Wednesday, November 4, 2015

The Film Prize & The Zombies

This year is shaping up to be a very successful one for Pine Heart Productions. We have had some pretty cool screenings, met some awesome new people and kicked off the next big project.

Our short film "Hut Hut", written and directed by Michael Allmon, with Courtney Sandifer as producer and co-director, officially made the TOP 5 at the Louisiana Film Prize Festival. The top 20 films were judged by super-uber-highly-qualified judges AND over 2000 festival attendees. We were VERY happy to be ranked among the best. Read more about the LaFilmPrize in the Shreveport Times HERE.

"Hut Hut" is now set to screen at the Pontchartrain Film Festival in Slidell, Louisiana on November 7th, and the Southern Screen Film Festival November 22 in Lafayette, Louisiana. See the trailer for "Hut Hut" HERE.

Feature horror/thriller/80's throwback film "Getting Schooled" has reached picture lock and recently screened to a private group of filmmakers near Houston - the Spring Film Group. We got some great feedback, and the polishing is in progress. Be on the lookout for more info in coming months!


Last, but not even remotely least, we are now raising funds for our FAMILY film "Kids vs. Zombies"! This is a very unique project, with lots of potential, and we are trying to get all our zombie ducks in a row just right before starting production. You can help us and become a part of the project by going to www.kidsvszombies.com or checking out SAVE THE ZOMBIES! ON INDIEGOGO.


ABOUT KIDS VS. ZOMBIES:

Logline: A young brother and sister work together to outwit a barrage of peculiar zombies, rescue their mom and save the town.

KIDS VS. ZOMBIES is a fun, full-length family movie written for kids, but with their parents in mind, too! Zombies are a big part of pop culture these days, especially with shows like “The Walking Dead”, movies like “Zombieland” and “World War Z”, and video games like “Plants vs. Zombies”. Courtney Sandifer wrote this story to reflect her own kids’ fascination with zombies, but in a way that her kids (ages 8 and 10) could actually WATCH the movie. Action will be full of wacky, slap-stick sort of “Home Alone”- type traps and defense techniques.

Before you go, watch our latest reel of short film productions!




Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Catching up!

A lot has been happening with our short films in the past few months. Here's the scoop!

A short but sweet, 3-minute-movie we produced called "My Eyes" has made its mark at a couple of events - on two separate continents! This short film is based on a poem by Andy Smith, who beautifully and descriptively shares his perspective as a man with Asperger Syndrome (an Autism Spectrum disorder). 

First, it screened in England, at Artsbridge - the Sowery Bridge Arts Festival. It was part of a selection of films in a film festival event. Read more about this festival at http://artsbridge.co.uk. 

Second, at the Make it Rain For Autism Awareness event in Katy, Texas. The event description reads: "Both filmmakers, Chris Spisak and Courtney Blake Sandifer have children who have been diagnosed with autism. Families with children in the autism spectrum are well aware of the difficulties associated with teaching their children how to overcome their difficulties and integrate into a "normal" environment both in and out of school. Both of the organizations that we have chosen to highlight for our event, The Parish School and Dionysus Theatre, provide education, support, and numerous extracurricular activities to young people in a safe and supportive environment that embraces their differences and helps them grow. We sincerely hope that those who attend and support our event will take note of the amazing work being done on a daily basis at these institutions and have a better understanding of autism, the children who have it, and how they can be supported."

Our short film "Easy as Pie" screened on January 30th, alongside some other lovely local short films at the Spring Film Group Clearing the Slate event at Alamo Drafthouse Vintage Park. The Spring Film Group is a non-profit organization "committed to creating an opportunity for education, experience and exposure in film." Spring is an area on the North side of Houston, TX. It's a very active area for filmmakers! http://springfilmgroup.org