The 2006 Coachella Independent Film Festival, originally founded in 1999 by Michael Abbott and Sid Zuber to showcase Valerian Bennett's pulse-generating documentary on West Coast rave culture, "Synergy: Visions of Vibe", is quickly becoming recognized as a premiere showcase for the best in American and International independent music-driven film.Housed within the critically acclaimed Coachella Music and Arts Festival, the Coachella Independent Film Festival has expanded from 3,000 attendees in 1999 to over 24,000 in 2004.
Festival founders and producers Abbott, Zuber and Oren Bitan (who joined the festival team in 2000) handpick a series of kinetically entertaining music-driven feature and short films each year to present some of the most cutting edge and impactful motion picture documentary and dramatic films to enhance the artistic vitality projected by the convergence of music and motion pictures.In its seven year history, The Coachella Independent Film Festival has helped usher a new and unconventional group of music-minded writers, directors, and even music artists to the forefront of this genre of filmmaking, and has acted as a catalyst for expanding the public's appetite for films that are challenging both in format and subject matter.
