{"id":37152,"date":"2025-09-05T12:46:50","date_gmt":"2025-09-05T16:46:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/?p=37152"},"modified":"2025-09-05T14:09:24","modified_gmt":"2025-09-05T18:09:24","slug":"award-winners-of-the-2025-9th-annual-festival-of-cinema-nyc-gwm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/award-winners-of-the-2025-9th-annual-festival-of-cinema-nyc-gwm\/","title":{"rendered":"Award Winners of the 2025  9th Annual Festival of Cinema NYC"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><center><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/YfUweLqJmjY?si=tHZj8q-HZonGKi6s\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/center>The 9th Annual Festival of Cinema NYC announces filmmaker awards: Scout and Doug\u00a0 Purdy\u2019s<em>\u00a0Pilgrim\u00a0<\/em>wins Best Narrative Feature Film. Marc Wishengrad\u2019s <em>Free Fernando<\/em> takes Best Documentary. Josh Mond\u2019s <em>It Doesn\u2019t Matter\u00a0<\/em>wins the Audience Choice for Best Feature Film. Jackie Mahoney (<em>Half a Century<\/em>) wins Best Director. Oleg Blinov (<em>Mama)\u00a0<\/em>gets Breakthrough Male Performance and Jasmine Hurt (<em>Maneater<\/em>) takes Breakthrough Female Performance.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><strong>Queens, NY, September 4, 2025<\/strong>\u00a0&#8211; Festival of Cinema NYC announced this year\u2019s filmmaker award winners at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center as it concluded the 9<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0edition of the Forest Hills-based film festival.\u00a0Scout and Doug Purdy\u2019s<strong><em>\u00a0Pilgrim<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0won Best Narrative Feature Film.\u00a0Marc Wishengrad\u2019s<strong><em>\u00a0Free Fernando\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>took Best Documentary, with\u00a0Josh Mond\u2019s<strong><em>\u00a0It Doesn\u2019t Matter\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>winning\u00a0Audience Choice for Best Feature Film.<\/p>\n<p>Top individual awards went to; Jackie Mahoney (<strong><em>Half a Century<\/em><\/strong><em>)\u00a0<\/em>for Best Director, Oleg Blinov (<strong><em>Mama<\/em><\/strong><em>)<\/em>\u00a0for Breakthrough Male Performance; and Jasmine Hurt (<strong><em>Maneater<\/em><\/strong>) for Breakthrough Female Performance.<\/p>\n<div><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/img-ak.verticalresponse.com\/media\/f\/2\/7\/f27fc878b1\/09badba80f\/d197222b61\/library\/MANEATER.jpeg\" alt=\"MANEATER\" width=\"239\" height=\"150\" align=\"none\" border=\"0\" hspace=\"0\" vspace=\"0\" \/><\/div>\n<div>Jasmine Hurt in\u00a0<em>Maneater<\/em><\/div>\n<p>Festival of Cinema NYC Founder and Executive Director Jayson Simba, said, \u201cAs we near the end of our first decade of bringing films to Forest Hills\/Queens, we have established a well-earned reputation for celebrating truly independent films and filmmakers from Europe, the West Coast, and New York City as well.\u00a0Having many of those filmmakers attend the festival and meet our film fans in person has become a huge\u00a0draw for the community.\u00a0This year was no different, and our award-winners hailed from Los Angeles, to Europe,\u00a0to Manhattan.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Winners in the short film categories included\u00a0David B. Jacob\u2019s<strong><em>\u00a0Wild Animals<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0(Best Short Film \u2013 Narrative);\u00a0Richie Ellis\u2019<strong><em>\u00a0Loose Change<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0(Audience Award \u2013 Short Film);\u00a0Esther Casas Roura\u2019s<strong><em>\u00a0Flocky<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0(Best Experimental, Music Video, or Animation); and\u00a0Scott Vandiver\u2019s<strong><em>\u00a0Knawbone Creek<\/em><\/strong>.\u00a0(Best Web\/TV Series).<\/p>\n<p>Additional individual award winners included\u00a0Omar Y\u00f1igo,\u00a0who won Best Screenplay for\u00a0<strong><em>Entre Dos<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0(<strong><em>Between the Two<\/em><\/strong>).\u00a0Max Garcia\u2019s\u00a0<strong><em>Deli<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0took the award for Best Ensemble. Anh Vo was cited foer Best Cinematography for\u00a0<strong><em>Come Out Wherever You\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Are,\u00a0Alex Teplish\u00a0won Best Editing for his film,\u00a0<strong><em>The Soviet Roswell Incident<\/em><\/strong>, Eneas Mentzel and Arjan Bogaert\u00a0took the Best Sound Editing\u00a0award for their work on\u00a0<strong><em>Mind of Thoughts<\/em><\/strong>.\u00a0<strong><em>Quinn<\/em><\/strong>\u2019s\u00a0Milo \u201cMayhem\u201d McGowan\u00a0won Best Make Up and EFX, and Peter Gibbons won FOC NYC\u2019s award for Best Unproduced Script for his work on \u201cQueen\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>This\u00a0year, in partnership with Festival of Cinema NYC, New York Women in Film and Television awarded the NYWIFT Award for Excellence in Directing to Ellen Ancui for the work on her film\u00a0<strong><em>Saverio<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Highlights throughout this year\u2019s edition of FOC NYC included numerous sold-out screenings at the Regal UA Midway. Queens local interest highlights included the 2-day presentation by Kids In the Spotlight, a not-for-profit based in Los Angeles, CA, which included a special Red Carpet event showcasing the films by kids in the program who are in foster care.<\/p>\n<p>FOC NYC\u2019s Special Presentations included a screening of Sundance success story Chris Kentis\u2019\u00a0<strong><em>Open Water<\/em><\/strong>, followed by a\u00a0\u201cConversation on Film\u201d with Kentis, as well as a 10th Anniversary screening of John\u00a0Stuart Wildman\u2019s critically-acclaimed horror thriller\u00a0<strong><em>The Ladies of the House<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0with Wildman on hand for a Q&amp;A.<\/p>\n<p>Additional free programming at the Forest Hills Library included Anthony\u00a0M.\u00a0Laura, Artistic Director of Face to\u00a0Face Films, leading a Writing the Personal Story presentation, as well as a seminar on the Cinematographer\u2019s Creative Process with a high-powered panel that included Fred Murphy, ASC\u00a0(<em>Evil, Good<\/em><em>\u00a0Wife, Good Fight,\u00a0Anamorph, Secret Window, October Sky, Hoosiers, Trip to Bountiful,\u00a0The Dead<\/em>),\u00a0Frank DeMarco, ASC\u00a0(<em>All is Lost, Rabbit Hole, Hedwig and the Angry Inch,<\/em><em>\u00a0The Adjustment Bureau, The Dutchman, Enemy Within, 1992<\/em>), Fred Elmes, ASC\u00a0(<em>The Night Of, The Dead Don\u2019t Die, Paterson, Blue Velvet, Olive Kitteridge, A Late Quartet, Synecdoche, NY<\/em>), and Dejan Georgevich, ASC\u00a0(<em>The Virtuoso, The Blacklist,<\/em><em>\u00a0Elementary, The Enemy Within, Gossip Girl, 3lbs. Mercy<\/em>).<\/p>\n<p>Festival of Cinema NYC is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts\u00a0 with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.<\/p>\n<p>In lieu of the NEA withdrawing its funding support of the 2025 Festival of Cinema NYC, <strong>The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation jointly committed $10,000 in grant funding in support<\/strong>\u00a0<strong>to lessen the burden of financial uncertainties.<\/strong> &#8220;The Warhol Foundation recognizes the essential contributions that small arts organizations make to our cultural lifeblood by giving artists in every corner of the country a platform from which to be seen and heard,\u201d said Joel Wachs, President of the Andy Warhol Foundation.<\/p>\n<p>Sponsors of this year\u2019s event include Forest Hills local law firm the Aminov Law Group P.C., Resorts World NYC, Forest Hills local eatery 5 Burro Caf\u00e9, the Mathis-Pfohl Foundation, Ponce Bank, Ridgewood Savings Bank, Yant Tattoo and Art Studio, Friends of Maple Grove, Regal Cinemas, the Queens Library, and Target Corp. Prize Sponsors include B&amp;H, Moviemaker Magazine, Mongo Media Solutions, Silver Sound, Videomaker, InkTip, and Soundview Media Partners.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>For more information about the festival, please visit\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.festivalofcinemanyc.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.festivalofcinemanyc.com\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><u>2025 FESTIVAL OF CINEMA NYC AWARD WINNERS<\/u><\/strong><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div><strong>FEATURE FILMS<\/strong><\/div>\n<p><strong><u>BEST FEATURE FILM \u2013 NARRATIVE<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Pilgrim<\/em>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/><br \/>\nDirectors:\u00a0Scout Purdy, Doug Purdy<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST DOCUMENTARY<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Free Fernando<\/em><br \/>\nDirector:\u00a0Marc Wishengrad<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>AUDIENCE CHOICE &#8211; FEATURE FILM<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>It Doesn\u2019t Matter<\/em><br \/>\nDirector:\u00a0Josh Mond<\/p>\n<div><strong>SHORT FILMS<\/strong><\/div>\n<p><strong><u>BEST SHORT FILM \u2013 NARRATIVE<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Wild Animals<\/em><br \/>\nDirector:\u00a0David B. Jacobs<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>AUDIENCE CHOICE \u2013 SHORT FILM<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Loose Change<\/em>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/><br \/>\nDirector:\u00a0Richie Ellis<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST EXPERIMENTAL, MUSIC VIDEO, OR ANIMATION<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Flocky<\/em>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/><br \/>\nDirector:\u00a0Esther Casas Roura<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST WEB\/TV SERIES<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Knawbone Creek<\/em>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/><br \/>\nDirector:\u00a0Scott Vandiver<\/p>\n<div><strong>INDIVIDUAL AWARDS<\/strong><\/div>\n<p><strong><u>NYWIFT Award for Excellence in Directing<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\nEllen Ancui (<em>Saverio<\/em>)<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST UNPRODUCED SCRIPT<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n\u201cQueen\u201d<br \/>\nWriter: Peter Gibbons<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST DIRECTOR<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\nJackie Mahoney\u00a0(<em>Half a Century\u00a0<\/em>)\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/><\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BREAKTHROUGH MALE PERFORMANCE<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\nOleg Blinov (<em>Mama<\/em><em>)<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BREAKTHROUGH FEMALE PERFORMANCE<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\nJasmine Hurt (<em>Maneater<\/em>)<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST ENSEMBLE\u00a0<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Deli<\/em>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/><br \/>\nDirector:\u00a0Max Garcia<br \/>\nCast: Max Garcia, Sinny Gisselle Feliz, Kelvin Melendez, Stephan Monfort<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST SCREENPLAY<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Entre Dos<\/em>\u00a0(<em>Between the Two<\/em>)<br \/>\nWriter: Omar Y\u00f1igo<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Come out Wherever You Are<\/em><br \/>\nDirector of Photography:\u00a0Anh Vo<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST EDITING<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>The Soviet Roswell Incident<\/em>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/>\u00a0<wbr \/><br \/>\nEditor:\u00a0Alex Teplish<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST SOUND EDITING<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Mind of Thoughts<\/em><br \/>\nSound Design: Eneas Mentzel, Arjan Bogaert<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>BEST MAKE UP AND EFX<\/u><\/strong><br \/>\n<em>Quinn<\/em><br \/>\nMake up:\u00a0Milo &#8220;Mayhem&#8221; McGowan<\/p>\n<p><strong>Festival of Cinema, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. The festival was founded by local independent filmmakers with a passion to get movies made and to expand the reach of artists\u2019 work. Recognizing the challenges filmmakers face in the film industry, the festival&#8217;s aim is to establish a presence, and spread awareness, of cinematic creativity.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Festival of Cinema NYC Founder and Executive Director Jayson Simba:  \u201cAs we near the end of our first decade of bringing films to Forest Hills\/Queens, we have established a well-earned reputation for celebrating truly independent films and filmmakers from Europe, the West Coast, and New York City as well.&#8221; The Festival of Cinema NYC is an independent film festival designed to support and expose emerging filmmakers by screening a diverse range of films, including features, shorts, animation, and music videos. <\/p>\n<p class=\"more-link-p\"><a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/award-winners-of-the-2025-9th-annual-festival-of-cinema-nyc-gwm\/\">Read more &rarr;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":36544,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2269,32,2241],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-37152","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2269","category-film-fest-news","category-wildworks-pr-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37152","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37152"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37152\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37175,"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37152\/revisions\/37175"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36544"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37152"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37152"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hunterword.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37152"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}