The Manhattan Film Festival (MFF) is an annual film festival that was founded in 2006 by filmmakers: Philip J. Nelson and Jose Ruiz, Jr and is currently operated by Mr. Nelson and a team of filmmakers, journalists and exhibitors. It was founded as the Independent Features Film Festival. MFF is an annual event held at such venues as Symphony Space, Quad Cinema, the Academy Theater at Lighthouse in addition to smaller venues like the Producers Club and the Hunter College Lang Auditorium, where the festival holds its closing awards ceremony.
In 2012, the Manhattan Film Festival was named 25 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee: 2012 by MovieMaker Magazine. In response to increased submissions, the festival expanded its program from just under 150 selections to 163 in 2013.
According to the festival's press materials: The goal of the Manhattan Film Festival has always been to help independent filmmakers find an audience for their work and connect with like minded individuals in the indie film community. Every year, the festival works to program a diverse film lineup ranging from student filmmakers and first time directors/actors to the industry's most accomplished talent.
To further support the independent film community in New York, the festival offers a widely popular revenue sharing program through their affiliate sponsor ScreenBooker, a rarity with most American film festivals and one of the features of MFF that accounted for its inclusion on multiple "Top Fests" lists, including two lists from MovieMaker Magazine.
In July 2010, Manhattan Film Festival founders Philip Nelson and Jose Ruiz filed a lawsuit against the Tribeca Film Festival for theft of their innovative interactive concepts. Nelson said in a statement regarding the suit that he was "absolutely devastated" to discover Tribeca had launched its own virtual festival. "We have put our lives into building a platform that will level the playing field for independent film-makers," he said. "We trusted and looked up to Tribeca as a leader in the industry. Never did I think they would use our time, labour, skill, money, effort, and creativity for their gain."
During the festival's June 2013 season (year 7), the festival became the center of controversy in the indie film world when it kicked filmmaker Solvan Naim out of the lineup, several days before his film FULL CIRCLE was supposed to screen. While the circumstances surrounding the removal of the film are convoluted at best, the event sparked aggressive response from websites like indiewire.com, where the author, a representative of the Tribeca Film Festival, questions the purpose of having boutique festivals. It was later discovered that the more critical articles, like the piece published on Indiewire.com, was authored by a representative of the Tribeca Film Festival, one of MFF's rivals.
Notable films and awards
The festival created the Buzz Award in 2007, presenting it to Apostles of Park Slope. The filmmaker, Jason Cusato went on to form the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival, one of the most popular independent film festivals in New York City.
In 2011, the festival screened White Irish Drinkers, a film written and directed by John Gray. He is the creator of Ghost Whisperer, a CBS television series starring Jennifer Love Hewitt.
2011, Jeff Stewart won Best Actor for his role in Under Jakob's Ladder. He is best known in the United Kingdom for his role as Reg Hollis in the ITV series The Bill. His win at the festival inspired stories in the British media, ranging from The Sun to the BBC. Stewart even got a story in the New York Times as The Chelsea Guest Who Wouldn't Leave when the Hotel Chelsea abruptly closed its doors in 2011.
In 2012 the Film Heals Award was presented to a number of films, including Dreams Are Not Forgotten by Nigel Barker.
In 2012 the festival introduced the New York Spotlight Award, a recognition given to a locally made film that features New York City in a compelling and inspiring way. The first recipient was filmmaker Eric Norcross for his film Caroline of Virginia. Eric went on to work with the festival in their 2013 season.
In 2013 the New York Spotlight Award was given to two films: On The Radioman, which was received by Radioman himself and If These Knishes Could Talk.
In 2013, Yuck! A 4th Grader's Documentary About School Lunch was screened at the festival. A 20-minute documentary by 11-year-old, Zachary Maxwell. As a student at P.S. 130 in Little Italy, Maxwell documented the less-than-appetizing school lunches. This documentary won the festival's Buzz Award. He was interviewed by such outlets as Good Morning America and the New York Times.
A Box Came to Brooklyn
A Day’s Work
All The Days
Amontillado
Bar Songs
Behind The Mirror
Catching Fireflies
Clipped Wings They Do Fly
Failure Groupies
For Francis
Frog
Get Happy!
Glory Daze: the Life and Times of Michael Alig
Grandpa’s Debtor
Hello, My Name is Frank…
I Dream Too Much
Illogo
Jet
Joe’s Dairy
Joe’s War
Leaving Circadia
Lilith’s Song
Lost Penny
Love for Passion
My Brother’s Girlfriend
My Brother’s Keeper
New Generation Queens: a Zanzibar soccer story
Office Confessions
Ovum
Prego
Queen Mimi
Quietus
Randy Doe
Reflections
Save the Putnam Nature Trail
Schnitzel
Shaded Reflections - Best Original Title Song
Simpler Times
Stuck in Traffick
Summit
That Bites!
The Apple Tree
The Shattered Mind
The Three Es
Ty’s List
Wedgerino
West 4th Street: A Portrait of a Park
Why I’m Not on Facebook
Writer’s Cramp
Zizi & Honeyboy
Film Heals Awards (feature) - Transforming Loss, Colors: Banging in S.C.',A People Without a Land
Film Heals Awards (short) - A Life with Asperger's, ML4: A rare and Devastating Disease
New York Spotlight Award - Empire Gypsy
Buzz Award - The Hardest Love
Film Preservation Award - Dollar Night
Best International Picture - Living Legends
Best Short Narrative - Water Dogs
Best Comedic Short - Bingo Night!, Mani-Pedi
Best Musical Feature - Waiting in the Wings
Best Musical Short - Naked
Best Feature Documentary - David & Me
Best Alternative Short - Reflecting Adrien
Best Alternative Feature - Before
Best Sci-Fi Feature - Plato’s Reality Machine
Best Family Drama - Lies I Told My Little Sister
Best Comedy Feature Films - Chasing Taste, The Yank, Chu & Blossom
Best Coming of Age Feature - The Backseat
Best Children Short - Lunchbox Loser
Best Dramatic Feature - The Living
Best Original Title Song - “Wisdom” by Siobhan Magnus - The Wisdom to Know the Difference
Best Short Docs - Dollar Night
Film Preservation Award - Being George, Spoke: A Short Film About NYC Bikes
Best Historic Feature - Searching for Camelot
Best Biography Short - Crisalida
Best International Thriller - Red Gold
Best Dramatic Thriller - Dutch Kills
Best Romantic Feature - Janie Charasmanic
Best Social Issue Feature Narrative - Snapshot
Best Social Issue Short Narrative - Park 51
Best Family Short - The Devil Goes Down
Best Sports Feature - Off the Floor
Best Crime Drama - West End
Best Personal Narrative - Wallabout
Best Art Short - The Wreck
Best Horror Short - Lucas Cain
Best Thriller Short - Penance
Best Feature Film Narrative - The Wisdom To Know The Difference
Film Heals - The Second Cooler, Sugar, Uprising, and Where Should The Birds Fly
New York Spotlight Award - On The Radioman and If These Knishes Could Talk
Buzz Award - Yuck! A 4th Grader's Documentary About School Lunch
MFF Prestige Award - My Life as Abraham Lincoln
Best Comedic Short - Local Commercial
Best Dramatic Short - Tinker and The Firebird
Best Action Short - Round Trip
Best Crime Short -
Best Children's Short - : The Last Prank
Best Comedic Feature - Isn't It Delicious
Best Dramatic Feature - The Word
Best Adventure Film - The Legend of Jimi Lazer
Best Alternative Feature - Butterflies of Bill Baker
Best Crime Feature - American Bomber
Best Coming of Age Film - Buffalo Boys
Best Family Film - Surviving Family
Best Editing - Hope's Portal
Best Art Direction - Man Vs. Ultraman
Best Special Achievement in Production - Somebody Marry Me
Honorable Mentions - Palace Living, Desistance, The Word Trader, Papa, A Perfect Day, A Mother's Love, Two Hours In The Dark, Forbidden Fruit, The Beginning and the End, Two Hundred Thousand Dirty, Little Brother, Thursday's Speaker.
Film Heals Award - Born for the Stage, Dreams are Not Forgotten, Roadmap to Aparthied
Best New Actor - Nora
Best Musical - Welcome to Harlem
Best Music Video - Bad Intentions
Best Short Documentary - Up and Down
Best International Feature - A 7 Hour Difference
Best International Short - Little King
Best Comedic Short - The Bunglers
Buzz Award - Celeste
New York Spotlight - Caroline of Virginia
Best Dramatic Short - A Father's Pride
Best Horror Short - Melissa!
Best Period Piece - Spirits of Saint Paul
Best Comedic Feature - Worth the Weight
Best Feature Screenplay - Eye of the Hurricane
Best Short Screenplay - Hearts Gamble
Best Dramatic Feature - Hitting the Cycle
Best Dramatic Feature - White Irish Drinkers
Best International Feature - The Wedding Party
Best Period Piece - Under Jakob's Ladder
Best Comedy Feature - The Three Way
Best Feature Documentary - Fordson: Faith, Fasting, Football
Best Short - Hard to Come By
Best Student Film - Made Off
Buzz Award - AppleBox
Best Actor - Jeff Stewart in Under Jakob's Ladder
Best Actress - Juliette Bennett in The Couple
Best Composer - Keith Patchel in Crumble
Emerging Filmmaker Award - Nazim Uddin
Film Heals Award - Into the Gloom
Best International Film - Venezzia
Audience Choice Award for Best Comedy - The Apostles of Park Slope
Best Actress - Tabrett Bethell in Anyone You Want
