Photo submitted to the Times Observer Film festival recognition for MaW Mediaworks “Howitzer Tales: The Boogeyman” have been pouring in domestically and from the other side of the world. Some of those involved in the production include, from left, Eric Jones, Vince Errico, Joshua Anderson, Marcus Owens, Jennifer DiBlasio, MichaelGafner, Sophia Apthorp (front), Adam Ristau and Andrew Hulse.

A Warren-based indie film group picking up awards in film festivals around the world.

The film is “Howitzer Tales: The Boogeyman” and the group is MaW Mediaworks.

But the credit that the group is now receiving is years in the work.

It started with a senior project at Warren Area High School back in 2009.

“I knew I was going to do that project on the topic of film making,” Michael Gafner, owner of MaW Mediaworks said, “but I didn’t know yet how I was going to do it.”

Called MAW Studios at the time, Gafner said he, Andrew Hulse and Wesley Cochran “started brainstorming new ideas. One of those ideas was a little story about a person leading a settlement of survivors during an alien invasion.”

That was the birth of “The Howitzer’s Tale.”

“This initial version was very different than what we have today,” Gafner said. “This first version of the story was (a) slapstick styled comedy series.

“This idea would evolve over and over again and undergo various overhauls, eventually dropping the comedy aspect nearly completely, and replacing those elements with a story about personal revolution and redemption. In addition, we would choose to leave the alien environment behind in favor of a ‘semi-post-apocalyptic’ environment. This was a personal choice on my part.

“I wanted the world of Howitzer Tales to convey the idea that although the world itself might be ugly sometimes, it is also filled with people ready to fight for something good. So that’s where the basic idea came from.”

To add an extra layer, the current main character, Dana Falco, struggles with severe mental illness.

“This addition was also driven by my own personal desire to include elements from my own life,” he said.

While the concept of the film may date to that high school project, those involved in the effort have a much broader range of experiences and training in the field.

Gafner said he worked on “The Dark Knight Rises” and “Man of Steel” as well as on the WGH Show “Outsiders.”

“I attended the John Russo Movie Making program at DuBois Business College from 2011 to 2013, where I was mentored by industry professionals with many years in the business,” he said.

Gafner said Hulse, operating as the chief operating officer and head cinematographer for MaW mediaworks, has been instrumental behind the scenes.

“Without Andrew working alongside me on the back-end, none of our other subjects through the years would have been made,” he said. “(H)is duties include managing our camera and light crews, in addition to working through our technical challenges.”

Adam Ristau is the head writer and chief content officer and wrote the award-winning film.

He worked online as a teenager as a ghostwriter for various indie animation studios and wrote a murder mystery for the Warren County Historical Society before joining forces with Gafner in 2014.

He detailed the recognition that the film has received to date.

“We just got into the Kalakari Film Festival, which calls itself the Premiere Film Festival of India,” he said. “Thus far we have won Two Awards at NAFCo Horror Film Festival (Brookville PA), Honorable Mention in Madras Film Festival (India), Won top Prize and have been nominated for Short of the Year at Flixze Film Festival (Panama City Florida), Finalist at The Flight Deck Film Festival (NYC), Grand Jury Gold Award Winner at Los Angeles Motion Picture Festival (and) Platinum Award for Pinnacle Film Festival (Hollywood Hills CA).

“We have 16 other entries into festivals that have not selected us yet, but are not expected to until later anyways.”

While film festivals would typically be in-person gatherings, that can’t happen in many places during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We use a website called FilmFreeway.com, where you can link or upload your film, and then send it to various film festivals,” Ristau said. “Buying in, or picking a festival does not necessarily mean that they will select you, it only means that they will view your film and entertain the thought of showing it at their film festival.”

That the pandemic has pushed many of these festivals virtual appears to have provided an avenue for the film to be much more broadly shared and recognized.

“At this time, many film festivals are going to an online medium,” Ristau explained. “Having been a part of quite a few now, we have seen a range of successes, and believe this is a viable route for Film Festivals to take during the pandemic. It has been our honor to have been selected at every single festival we have applied for thus far, and have placed, or won in our category each time.

He said they’re eyeing a film festival in London.

And anyone who’s interested can watch the first episode on YouTube.

“When we write, we write for the top prize,” Gafner noted. “With that said, I’m not sure what my expectations were. While I believe that the film and our crew deserve all of the awards we have been sweeping with these various festivals, I also have this feeling of dissonance towards it.

I think that largely has to do with much of this being based on all new feelings for me. Despite that, however, I have to say that I’m exceedingly proud of both our film and our team.”