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The 14th New York Television Festival wrapped its first summer edition today by awarding the off-kilter independent pilot Hammerhead its two top prizes.

The story of an up-and-comer in New York determined not to let his deformed head derail his ambitions captured the Overall Best of Fest Award and Nytvf Critics Award. The Best Comedy Project award went to Smüchr; Best Animated Project was Omega House (which also scored a development deal from Comedy Central); and Best Drama or Dramedy Project was Paint.

After the fest’s shift from its traditional fall arrival, a move aimed at synchronizing with the industry’s development cycle, organizers said the summer fest hosted 620 development meetings, the most in its history. In all, 75 companies took part in the festival, a cross-section of networks, studios, agencies and digital platforms. The festival screened 59 pilots, recognizing top projects in 16 categories.

In its third year, the Nytvf Scripts competition featured 21 selections,...

“Hammerhead,” the story of a cunning young man trying to make his way in New York City, took top awards at the New York Television Festival.

The festival, which concludes today, features a competition for independently produced pilots, a script contest and a competition to land development deals with major cable networks and production banners. “Hammerhead,” created by New York-based filmmaker Dean Imperial, won the best of the fest award as well as the critics kudo. This year’s gathering featured screenings of 59 pilots.

“Independent television hasn’t only arrived – it is stronger than ever,” said Nytvf founder and executive director Terence Gray. “Each year, I am floored by how much the quality of the work submitted by the independent television community continues to improve — having received more than 3,300 submissions for the third year in a row. I’m honored that our partners have embraced the Festival as a go-to...

As Aziz Ansari recently explored in Master Of None, being an Indian actor means frequently getting called in for the most stereotypical roles imaginable. And now a new YouTube series is exploring that reality from the black perspective as well. Asked to share their craziest audition stories, Temesgen Tocruray and Lynnese Page reveal how frustrating it is to constantly be asked to audition for “thugs” and “mammies” without getting the opportunity to be seriously considered for other roles.

The YouTube series doubles as promotion for a New York City play called Room 4, a comedy centered on four black actors who wind up caught in a time loop as they audition for the same Drug Dealer #2 role. Authors Marina Tempelsman and Niccolo Aeed describe the play as, “Waiting For Godot meets A Chorus Line meets Groundhog’s Day meets the real-life experience of virtually every black actor in America ...

It’s overambitious for its tiny budget, but hooray for female filmmakers pushing in and taking space for their own stories of sympathetic screw-ups. I’m “biast” (pro): I am desperate for stories about women

I’m “biast” (con): nothing

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

Guinevere James isn’t even 30, and already she’s washed up. A former child star who still gets recognized from a series of commercials she starred in as a youngster — she was sort of like Mikey from the old Life cereal ads — she’s living on residuals but desperate to grow artistically as an actor. Which is tough for anyone trying to make a go of it as a creative person in a supercompetitive city like New York, but it may be even harder for her, because her ideas about what’s possible could have been a little warped by her childhood experience.