HILLSBOROUGH – Hillsborough Township resident Tom Baldinger took home some gold at the recent International Film Festival Manhattan.
The owner and creator of 624 Productions was honored with an Independent Achievement Award for helping produce both the feature film “Who’s Jenna…?,” and the music video for the song “Scoundrel” by the Hillsborough-based heavy metal band Nuse.
“It’s a pretty outstanding honor (receiving an Independent Achievement Award),” Baldinger said. “This award goes to the whole team at 624 Productions. We have a lot of good people that work here and I share this with all of them.”
The International Film Festival Manhattan (IFFM) held its 2022 award ceremony on Oct. 13 at the Kalayaan Hall Philippine Center in New York City. IFFM has been honoring independent filmmakers for 12 years and gives out over 35 awards each year.
“Who’s Jenna…?” was up for three IFFM awards, Best Feature, Best Ensemble Cast and Best Director, while “Scoundrel” was up for Best Music Video.
Along with his awards, Baldinger said getting those nominations and being able to connect with other independent filmmakers at the IFFM was a big step in the right direction for 624 Productions.
“It definitely raises our exposure and solidifies the work that we do,” he said. “A lot of independent filmmakers like to be recognized and work with other people who have been honored as well.”
As part of their IFFM nominations this year, Baldinger and his 624 Productions crew held a special screening for both “Who’s Jenna…?” and “Scoundrel” on Oct. 16 at the Wyndham Garden Hotel in New York City.
Baldinger said the screening went very well and that they also gave people who attended the event a sneak peek at an upcoming project that they are working on.
The past two years have been very successful on many fronts for 624 Productions, he said.
Last year, 624 Productions and Nuse collaborated to film a music video for the band’s song “Slept Away,” which won Best Music Video at the Independent Shorts Awards, an international film festival that is associated with the international movie base website IMDB.
The production company also in 2021 filmed a potential TV comedy series called “UN$UITED,” which they’re currently pitching to different streaming platforms and cable stations like Comedy Central.
During the summer, 624 Productions wrapped filming a short film called “American Boy.” The project was written by Hillsborough resident Salman Jaffri and is based on his life growing up as a first-generation child of Pakistani immigrants in the United States.
Another upcoming project that Baldinger said 624 Productions is working on is creating a soundtrack for the songs from the film “Who’s Jenna…?”
All the different projects 624 Productions has done over the last two years show their versatility as a production company, Baldinger said.
“We’ve shown a lot of diversity and that we are able to produce quality work,” he said.