Big Apple Film Festival and Screenplay Competition

Big Apple Film Festival (Spring Edition) takes place May 23-27 in the heart of NYC, with film screenings taking place at the state of the art AMC Empire Theaters in Times Square. The venue has been home to red carpet premieres, awards shows, film festivals, conferences and theatrical events. The cinema complex presents mainstream, independent and IMAX films on 25 screens. In addition to film screenings, the festival includes a Screenplay Competition, an Agents and Managers Networking Lab, Film Distribution Summit and Industry Networking Panels. PARTICIPATING DISTRIBUTION SUMMIT REPRESENTATIVES AND SALES AGENTS: Area23a Films Homestead Entertainment 1091 Pictures FilmRise Gravitas Ventures Bleecker Street Media, LLC Codeblack Films Visit Films (sales agency) Susanne Jacobson (theatrical sales agent) Argot Pictures CEO of LOL Entertainment (founded by comedian Kevin Hart) Porter Pictures Access Entertainment (sales agency) ShortsTV Gary Rubin (Sales Agent) More to be Announced... PARTICIPATING AGENTS AND MANAGER NETWORKING LAB REPRESENTATIVES: Roy Ashton (Partner and Agent, The Gersh Agency) Sydney Kobil (Agent, WME) Michael Klein (Talent Manager, Magnolia Entertainment) Lee Stobby (President and Talent Manager, Stobby Entertainment) BAFF, named one of MovieMaker Magazine's top "25 Film Festivals Worth The Entry Fee,” top "25 Coolest Film Festivals,”, CBS New York's "Best Film Festivals in New York...,” and FilmFreeway's "Top 100 Best Reviewed Festivals", is dedicated to showcasing, highlighting and promoting the highest quality films from the New York City independent film community, as well as additional specially selected films from across the country and around the world. Our goal is to celebrate the great city of New York through the exhibition of innovative and purposeful filmmaking. ALUMNI include films released theatrically and by distributors such as Netflix, Showtime, IFC, Hulu, Amazon, Apple TV and more, as well as filmmakers and cast that are Academy Award and Golden Globe nominees, Independent Spirit Award nominees, Writers Guild of America and Producers Guild of America nominees, SAG Award winners and nominees (visit bigapplefilmfestival.com for a list of highlighted alumni films). PREVIOUS HONORARY GUESTS AND AWARD RECIPIENTS INCLUDE: Jesse Eisenberg(Academy Award, Golden Globe and SAG Award nominee) David Krumholtz (SAG Award nominee, HBO's "The White House Plumbers", "The Deuce", Academy Award nominee "The Ballad of Buster Scruggs") Cuba Gooding Jr.(Academy Award winner) Morgan Spurlock(Academy Award nominee, WGA Award winner) Alan Cumming(Tony Award and Independent Spirit Award winner) Producer Robert Paradiso (The Thomas Crowne Affair, Annie, Tony and Tina's Wedding, City by the Sea) Actress/Comedian Kim Wayans Doug Roland (Academy Award nominated filmmaker) Academy Award winning screenwriter Jose Rivera Jackie Martling (The Howard Stern Show) Jerry Stiller Karen Allen Olympia Dukakis(Academy Award and Golden Globe Award winner) Kevin Corrigan Katherine Waterston Ernie Hudson Mario Cantone Zoe Lister Jones (Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Award nominee) Roger Sherman(Academy Award nominee and Emmy Award winner) Haley Joel Osment(Academy Award nominee), and more... BIG APPLE FILM FESTIVAL HAS BEEN FEATURED IN: Indiewire The New York Times MovieMaker Magazine (Top 25 Coolest Film Festivals and Top 25 Festivals Worth The Entry Fee) CBS New York (Best Film Festivals in New York...) The Hollywood Reporter BuzzFeed PIX News New York 1 AM New York And more.. FILM SCREENINGS: Big Apple Film Festival accepts submissions and presents selected films in live theatrical screenings in NYC, followed by post screening filmmaker Q and A's. All selected films will be eligible for an award in their respective category. ABOUT OUR SCREENPLAY COMPETITION: Our screenplay competition readers/judges have had experience reading for various industry organizations including: Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences Academy Nicholls Fellowship, HBO, Sony International, Amazon and Sundance Feature Lab, CineStory TV writers program, NBC/Universal Studios Writers Program, Writers Guild of America-West, Final Draft Big Break Screenplay Competition, Warner Brothers, Tri-Coast Worldwide and Rocksalt Releasing, Austin Film Festival and more... PREVIOUS SCREENPLAY COMPETITION WINNERS AND FINALISTS INCLUDE: Shia LaBeouf (SAG Award, People's Choice Award and Independent Spirit Award nominee), Ron Friedman(Emmy nominee and WGA Award winner), Jyllian Gunther(Emmy Award winner, producer for NBC, ABC, A&E), Henry Sarwer-Foner(Directors Guild of Canada Award nominee), Daniel Talbott (writer ABC's "The Conners", "The Mist" produced by The Weinstein Company and Spike TV), Michael Vaynberg (writer/director Cannes Film Festival selection "9.8 m/s²"), Shruti Tewari (member of the Sundance Collab Directing Program), Bill Brock (Semi-Finalist - Stage 32 Feature Screenwriting Contest), Ken Krauss (writer "Tom, Dick, & Harriet" - Hallmark Channel), Kevin Emerson (author of over twenty novels published by HarperCollins, Random House, Scholastic), Linda Shayne (writer/director "Undercover Kid" released by WARNER BROTHERS, HBO Family, "Little Ghost,” distributed by PARAMOUNT video airing on HBO), Chris Phillips (Finalist - Sundance Institute Development Track, Award for Overall Excellence in Playwriting-New York International Fringe Festival), Maia Henkin (Second Round Austin Film Festival Screenplay Competition, repped by Abrams Artists Agency), and many more... ABOUT OUR INDUSTRY NETWORKING CONFERENCES: The purpose of the conferences is to provide an opportunity for filmmakers and screenwriters to receive valuable information from industry professionals through a series of panel discussions, as well as an opportunity for attendees to participate in Q and A’s, networking sessions and nightly receptions. BAFF's network of speakers in previous events have included: representatives from HBO, NBCUniversal, staff writers from CBS, ABC, and Lifetime, Academy Award winning Killer Films, Film Rise(distributor of numerous Oscar Award winning and Emmy Award winning films), Emmy Award winning Gigantic Productions, Cinepointe Advisors(legal counsel on numerous Oscar nominated films), Endeavor Content, Academy Award nominated and Emmy Award winning filmmakers, Academy Award and Emmy Award winning screenwriters, Filmmakers with projects released through Sony Pictures, Disney, LionsGate, Warner Brothers, Showtime, Amazon Studios, Netflix and Hulu, Sundance, Tribeca, SXSW alumni and more… SPEAKERS TO BE ANNOUNCED IN MAY... AGENTS AND MANAGERS NETWORKING LABS: Separate from our film festival and screenplay competition, filmmakers and screenwriters may submit their work to our Agents and Managers Networking Labs. The purpose of these labs is to provide writers and filmmakers currently seeking representation, with direct access and networking opportunities with top agents and managers to discuss their projects and receive valuable feedback. LABS WILL TAKE PLACE AFTER THE CONCLUSION OF OUR FESTIVAL. PARTICIPATING AGENTS AND MANAGERS: Roy Ashton (Partner, The Gersh Agency) Sydney Kobil (Agent, WME) Michael Klein (Manager, Magnolia Entertainment) Lee Stobby (President, Stobby Entertainment) FILM DISTRIBUTION SUMMIT: Selected filmmakers and winning screenwriters will receive complimentary admission to the BAFF Film Distribution Summit. The purpose of this event is to provide filmmakers with feedback, strategies and guidance from established distribution companies and sales agents as they begin the process of of securing distribution for their projects. Participating distributors have had vast experience in releasing films on major streaming platforms, TV/cable networks, as well as theatrically. PARTICIPATING DISTRIBUTORS AND SALES AGENTS: Area23a Films Homestead Entertainment 1091 Pictures FilmRise Gravitas Ventures Bleecker Street Media, LLC Codeblack Films Visit Films (sales agency) Susanne Jacobson (theatrical sales agent) Argot Pictures CEO of LOL Entertainment (founded by comedian Kevin Hart) Porter Pictures Access Entertainment (sales agency) ShortsTV Gary Rubin (Sales Agent) More to be Announced... PLEASE NOTE: Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, festival dates, location and/or format are subject to change.