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SeriesFest, the television event in Denver, drew dozens of independent creators over the last few days and has now handed out some awards for its pilot competition.

Some 45 pilots from around the world were in competition at the tenth iteration of the festival.

Check back later this week to hear from a number of the creators about their plans to breakthrough with their own independent projects.

Winners included Shazia Javed’s Potluck Ladies and Jesse Toledano’s Broken Toilets, while Anna Camp-starring Neo-Dome, from Mark and Matt Pfeffer scooped the audience award.

Potluck Ladies won the drama awards. It follows Sumaira, Azra, and Ruby, who live in “The Wives Condos” in the suburbs of Toronto with their children, while their husbands work in other countries. They initially meet at potluck lunches, a weekly guilt-free escape from the loneliness of immigrant life. At first glance, they seem to be living perfect lives,...

International television festival and non-profit organization SeriesFest revealed the winners of its Season 10 Independent Pilot Competition at an awards presentation on Sunday in Denver, capping off the 2024 event. Jurors screened 45 pilots from creative voices around the globe at this year’s milestone celebration and selected winners in categories including “Independent Pilot,” which receives $25K in-kind post production support from Company 3, “Digital Short Series,” “Late Night” and “Pitch-a-Thon.”

The winners of this year’s SeriesFest Independent Pilot Competition include:

Independent Pilot – Drama: Potluck Ladies

Independent Pilot – Comedy: Broken Toilets

Independent Pilot – Unscripted: Breakthrough

Digital Shorts: Problematic

Late Night: Miracle Wood

Pitch-a-Thon: The Haunting of Trisha Lozada

“Our Independent Pilot Competition embodies the very essence of SeriesFest and aligns with our core mission – to champion independent artists,” Randi Kleiner, CEO and Co-Founder of SeriesFest, said in a statement. “With ten seasons under our belt, we’ve been able to establish a platform for showcasing up-and-coming creators,...

Stars: Taylor Schilling, Jackson Robert Scott, Peter Mooney, Brittany Allen, Colm Feore | Written by Jeff Buhler | Directed by Nicholas McCarthy

The third horror film from director Nicholas McCarthy, The Prodigy is an entry in the creepy kid genre typified by the likes of Orphan (2009) and Joshua (2007), aka The Devil’s Child. As such it’s something of a mixed bag, delivering a handful of genuinely nasty moments, but let down by a frustrating script that completely ignores the premise implied in the title.

Taylor Schilling (Orange Is The New Black) and Peter Mooney play Sarah and John Blume, a middle-class Pennysylvania couple whose longed-for child is born at the exact same moment that police shoot and kill Hungarian-speaking serial killer Edward Scarka (Paul Fauteux) in nearby Ohio. Eight years later, their young son Miles (Jackson Robert Scott) is attending school for gifted children, after having grown up with an unusually high Iq,...

If we’ve learned anything from movies like “The Omen,” “The Bad Seed,” and “The Good Son,” it’s that kids can be little demons. Director Nicholas McCarthy’s “The Prodigy” takes that concept a bit further, positing that children have the ability to carry the past lives of demonic, sociopathic souls and act on their deranged feelings. At least that’s what we glean from a brief “Nightline” clip about reincarnation shown in the film — which is possibly the clever inspiration for Jeff Buhler’s screenplay. While it lacks gripping, nail-biting tension, the unnerving horror that underscores the family drama brings it to life.

Minutes after a ruthless serial killer (Paul Fauteux) is shot to death in Ohio, a baby boy is born to a loving married couple in nearby Pennsylvania. Sarah (Taylor Schilling) and John Blume (Peter Mooney) have sacrificed a lot to bring their boy Miles (Jackson Robert Scott) into the world,...