"BE THE MAN" WINS DIRECTORS GUILD AWARD

Each year the Directors Guild of America announces the winners of its annual Student Film Awards for African-American, Asian-American, Latino and women filmmakers.   It's designed to honor outstanding minority and women film students in film schools and other select universities.   This award is akin to the Golden Globes for student films.

This year, BE THE MAN, written and director by Matt Jones, won the award for Best Film in the African-American category of the west coast Directors Guild of America (DGA) Student Film Awards.   Other winners included schools such as USC, UCLA, NYU, FSU...and now BIOLA!   The DGA Student Award comes with a $2500 cash prize along with a product grant from Kodak for $1000.

Be the Man was selected for the award by a panel of African-American members of the DGA and played in Los Angeles at a DGA screening on November 14.

In Be the Man , 17-year-old Damien never realized that the only man he's ever looked up to might not be the best example of what it means to be a man. Damien's verbally abusive father has taught him to be strong, but that tough shell means trouble when Damien starts to treat his girlfriend the same way he's seen his parents interact. Be the Man dramatically explores a young man's coming of age in a harsh, sometimes cruel world. Learn more about the film at www.bethemanmovie.com .

Press reports:
Hollywood Reporter
Students from Biola University, USC and UCLA were among the winners in the DGA's 12th annual student filmmaker awards...

Variety
DGA fetes student filmmakers
Winners receive $2,500 from Guild along with a product grant.