Local Hero Heidi Quintrell Wins Statewide Film Award

Press release from HUMBOLDT – DEL NORTE Film Commission:

Heidi Quintrell Acceptance Speech

Film Liaison in California Statewide’s (FLICS) threw another epic California On Location Award show (The COLAs) which took place on Sunday, December 8th held at the beautiful Hilton Los Angeles in Universal City. The COLAS honors the best Location Professionals in entertainment as well as Public, State, and Federal employees that go above and beyond in assisting productions during filming. Cassandra Hesseltine, the region’s Film Commissioner and Vice President of FLICS, presented the first award of the night.

We are proud to announce that our very own local from CalTrans District 1, Heidi Quintrell won the Public Employee of the Year State award for her hard work and dedication in assisting the location team for the Paul Thomas Anderson’s BC Project, now titled The Battle of Baktan Cross. Quintrell was nominated by Hesseltine for her contribution in keeping the region film friendly and ability to problem solve ever so gracefully.

The final award of the night was a celebration for the area as well. Location Team of the Year

Heidi Quintrell and Cassandra Hesseltine

Studio was granted to the team of The Battle of Baktan Cross which Hesseltine worked closely with for the portions that were filmed in Humboldt County.

The recipients of the COLA’s are selected from many qualified finalists by a panel of film industry experts. The judges for 2024 bring their own experience from production work to determine the award winners, as well as assuring objectiveness in the judging process.

When selecting the COLA finalists, all nominations for the awards are voted on by FLICS, a steering committee from Teamsters Local 399, and location manager award winners from previous years. The top vote getters become finalists and then judges meet to discuss the nominations in each category of awards. The vote is a secret ballot, and the recipients are revealed for the first time at the ceremony.

The Humboldt-Del Norte Film Commission is proud to see our region getting recognition for our film friendly locations and locals. We have had various locals over the years that have been both finalists and winners at this award show. If you would like to learn more about the COLAs you can visit https://colaawards.com/ or to learn more about what the Humboldt-Del Norte Film Commission does, visit https://hdnfc.org/.

Hesseltine wrapped up her Los Angeles trip with studio Meet and Greet at Netflix and Warner Brothers with other Film Commission members of FLICS where she met studio producers and execs to discuss filming statewide and within the region.