Gulf Coast Film and Video Festival celebrates 20 years

The 20^th Annual Gulf Coast Film and Video Festival (GCFVF) was held Sept. 21 and 22 at the Lakewood Yacht Club in Seabrook, Texas. The festival highlights independent filmmakers of various skill-levels from all over the world. This year, some of the genres included comedy, drama, romance, documentary and music video. Screenings took place during both festival days, followed by the awards ceremony on Saturday evening, Sept 22.

Hal Wixon, chairman and director of the GCFVF, takes joy in meeting and working with independent filmmakers during the festival.

“Seeing how excited they are about making films and being selected as finalists is always a big kick,” Wixon said.

The film, “If I Could Run,” by Shawn Welling, won the Best of Festival award. Welling talked about the surprise of winning due to the incredible talent represented this year.

“I did not expect it,” Welling said. “I am blown away.”

Welling also offered some words of wisdom to other aspiring filmmakers and emphasized the importance of quality sound.

“The audience does not forgive bad sound,” Welling said. “Get the microphone close to the mouth and turn off the A/C so you can hear.”

Every year, a celebrity is selected to receive The Lifetime Achievement Award at the festival. This award is given to a long-time contributor to the film and television industry and who has helped emerging filmmakers in their craft.

Suzanne Savoy, the recipient of the award for 2018, is a stage, TV, radio and film actress who currently resides in New York. She has been the voice for anime’ cartoon characters, played recurring roles on “House of Cards” and Steven Soderbergh’s “The Knick,” and currently travels the U.S. and Canada performing her one-woman show, “Je Christine” After studying design at the National Theatre School of Canada, Savoy moved to Houston to begin her acting career.

Savoy became a full-time actress while living in the Houston area doing voice-over acting, films and commercials. In 1986, Savoy co-founded Mercury Studio, which trained Houston actors for on-camera work until 2005.

During her acceptance speech at the awards ceremony Saturday evening, Savoy reminisced about starting her acting career in Houston.

“When I landed in the gulf coast area, I knew that my life had changed,” Savoy said. “I was about to become the person I was meant to become.”

The Gulf Coast Film and Video Festival will begin accepting submissions for next year’s festival in February, usually around Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14. Film, video, screenplay and script submission fees range from $25 to $100. For updates on submission deadlines, visit www.gulfcoastfilmfest.com

Wixon is also looking for people to help with the festival who are genuinely interested in the film industry. Volunteers receive free tickets to the events, including the awards banquet.

“What I really need now is a reliable webmaster and somebody, who is familiar with kick-starters to help raise money,” Wixon said.

.For more information about getting involved with the festival, visit the website.