Acorns

Does ReelHeART care for and about film makers?

My film was a short. I was picked up and dropped back to the airport. I was picked up and taken out each night to an evening meal and back to watch more films or go to the party that night (whatever I chose).

As well as coffee, biscuits and soft drinks we got lunch every day. Every night we were wined and dined. Japanese, Mexican, BBQ, Creole etc. As much beer or wine as I wanted. The best was the Italian night. Starting with champagne and on to wine, finishing with liquors and coffee. The A La Carte menu choice, excellent food, linen table cloths , brilliant service. Do you get the picture. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. This was also a brilliant way to get to properly meet other film makers.

Everyday there was a short meeting for new film makers to introduce themselves and their films.

All film makers can go to any screening they want to see.

The 3 people who were finalists in the Script Writing competition had their scripts read by a huge cast of professional actors who had been rehearsing over the previous 3 weeks. One cast had over 20 actors! If I had been one of those script writer I would have been over the moon. I just enjoyed the scripts and the excellent performances by the actors and the narrators.

There were other events. The best were the session with a top entertainment lawyer, sales agent and distributors of shorts/features and Docs. The other session was when each of the film makers spoke about how they got finance, shot their film and problems/triumphs. Hilarious and informative.

Did I say the volunteer staff never stopped smiling and that Shannonn was Shannonn. You have to go to ReelHeART to find out what Shannonn is like but be assured she is unique, warm hearted and single minded in running the festival.

Before the festival ReelHeART requests info to build (or help build) a Press Release. They then give you an exhaustive list of people and organisations which would be interested in your film.

At ReelHeART they go out and put up any posters you have supplied. They have teams who go out and hand out flyers. When you arrive they give you more handbills to hand out and also volunteers to help you.

When I was there they arranged for me to be interviewed on Toronto Radio with 2 other film makers. ReelHeART had a great response to my talk about my film and got a lot of emails requesting a 3rd alternative screening time.

Are you exhausted reading this. Annoyed you didn’t go? Did I tell you how much everything above cost me? The amazing answer is absolutely nothing, except of course my WAB entry fee.

So you are wondering why I am writing all the above. I have no connection with the festival except as a film maker and I just wanted to let everyone else know what ReelHeART was like.

I went to another festival in Ireland which has a good reputation. As a shorts film maker I get two free tickets to get into the programme my film is screening in and that is it. No coffee, parties, meals, talks etc. They do have events etc. but only if I pay the same price as the ordinary public. They bill themselves as the FILMMAKERS festival.

ReelHeART has been called the Film makers Festival by the industry. Guess which one is the one I think is the Film Makers Festival.

Acorns

Second that. Screened at ReelHeART 08 and had a great time.

It really reminded me why sometimes its good to be a filmmaker!

Acorns

ReelHeART was wonderful
Shannonn did a bang-up job for the festival & it was a huge success. We had never been to Toronto before & absolutely loved it, especially the big brewery there that gives out free samples. Wonderful gift bag, great parties & dinners, & of course the best is always meeting the fascinating folk that make movies.
Congratulations, Shannonn, and thanks to all of you!

Acorns

This was our second year at ReelHeART, and there is nothing we have found comparable to it. Phenomenal!

Acorns

I have very fond memories of the ReelHeART Film Festival. My feature film, “Underdogs”, went to quite a few festivals and ReelHeART was one that really stood out for me. There was a personal touch, they kept everyone well informed by e mail on what was going on and when AND they had medals even for those of us who were just honorably mentioned. I like having that medal as a souvenir. Thank you ReelHeART- I really enjoyed the process! Silvana Jakich

Acorns

I had to think about what else to add about my ReelHeART experience which hasn’t already been said by previous posters. Shannonn Kelly is a tireless spitfire. She’s always moving and constantly going the extra mile to make her filmmakers happy.

I guess I have two new points to make, and even of the two, only one is serious.

The serious one is that I hope the festival doesn’t get too big b/c it’s the perfect size as is. If it were to grow, I can’t see how Shannonn (or anyone else) would be able to maintain the extremely personable and friendly type of treatment that she currently provides to all of her filmmakers. And really, that atmosphere of being amongst friends, is the best of many good things to say about ReelHeART.

The not so serious point is that leaving ReelHeART truly was, like leaving a friend, a bummer. It’s really hard to bounce back to crap post RH. No other festival director has ever hustled so much for me, before or since. No other festival director provided us with all the freebies (from rides to food to copies for our posters to lectures by industry insiders to the all-night drunken bowling at festival’s end) that Shannonn did. It was an amazing week in an amazing city. Great times, just hope it never becomes a victim of its own success and turns into the attitude-laden crap which I’ve seen in NY and LA.

~Johnny Salvatore
http://www.youtube.com/user/BrooklynAtlantic

Acorns

My son & I had a very short experimental piece in the ReelHeART International Film Festival a few years back. Calder was a High School Senior at the time & found the festival was a wonderful & thrilling experience. He scored his second short film…”Something Left to Sea”… that was screened in October at ‘The Hamptons International Film Festival’. I’m sure his time spent with other artist at ReelHeART was positive & motivating. The entire ‘Film Staff’ were kind & friendly. He is now a Junior attending Oberlin Conservatory for Music in the TIMARA Program.Thank you very much to all the hard working staff members past & present.This Fest made a difference in my son’s eyes. Sincerely,Greg Singer (Projectionist / MoMA in NYC)

Acorns

If you want glitz and glamour on the red carpet in Toronto, get thee to Toronto International Film Festival. But if you want a more laid-back experience where you can really connect with people who share your interests in the work itself, you will appreciate the ReelHeART experience.

ReelHeART is not about the red carpet; it’s about sharing the love of great stories.

Over the past 5 years, I have had the privilege of traveling to numerous festivals across North America, ranging from small-town Oklahoma to fabulous Beverly Hills, and I must say that ReelHeART stands out as one of the most positive experiences.

Having participated in 2006 and 2008 with two separate short film projects, I am delighted to see the festival grow, and at the same time remain true to their commitment to great stories. They are not afraid to screen a wide range of production value in one slot, as long the projects are strong on story. Pretty humbling to have your first indie project screen alongside an Oscar-winning short! The programmers make it all work by matching projects that just work well together.

As others mentioned, ReelHeART really does take care of the filmmakers, and does it in a warm, friendly sort of way.

A word of caution: they mean what they say about making you *work* to promote your screenings. The thing is, it’s worth it…

Acorns

ReelHeART was such a positive experience. The panels, seminars, readings, gathering etc. created a great sense of community. Shannon brought great people together and provided us with the opportunity to speak about our films, our works in progress our next projects. We were able to develop relationships that are still in tact today. And Shannon’s organizational skills are wonderful – I never doubted that what she said was going to happen, would actually happen. The festival also has a very very cool vibe because the locations are cool and hip. It is a great great fest. She also has really good taste in films, we saw films there that had done well internationally and it was good to see them embraced up north as well.

Acorns

What Shannonn (the ReelHeART Director) is doing is great. ReelHeART is a great fest that I recommend to filmmaker friends. You all are doing a great job!

Acorns

I travelled from the UK to attend the ReelHeART Festival this year (2009). This was my first film and my festival. I have been to many since and nothing can compare. Shannon and her team were fantastic – they even picked us up from the airport. The Southern Accent Restaurant where the opening and closing night parties were held offered great food and a warm welcome. We were driven to a different food venue each night and all free. Some great films were shown and it was a festival where we got the opportunity to meet and chat with other film makers which is what it is all about and we are still in contact with friends wemade there. Plus the icing on the cake was my short was picked up by a Distributor at the Festival – what more could we have asked for? Many thanks Shannon and team for doing such a great job and making Filmmakers feel so welcome – ReelHeART is definately “The Film Makers Festival.”

ReelHeART was a small and intimate film festival back in 2007. A breath of fresh air compared to the larger festivals where one would easily get lost on the red carpet. The environment was conducive for a bunch of like-minded artists and filmmakers from all over the world to gather, make friends, bounce ideas and even discuss possibilities for collaboration. In my opinion, it is the perfect place to breed success. I hope to go back someday.

Acorns

We submitted to the 2009 ReelHeART International Film Festival because we had heard that they were one of the few festivals who actually viewed the screeners upon submission. What a breath of fresh air this film festival was! Run by hard working filmmakers with knowledge and taste. RHIFF is without the hidden agenda and shameful programming tactics that have plagued too many festivals.
God bless this fest!

Soren Johnstone
filmmaker
http://www.playwithfiremovie.com

Acorns

I went to the Festival in 2008. It was a great experience. I met a lot of very nice filmmakers, actors etc. and Shannon and her team went out of their way to make us feel comfortable. The dinners provided a great opportunity for connecting with other people and the morning briefs were very instructive. I was really impressed by the Festival team. It is worth sustaining them.

Acorns

ReelHeART 2008 was my first festival experience and it has not been surpassed by subsequent festival screenings of my work. Festival director Shannonn Kelly and the entire team are truly focused on the filmmakers – activities are planned every day that created opportunities to meet and network with other filmmakers and film lovers outside of the screening environments. At a Lunch and Learn filmmaker development session, I met the distributor who subsequently picked up my short film “two julias”.

In 2009 I had two feature length scripts in the screenwriting finals, which includes coverage – a great deal. My scripts didn’t advance to the top three which get rehearsed readings at the festival. I attended the readings in 2008 and they were performed well by professional actors.

I hope to be attending in 2010 with my latest short “Greenspoke”.

Acorns

ReelHeART was such a personal festival experience that a year and a half later we are still in regular contact with the festival staff and other filmmakers we met there. Anyone who has been through the festival circuit knows that there are some details that are the filmmakers responsibility – the ReelHeART staff takes care of all of the others so that you can focus your energies on promoting your film. This is a festival that takes care of its filmmakers, from transportation to meals to promotional advice. Director Shannonn Kelly’s energy is boundless, and the staff’s devotion to independent film is without peer. The entire fest is also a wonderful party – filmmakers are treated to a smorgasbord of local cuisine, from to homemade Italian to Korean to Cajun/Creole food (Southern Accent alone is just about worth the drive from the States). There was so much to do that we had to pull ourselves away from events and panels just to find the time to promote our film. The staffers even drove us to the business district so we could shoot a promotional video for our screening, which reached over 16,000 viewers in one week: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAmuALq472E

We couldn’t stay long enough to attend the closing party, but we received an excited phone call from Shannonn at the party, capturing the announcement of our Award, and the congratulations of the supportive crowd, on our voice mail. Very cool and classy.

Highly recommended – on our Must List for future festival submissions.

Jason Sherry & Ellen O’Brien Sherry
Producers, Cubes
http://www.cubesthemovie.com
“Think inside the box.”

Acorns

What can I say, ReelHeART was my first and it was grand! June 2009. Shannon, the Festival Director is in the frontlines like she’s in combat all in the hopes of bringing attention to the festival — and not just for her but for all the filmmakers who make it down from all around the world –and let me tell you, they came from all around — it was simply the best — they treated us all like gold and there were parties every day — free dinners/drinks/great daily panels — and basically, they took the time to indtroduce filmmakers to each other everyday — they would force them to stand in front of everyone and introduce themselves and talk about their films — It was awesome — Shannon is simply A#1 and I hope I can find future festivals as great as this very first. It’s like chasing the dragon! HA!