Saturday afternoon was the first screening of Gone Doggy Gone in San Diego. The turnout was light, but the crowd was warm and enthusiastic. Cinematographer Garrett O’Brien, Shaina Vorspan (who played Jill), Edward Winters (who played Devon), all joined Kasi and Brandon (and of course Laila) at the screening. The film looked great – sound was fantastic. I had only previewed it on my IPad so it was great to see it with a live audience on the big screen. Nothing beats the experience of watching a movie in a theater. It was nice to see it a second time in it’s entirety. I picked up on a number of things I hadn’t notice the first go around. I was starting to feel like an insider….Kate Conner (who played Kat) joined them after the screening. She was planning to be at the Q&A after the film, but Los Angeles to San Diego traffic is brutal on Saturdays. After a little down time in the VIP lounge and a quick dinner it was off to the Filmmakers Awards Show at the US Grant Hotel. The event is typical with various honors and awards to the best films of the festival. The US Grant’s basement ballroom and the scripted format made for a much better show than in years past. There was a nice rhythm to the night that had been missing poolside at the Palomar. Even so, it was a big disappointment for the Gone Doggy Gone group. They were not included in any of the awards or recognitions. I think that ultimately surprised them. I’m sure the fact that they had a photographer following them around for 3 days had set them up for something big. I regret I may have contributed to their higher expectations. I too was disappointment they didn’t win, but not surprised. I loved the film and thought it deserved recognition, but there were other filmmakers that seemed to be the darlings of the show. Still, Kasi and Brandon made a number of connections while they were at the festival. And they made a fantastic feature comedy, which is no small task.
