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EIGHTH ANNUAL KIDS FIRST! BEST DAY AND AWARDS CELEBRATIONOCTOBER 7TH AT CALAMIGOS RANCH IN MALIBU

SPECIAL APPEARANCE BY PALMER-VISION AWARD WINNER MALLORY LEWIS AND LAMB CHOP

Featuring a Special 20th Anniversary Screening of "The Princess Bride"

(Santa Fe, NM)—The Coalition for Quality Children’s Media is proud to announce that its 8th Annual KIDS FIRST! Best Day and Awards Celebration will take place Sunday, October 7th at the magnificent Calamigos Ranch in Malibu, CA.  This year’s very special presenter will be Mallory Lewis, daughter of beloved children's entertainer Shari Lewis and recipient of the 2007 KIDS FIRST! Palmer-Vision Award. 

On Sunday, October 7th, the activities at Calamigos Ranch begin at 10:00 a.m. with screenings of independent shorts presented by KIDS FIRST! and the Los Angeles International Children's Film Festival followed by industry seminars directed at independent filmmakers. The KIDS FIRST! Awards Celebration begins at 3:30 p.m. and is followed by “Dinner and a Movie” from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., featuring a special, 20th Anniversary screening of “The Princess Bride.”  

“This year, we have reached yet another record number of films from which to choose, as the KIDS FIRST! Film Festivals continue to grow throughout the country,” said Ranny Levy, Founder, KIDS FIRST!  “Both filmmakers and families are recognizing the importance of our KIDS FIRST! programs, and how vital films in our festivals are to the film community at large. Coupled with our award presenters - Mallory Lewis, Carly Schroeder ("Eye of the Dolphin" and "Gracie"), and  Zach Mills ("Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium") - they're in for quite an exciting afternoon.

In addition to the five “Best of Fest” Award winners, this year’s KIDS FIRST! Best Awards are awarded in 19 "Best of Category" awards, six student awards and, new this year - three sponsored awards that come with distribution offers.  Moving Pictures Film & TV is offering an award honoring filmmaking with a social impact. Feature Films for Families will present two awards honoring films and screenplays that tell uplifting stories and displaying positive values.For a complete list of nominees, visit:http://www.kidsfirst.org/kidsfirst/html/press.htm

For more information on tickets for all events, visit www.kidsfirst.org, or call 505-989-8076.Select art from nominated titles can be obtained at www.kidsfirst.org/media (user: press; password: best).Trailers of select titles are available at www.kidsfirst.org/kidsfirst/fvideo.htm. The KIDS FIRST! Film and Video Festival is an initiative of the not-for-profit Coalition for Quality Children’s Media.  The Coalition’s goal is to empower children to make wise media choices and to promote quality media products that enrich their lives. http://www.kidsfirst.org.