Notable Film Conference Honors Governor Sonny Perdue at Awards Ceremony

The Georgia BIG PICTURE Conference (GABPC) www.gabpc.com returns to Atlanta in collaboration with the Atlanta Film Festival April 17-19, 2009 at Hotel Midtown (corner of Peachtree and 10th St.).

Developed as a way to recognize educators in the film and video industry, The Big Picture Awards will set the stage to recognize professionals who have demonstrated support of the industry through education. This year's honorees include Georgia's own Governor Sonny Perdue for Georgia Sate, Shane Toepfer, Georgia State University; Cheryl Benton, Brookwood High School; and Simon Kornblit, Former EVP Marketing, Universal Pictures. Awards will be distributed at the keynote session scheduled for Sunday April 19, 2009 at 1:30pm.

Each year GABPC accept nominations and then select one high school honoree, one college honoree and one or more industry professionals. Consisting of three days of workshops, panel discussions and seminars on topics of basic training and professional development, The Georgia BIG PICTURE Conference (GABPC) will include our signature Directors Boot Camp, as well as educational sessions ranging from industry networking, film entrepreneurism, production budgeting and documentary dialogues to editing, shooting with the RED camera and web/electronic marketing and distribution.

This year the GABPC welcomes 35 speakers including:
• Chris Moore (LivePlanet), Matt Damon and Ben Affleck's producing partner. Moore produced Good Will Hunting, Project Greenlight and the American Pie trilogy.
• Joe Binford (Editor from The Chronicles of Narnia and owner of Film Finish)
• Melissa Goodman (Atlanta SAG/AFTRA executive director),
• Meena Payne (Rainforest Films),
• Suzan Satterfield (SaltRun Productions),
• Simon Kornblit (former VP of Marketing, Universal Studios, Hollywood)
• Amani Channel (Visual Eye Media),
• Myrna Moore (People2People and TBS' Storyline) and
• Ken Feinberg (Creative Studios of Atlanta and actor from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Alias, Charmed, STAR TREK'S Enterprise.

"We're pleased to announce our partnership with ATL 365 to make the Atlanta Film Festival available to 2009 GABPC attendees at a discounted rate," says Nancy B. Howard, the GABPC Executive Producer and Founder. Attendees who attend the GABPC can upgrade to an Atlanta Film Festival pass that includes entrance to every film and party including the opening night gala for about $150 or so.

Registration is required to attend this event. Please visit www.gabpc.com for more information and to register.

The Georgia BIG PICTURE Conference (GABPC) is produced by the Big Picture Film & Video Foundation, a non-profit 501(c)(3) charitable organization established to support, utilize and retain students and newcomers in the areas of film and the visual arts in Georgia. "Our mission and purpose is to provide an environment where students and industry newcomers can participate in a unique education, exhibition and networking experience with industry professionals and peers, in the hopes of retaining that student talent in the state of Georgia," says Howard, who is also the organization's founder. "The event has grown in attendance and recognition each year since our first conference in 2005, and we're excited that it has become the premiere student film and video conference of the southeast."

Sponsorship opportunities are still available, and are tax deductible. The foundation also offers a program where students can be sponsored to attend the conference by sponsoring organizations. For sponsorship details, call Leigh Hale at 404.593.3797 or send an email to sponsorship@gabpc.com.

Additional discounts are available for students, groups, and ATL 365 members.

If you would like to request media credentials for the GABPC, contact Akbar Cojoe at 770-222-6769 or send an e-mail to: media[@]cojoeconsultants.com.