As We Forgive Wins the Gold at Student Academy Awards!!!

As We Forgive Wins the Gold at Student Academy Awards!!!

June 16–Beverly Hills, CA

I’m incredibly excited to announce that As We Forgive won the GOLD prize at the Student Academy Awards on June 7th in Hollywood! When I first found out that AWF had been nominated, I honestly didn’t have a clue about what was in store when we arrived to Los Angeles for the week of festivities planned by the Academy. I was truly stunned by the generosity of spirit and encouragement from so many of the Academy members who took such a genuine interest in all the winners’ films. We met one-on-one with numerous esteemed directors, producers and cinematographers—people who are typically nearly impossible to meet with! The greatest moment came when I was approached at a dinner at the Beverly Hills Hotel by Caleb Deschanel, one of the greatest cinematographers in Hollywood (5-time Oscar nominee, photographed the National Treasure, The Patriot, The Passion of the Christ, etc.). He told me that he loved As We Forgive and that he was incredibly moved by the story of reconciliation in Rwanda. To realize that so many members of the Academy had WATCHED and judged our films was absolutely incredible!

The night of the awards ceremony was equally amazing, as Caleb Deschanel was also the presenter of the documentary award and told the crowd of about 1,000 people that he could “barely speak about the story of As We Forgive without getting emotional.” I about fainted. Jason Reitman, director of the Academy Award-nominated Juno was also a presenter at the ceremony (in the narrative category), which was very exciting for us all. Overall, all the winners were profoundly affected by how well we were treated and how encouraged we were by the hospitality of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

As a result of the award, AWF is now getting a bit of press, with articles in a number of newspapers across the US. I was even told that Entertainment Tonight covered the awards ceremony, although I didn’t see it! To view photos of the event, visit the Academy website at:

www.oscars.org/saa/2008/index.html