Masterpiece Film Challenge – Teams Announced

(Updated 11/28/11) We are happy to announce the first 12 team selections for the Masterpiece Film Challenge.  So far, the line-up is impressive “who’s who” of Arizona Filmmaking, and we stil have 3 slots still open.  

We are also inspired with the collaboration between teams, as we have many filmmakers helping on several projects.  Competition or not, our filmmaking community is growing and working together to create quality cinema, and we’re very proud of that growth!  Our filmmakers are not only in this to win for their teams, but to contribute to make sure all of the films produced help us win as a community!

The following teams have been selected for this challenge.  Application for becoming a team is still open!  We will continue to process applications until all 15 slots are filled.

Selected Teams

** This list will be updated as more teams are announced. **

Apairus Company - Directed by Devon Dresback

Devon was the winner of Best Director and 1st Place Film for his film Come Follow Me at the Breakout Film Challenge. His film Secret Agents recently won 1st Place as well as a schmorgesborg of specialty awards at the A3F Music Film Challenge.  Devon is an upcoming filmmaker who unarguably creates films that are far beyond his years.  We are excited to see the next creation he and his team put together.  The stories are captivating, and visuals have cinematic quality we come to associate with feature filmmaking.

Minus Mitchell – Directed by Joshua Gonzales

A team that consistently does well in 48-hour film challenges across the valley both at IFP Phoenix and the A3F.  Their films are always a crowd-pleaser, like  which won 1st Place in the 2010 IFP Phoenix 48-Hour Film Challenge, as well as Best Use of Genre, and Best Ensemble Cast.  Their film Raptor Boy received 2nd Place in the 2009 IFP Phoenix 48-Hour Film Challenge and also won the Best Use of Line award.  We look forward to seeing what this team can do with more than 48-hours of time!

Black Suit Studios – Directed by Jason Francois

Jason (IMDB) is typically seen over at the Almost Famous Film Festival (A3F), but we’re excited to see him participate in our challenge this year! If you remember, last year Jason won 2nd Place and an Honorable Mention in a national GoDaddy commercial contest, which brought great national recognition to our filmmaking community here in Arizona. Jason’s feature film Damaged Goods was released in 2002 by Panorama Entertainment/Vangaurd Cinema. Since he doesn’t get to participate in his own challenges over at The A3F, we’re excited to have him come play with us this round.

Mindclover Productions - Directed by Diane Dresback

Diane Dresback (IMDB) has completed over 20 short films as a writer, producer, director, editor, and has won numerous awards for her efforts. She recently wrote and co-produced a feature length film, PARANOIA, which is now being prepared for distribution consideration.  Her short film Wish, Inc. came in 3rd Place at the A3F Musical Challenge earlier this year, as well as won awards for Best Story and Best Use of Prop.  Her son, Devon Dresback, will be directing his own team in this competition, and it’s always fun to see the friendly rivalry between the two during these competitions as they push each other into excellence.

Lizardland - Directed by Paul Hudson

Paul Hudson (IMDB) is an accomplished filmmaker with several awards under his belt. He is also a working professional cinematographer, director and editor producing many commercials through out the year with his company Lizardland Film and Video.  His film “Headless” won Best Trailer and Best Overall Technical Elements in the Breakout Film Challenge.  His technical quality sets the bar high for this competition, so we hope the other teams bring their A game, because we know Paul will.

Sailbear - Directed by Bob Marquis

Bob Marquis (IMDB) and his team continually turn out some of the most creative and inspiring films that we’ve seen in past IFP Phoenix Filmmaker Challenges. His film Uplifting Tale won 2nd Place in a past 48-Hour Film Challenge and went on to play as pre-screening entertainment in Harkins Theaters through out the valley. His most recent film Awesome Guy: A New Identity won 2nd Place in the Breakout Film Challenge and also won Best Story and Best Actor.  His films always bring an added attention to detail in production design and art direction which bring his stories to life.

Lightscape Productions – Directed by Judd Lynn

Judd Lynn (IMDB) graduated from USC Film School and then worked on various low-budget films as either writer or Production Manager. Later, he was the Production Manager on a television pilot for a kid’s action/adventure show called “Power Rangers.” The show was picked up, and after several hundred episodes and ten years of work, Judd had served as Executive Producer, Director, Story Editor, and Writer of the most popular kid’s television show in history.  Judd will be teaming up with writer/producer Jeff Newman (IMDB), and will bring the technical savvy of Director of Photography Paul Hudson.  We welcome Judd and Jeff to the valley, and look forward to their first filmmaking endeavor here in Arizona.

Roughneck Pictures – Directed by Jay Lee

Jay Lee (IMDB) has been making films here for the last 4 years and has a solid track record of creating successful films both as a director and DP.  His awards include his 1st Place Film in the A3F Challenge called Vinyl, which also won a specialty award for best story/script., His film The Fourth Reich won 2nd Place in the 2011 A3F Challenge.   Jay brings a strong sense of cinematic style and his films are known for having high production values and excellent performances.   Jay tells us, “The most important aspect for me is telling a good story and developing the characters. I feel it is important to let the actors act and not be mired down in dialog that could be better expressed through emotion.”

Angry Badger Studios – Directed by Kimberly Noe

Angry Badger Studios is comprised of an award winning husband and wife team Brett and Kimberley Noe and the talented Actress Zoe Yeoman. Kimberley has wonderful story telling abilities and her eye for detail makes her an excellent creative director. With Brett’s award winning camera magic and intuitive editing nature they are an unstoppable force. Brett has been recognized and received numerous awards including a Silver Telly, two Silver Addy’s, a THEA and a Muse.

AndersenCrine Productions – Directed by Ryan Andersen

Ryan Anderson has established himself as a seasoned filmmaker over the past 5 years, winning several awards in competitions held by the Almost Famous Film Festival (A3F).   His film The Park won first place in the 48-Hour film challenge, as well as and award for Best Story.  In 7 of the past challenges, his films consistently place in the Top 3 winning films, and always are recognized for specialty awards. The overall quality of story, acting, and production quality on his films are always excellent.  We are excited to have his team participate in the Masterpiece Film Challenge this year.

Cloudland Productions – Directed by Trahern Jordan

Local musician Trahern Jordan brings a unique music/documentary approach to his films, having worked with director Aaron Hudson of Midnight Pie Train and directed several music videos. Cloudland’s team consists of cinematographer/ASU graduate Spring Eselgrath, writer Scott Vaughn and art director Nathan Layman. We are excited to have an unknown group of local filmmakers throw their proverbial hat into the ring for this Masterpiece Film Challenge. If you like to root for the underdogs, this is where to place your bets.  Good luck guys (and gal)!

Colorblind Films – Directed by Bryan Simcox

Bryan Simcox (IMDB) is a graduate of UAT (University of Advancing Technology). He has worked on numerous short films, commercials and music video projects around Phoenix. Bryan and his team won 1st Place College Short (2011) at the Arizona Student Film Festival for the short film Tread Softly. He has participated in many of the IFP Phoenix Filmmaker Challenges and his most recent short film, Wish You Were Here, came in 5th Place with Best Use of Theme. His last short for the 48 Hour Film Challenge, Alter Ego, was awarded with the prestigious Better Late Than Never award.  Bryan’s films are always edgy, thought provoking, and well executed technically. 

Bindlestiff, Cobble & Groot - Directed by Bruce Dellis

Bruce Dellis (IMDB) is a writer/director with experience in both short film and feature film. He has a long list of awards under his belt including multiple Rocky Mountain Emmy awards, and the recipient of the 2006 Arizona Filmmaker of the Year award, as well as many specialty awards in film challenges across the valley. He is teaming up with comedic writer/producer/actor Steve Briscoe (IMDB) to create this “comedic dream team.”  Be very afraid of this team, they’ll be bringing their writing A game… and we all know that it all starts with a good story.

About the Challenge

Are you an artist of film? When you make a film, do you find yourself looking for inspiration for story, seek meaning in every word, and look for motive in every action and camera movement? We do to!

IFP Phoenix continues it’s Filmmaker Challenges series with the announcement of the Masterpiece Film Challenge. In this 6-week challenge, 15 selected filmmaking teams will be challenged to make a 5-7 minute film, inspired by art. In other words, we are looking for filmmakers to create cinematic art, inspired by physical art.

Applications to be one of the 15 selected teams are being taken immediately. Application is now FREE to the public. Sponsored in part by the Phoenix Art Museum.