WATERVILLE – In the spirit of Hollywood’s Oscars, the Maine Film Academy will honor members of the Maine film community when the Maine International Film Festival hosts the 3rd Annual Maine Film Academy Awards Gala Saturday, Feb. 24.

A celebration of filmmaking and film exhibition in Maine, the gala will feature the Maine Film Academy Awards Ceremony, live music and dancing, cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, and Maine film updates and announcements. In addition, special guest Karen Young of “The Sopranos” and the critically acclaimed film, “Heading South,” will present a special screening of the short film, “The Pesky Suitor,” directed by Young and starring Claire Danes.

The 2007 Maine Film Academy Award winners are as follows:

Best Artistic Direction: Northeast Historic Film of Bucksport. This award honors a Maine organization or company making significant contributions in the area of film exhibition. Founded in 1986, Northeast Historic Film collects, preserves, and makes available to the public, film and videotape of interest to the people of northern New England.

Northeast Historic Film activities include, but are not limited to, a survey of moving pictures of northern New England; preserving and safeguarding film and videotape through restoration, duplication, and climate-controlled storage; the creation of educational programs through screenings and exhibitions on-site and in touring programs; and assistance to members of the public, scholars and students at all levels.

Coming Attraction: Hannah Weddle of Brunswick. This award recognizes an emerging, young Maine filmmaker or film talent to watch. A student at NYU Film School, Weddle has already made nine shorts, was a finalist at the Maine Student Film & Video Festival in both 2005 and 2006, and is developing both a dramatic TV series (based on the Skolfield-Whittier family, set in Brunswick in 1858) and a feature film loosely based on the founding of The New Yorker Magazine.

Outside the Frame: Nancy Andrews of Bar Harbor. This award honors a Maine filmmaker who is taking filmmaking beyond the traditional boundaries. Andrews has completed a trilogy of unique films. “The Ima Plume Trilogy,” produced over the course of six years while teaching at the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, has been featured at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and has won prizes at the Ann Arbor Film Festival. I

Get Reel: Kirk and Lisa Wolfinger of Lone Wolf Documentary Group, South Portland. This award recognizes a Maine-based individual, team, or organization for exemplary work in documentary film. Award-winning filmmakers Kirk and Lisa Wolfinger founded Lone Wolf Documentary Group 10 years ago Lone Wolf employs 12 full-time staff fers as well as a host of independent producers and editors, working out of Los Angeles and Boston. They have produced dozens of films for clients like National PBS, The History Channel, the Discovery Channel, and Nova.

GAL (Groundbreaking Activist Leadership) Award: “There Ought to be a Law.” This award recognizes a woman in the film industry who has used her voice to create societal change. Two years in the making, “There Ought to Be A Law” tells the story of Cathy Crowley, mother of 18-year-old Laurier “Larry” Belanger, who killed himself in 2004, with a gun bought at a Wal-Mart, and her tireless work in support of Maine legislation that will require a waiting period for gun purchases. The film gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look at how the Maine Legislature operates, and how average people can get involved in the process. The film will be distributed to schools and organizations encouraging civic activism. The film was co-produced by Anita Clearfield and Geoffrey Leighton of Durham and Shoshana Hoose of Portland.

Tthe 3rd Annual Maine Film Academy Awards Gala will begin at 7 p.m. at the CMP Building in the downtown.