Ezekiel N. Drews founded Milwaukee Independent Film Awards screening features and shorts primarily from Wisconsin plus projects worldwide, completing the second annual 3-day festival weekend of December 5-7, 2025, after breaking into filmmaking with award-winning first feature “Happy Birthday.”
Festival Founding and Growth
Ezekiel N. Drews, Founder of Lucid Films, Ltd. Co., founded and runs Milwaukee Independent Film Awards, a 3-day festival screening both features and shorts primarily from Wisconsin but also projects from around the world. The festival just finished its second annual run weekend of December 5-7, 2025.
Starting a film festival represents a significant undertaking beyond filmmaking. Festivals require venue booking, programming, marketing, sponsorships, volunteer coordination, and countless logistical details.
Completing the second annual festival proves concept sustainability. Many first-time festivals fail to return for a second year due to financial losses, organizational challenges, or insufficient community support. Drews successfully navigated sophomore year.
No Event Planning Experience
Drews accomplished festival founding without event planning background. He wasn’t event planner when starting but learned necessary skills through a process similar to self-teaching filmmaking.
This proves the pattern of Drews learning skills through doing rather than formal training. The biggest challenge was that everything he did, he learned to do by himself with no experience.
He found out he didn’t have to do everything alone. Finding great people to work with made every dream smashing success. Bringing people together as one overall unit is what you have to do for a running festival.
Wisconsin Focus
Milwaukee Independent Film Awards screens projects primarily from Wisconsin while also accepting submissions from around the world. This Wisconsin focus serves the local filmmaking community often overlooked by major festivals.
Wisconsin filmmakers face challenges getting work shown without traveling to coastal film hubs. Local festivals provide exhibition opportunities and recognition within the home state.
The Wisconsin emphasis also builds local audiences. Community members attend supporting regional filmmakers they relate to versus exclusively watching films from distant locations.
Features and Shorts Programming
The festival screens both feature length films and short films. This inclusive programming serves different filmmaker needs and audience preferences.
Feature films require significant investment and commitment. Shorts provide accessible entry points for emerging filmmakers experimenting with storytelling before attempting features.
Mixed programming creates a varied viewing experience. Audiences enjoy short film blocks offering multiple stories quickly plus feature presentations providing deeper narrative immersion.
Three-Day Event Structure
The 3-day festival structure provides multiple screening opportunities, filmmaker networking time, and audience engagement events. Weekend format accommodates working filmmakers and audiences unable to attend weekday events.
Three days allows substantial programming without overwhelming audiences or stretching volunteer resources too thin. Longer festivals face attendance drop-off and operational fatigue.
December 5-7 timing positions festivals late in the year after most major festivals complete but before holiday commitments dominate schedules. This window provides a strategic programming niche.
Building from Filmmaking Success
Drews founded the festival after breaking out into the filmmaking industry in 2023. First film “Happy Birthday” won over 50 different festival awards with many other selections and nominations.
This festival circuit experience informed the start of the festival. Drews learned what filmmakers value, how festivals operate, and what makes events successful or frustrating for participants.
The filmmaking credibility helps attract submissions. Filmmakers trust festivals run by fellow filmmakers who understand creator perspectives versus pure business operators.
Supporting Multiple Filmmakers
What sets Drews apart is that he works to bring people together. Love of people and telling their stories drives him beyond just personal filmmaking success.
The festival provides a platform for others gaining exposure and recognition. This aligns with future vision where if he makes it to the top, he doesn’t want to stand alone but wants every person working with him there to absorb success.
Milwaukee Independent Film Awards extends impact beyond Drews’ personal films to supporting the entire regional filmmaking community.
Festival Expansion Vision
Drews looks to continue expanding festivals or even the number of festivals he runs. This growth ambition reflects confidence in event management capabilities developed through two successful annual runs.
Expansion could mean larger Milwaukee Independent Film Awards with more programming, bigger venues, and increased attendance. Alternatively, could mean launching additional festivals in other Wisconsin cities or focusing on specific genres.
Multiple festival operations creates year-round event management work versus single annual events. This provides more consistent revenue streams and ongoing community engagement.
Filmmaker and Festival Director Dual Role
Drews simultaneously pursues filmmaking career and festival direction. He continues making films, acting, writing, directing while running Milwaukee Independent Film Awards.
This dual role provides a unique perspective understanding both filmmaker and festival operator challenges. Festival direction informs his filmmaking through industry connections and market awareness. Filmmaking credibility strengthens festival reputation.
The combined roles also create cross-promotion opportunities. Drews’ films gain natural festival programming consideration while festival success raises his profile as a filmmaker.
Learning Curve and Success
Actively looking to lead in many processes, Drews sometimes wonders looking back how he got through challenges without handling them the way he did. This reflection shows awareness of steep learning curves.
Successfully launching and maintaining a film festival without prior experience demonstrates transferable skills from filmmaking. Problem-solving, team coordination, and creative vision all apply across different entertainment industry roles.
Future Festival Plans
Looking ahead, Drews will continue growing Milwaukee Independent Film Awards while potentially launching additional festivals. The second annual success provides the foundation for expansion.
Building a sustainable festival operation creates a lasting impact on the Milwaukee filmmaking community. Annual events provide consistent opportunities for regional filmmakers building careers outside traditional industry centers.
Ezekiel N. Drews founded Milwaukee Independent Film Awards screening features and shorts primarily from Wisconsin plus worldwide projects, completing the second annual 3-day festival December 5-7, 2025, without prior event planning experience. The self-taught filmmaker built the festival after the first feature “Happy Birthday” won 50-plus awards, applying a collaborative approach bringing people together while continuing to make films and develop projects including “The Deep State” proof of concept through Lucid Films.
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