in the world, but it certainly is the friendliest,” said British actor/director Nick Moran. A reputation as “the Friendliest Little Film Festival in the County” is one reason so many filmmakers from around the world come to the festival.  Let’s face it, nothing beats old fashioned Southern hospitality.

A few thousand people flock downtown to watch films, dine out at restaurants, and experience the indigenous arts and culture of our city. Each day independent films are screened in back-to-back blocks from 9am until 11pm. Each evening there is a Special Screening followed by Q&A session with the special guests.

The 2012 Macon Film Festival special guests include actor Beth Grant (The Artist, Donnie Darko, No Country for Old Men, Speed, Sordid Lives) who is referred to as the most recognizable face in Hollywood. Macon native & political strategist, Jay Carson, who was the inspiration for the Ryan Gosling character in the highly acclaimed “The Ides of March.”  Grammy Award winning music video producer, executive producer Joseph Uliano will be showcasing a collection of his work. Macon native Carrie Preston (True Blood) will appear via Skype for a Q&A following the screening of “That’s What She Said,” which premiered last month at Sundance Film Festival.

Daily workshops are free and open to the public. This year’s workshops include:

• Joseph Uliano, ”Life Between the Feature – Don’t quit your day job” Description: A discussion on the types of work that film makers do between films, filmmaking As a day job.”
• Sarah Treem, Head Writer/Producer for HBO series In Treatment. Writer/Producer for HBO series How to Make It In America. Workshop: “How Hollywood is Like Dating: Tips for Surviving in the Screentrade.”  Description: “Sarah Treem was a 26 year old playwright when she accidentally landed a job writing a few scripts for a new show on HBO called IN TREATMENT. In this workshop, she’ll talk about how she survived and became an executive producer,  in addition to discussing the screenwriting process and answering any questions you might have.”
• Beth Grant, actress.  (The Artist, Donnie Darko, Speed, Rain Man, No Country for Old Men, Sordid Lives) Workshop: “How Do You Find Your Casting And Why Anyone Can Learn To Act.”  Description: Beth Grant was a delusional, overweight, Southern debutante, a character actress who wanted to be Marilyn Monroe, when she arrived in New York many years ago. Beth will talk about her journey to be one of the “Hardest Working Actors in Hollywood,” (Entertainment Weekly) by accepting her casting and developing her acting technique.  Beth will share her story and her specific approach to acting which she believes, with work, anyone can learn  do.
• Craig Dominey, Film Location Specialist, Georgia Film Office. Workshop: “Georgia: Location! Location! Location!” Description:  Filming in Georgia

After each night’s Special Screening, the mixing and mingling ensues at the famous After Parties, where the star of the show is the famous “MAGAtini,” the festival’s signature cocktail. Macon Film Festival After Parties have become quite the hot ticket among festival goers as they provide an opportunity to get up close and personal with the special guests and visiting filmmakers. After Party locations change each night, but rest assured they are the hippest haunts in town.

Macon Film Festival, Feb. 16 – 19. Information & Tickets are available at online or at the festival headquarters. Macon Film Festival’s partner hotels are the Macon Marriott City Center, Hilton Garden Inn & Fairfield Inn & Suites. Ask for the discounted film festival rate. For the most up date information, please follow us on Facebook and Twitter.