Filmmaker Spotlight

Filmmaker Mike Pender

Mike Pender

Mike A. Pender, an up and coming filmmaker and Philadelphia native won the 2003 Silver Award for  “Best Short Film Subject” at PhilaFilm and 2005 was honored as part of “Best of Fest” at the International Black Media Festival in Oxford, England for his short film, “The Negro Zone”. “The Negro Zone” went on to be signed by Russell Simmons’ company Simmons Lathan Media Group, and appeared in over 20 film festivals and was the center piece for a national college tour about stereotypes.

With a growing resume Mike has made three short films, a commercial, a couple of music videos and he has already worked with the likes of Black Panther founder, Bobby Seale and hip hop icon, Jermaine Dupri. The latest film project he made was the hilarious feature length romantic comedy, Computer Love. “I am extremely proud of this film because it's my first feature. So far everyone who has seen it thinks its very funny, which is a huge compliment. My creative partner Atif R. Lanier and I have been working on this for awhile, and with the great cast and crew we had comprised mostly of local talent we believe we made a gem,” says Pender.

Computer Love, shot entirely in Philadelphia, has already been showcased in film festivals such as PhilaFilm, Urban Suburban, The South Florida Film Festival. The film is also scheduled to appear in three more Martha Vineyard’s African American Film Festival, The Peachtree Village International Film Festival in Atlanta and The Shreveport Black Film Festival.

Computer Love is also gearing up for a college tour which will consist of the University of the West Indies in Jamaica already scheduled for February of 2011. Currently Mike has been giving back to the community by working with teens in the Apogee and Soar programs, teaching them about filmmaking.

For more information on Computer Love please visit www.computerlovethemovie.com