Financial giant American Express have announced the finalists of their "My Movie Pitch," a competition which will bring one new movie idea to life as a short film to be shown during the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival.
Tribeca Film Directors
The first five finalists selected earlier this fall, along with four newly announced finalists from Round Two, submitted fun, quirky and unique movie pitch ideas via amexfilm.com in hopes of seeing their idea brought to life by an independent film director. The American Express panel of Tribeca Film directors, along with thousands of film enthusiasts who voted online, selected the final pitches to advance to the Grand Prize Judging period.
The winning pitch, selected from one of the nine finalists (five from Round One and four from Round Two), along with the Tribeca Film director who will be creating the film, will be announced in December. All finalists will receive a Filmmaker Toolkit, featuring a laptop computer, movie editing software package and portable video camera. The grand-prize winner will receive a trip for two to New York City to attend the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival as a VIP and the ultimate grand prize: to see his/her story made into an independent short film.
"At American Express, we are about supporting the art of storytelling and supporting great artists, whether established or up-and-coming," said Jessica Igoe, Vice President Global Sponsorship and Event Marketing, American Express. "This competition enabled film enthusiasts across the country to tell their stories and whether they were emotional, humorous and everything in between, 'My Movie Pitch' gave an incredible platform that allowed those voices to be heard."
Videos of Finalists - Set 1
- "Gesundheit" -- Every sneeze is deadly in this original disaster movie.
- "Mr. Stache" -- An often dark drama about a man and his mustache.
- Ms. Spring 101's "Psychic" -- In this comedy, a psychic foresees the strange future of marriages.
- "Doppleganger" -- A race of aliens steal complete human identities in this sci-fi thriller.
- "Chalklines" -- A man encounters some sinister scribbles in this unexpected film.
Videos of Finalists - Set 2
- "Placebo 56" - In this sci-fi thriller, mankind's only hope against a global plague rests in one man who soon finds himself fighting for his own survival.
- "Beyond The Grave" - A paranormal investigator is aided by the spirit of a young man, only to find himself ensnared in the twisted games of a serial killer who can't even be stopped by death.
- "The Auction" - A distraught man tries to start anew by selling his entire life to the highest bidder, but it seems the buyers have even more to run from.
- "Let's Have Church" - A documentary about the role of the theater of worship in America across religious denominations.
