Cinequest Announces Key Film Festival and Label Milestones.

Cinequest Celebrates 18 Years of Discovering and Empowering Maverick Filmmakers with Innovative Technologies and Distribution Models

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Cinequest, a film institute dedicated to discovering and empowering Maverick artists through its film festival and innovative distribution label, today announced significant firsts, milestones, and achievements from its 18-year history. Since 1990, Cinequest has embraced and introduced new filmmakers to new technology, distribution models and techniques, years before they become industry standards.

Over the years, Cinequest has defied traditional release methods, which previously dominated the film industry, by pioneering new online distribution models. In 2004, when studios, filmmakers and the media were cynical of the long-term value and consumer reaction to film downloads, Cinequest built its distribution strategy on the Web, recognizing the benefits of online film downloads for independent artists. Some of the nonprofit's key accomplishments include:

Cinequest Firsts:

* First festival in the world to enable online downloads of feature films in DVD/HD quality in 2004 at Cinequest 14

* First to present online festival in conjunction with live festival in 2004 at Cinequest 14, allowing film lovers around the globe to view festival films, now common festival practice

* First festival to bring short films to handheld mobile devices in 2004 at Cinequest 14

* First festival to showcase 24P cameras and workflow in 1998 at Cinequest 8

* First festival to showcase solid state filmmaking technology in 2006 at Cinequest 16

* First festival to accept all digital film formats and to project digitally in all screens in 2000 at Cinequest 10

* First festival to showcase the media delivery capacities of QuickTime in 1997 at Cinequest 7

* First festival to create and implement its own server system for digital content in 2005 at Cinequest 15

* First film institute to provide a comprehensive US distribution solution for festival films - including DVD, Internet, TV and select theatrical, launched in 2006

Cinequest Milestones:

* To date, more than five million people have watched Cinequest distribution films online or on DVD

* More than 500,000 people have attended CQFF to date, with over 70,000 attending in 2007

* More than 10,000 artists have attended CQFF to date, including more than 500 from 34 countries in 2007

* More than 500 feature-length and short films have made their world premieres at CQFF

* CQFF has given its annual Maverick Spirit Award to such film luminaries as John Schlesinger, Kevin Spacey, John Waters, Rod Steiger, Sir Ben Kingsley, William H. Macy, Sir Ian McKellen, Spike Lee, and many more

* The Cinequest distribution label now has 50 award-winning and festival favorite feature films and 150 shorts

"You can't find a film festival more ambitious than Cinequest," said Chris Gore, author of The Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide. "Cinequest continues to champion digital filmmaking in a way unparalleled by any fest, which is no surprise since the festival is right in Silicon Valley's backyard. Awards are not only bestowed upon filmmakers, but also upon innovators of new filmmaking technologies. Cinequest's support of cutting-edge filmmaking tools make it a must visit for the true filmmaker. You can find the future of film at Cinequest."

"From our start 18 years ago, our mission has always been to empower the Maverick," said Halfdan Hussey, co-founder and executive director at Cinequest. "The mainstream film industry can be slow to try new technologies and distribution models. By definition, Maverick artists are early adopters, and we're here to help them think beyond the traditional boundaries of how films are made, marketed and delivered. For example, when we first introduced Cinequest Online in 2004, many people said it would never work; but we've seen great success with online distribution over the years, and of course now, we're even seeing the studios doing it. We're extremely proud of our pioneering history and are looking forward to continuing our success with Cinequest 18."

The Cinequest Film Festival runs from February 27 - March 9, 2008, in San Jose, California. Tickets are available January 30. For more information about CQFF, please visit www.cinequest.org.

For more information on Cinequest firsts and milestones, please contact: [e-mail].

Empowering the Maverick

Cinequest is a premier motion picture institute that produces:

* Cinequest Film Festival, a discovery festival of Maverick films and technology forums.

* Cinequest Distribution: delivering films to fans worldwide through leading Internet technologies plus DVD - while creating new marketing and business models for the Independent.

* Cinequest Screenwriting Competition.

* Mentoring and Education: groundbreaking programs including Camp Cinequest.

To find out more about the Cinequest organization, CQFF, or the Cinequest Distribution label go to http://www.cinequest.org