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JACKSONVILLE 48 HOUR FILM PROJECT WINNERS ANNOUNCED!

6/26/2009

The list contained a number of first-timers, and included a student team made up of four high schoolers who signed up to compete two days before shooting began.

“Our team name is Chicken because of an inside joke with some of our classmates,” explains team leader Justin Suttles. “It doesn’t mean anything except that if you say it in a deep, heavy-metal voice, it just sounds cool.” Justin arrived on a flight from Greece just one hour before accepting his team’s award.

Chicken’s combination of sly wit and sincerity, along with a sturdy nod to crime procedurals, won over the judges. But the film named Best in Jacksonville took quite a different tack with their sleazy lead character and his hitchhiking ghost. There was only one point separating the best film from the runner-up --- Somebody Call An Ambulance’s dentist horror flick “Under” --- but the amount of blood shed between them on screen was probably a tie. Best in Jacksonville’s head writer and F/X artist Daniel Irizarry said his wife and four children --- along with his employer --- were keenly aware of his absence when he missed his flight home after the weekend-long shoot.

“The results were definitely surprising,” says Producer Mac McDonald. “Much like the Oscars, you always think you know how it’s going to go. The great news is, regional residents will be able to see many of the winners via Comcast Spotlight’s On Demand option. In addition to the Florida Theatre screenings, it’s another avenue for Jacksonville’s talent to get their work out there for the public to enjoy, which is really the reason everyone does it.”

As the 2009 film project concludes, a number of the films will be headed off to film festival land, courtesy of regional offerings such as the Amelia Island Film Festival and the international 48 Hour event Filmapalooza.

The list of winners can be found online at www.48hourfilm.com/jacksonville.

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