Anthony Anderson is Named Ambassador of the 2007 American Black Film Festival
New York, NY, August 27, 2007 – Today, actor Anthony Anderson was named ambassador for the 2007 American Black Film Festival (ABFF). The ABFF is the premier international marketplace for films that showcase the best new work by and about people of African descent. The role of the ABFF ambassador is to broaden public awareness of the festival and its mission to strengthen Black filmmaking through collaboration and support between Hollywood and the independent film community. The 2007 ABFF is scheduled to take place in Los Angeles from October 25-29.
Anderson, who received the festival’s Rising Star Award in 2000, is ABFF’s first ambassador. In this role, he will serve as the media spokesperson for the festival and serve as an adviser for the festival’s philanthropic endeavors.
“I am so pleased to be able to serve as the 2007 ABFF ambassador and increase awareness of this great festival that champions creative expression, as well as recognizes and rewards emerging talent–filmmakers and artists–who might otherwise remain undiscovered,” Anderson said.
Born and raised in California, Anderson, 36, is a graduate of the Hollywood High School Performing Arts Center and Howard University. He has amassed nearly 50 film and television credits. His most recent credits include The Transformers, the summer blockbuster directed by Michael Bay, and The Departed (2006), director Martin Scorsese’s Oscar®-winning film. Anderson can also be seen in the upcoming FOX TV series K-Ville (2007), as Marlin Boulet, a cop in New Orleans post Hurricane Katrina.
“Anthony personifies the mission of the ABFF, to recognize, showcase and celebrate emerging African-American talent,” said Jeff Friday, CEO of Film Life and co-founder of ABFF. “A dynamic performer with a huge screen presence, Anderson has been an almost ubiquitous feature player beginning in 1999, and his career has continued along unabated, making him the perfect person to champion the ABFF,” Friday added.
The 2007 ABFF will mark its 10th year of support from HBO®, the festival’s founding and title sponsor. This year’s premier sponsors will include Lincoln, Allstate and BET J. Official sponsors will include Blockbuster, Nokia, Paper Denim & Cloth, VIBE, Black Enterprise and Upscale, and supporting sponsors will include Nielsen Media Research, Fox Searchlight Pictures, Codeblack Entertainment, Nickelodeon, Golden Street Entertainment, The Word Network, UrbanWorks Entertainment, Heineken, Uptown, Black Noir, Heart & Soul, and the Sofitel LA.
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 more than 40 million U.S. subscribers. The services offer the popular subscription video on demand products, HBO On Demand and Cinemax On Demand, as well as multiplex channels and HD feeds. Internationally, HBO On Demand and HBO Mobile, along with branded joint ventures, bring HBO services to more than 50 countries. HBO programming is sold in more than 150 countries.
The ABFF, co-founded 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.
Film submissions to the 2007 ABFF are being accepted now through August 15. For eligibility criteria, submission forms and general registration information, visit www.abff.com; call 212.966.2411, ext. 400; or e-mail the festival at [email protected].
