DaVinci International Film Festival Celebrates Successful
2018 Inaugural Event and “Top 100 Best Reviewed” Festival

Filmmakers, screenwriters, actors, sponsors, and guests came together to make the 1^st annual DaVinci International Film Festival a true breakthrough.  With rave reviews all around, the organizers couldn’t be more pleased.

May 25, 2018

The DaVinci International Film Festival (DIFF), prides themselves on their devotion to creative, “outside of the box” thinking film of all kinds.  The type of work that inspired them to name themselves after one of history’s most brilliant unorthodox artists, Leonardo da Vinci.  In exciting news DIFF recently celebrated holding their first annual film fest successfully on May 17^th, 2018 handing out prestigious awards and recognition to a diverse set of ultra-creative film community members.

“We thought it might be tough our first year, but we were blown away by the quality of projects entered and the overall positive energy surrounding DIFF out of the gate,”  commented Festival Coordinator Pete Punito.  “As one of our Vitruvian Award winners said … It’s got a great vibe…”  he adds.  “DIFF hosts four competitions a year which culminate in our live Showcase Event, and in many ways, the pressure’s off—they’ve already won—and now it’s time to celebrate independent film. This format gives our Creatives an incredible opportunity to raise their professional profile in a real way.  DIFF honors them by giving them the stage, and recognizing their amazing work with both our Vitruvian and Leo awards.”

According to DIFF, the festival was showcased at the Laemmle Theater in Santa Monica and featured four blocks of award-winning films and after party with catered food, drinks, and social networking at the boutique event.  The one-day Showcase Event included honoring filmmakers and screenwriters with their engraved glass Vitruvian awards to those who screened at the event, and The Leo, which is a 17-pound, museum-grade bust statue of Leonardo da Vinci himself to the Best of Fest in screenwriting, feature, and short formats.

Winners of The Leo were Scarlett Urbano, for Jasper (short film), Jarek Marszewski for Bikini Blue  (feature film), and Kenneth Reynold for The Lion’s Gate (screenplay).

Vitruvian awards were presented to twelve qualifying filmmakers and screenwriters since the launch of year one in August 2017.

With DIFF truly being international in nature, a number of winners included filmmakers from countries other than the United States, like Vitruvian winner From Hasakah with Love (Iran) and Leo award recipient, Bikini Blue (Poland).  DIFF hopes to take their Live Event Showcase internationally in years to come, with a stop in Italy to pay homage to their festival’s name.

DIFF governs three additional brands including STORYLINE, its screenwriting competition series, DIFFdocs, a division devoted solely to docu-filmmaking, and the DaVinci Film Institute, which operates as the festivals non-profit arm for student filmmaker grants. All brands work in concert to honor filmmakers and screenwriters worldwide.

DIFF is pleased to announce their continued partnership with marquee sponsor, Allied Wallet for year two, and actively seeking additional sponsors for their upcoming quarterly award programs and 2019 Live Showcase Event, with a call for entries starting June 1^st, 2018.

Feedback from participants has been completely positive.

Pamela Peak, DIFF / STORYLINE Vitruvian award winner for “Colorblind”, said in a five-star review, “The DaVinci Film Festival is a high-quality festival through and through. The venue was simply wonderful, and it was a great opportunity to network with industry folks.  The awards ceremony was very, very special, and the DaVinci Film Festival and its recognition of artists has a very bright future!”

Scarlett Urbano, DIFF Vitruvian & Leo Award winner for “Jasper”, said in a five-star review, “…What DaVinci Film Festival has put together is something very special and unlike others, I’ve been to. It’s a great honor to be awarded The Leo, and I am thrilled to be a part of what will surely be a very big name soon in the festival circuit.”

For many insiders, it is quite clear DIFF has raised the bar for the film festival scene significantly and is evident by earning “Top 100 Best Reviewed” out of the gate year one.

According to the festival’s Founder, “DIFF’s format was largely modeled after the luminary, Leonardo da Vinci, hence the name,” he said. “Our goal at DIFF is to honor the independent Creative — across domains — and celebrate divergent and meaningful Work with the long-term objective to create a competitive and boutique version of Venice Biennale,” he concluded.

Those interested in internships with DIFF should reach out to internships@tdiff.org for more details.  For more information, to become a sponsor or submit a film be sure to visit https://davincifilmfestival.com.

About DaVinci Film Festival

Like many festivals, we set out to honor the best in independent cinema from around the world, and do so by taking into account the full scope of creative integration on any given project.  From performances to color correction; score to sound design, our Jury is tasked with assessing each project based on an overall cohesiveness as it relates to storytelling. 

Media Contact Festival Director

Chadwick Pelletier
DaVinci Film Festival LLC
DaVinci International Film Festival
P.O. Box 717 HB CA 92648
(424) 900-DAVINCI

media@tdiff.org
davincifilmfestival.com 

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