LAWEBFEST runs March 26-28 at the Stage 52 Theater – Los Angeles, California—
https://www.lawebfest.com/index.html
LUCKY 47 REPRESENT
LAWEBFEST CLASS OF 2010
Los Angeles, California—The Los Angeles Web Series Festival has picked 47 shows to screen at this first-of-its-kind assembly of web series. “We received close to 100 submissions,” said LAWEBFEST Executive Director and Founder Michael Ajakwe Jr.. “I wish we could’ve accepted them all.” The shows cover a diverse landscape of genres—drama, comedy, dramedy, horror, scifi, documentary, Vlog, lifestyle, travel, talk, even a 60-second soap opera. There will also be several “world premieres”.
LAWEBFEST runs March 26-28 at the Stage 52 Theater with Opening Night festivities paying tribute to Robert Townsend’s “Diary of a Single Mom” which the festival is recognizing as “Web Series of the Year.” The urban drama’s eight-episode Season 1 will be screened and the show’s producers and stars like Monica Calhoun, Valery Ortiz, and Janice Lynde will be on hand for a brief Q & A. On Saturday evening, another series will be feted with the festival’s “Groundbreaker Award”, but the identity of the honoree won’t be revealed until the night of the event. It’s what the festival calls its “Saturday Night Mystery Guest.” Closing Night will pay homage to NBC.com’s “CTRL”. All 10 episodes of Season 1 will screen and series’ creator Robert Kirbyson will be on hand to receive the “Web Comedy of the Year” award and participate in a 30-minute Q & A. Closing Night also features an awards ceremony covering 15 categories. However, Ajakwe says anyone expecting a traditional trophy contest may be disappointed. “We’re open to recognizing multiple stand-outs in a single category as opposed to being married to the convention that says you can only have one winner. Hell, you had to be really good just to get here. We want our creators to view each other as comrades rather than competitors. It’s a web series festival not a cage match.” The festival is also going without traditional category nominations. “Every show, every actor, writer, director, producer, editor etc. became a nominee the moment their series was chosen for the fest.” Ajakwe, who’s also a web series creator and web channel owner, says that even though his online comedy “Who…” made this year’s cut, it’s the only series not eligible for any awards. “It just wouldn’t look right and credibility is important to us.”
Along with screenings and evening tributes, LAWEBFEST will also hold over a dozen workshops and panels covering various aspects of creating content for the web. “Our goal that weekend is to both entertain and educate our audience. The web is like a baby on a super growth spurt so there’s always something new to learn,” said Ajakwe, who is also an Emmy-winning TV producer. Confirmed panelists include Curt Marvis who heads Lionsgate’s digital arm, Ryan Stoner of the maverick indie prod Omelet, pioneering web superstars The Fine Brothers, “In the Motherhood” co-creator Jordana Arkin, “Lonelygirl15” writer Glenn Rubenstein, “Josh Jennings for Congress” creator Nathan Gotsch, Freemantle Head of Production and Development Tom Hoffman, veteran online strategist Jaymes Hines, CreatiingTheWeb.com chief web designer Ben McAllister, and Jay Rondot and Sara Fletcher– the respective producer and star of “Secret Girlfriend” which recently platformed from a web-based series to a Comedy Central tv series.
The LAWEBFEST Class of 2010 mostly reside in California with New York a distant second. Other shows came from Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and Canada.
The Los Angeles Web Series Festival Class of 2010 (and series creators):
1. “Bible Cliff Notes” (Stephen C. Parker), 2. “The PuNanny Diaries” (Lisa Robinson, Phill Branch), 3. “Semi-Dead” (Chris Wiltz), 4. “Orlando’s Joint” (Terence Anthony), 5. “Safety Geeks” (Tom Konkle, Dave Beeler), 6. “Redemption: Darkness Descending” (Frank Krueger), 7. “Who…” (Michael Ajakwe Jr.), 8. “Etta Mae Mumphries… and The Rest Is History” (Karen Bankhead), 9. “Often Awesome” (Andy Coon, Blake Faucette), 10. “Party Girl Plus One” (Jennifer Dawson), 11. “A Demon’s Destiny: The Lone Warrior” (Devin Rice), 12. “Dating Games” (Adriane Mclean, Nicoya Davidson), 13. “The World of Cory & Sid” (Caryn Hayes), 14. “Boomer Baby” (Kelly Wright), 15. “You’re Joking, Right?” (Lamont Ferrell, Marc Alexander), 16. “Bill” (Kevin Arkadie), 17. “RX” (Torrance Hill, Paul L. Mays), 18. “The New 20s” (Tracy Taylor), 19. “Every Corner” (Yasmin Shiraz), 20. “Double Cross” (Denise Jaxon), 21. “The Angela Show” (Angela DeJoseph), 22. “Gamerz 187” (Fernandel Almonor), 23. “Luck and the Virgin” (Jaime Byrd, Adam Cohen), 24. “Johnny B. Homeless” (Al Thompson), 25.“Just The Three of Us” (Frank Zanca), 26. “Reggie’s Family and Friends” (Reggie Gaskins), 27. “Worldwide Nate” (Nathan Fluellen), 28. “Abiola’s Kiss and Tell TV” (Abiola Abrams, Kristal Mosley), 29. “Travelista” (Teri Johnson, Andrea Adams), 30. “Kindred” (Ella Turenne, Jessica Hartley, Maureen Aladin), 31. “Saving Rent” (Gary Teperman, Ernie Lee), 32. “Anyone But Me” (Tina Cesa Ward/EP), 33. “Seth On Survival” (Teri Armitage, Torin Stefanson), 34. “Old Friends” (Tim Curcio, Nick Ross), 35. “Venice: The Series” (Kim Turrisi, Crystal Chappell), 36. “Anacostia” (Anthony Anderson), 37. “Blue Belle” (Perry Lang), 38. “The Sexually” (Jeff Lycett, Alicia Arinella), 39. “The Bro Code” ( Paul Lindsay, Phillip Douglas), 40. “Ernie’s Girls” (Edward James Gage), 41. “Vlog Star” (Kenny Byerly, Mike Ludwig), 42. “Writer’s Block” (Isaac Diaz, Sherrie Q. Robertson), 43. “The Making of ‘A Lover’s Scene’” (Dylan Southard), 44. “The In-Betweens of Holly Malone” (Alicia Arinella, Phil Kain), 45. “I Once Was Lost” (Elaine Alaniz), 46. “The Real Girl’s Guide To Everything Else” (Carmen Elena Mitchell), 47. “Lenox Avenue” (Al Thompson)
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