press release

WBFF 1999 - RAW2000EDITION

Williamsburg Brooklyn, New York, May 25, 1999.

For immediate release:

GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENT - WBFF RAW2000EDITION

The WBFF ~the chameleon~ announces that this year' Festival, entitled "RAW2000EDITION," will be held from June 25th to 27th, 1999, in one of New York City's oldest and "last of it's days" grand movie theaters. The Commodore, located at 329 Broadway (near Marcy Avenue) is a 1920' s landmark theater where Woody Allen shot "Bullets Over Broadway" and is the last remaining cinema in Williamsburg. (More information to follow.)

At the announcement, Arthur Morgenroth and Angelo Delgado, co-owners of the Commodore, said, "We are very pleased to have the Williamsburg Brooklyn Film Festival here in our great old theater. The new film makers of tomorrow and the history of this building are a great match."

Festival Founder and Director, Marco Ursino said, "The WBFF is about providing opportunity and exposure. It's about generating a stepping-stone for the next generation of film makers that the world waits to see". Mr Ursino also added, "In our Festival politics has no role because theWBFF is a Festival for independent film makers by independent film makers." More information to follow.)

The film selection for the program of RAW2000EDITION is the result of a year long search, in which entries came from six different countries, from all across the nation, as well as from many Brooklyn film makers themselves. The WBFF '99 has four competitive sections including features, documentaries, shorts, and experimental films. (More information to follow.)

In addition to the film competition, the Festival will also feature relevant panel discussions and Q&As with the film makers. Saturday, June 26 from 10am to 12noon: "Digital Pitch Conference" by Webcinema. (More information to follow.)

Each competitive section will be reviewed by a panel of judges from the international filmmaking industry. Four "chameleon" statuettes from the total of more than 10 seperate awards will be given to the various winners, and all competitors are in competition for a multi-sponsored Best Director Prize that is intended to attract the best of the breed film makers from RAW2000EDITION going forward. (More information to follow.) Building on the success of last year's festival "YELLOW," the WBFF '99 RAW2000EDITION, has expanded to cover the Summer of '99 with five events in Brooklyn and Manhattan. *END*