A special appreciation goes to....

[Jason Ramsey]

I wanted to do this earlier, but figured it best to wait for the voting to close as he had an entry in the finals.

Anyways.... We'd like to extend our appreciation and thanks to Zak Forsman for this fest. Can you believe it? :)

Zak really took the bull by the horns with the new outside promotion allowance this fest and made it everything we hoped it would be when we decided to do it. He didn't just pimp his film out there, he really spread the word about the fests, and setup a network for everyone else to do the same with, help build, and take advantage of.

So, Zak... Just want to say thank you for fully embracing this fest and not only having it serve you, but for serving it and elevating the fests as a whole.

Your use of outside promotion should serve as an example for everyone, and we hope that you will continue to spread that network around with future dvxfests. Your public attitude throughout the fest was a fine example.

so, anyways... if I weren't half awake right now, I could write something a bit more eloquent for you... but, in lieu of that... how about we give you something cool from the prize pool. Haven't figured out what yet, but to me, your contribution this fest is extremely valuable.

:beer:

[NC17z]

I agree whole heartedly, Thanks for the Facebook Updates Zak...

[Norm Sanders]

Awesome stuff to hear! Way to go, Zak! I've been out of the loop on a lot of the going-ons, but would love to know the networks set up, things he did, etc. so I could learn from it & pull some pointers. :)

[TheMacB]

Amen. And not just the fest. Zak Forsman is a big part of my DVXUser experience in general.

[Larry Rutledge]

As one of the administrators of the fest I'd like to second Jason's sentiment.

Zak, your work in championing the fests has not gone unnoticed. One of the goals was to be able to open the fests up and draw more people in who otherwise wouldn't know this was going on.

We really hoped people would take the challenge to heart and really promote DVXuser more than their own film. You took that challenge on and were instrumental in drawing in a nice crowd of new people.

We look forward to seeing how you, and others, continue to improve and grow this outside promotion in the future.

Thank you for your support of these fests and this forum.

[Zak Forsman]

oh man. very kind of you to say. what I hope I conveyed is that everything I did, is doable by anyone. and i hope my example made clear the potential for these ever-evolving social networks to expand our collective audience. the day is coming when the internet replaces or merges with the traditional means of discovering films. those of us on the cutting edge stand to benefit the most.

it would be a terrible oversight not to acknowledge puckthemad who also embraced the outside promotion. he leveraged the networking provided by facebook and twitter AND selflessly cut seven :30 teasers for LossFest that are still getting hits on youtube.

throwing my support behind this fest is very, very easy when you see promising young filmmakers emerge worldwide. and the ONSLAUGHT of feedback I've received for my film, now over 100+ individual responses, reactions and insights is all the reward a guy like me needs.

so, you can thank me all you want, jason and larry, but you really should be thanking yourselves for nurturing such an amazing event three times a year.

and yes... i do have some ideas for the next round. ;)

[Jack Daniel Stanley]

Seriously very cool.
Thanked you on Facebook
Zak but let me add my voice to the public throng.
:beer:

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

oh man. very kind of you to say. what I hope I conveyed is that everything I did, is doable by anyone. and i hope my example made clear the potential for these ever-evolving social networks to expand our collective audience. the day is coming when the internet replaces or merges with the traditional means of discovering films. those of us on the cutting edge stand to benefit the most.

it would be a terrible oversight not to acknowledge puckthemad who also embraced the outside promotion. he leveraged the networking provided by facebook and twitter AND selflessly cut seven :30 teasers for LossFest that are still getting hits on youtube.

throwing my support behind this fest is very, very easy when you see promising young filmmakers emerge worldwide. and the ONSLAUGHT of feedback I've received for my film, now over 100+ individual responses, reactions and insights is all the reward a guy like me needs.

so, you can thank me all you want, jason and larry, but you really should be thanking yourselves for nurturing such an amazing event three times a year.

and yes... i do have some ideas for the next round. ;)Nicely said, Zak.
You went above and beyond this Fest.

Puck, you definitely deserve some credit as Zak has mentioned.

Great job all around, guys. :thumbup:

MAH

[Rodney V. Smith]

Zak is a good example for all of us to follow. I've been having to cyber stalk him this whole festival just to try to match his efforts in terms of promotion, but man, what a powerhouse!

If everyone took the opportunity to remember that marketing is a HUGE part of filmmaking ansd made the effort to really leverage the opportunity that the outside marketing can afford us, we can do a hell of a lot more. I know I'm certainly more prepared myself this next round to do a hell of a lot more to the point that I may actually (horror of horrors)... leave the basement and go do some networking.

So thanks Zak for the kick in the pants to get out there and do something for ALL of us.

(And thanks for the honorable mention)

</cyberstalking of Zak Forsman>

[Larry Rutledge]

Yes, thanks to puck for shadowing Zak and making him look good :)


I have to agree with your sentiment Rodney (puck) ... marketing is as much a part of the filmmaking experience as pressing the record button on that camera, or hanging that boom mic ever so slightly out of frame, etc.

We really want these fests to be a well rounded, full learning experience and learning how to market yourself and your product are a part of that.

So thanks Zak & puck for leading the way in showing ways to accomplish that task. Looking forward to seeing what you, and others, will do in future fests to grow and expand this are of development.

[Zak Forsman]

always working it, larry... my latest was to drop references to DVXFest in my interview with Filmmaker Magazine regarding the production of Model/Photographer and Eloquent Graffiti. keep in mind that they tend to pick and choose what they like to shape the article as they see fit, but hopefully some more exposure is coming soon.