“St. Nick” Wins 2009 MPS Studios Texas Filmmaker Award

DALLAS, TX, April 2 – AFI DALLAS International Film Festival Founding Sponsor Victory Park, Presenting Sponsor North Park held its 2009 award show tonight, concluding the 8 day festival.

The AFI DALLAS competitions and audience awards included the Target Narrative Feature Competition; Target Documentary Feature Competition; Current Energy Filmmaker Award; Grand Jury Prize-Animation Presented by Reel FX Entertainment and Mass Animation; and the Grand Jury Prize-Texas, MPS Studios Texas Filmmaker Award.

The MPS Studios Texas Filmmaker Award provides $20,000 in cash and goods and services to the winner of the Texas Competition, which encourages and promotes Texas filmmaking by showing both short and feature films shot in Texas. MPS Studios is a Texas-based, Texas-owned company servicing filmmakers nationwide from production through post-production, and providing deliverables for distributors both domestic and international.

“St. Nick” took home the MPS Studios Texas Filmmaker Award, against stiff competition- “Other Side of Paradise”, “Desdemona: A Love Story”, “One Nation”, “Zombie Girl”, “Tattooed Under Fire”, and “Bollywood Beats” battled for the coveted award.

Receiving much acclaim for its charm and stylized approach to storytelling, “St. Nick” has been heralded “stunning”, “contemplative”, a “beautifully haunting drama”. Many critics give reference the Texas landscape. Director David Lowery says of the movie, “…I really wanted to capture the Texas that I loved, and have it be a character in the film."

“We are very proud of the 90-plus year history of the motion picture industry in Texas. For more than 30 years, MPS Studios has remained dedicated to filmmakers who shoot in Texas,” says Mark Beasley, owner and president of MPS Studios. “We salute David and his team, ‘St. Nick’, and AFI DALLAS for their contributions to our industry.”

About MPS Studios - Established in 1979, MPS Studios Dallas has spent over 30 years supporting the moving image industry with equipment, sound stages, and expertise to clients world-wide. The 65,000 square foot full-service facility offers studios, production equipment, office space, and more than 20 staff specialists and trained technicians. Providing single lights to 12-ton trucks, portable to truck-mounted generators, dollies and jibs, film and digital cameras, and post-production services producers have more options than ever to reach their creative and budgetary targets.

About AFI DALLAS International Film Festival - The AFI DALLAS International Film Festival celebrates films and their impact on society, honors filmmakers and recognizes their achievements and contribution in enhancing the creative community, provides educational programs to students to develop better understanding of the role of film in today's world, and promotes the City of Dallas and its commitment to the art of filmmaking. AFI DALLAS is a presentation of the non-profit Dallas Film Society.

For more on St. Nick, visit www.stnickfilm.com.