•Dr. David Stout – 2019 Honorary Chair:  Dr. David Stout currently serves as President of Brookdale Community College.  Prior to his selection as the College’s 7th President, David served in various roles at Brookdale over 21 years, including Vice President for Student Success, Dean of Enrollment Development and Student Affairs, Dean of the Freehold Campus, Department Chair and Professor of Psychology and Human Services, Student Development Specialist, and Learning Assistant. As President, Dr. Stout has enacted strategies to predict and influence enrollment trends, address facility needs, analyze and control expenditures, update major institutional strategic plans, build financial reserves, and develop programs that address the needs of Monmouth County residents.

•Siobhan Fallon Hogan – Lifetime Achievement Award: Actress Siobhan Fallon Hogan will be seen this summer in The Professor, starring Johnny Depp. Other upcoming film and television projects include The Shed , Fox TV’s What We Do In The Shadows  and Yes directed by Rob Margolies.  Some of her film and television credits include, Men In Black, Forrest Gump, Going In Style, Private Life, Seinfeld, SNL, Billions, The Negotiator, Dancer in the Dark, New In Town, Baby Mama, Charlotte’s Web, The Bounty Hunter, Holes and 30 Rock. Fallon Hogan has written a film, Frat Haze, that Rob Margolies will be directing this fall in Upstate, New York. Siobhan has resided in Rumson, New Jersey for the past fifteen years with her husband, Peter, a builder, daughter, Bernadette, a political reporter for the New York Post, son, Peter, an actor and daughter, Sinead, college bound.

•Brian O'Halloran – Spirit of New Jersey: Brian O’Halloran was born on December 20, 1969 in New York City, New York, USA as Brian Christopher O’Halloran. He is an actor and producer, known for Clerks, Mallrats and Clerks II.

•Kim Waltrip – 2019 MVP: Director, producer, actress and long time GSFF supporter and friend, Kim Waltrip started her career as a model in New York City. Her projects have premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival and Palm Springs Film Festival . She has been the catalyst to bring GSFF some of its favorite films as well as VIPs. Congratulations, Kim for all you have accomplished and thank you for your continued support of GSFF.   

•Lisa G. Black – Exceptional Women in Film Award: The Producer of this year's opening film, "The Bird Catcher," Ms. Black founded her company Garnet Girl, LLC with a niche focus on content international co-ventures. Successfully producing award-winning international independent feature films in ten years of launching her company. Ms. Black is a member of the Producers Guild of America, Co- Founder, US-Norway Film Development Initiative. Board of Directors for the Norwegian-American Chamber of Commerce-Philadelphia, Board member of the United States Economic Small & Medium Business Council, Former Co-Chair, Delaware Film &Television Board.  Ms. Black holds an MBA in Marketing and Strategic Leadership, and BA in English Literature. Often a speaker and panelist at industry trade events and festivals providing valuable insight on international co -production, brand marketing, and analytics. Some of Ms. Black's other film production credits include: "Miles," starring Molly Shannon, "Almost Paris," "Dear Annabel," "Indigo Valley," "Afterlands" and "Dulcinea de Las Vegas."

•Allison Strong – Rising Star Award:  The award, which recognizes up-and-coming actors for achievements in theater, film and television, is open to actors of all ages and affiliations. Eligible candidates must showcase an undeniable passion for acting, with a progression of work in theater, commercials, television or film.

 Actress and singer Allison Strong was born and raised in Hudson County, New Jersey and is proud of her Colombian heritage. She can be seen starring alongside Adam Sandler and Chris Rock in the Netflix original feature The Week Of, released on April 27th in 2018. She is currently recurring as Talia Goldstein in Season Two of the Emmy-winning Amazon Series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Strong’s other television credits include NBC’s The Blacklist and Nickelodeon’s Dora and Friends. As a teenager, Strong made her Broadway debut as an ensemble cast member of Bye Bye Birdie. She has since gone on to perform in the Broadway cast of Mamma Mia, while simultaneously completing her studies as a Musical Theater Major and honors student at Montclair State University. She also starred as Ado Annie in Daniel Fish’s Oklahoma! at Bard Summerscape. Ben Brantley of the New York Times called her performance “captivating.” Strong’s theater aspirations began at age 9, when she became a member of the Metropolitan Opera Children’s chorus and appeared in productions of Carmen and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Strong is an alumna of the prestigious Johnny Mercer Songwriter’s Project and ASCAP’s Pop Songwriter’s Project. In 2014, she released her debut album March Towards The Sun and was featured in Diego Luna’s Fusion Network documentary series Back Home, filmed in her family’s native Colombia. She continues to record original music in English and Spanish, and will be releasing a new single early this year.  

• The John R. Elliott HERO Campaign for Designated Drivers® - 2019 Broader Vision Award For Filmmaking Dedicated To The Greater Good: A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to preventing drunk driving deaths and injuries by promoting the use of responsible designated drivers. The HERO Campaign was established by the family of Navy Ensign John R. Elliott of Egg Harbor Township, NJ, who was killed in a head-on collision with a drunk driver in July, 2000, two months after graduating from the United States Naval Academy. The HERO Video Network produces and showcases videos honoring victims of drunk driving tragedies, videos made by high school students to promote the use of designated drivers, commercials and news and event videos. As part of an exciting student-initiative, the Campaign works with high school students across the state, asking them to develop ideas, create and then submit public-service announcement videos that promote being a designated driver. The videos are then uploaded to social media and the HERO Campaign student website.

•Linda Krebs 2019 Educator of the Year:  Linda Krebs has over 20 years of experience in public education in New Jersey. Starting out as a teacher for the Gifted & Talented, Linda went on to teach middle school language arts and then became a school library media specialist, taking on additional roles as enrichment coordinator, technology coach, and returning to her roots as a teacher of the gifted and talented. Currently Linda is the school library media specialist at HW Mountz School in Spring Lake, a position she loves. She has experience in the public school environment working with students from preschool through grade 8. Linda received her BA in American Studies from Drew University; an MA in American Studies from the University of Wyoming; completed graduate education courses through Kean University, and holds a Master of Library & Information Science from Rutgers University. Linda is an active member of the Shore Consortium for the Gifted & Talented.

•Erin Gomez 2019 Educator of the Year: Erin Gomez has over 20 years teaching experience within the state of NJ. After receiving her BA in Education from East Stroudsburg University, PA, she started her career as a Kindergarten teacher at St. Jerome School in West Long Branch, NJ. Five years later she began working in the Keansburg School District as a 5th Grade Language Arts and Social Studies teacher. During this time period, Erin earned her MA in Education with a Reading Specialist Certification from Georgian Court University. For the last 15 years, Erin has been instructing the Gifted and Talented Program. She enjoys working with the G&T students in grades 2-8 and providing enrichment to the first grade students of the district. She is an active member and Secretary of the Shore Consortium for the Gifted & Talented.

Other filmmakers and actors who attended the 2019 Garden State Film Festival included: Kate Walsh, Ronnie Marmo and Arthur Hakalahti.  

Lauren Concar Sheehy, Garden State Film Festival Executive Director, describes this year’s Festival as being “absolutely impressive” with “filmmakers and fans from around the world networking and enjoying themselves.” Sheehy says, “This year, we celebrated the Festival’s 17th anniversary, and it truly was a great celebration! We screened over 245 outstanding films from around the world. Plus attendees took advantage of the networking opportunities throughout the weekend. Overall, everyone really seemed to enjoy the films and the workshops and parties… It was a lot of fun! Thank you and congratulations to all the participants, and especially to this year’s honorees and winners.”

Garden State Film Festival Founder Diane Raver says, “We are so impressed by the thousands of entries we receive for the Festival each year, and this year was no exception! Congratulations to all the winners, and thank you to everyone who joined us in celebrating our 17th Anniversary! We hope to see you next year for our 18th annual Festival."

The official call for entries for the 2020 Garden State Film Festival will start on June 1st this year, with the entry deadline set for December 1, 2019. For more information, please visit the Garden State Film Festival website at www.gsff.org or call 877-908-7050.

About The Garden State Film Festival:

The Garden State Film Festival (GSFF) was envisioned by 25-year film industry veteran Diane Raver and the late Hollywood actor Robert Pastorelli in 2002 and launched the following year. Since 2003, thousands of films have made their public premieres, hundreds of thousands of people from around the world have attended; and the total infusion of cash to local businesses since inception exceeds $5million. It is held in Asbury Park and surrounding area. The GSFF is a 501-c-3non- profit organization.

For more information about the Garden State Film Festival, contact: info@gsff.org

For social media updates on the GSFF, please visit the sites below:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GardenStateFilmFestival

Twitter: https://twitter.com/GardenStateFilm

Instagram: http://instagram.com/gardenstatefilmfestival

Thank You To Our Sponsors:

The 17th Annual Garden State Film Festival could not be possible without the generous support of the following sponsors: