2005 FILM COMPETITION ATTRACTS FILMS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

June 27, 2005, JACKSON, Wyo.    The Film Competition for the eighth Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival is underway, with more than 330 films from 25 countries entered in an unprecedented 600 categories.

The Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival (JHWFF) plays host to an unparalleled international competition, celebrating the finest examples of the art of natural history filmmaking.   To win an award in Jackson is prestigious.   Filmmakers and broadcasters around the world compete in 17 categories, in addition to the Grand Teton Award (Best of Festival).  

The preliminary jury committees will have the difficult task of selecting three finalists in all seventeen categories.   Finalists are announced the end of July.   Final Judging is conducted the week before the Festival by a panel of five experts. This year's Final Jury consists of   acclaimed producer/writer/director, Allison Argo; award-winning author Richard Bangs; Thom Beers, CEO and Executive Producer of Original Productions; Tom Perlmutter, General Director of the National Film Board of Canada's English Program; and world-renowned wildlife filmmaker Alan Root.   Winners are announced and honored at the Awards Ceremony and Gala Celebration sponsored by Panasonic Broadcast during the Festival on Thursday, September 22.

The Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival, founded in 1991, is the premiere festival in its genre.   JHWFF is dedicated to promoting natural history films that raise awareness and understanding of the creatures and habitats of the natural world.   The Wildlife Film Festival is a non-profit organization.

The Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival is sponsored by 19 global organizations. They range from major broadcasting corporations and production companies to post-production houses and conservation organizations. The Festival's Board of Directors includes: American Geological Institute, Animal Planet, BBC Natural History Unit, Discovery Channel, Dolby Laboratories, Eastman Kodak Company, Fujinon, Granada Wild, LaserPacific Media Corporation, Lobo Media Productions, National Geographic Television and Film, NHNZ Ltd., Nature/WNET, NHK/Japanese Broadcasting, Panasonic Broadcast and Television Systems, Sony Electronics, the Turner Foundation, UNIVERSUM/ORF Natural History Unit, and World Wildlife Fund.