Moonlight Basin, the award-winning year-round resort company in Big Sky, Montana, has again stepped up as the lead partner of the 2nd Annual HatcH Audiovisual Arts Festival (HatcHfest) in Bozeman from October 4 – 9, 2005. Moonlight Basin’s involvement with HatcHfest personifies one of the resort’s credos of positive community involvement and participation.
“HatcHfest is one of the most important annual events in the North West that benefits the arts,” said Lee Poole, Ennis resident and owner of Moonlight Basin. “Our ongoing relationship with HatcH continues Moonlight’s support of and commitment to the people and economy of Montana at large, and helps to develop the talents of young, up-and-coming artists through mentoring. It’s our flagship community project.”
“We’re grateful for Moonlight’s support as a founding partner of HatcH,” says Yarrow Kraner, co-founder of HatcHfest. “Moonlight’s participation not only helps put on the Festival, but enables us to sustain a year-round program of mentoring through HatcHLabs and other activities.”
This year, ten groundbreaking student films from across the globe will compete for the Moonlight Basin Grand Prize, which consists of cash and prizes totaling $33,000. The international finalists include student filmmakers from as far away as Australia to local students from Montana. Last year, Todd Jeffrey of Los Angeles, CA captured the Moonlight Basin Grand Prize for his short film SHOOTER, which was recently acquired by HBO and is scheduled to air on the cable network this fall.
The 2nd Annual HatcHfest panelists and mentors include talented artists, musicians, directors, actors, writers, composers, cinematographers and producers. This year’s special guests include Kevin Bacon, Liam Neeson, Kevin Kline, Peter Fonda, Michael Keaton, Dean Cain, Bill Pullman, Amy Brenneman, Eliza Dushku and Jackson Browne among others.
Moonlight Basin will extend its festival presence this year by hosting a lounge at the Emerson Cultural Center. And finally, acting on the belief that good skiers make good filmmakers (and filmgoers), every ticket purchased for an HatcHFest event is good for a 2-for-1 ski voucher at Moonlight Basin this ski season.
Moonlight Basin’s community involvement does not end with HatcH, as they also support the youth of the area through their Moonlight Basin Aspirations Reward Teams (M-BAR-T) program for local students. This program gives free season ski passes to middle and high school students who maintain strong academic performance. This program also encourages advancement by giving passes to students who make significant improvement in their grades.
For more info, visit the Moonlight Basin website.
