New York, NY, October 28, 2007 - Film Life’s 11th annual American Black Film Festival (ABFF) announced the winners of their independent film awards today to a standing room only crowd in the Beverly Ballroom of the Sofitel Hotel. The ABFF is the premier international marketplace for films that showcase the best new work by and about people of African descent. HBO® is the festival’s founding and title sponsor.

ABFF’s competitions reward excellence in independent Black cinema. With the support of major U.S. corporations, the festival awards cash and other prizes valued in the six figures. The award winners are as follows:

HBO Short Film Award, Presented by HBO
The Second Coming, directed by Ya’ke
Audience Award for Best U.S. Feature presented by Blockbuster
I’m through with White Girls directed by Jennifer Sharp
Heineken Red Star Award for Creativity
South of Pico directed by Ernst Gossner
Allstate Beyond February “Be Reel Contest Winner, Presented by Allstate
Give along the way, written and directed by Alrick Brown
Best Documentary (tie)
Black to our Roots, directed by Tre “Subira” Whitlow
Prince Among Slaves, directed by Andrea Kalin & Bill Duke Director of Re-Creations
Grand Jury Prize for Best Screenplay presented by Allstate
Mansfield 12 written by Alton Glass
Grand Jury Prize for Best Actor
Henry Simmons
Grand Jury Prize for Best Director
Craig Ross, Jr.
Grand Jury Prize for Best Picture, Presented by Kodak
South of Pico directed by Ernst Gossner

“The independent films we screen each year at the festival are our anchor. We are so pleased to have had such a great line up and a good cross section of stories and themes,” said Jeff Friday, founder/CEO of Film Life, Inc.

"Our partnership with the American Black Film Festival is a key component of our ‘Beyond February' community service platform" said Steven White, senior marketing manager for Allstate. "'Beyond February describes Allstate's ongoing commitment to the African American community, and that commitment extends to all of the young filmmakers and screenwriters participating in this event. Our Beyond February 'Be Reel' contest winner Alrick Brown and Independent Screenplay contest winner Craig Ross are film professionals that epitomize the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit that make our world a better place. Allstate is proud to be a part of such a celebration of excellence." The winner of the Allstate “Be Reel” contest receives $5,000 and the winner of the Best Screenplay receives $20,000.

A highlight of the festival has been the HBO Short Film Competition. Celebrating its 10th anniversary, the winner of the HBO Short Film Competition receives $20,000 cash prize. The other finalists will receive $5,000 and all their shorts will air on HBO in February. “For the past ten years we’ve had the privilege of working with Jeff Friday and the ABFF on behalf of Black filmmakers. We’ve helped develop new voices through our short film competition and, along with other sponsors, have helped create a place where the industry and filmmakers can connect.” said Lucinda Martinez –Desir, VP Market Development (HBO). “We are especially proud of this year’s short film finalist and the winner of the 2007 HBO Short Film Competition Ya’ke for this film The Second Coming.”

“The Heineken Red Star Award recognizes originality, innovation and vision in film and is demonstrative of our continued commitment to supporting and fostering unique film experiences,” said Andy Glaser, Heineken Brand Director. “We congratulate Ernst Gossner on receiving the Heineken Red Star Award as he clearly shares our passion for independent thinking and self-achievement.” Melanie Sharee, the festival’s director, added, “We are particularly proud of the new talent discovered through our festival and look forward to following the careers of these filmmakers and viewing their works in the future.”

“Kodak is proud to present the Grand Jury Prize for "Best Picture" at the American Black Film Festival. We have been long time participants at the festival itself which highlights the very best in independent film making from the African American community,” said Bill Tompkins, Vice President and General Manager, Motion Picture Film Group, Eastman Kodak Company. “We are committed to supporting the creative talent displayed through the films which have been showcased at the ABFF. We will continue our dedication to providing a diverse array of state of the art film products and services for the motion picture industry.” The winner of the Grand Jury prize receives $20,000 in film stock.

“We recognize that festivals like ABFF present the greatest opportunity for identifying new talent within the independent film community. Blockbuster is proud to support ABFF and the talent that is represented here,” said Larcine Bland, VP, Community Affairs and Diversity Initiatives. The winner of the Blockbuster Audience Award receives a cash prize of $20,000.

Sponsors for the 2007 ABFF include HBO (Founding & Title), Lincoln, Allstate and BET J (Premier), Blockbuster, Nokia, Paper Denim & Cloth, Heineken, Kodak, VIBE, Black Enterprise and Upscale (Official), Nielsen Media Research, Fox Searchlight Pictures, Codeblack Entertainment, Nickelodeon, Golden Street Entertainment, The Word Network, First Look Studios, Target, MTV Networks, Inta Juice, One Village Entertainment, FOX Entertainment Group, Uptown, Black Noir, heart&soul, and the Sofitel LA (Supporting), V100 (Official Radio), IFP, SAGIndie, Writers Guild of America West (Industry Partners), American Airlines, Automotive Rhythms, The Beverly Center, DV Republic, EUR Web, NV magazine, SocialStep, Soul of America, Urban Film Review, Monarch magazine, Save The Date Media Group, LLC (Marketing Partners).

Home Box Office, Inc., is the premium television programming subsidiary of Time Warner Inc., providing two 24-hour pay television services - HBO and Cinemax - to over 40 million U.S. subscribers. The services offer the most popular subscription video on demand products, HBO On Demand and Cinemax On Demand, as well as multiplex channels and HD feeds. Internationally, the subscription video on demand products HBO On Demand and HBO Mobile, along with branded joint ventures, bring HBO services to over 50 countries. HBO programming is sold into over 150 countries worldwide.

The ABFF, cofounded by Jeff Friday in 1997, is a property of Film Life, Inc., a New York-based film marketing and distribution company. Its mission is to spearhead the global distribution of quality Black films and be the leading American brand producing Black movies, television, events and digital content. Film Life’s key properties include the American Black Film Festival (abff.com); The Black Movie Awards on TNT (blackmovieawards.com); and the ABFF DVD Series (thefilmlife.com), a partnership with Warner Home Video.

For additional information please contact Ghana Wilson via phone 914.282.0963, or by e-mail: Ghana@thefilmlife.com.

# # #