Posted by | Ray Cornelius
Hollywood heart-throb Omari Hardwick was recently named the official Ambassador for the American Black Film Festival (ABFF) for 2013. The news came on the heels of the actor being named as one of the honorees for the Pan African Film Festival’s Rising Stars award.
“Omari Hardwick is one of the most talented actors in Hollywood. He shares our vision for Black cinema and understands the importance of nurturing new artists and maintaining diverse voices in this business that sometimes overlooks those outside the mainstream;” states Jeff Friday, festival founder and CEO of Film Life, Inc. “the role of the ABFF Ambassador is to broaden public awareness of the festival as well as its mission, which is to encourage collaboration and support between Hollywood and the independent film community.”
The Decatur, GA native, who has starred in such films as For Colored Girls, Sparkle and Middle of Nowhere, was humbled by the opportunity to represent the festival that is now in its 17th year.
“I am beyond humbled for being asked to be the ambassador of such a legendary and established film festival that has been around for 17 years and counting,” says Hardwick. “I have always been a fan of the work Jeff Friday has done within the film community and I look forward to sharing the wisdom, experience, creativity, and passion that I have to offer to the American Black Film Festival in 2013.”
ABFF is a five-day festival that is primarily comprised of narrative, documentaries and short films. Its aim is to showcase quality Black films and promote cultural diversity in front of and behind the camera. HBO is the festival’s founding and premier sponsor.
ABFF is also currently accepting submissions for the narrative feature and documentary film categories at www.abff.com/festival. The deadline for a narrative feature is March 1 and a documentary is March 8.
Look for Omari Hardwick and the ABFF to return to beautiful Miami, FL June 19-23, 2013.