SeriesFest: Season 8 Announces Official Selections for the International Independent Pilot Competitions & Esteemed Jury Members

Written by John Edward Betancourt

As we inch closer and closer to this year’s SeriesFest event in Denver, more delightful details are coming forth regarding programming. The kind that will do this year’s theme of celebrating episodic storytelling proud, especially when it comes to today’s announcement. For earlier today, SeriesFest revealed its selections for the International Pilot Competitions and the Esteemed Jury Members that will examine them and declare a winner, and well, without further ado… here are some quick details on this announcement, and the complete list of participating pilots for you to peruse, courtesy of SeriesFest.
 
‘SeriesFest, the award-winning international television festival, today announced the official selections for this year’s International Independent Pilot Competitions taking place during Season 8 in Denver, Colorado from May 5-11, 2022. A truly unique experience, Season 8 will offer programming that explores the incredible evolving landscape of episodic content and a celebration welcoming the return of our creative community to Denver.

The esteemed international pilot competition continues this year with fifty-five titles from emerging voices from all over the world in the categories of “Independent Pilot: Drama,” “Independent Pilot: Comedy,” “Independent Pilot: Unscripted,” “Digital Short Series,” “Late Night,” “Pitch-A-Thon,” , “Pilots In Progress”, and “Collegiate Creator Spotlight.” Several of these original pieces feature notable creative talent including Golden Globe and Emmy Award-nominated actor and producer David Oyelowo, and actor Simu Liu.

“The pilot competition is the heart and soul of SeriesFest,” adds Randi Kleiner and Kaily Smith Westbrook, Co-Founders, SeriesFest. “We created this festival as a discovery platform for innovative and imaginative creators to share their unique and diverse stories. We’re truly inspired by this year’s riveting selections. We also continue to be in awe of the esteemed jury who provide their expertise, opinions, and their personal time, to this creative and competitive journey.”

SeriesFest has curated an esteemed group of industry insiders including award-winning actors, producers, journalists, and executives to judge and determine the winner in each category which will be announced during a special ceremony on the final night. The accomplished jury includes:

Independent Pilot Competition: “comedy,” Jim O’Heir (Actor), Angie Han (TV Critic, The Hollywood Reporter), Alec Ring (Manager, Cinetic Media); “drama,” Mikael Moore (Managing Partner, Wondaland) and C. Brett Marottoli (Head of Program Acquisitions, Starz), Liam Matthews (Writer, TV Guide) ; “unscripted,” Travis Tammero (Independent FIlm Group Agent, UTA), Britta Erickson (Producer, Listen Productions), and  Stephanie Rance (Deputy Director, Youth on Record).

Late Night: Steve Greene (Associate TV Editor, IndieWire), David Griffin (TV Editor, IGN), and Tara Westwood(Actor/Director).

Digital Shorts:  Dino-Ray Ramos (Founder and Editor in Chief of Diaspora), Geneva Wasserman (EVP, Head of Scripted Development & Production, Dentsu-Story Lab), Elle Roth-Brunet (Executive Producer, Head of Content & Entertainment Partnerships at Google) and Milan Chakraborty (Producer, Head of Film Marginal MediaWorks).

A leader in independent development, SeriesFest has been the launching pad for over a dozen independent projects that later secured mainstream distribution. Notable SeriesFest achievements include “Cooper’s Bar,” a SeriesFest: Season 6 official selection, which received a pick-up by AMC Networks’ and will be launching on AMC+ this spring. “Generation Por Que“, also a SeriesFest: Season 6 official selection, acquired by HBO and now available to stream on HBO Max. Hulu acquired domestic distribution rights to the SeriesFest: Season 4 award-winning series “Everyone Is Doing Great” and the eight-episode season is now available to stream on the platform. Additionally, the winner of four awards at SeriesFest: Season 3, Up North, received a development deal from Byron Allen’s Entertainment Studios. Creator, Emil Pinnock, also signed a blind script deal with Blumhouse Television and has been tapped to pen an untitled Daymond John project.”

The primary screening venue during SeriesFest is the Sie FilmCenter, which is the year-round cinematic home of SeriesFest’s partner organization, Denver Film. Passes and individual tickets to screenings, panels, and the Centerpiece event at Red Rocks Amphitheatre featuring a full performance by multi-genre band Lake Street Dive, are available now at www.seriesfest.com.

SeriesFest, in partnership with the Royal Bank of Canada, has launched a sequence of opportunities to make the festival more accessible for all content creators and to celebrate a commitment to diversity and equity. Submissions for a new fourth cycle of the “Women Directing Mentorship” with Shondaland is currently open with all entry fees for individuals waived courtesy of SeriesFest’s Inclusion Initiative in partnership with Royal Bank of Canada. Additionally, Royal Bank of Canada will be awarding a cash prize to the winner of this season’s upcoming Pitch-A-Thon .

SeriesFest: Season 8 is presented with additional generous support from the following sponsors: Once Upon a Time, Liberty Global, Brownstein Farber Hyatt Scheck, Denver Film, Xfinity, Fries Foundation, Visible, UnReal Media, Dilettante Productions, Working Artists Group, Caz Matthews Fund.

ABOUT SERIESFEST
SeriesFest (www.seriesfest.com) is a non-profit organization dedicated to championing artists at the forefront of episodic storytelling. With year-round educational programs, initiatives supporting underserved voices, and professional development opportunities, SeriesFest inspires, educates, and connects a worldwide community of creators. Each June, SeriesFest culminates in a highly-curated and celebrated Denver-based festival and marketplace. Dedicated to showcasing innovative episodic content, the annual festival also includes a musical performance and network screening at the world-renowned Red Rocks Amphitheatre, in-competition independent pilot screenings, panels, workshops, live reads, parties and network television premieres.

Follow @seriesfest on Twitter’

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The Pilots