The International Film Festival Summit (IFFS) announced today that Matthew Modine, Award-winning Actor, Writer, Director, and Producer will be participating at the annual IFFS taking place December 4-6, 2011 in Austin, Texas.

Matthew will engage in a dialogue with IFFS participants to provide an actor's view on film festivals, and what attracts above-the-line players to film festivals. The Fireside Chat, which will be hosted by Robin Bronk, CEO ofThe Creative Coalition will take place from 4:30pm to 5:30pm on Monday, December 5th.

"I've had the pleasure of working in a profession of my choice for 30 years," said Matthew Modine. "During this time I've worked in both studio and independent films. I've witnessed the incredible rise of film festivals and seen the ebbing and flowing influence of independent films (clearly an oxymoron, as nothing could be more dependent than filmmaking). Twenty years ago the issue was how to get money to produce a film; today it's how do I get my film distributed? With inexpensive camera and sound equipment and plug and play editing programs widely available, there's now a sea of films for festival directors to wade through. As a filmmaker, I'm now exploring the festival world and learning about the people that make the decisions that can, with a letter of acceptance, change a person's life. I look forward to sharing my insights of working on both sides of the camera."

Matthew Modine will also be screening his new award-winning film, Jesus Was a Commie during the fireside chat, and also on Day 1 (December 4th) of the IFFS during the IFFS Industry World Premier Screening at Cinetransformer at 8:00 pm and 10:00 pm next to the Omni Hotel-Downtown.

Matthew's new provocatively titled short film, Jesus was a Commie won the Founder's Prize for Best Short Film at the Traverse City Film Festival. The short movie delivers a positive story of love and forgiveness, responsibility and hope at this challenging time of history.

Mathew Modine's roles include Private Joker in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket, the title character in Alan Parker's Birdy, high school wrestler Louden Swain in Vision Quest, and the oversexed Sullivan Groff in Weeds. Most currently he can be seen in Too Big to Fail and will be appearing in the The Dark Knight Rises directed by Christopher Nolan. 

"Matthew's film is a beautiful soliloquy about his dreams for society," said Laurie Kirby, Executive Director, IFFS. "You will also be engaged by his thoughtfulness as an actor, filmmaker, and humanitarian. It's a film and panel you won't want to miss."