Festival Updates

Attending and showcasing a little 2011 Recap (will post video soon)  and updating the State on our growing annual festival in Eastern Oregon.  Along with EOU’s Film Program La Grande and Eastern Oregon are becoming points of interest for the film community and industry in Oregon.

Feel free to join us via Satellite Monday, December 12 at Eastern Oregon University – Inlow Hall Room 013 : The conference will be broadcasted and we will speak to the conference as well.  Support film in Eastern Oregon and check it out. (Wear your hoodie.

Recap 2011

Don’t forget to mark your calendars and come join us and Governor John Kitzhaber for the:

Governor’s Office of Film & Television’s Annual Meeting
Monday, December 12 at 6:00PM.

Come celebrate Oregon’s record breaking year for film and television production!

We will be honoring several people and organizations throughout the state who have played an important role this year in the industry’s success. We also have some exciting announcements to reveal at this event that will be worth celebrating the future of the industry.

You can either join us in person at the Portland location (listed below), meet up with people in your area at one of the three teleconference sites throughout the state, or view a live web-stream of the event online.

Portland: University of Oregon Portland Campus
70 NW Couch Street
Portland, OR 97209

Now confirmed are three teleconference sites:

Ashland: Southern Oregon University – Hannon Library Room 117

Eugene: The Center for Media and Educational Technologies (CMET), in Studio A.
(We’ll start at 5:30 PM to ensure we’re ready for the teleconferenced event.)

La Grande: Eastern Oregon University – Inlow Hall Room 013

*** If you are unable to make it to any of the sites above, you can view the event live online at:
http://pdx.uoregon.edu/index.php?p=webcast and click on the first “Live Webcast” link.***

Industry members and supporters are also invited to attend a
Reception and ”Thank You” Party
beginning at 5:oopm at the Portland location and continuing after the annual meeting.

An exposition of projects developed by student winners of the Digital Media Commission will be on display at that time. Both the Commission and party are generously sponsored by Intel and the Oregon Media Production Association. The reception is free, and attendees are encouraged to bring canned food donation for the Oregon Food Bank. (Details at www.ompa.org)

We hope you will come and celebrate (that is if you’re not too busy working on a project) and demonstrate to ourselves as well as the general public that the film and TV industry is thriving here in Oregon!

Eastern Oregon Film Festival awards five filmmakers with this year’s honors. Bellflower and Dragonslayer received Best Film nods in the narrative and documentary categories, respectively. Cirkus Columbia, and short, Summer Snapshot won audience choice awards. And Bad Fever director, Dustin Guy Defa, was recognized for his ‘Innovation in Directing’.

Jury awards were given to the best narrative and documentary features, as well as a Special Mention for a powerful small independent film that caught everyone’s attention:

Bellflower – 2011 WINNER Best Narrative Feature

DIRECTOR: Evan Glodell

Dragonslayer – 2011 WINNER Best Documentary

DIRECTOR: Tristan Patterson

Cirkus Columbia – Audience Choice, Best Feature Film

DIRECTOR: Danis Tanovic

Summer Snapshot – Audience Choice, Best Short Film

DIRECTOR: IAN MCCLUSKEY

Dustin Guy Defa, Bad Fever — Innovation in Directing

The Eastern Oregon Film Festival owes its success to the incredibly generous and supportive communities of artists and patrons that fuel the event. This year’s fest proved that 2010′s leap was no aberration. EOFF continues to grow in size and scope, and appears to be here to stay.

The 2011 Eastern Oregon Film Festival was a blast. Maybe you caught a film or two, or maybe you were one of the hard-cores who saw all 20 and made it to all the after-parties. But to those of you who were part of EOFF 2011, hats off to you.

Check back tomorrow as we announce the winners of this year’s awards, and in the meantime, check out some photos from last week!

One of the perks of having a festival pass is the discounts and promotions by La Grande Merchants. This program is in it’s inaugural year and, along with, La Grande Main Street, we hope to grow this program in future years. Below you will find a list of participating specials — make sure to stop in and show em your pass!

Rodeway Inn of La Grande
402 Adams Ave • La Grande, Oregon
Phone: (541) 962-7143
Web: http://www.rodewayinn.com/hotel/or210

Show your pass and receive 15% off your room

Royal Motor Inn
1510 Adams Ave • La Grande, Oregon
Phone: (541) 963-4154

Show your pass and receive 15% off your room

Mt. Emily Ale House
1202 Adams Avenue • La Grande, Oregon
541-962-7711
*Show your pass and receive $1 off your Ale House Pints

BELLA
1216 Adams Avenue • La Grande, Oregon
Phone: 800.452.8639

Show your EOFF pass at either BELLA location (La Grande or Baker City)and enjoy a FREE wine tasting.
TAKE $2 OFF on any purchase of $15 or more.

The Potter’s House Gallery and Gift Boutique
corner 6th & Penn, LG, 1601 6th st.
15% off any purchase (excluding consignment)

Books and Brew
1118 Adams Ave • La Grande, Oregon
12oz free drink with purchase of bagel sandwich.

Joe & Sugars
1119 Adams Ave • La Grande, Oregon
Free 16oz drink (limit 1 per pass)

Marie Josephine’s
1304 Adams • La Grande, Oregon
Show your pass and get 25% off your purchase

Night Fright Haunted House at the Maridell Center
1124 Washington Avenue, La Grande

$2.00 off a Combo Pass or $1.00 off an individual attraction at the Night Fright Haunted House, featuring Mortis Mansion II and Phantoms of the Deep, open Oct. 21 & 22, 7:00-10:00 pm. OR get $5.00 off the Paranormal Investigation on Oct. 22nd beginning at 11:00 pm. Also enjoy our food, games and live entertainment.

Direct Music
1010 Adams Avenue

Receive 20% off all accessories!

Great Sponsors, Granting Successes, Donations, & Participation = How we make it happen!

The Eastern Oregon Film Festival would not be possible without the growing support of local businesses, organizations, The City of La Grande, and festival participants (cinephiles and band-buff’s alike), Eastern Oregon University, and the great energy emanating in the Grande Ronde Valley.

Volunteers: It takes an awful lot of energy to bring something like this to pass. The, dare I say, thousands of hours put in by community members to make this this happen is nothing to shake a stick at. The Eastern Oregon Film Festival is run by community volunteers who are dedicated to enriching this community & region through film and music. The EOU Film Club, Jeremiah Marshal, and Scott Nearing, for their efforts to rally a student base that creates the backbone to the event should all be commended for their commitment to this exciting project.

Festival Sponsors: Cold Coffee Media and La Grande Life has been an instrumental piece of the festival.  An incredible amount of donated services and volunteer time from these guys make this entire festival manifest. Additionally, media sponsors who donated gobs of great radio and advertising options include: Pacific Radio Empire, Capps Broadcasting, The Observer, Union County Chamber of Commerce, and more. Without the press – no-one would know!

Big Cash Sponsors need a shout out – the capital has helped secure insurance, 501 c3 status, screening fees, band fees, thai food, and more.  John J. Howard and Associates,  Blue Mountain Associates & Grande Ronde Recovery, Bella, La Grande Main Street, ArtsEast, Horizon Wind, Jeff D. Clark, and Candy Bowman should be recognized as supporters of arts and cultural event and cultivation in our valley.  Additional sponsors who stepped up to the plate: Blue Mountain Pathology, Chiller City, Eastern Oregon University, EOU Media Arts & Communications, Mindandmusicle.net, Mountain Valley Therapy, OMPA, Oregon Film, Oregon Rural Action, Oregon Wireless, Praise Photography, Taylinn Signs, USANA Health Sciences, Candy Bowman, Realtor, Edward Jones, Jeff D. Clark, Realtor, Kim Kenney, Marketing Consultant , Looking Glass Books, and Stuart Jones Designs.

Successful Grants
Wildhorse Foundation assisted in this year’s efforts by funding the fest $4K to purchase production package to document this year’s festival.  Already being put to use documenting our great annual fundraiser EOFF looks forward to preparing a short documentary of the 3 day event.  As inline with the education / resource goals for EOFF the package will become an available resource for budding filmmakers and creative project in the area.  More information on future use of the equipment will be available after this year’s festival. A special thanks to EOU faculty member Nancy Knowles for her assistance on the project.

The City of La Grande also awarded a grant in the amount of $1000.00 to be used for marketing purposes. Special thanks to the city and to Union County Chamber of Commerce for encouraging the event and we hope that we can grow this relationship and develop some sustainable support through our community leadership.

Thank you all.

The 2011 Eastern Oregon Film Festival is starting the countdown.  Festival passes are now available, sponsoring opportunities are being finalized, submissions are closed and the programmers are smiling.  Check out the offerings and information below – get your pass (they will go fast) and stay tuned as the music line-up starts spilling out.

FESTIVAL FRIENDS: HERE’S YOUR OPPORTUNITY!

Festival Passes are a way of supporting the Eastern Oregon Film Festival (EOFF) while taking advantage of great offers from local businesses and all-access admission to exciting activities. The first chance to obtain the coveted festival pass is to become a FESTIVAL FRIEND. As a friend you will receive your all-access festival pass(s), official 2011 EOFF apparel, recognition on our website / program, and more. Additional information and online purchasing is available at the website: http://www.eofilmfest.com

From 2010's event: Photo by Ian Clark

SAVE THE DATE:

Festival dates for 2011 are October 20, 21, & 22 in downtown La Grande, Oregon. All films are screened at the Granada Theatre and after parties, for all 3 nights, will be held at various downtown venues.

SPONSORS ARE STEPPING UP: EOFF launched their 2011 Sponsor webpage on July 1 to start acknowledging the great businesses and organizations that are supporting our 3rd year of the Eastern Oregon Film Festival. Visit the sponsors’ page to see for yourself. http://eofilmfest.com/2011-sponsors/

EOFF is still seeking additional sponsors to assist both financially and with in-kind services for this year’s event. To see how your business or organization can help, visit our sponsorship opportunities page listed above.

2011 EOFF MUSIC LINE-UP RELEASE: Eastern Oregon Film Festival will release our full list of 2011 official music selections shortly. Keep an eye on the website and our various social streams for updates.

2011 OFFICIAL MUSIC SELECTION:
HILLFOLK NOIR

Hillfolk Noir (Boise, ID) will again be in the house for the 2011 Eastern Oregon Film Festival.  In 2010 the band set the tone for what was to become the “best 3 days for film and music in downtown La Grande”.  More on the band and performace times as the festival rolls out the Official Music Line-Up. (Press your ear hard!)

“Hillfolk Noir -  modern day old time wonderment.”

~ Rick Stuart, Roots and Fusion Radio of Pure Radio, UK

2011 Official Selection Hillfolk Noir (photo from 2011 Ranch Fest, by Christopher Jennings)

Festival Backstory

Eastern Oregon Film Festival is a non-profit organization dedicated to creating a cinematic experience in Eastern Oregon that promotes discovery, entertainment, and education via artistic exhibition and viewership. Through the mediums of independent film and music we aim to expand the cultural experience within our region.

Eastern Oregon Film Festival had a tremendous 2010 year screening 20 films, showcasing 4 bands, and having a heck of a lot of fun.  The festival reached out to filmmakers across the globe and was blessed by the participation of such filmmakers as Matthew Porterfield (Putty Hill), Jessica Oreck (Beetle Queen Conquers Tokyo), Kentucker Audley (Open Five) and many more.

Portland, Oregon’s “Yeah Great Fine”, and Boise’s “Finn Riggins” & “Hillfolk Noir” blessed last year’s stages and were accompanied by local musicians Shaun Daniel and Sons of Guns for 3 nights of after hour gatherings.

For Immediate Release:
[La Grande, Oregon] Eastern Oregon Film Festival (EOFF) is excited to work with La Grande Main Street and area businesses to offer an opportunity to reach a regional audience and to introduce themselves as supportive of new and exciting arts and cultural driven tourism activity in La Grande and Eastern Oregon.

The film festival offers an all-access “Festival Pass” as a way to purchase access ahead of time to all of the films and after party activities. 150 festival passes will be available this year for pre-purchase. EOFF invites you to apply a specific discount or promotion to our pass and get a great opportunity to reach this year’s festival-goers.

There is no cost to participate. EOFF asks that participating businesses prominently display a poster during the festival that informs festival pass holders that a promotion is available. This graphic will be designed by EOFF and delivered to participants at least a week before the festival.

To take advantage of this opportunity you can sign up and post your promotion by CLICKING HERE, emailing EOFF (director@eofilmfest,com), or stopping by EOFF headquarters located at 209 Depot Street – La Grande, Oregon 97850).

Eastern Oregon Film Festival is grateful for all of the community support and looks forward to growth and sustainability. Eastern Oregon Film Festival hopes that local businesses and organizations can participate and assist in increasing tourism and spending in La Grande’s downtown and the surrounding area.

If you are interested in taking advantage of additional marketing options and supporting the festival further, consider becoming an official 2011 sponsor. Information on sponsorship and relevant marketing advantages can be found at http://eofilmfest.com/participate/sponsorship-opportunities/

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Now is the time to show your support of this year’s Eastern Oregon Film Festival by contributing and becoming an official 2011 festival sponsor. We will begin promoting our sponsors officially on July 1.

A 2011 Sponsors page will be added to the website and we will begin added sponsor logos as they arrive.

Our newest sponsor for 2011's Event. Thanks LGMS!

A big thanks to those who have already committed – and we are stoked to start displaying your identity as a supporter of our event.

A majority of print campaign exposure will begin in August and run heavily through the festival. Additional avenues of promotion will be social networking sites (facebook / twitter) on and other online sources.  Additionally for those who sponsor at a Platinum Level or Above will begin getting the radio exposure as we near the festival.

All sponsors will be displayed during the festival on screen slides before each block of films. For a complete list of sponsor perks download the form below.

Again – visit here for sponsor information and to download / print / return to assist in the development of this year’s festivities.

Download and View the 2011 Eastern Oregon Film Festival Sponsor Information (PDF)

Eastern Oregon Film Festival (EOFF) is sponsoring a satellite screening of Quality of Life. This award-winning narrative feature film will play at the OK Theater in Enterprise Thursday, June 30, 2011 at 7pm. Director Benjamin Morgan will be present for Q&A after the screening.

About the Film

Winner of a prestigious jury award at the Berlin International Film Festival, Quality of Life is a narrative feature film that tells the gripping and authentic story of Michael “Heir” Rosario and Curtis “Vain” Smith, the most prolific and talented graffiti writers in the Mission District in San Francisco. Heir and Vain live a life of dreary dead-end day jobs and illicit late night graffiti, hitting up spots across the dark walls and lost tunnels of San Francisco. One unlucky evening, the boys are busted for painting and everything changes. Faced with restitution and the prospect of serving hard time, Heir and Vain struggle to keep their heads above water. The paths they choose threaten to unravel their lifelong friendship and, ultimately, their lives.

The film stars Lane Garrison in his feature film debut. Garrison co-starred on the hit TV series Prison Break. Directed by Benjamin Morgan and co-written/co-starring former Mission District graffiti writer Brian Burnam, Quality of Life has been widely praised for its raw and authentic look at the graffiti subculture. The film was shot in San Francisco’s gritty bohemian Mission District, far from the tourist-friendly cable cars and Golden Gate Bridge. The Mission (as it is called) has a renowned graffiti history, incubating many world-class graffiti writers and street artists, some of whom make cameo appearances in the film despite having outstanding warrants at the time of production. One actor was facing 18-21 months in state prison for graffiti-related charges.

For more information about the film festival, please visit the website: http://eofilmfest.com/

The doors are open for film submissions. Please check the official Call for Entries Page for details on submissions, early-bird discounts, and deadlines. Take all that hard work you have done over the past year and put it out there – we would love to see it. Go forth, be prolific, and finish that final cut!

http://eofilmfest.com/participate/call-for-entries/

Be on the look out for some satellite screenings in the region.  Plans to screen Benjamin Morgan’s film “Quality of Life” in Enterprise at the OK Theater.  Funds go to support this year’s festival.  We are also planning screenings in Baker City and Pendleton, Oregon to raise additional regional participants.

An updated website, official call for entries out, venues & sponsors knocking on the doors… it seems that 2011′s Eastern Oregon Film Festival is now in full swing.  There is a lot to be done before October 20, 21, 22 and we’ll keep you posted as to logistics, films, and how to be involved.