The 16th Heartland Film Festival will welcome more than 100 guests to Indianapolis, representing some of the finest in filmmaking talent from around the world.

Osment's "Home of the Giants" and "Pay It Forward" will be screened during the festival, as will Benioff's screenwriting effort "The Kite Runner."

Osment will also be a presenter for the Crystal Heart Awards Ceremony to be held October 20. Indianapolis-native and “Extra” correspondent Carlos Diaz will emcee the event.

Press Release

Indianapolis, Ind. -- Heartland Truly Moving PicturesTM announced today that actor Haley Joel Osment (“The Sixth Sense,” “Secondhand Lions”) is among the guests scheduled to attend the 2007 Heartland Film Festival®, which will take place October 18-26 in Indianapolis. Among Osment’s many credits are two films – “Home of the Giants” written and directed by Marion, Indiana-native Rusty Gorman and “Pay It Forward” – that will be screened during the 16th annual Festival. Osment along with Lisa Guerrero (“Inside Edition” and Executive Producer, Actress in “A Plumm Summer”) and Judy Stewart will be award presenters at the 2007 Crystal Heart Awards Ceremony. Indianapolis-native and “Extra” correspondent Carlos Diaz will emcee the event on Saturday, October 20 at Conseco Fieldhouse. Guests can experience the glitz and glamour of Hollywood at this black tie optional event for only $35. General admission Gallery Seating includes the awards ceremony and Afterglow Party with live music by Big Daddy Caddy, hors d’oeuvres and the chance to mingle with filmmakers and stars.

Heartland also announced the panelists for their special collaborative screening of “Renewing American Culture: The Pursuit of Happiness” with WFYI. The event on Tuesday, October 23 will feature special introductions by Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson, Director Todd Gould and authors of the book Theodore Roosevelt Malloch and Scott Massey. Following the 7 p.m. screening of the film at the Indiana History Center, Gerry Dick from Inside Indiana Business will lead a panel discussion with Jo Ann Gora, President of Ball State University; Ed Wheeler, President of Christian Theological Seminary; and Former Lt. Governor John Mutz. Tickets are $10.

Tickets for Heartland events and film screenings are available online at www.HeartlandFilmFestival.org or by calling toll-free 1-866-HFF-1010. A $5 service fee will be added to all phone and Web site orders.

The 2007 Festival will feature an exciting lineup of special events and screenings for film aficionados of all ages. It will kick off Thursday, October 18 in Hollywood style with a premiere event featuring Heartland’s Truly Moving Picture Award recipient “August Rush” from Warner Bros. Pictures. Producer Richard Barton Lewis (“Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves,” “Backdraft”) and Music Supervisor Anastasia Brown (“Nashville Star”) are scheduled to arrive on the red carpet and after the screening John Horn, staff writer for the “Los Angeles Times,” will host a question and answer session with them. The Festival will close on Friday, October 26 with a sold-out screening of “The Kite Runner” by DreamWorks Pictures, Sidney Kimmel Entertainment and Participant Productions. Screenwriter David Benioff (“Troy,” “Stay”) is scheduled to attend.

Festivities will also include: a special presentation with Mark Zoradi, President of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Group, giving moviegoers the inside scoop about upcoming Disney films such as “Enchanted,” “National Treasure: Book of Secrets” and “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian;” a premiere screening of “A Plumm Summer” with actors Chris J. Kelly (Elliot Plumm), Owen Pearce (Rocky Plumm), Morgan Flynn (Haley Dubois), Lisa Guerrero (Roxie Plumm and Executive Producer) and filmmakers Frank Antonelli (Writer, Producer), Scott Erickson (Executive Producer) and Caroline Zelder (Writer, Producer, Director) at the Family Movie Event; a special screening of “Invisible Children: Rough Cut” with filmmakers Bobby Bailey, Laren Poole and Jason Russell, this year’s Pioneering Spirit Honorees; an insightful education seminar with industry experts Sterling Van Wagenen and David Weiss; and much more.

For 16 years, the goal of Heartland has remained the same: to positively impact American culture through film. That is why Heartland honors dramatically different films and filmmakers that celebrate the best of the human spirit.

In total Heartland will welcome more than 100 guests to Indianapolis. These actors, filmmakers and industry insiders connected to Festival films and events represent some of the finest in filmmaking talent from around the world.

Heartland Truly Moving Pictures, a non-profit organization, seeks to recognize and honor filmmakers whose work explores the human journey by expressing hope and emphasizing the best of the human spirit. Its flagship event, the Heartland Film Festival, launched in 1991 and runs each October in Indianapolis, screening independent films from around the world. Each year, the Festival awards $200,000 in cash prizes and presents its Crystal Heart Awards to the top-judged submissions. Heartland has awarded more than $1.8 million to support filmmakers during the last 16 years. The organization’s Truly Moving Picture Award was created to honor films released theatrically that align with Heartland’s mission. By bestowing a watermark to honored films, the award allows studios and distributors to inform audiences of a film’s uplifting message and appeal. Heartland is also dedicated to its relationship with the National Collaboration for Youth and its expanding F.I.L.M., “Finding Inspiration in Literature and Movies,” project. For more information, visit www.TrulyMovingPictures.org.

Source: Heartland Truly Moving Pictures