PEOPLE Kat Albert Austin lmmaker brings culture to the Hill Country K at Albert is the executive director of the Lake Travis Film Festival, a multiday BY GRACE DICKENS
Having been to many lm festivals herself, Albert said she thought an event like that would do well in the Hill Country. “I got tired of driving in Austin to the east side, the north side and down- town to do anything related to lm,” Albert said. “At some point I started going to lm festivals and thinking it would be cool to have something like this in our part of town, which, at that point, was a cultural desert,” Albert said. To turn her idea into reality, Albert organized monthly group meetings at her home for over a year. Following the process to reach nonpro t status, the group began to esh out ideas for the festival, such as the events it would include and how it would be run, she said. The rst Lake Travis Film Festival was held in February 2020 and again in June 2021. The four-day event draws lmmakers and enthusiasts from across the world to venues in the cities of Lakeway and Bee Cave, both sponsors of the event. In February 2020, the Lake Travis Film Festival was one of the last lm festivals to happen before the pandemic. In 2021, the event was pared down, with the festival unable to get many of its venues con rmed until a month before the event, Albert said. This year, the festival, which is scheduled from Sept. 15-18, will incor- porate parts the organizers enjoyed the previous year, such as making the venues walkable from hotels guests are staying in. The event will also bring back a screenwriting master class.
lm screening event featuring a screenwriting masterclass, live table reads, panels, parties and more, but she did not start out in the lm industry. After graduating from Texas Tech University with a degree in advertis- ing, Albert started a small boutique advertising company. Albert sold the business and began to consider her next steps in the interest of avoiding competition with the new owner. Though she said she had many great ideas, she found out writing for books was not her strong suit. It was then that someone suggested screenwriting. “I spent a year just studying and learning how to write scripts,” Albert said. “After that, I wanted to make a movie because I had all these screenplays.” In an e ort to get a foot in the door with the industry, Albert attended The University of Texas at Austin’s Production Lab program in 2008, which is a weekly course outside of regular learning hours that teaches its students the basics of lmmaking. After nishing the program, Albert went on to launch her own production company, Production e-2. She made many short lms but soon found her niche in making music videos for female bands and talent. Albert got the idea for the festival after holding screenings for friends along with cast and crew parties for fellow lmmakers on her front lawn.
PHOTOS COURTESY LAKE TRAVIS FILM FESTIVAL Kat Albert is the executive director of the Lake Travis Film Festival.
The event will be at several venues, including the Hill Country Galleria.
LAKE TRAVIS FILM FESTIVAL
90+ lm projects
130+ volunteers
4 days of events
Each day of the festival is packed with di erent activities for lmmakers, screenwriters, actors and more. Sept. 15: Screenwriter masterclass, screenings, red carpet, after-party Sept. 16: Live script readings, screenings, after-party Sept. 17: Young lmmakers workshops, screenings, panels, music videos Sept. 18: Texas lm industry day, awards brunch, screenings, demonstrations
Event attendees can buy wristbands for an individual day or a
badge for all four days. Four-day lm badge —$225 Access to all lms and parties Day wristbands
Sept. 15: $60 Sept. 16: $100 Sept. 17: $100 Sept. 18: $100
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LAKE TRAVIS WESTLAKE EDITION • AUGUST 2022
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