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A new film and music festival to be held in the island later this year has launched a competition - Opening Shots - aimed at discovering young directors. But, there is a twist…
Organisers of the 13th Parish Festival, say the filmmakers have to be under 20 years old and Channel Island residents.
Their films cannot run more than three minutes, and they must be shot using basic cameraphone equipment and cheap or free editing software. But, if you are interested you will have to get shooting soon - the closing date is 26 April.
Pictured: The organisers of the new independent film festival - the 'Parishioners' - (left to right) Secretary Bruce Labey, Treasurer Phil Hogben, Programmer Úna Feely, Chair Martin Greene and Head of Communications Tony Langlois. (David Morgan)
“Many young people are already skilled at recording, editing and uploading material – here the challenge is to tell a story in just three minutes, or even less," Phil Hogben of the festival organising committee explained.
"It might be a film about skateboarding stunts, expressing an opinion, presenting a portrait of a person or place, showcasing a local band, or it could be completely experimental. What we really want to see is an imaginative response to the challenge."
Bruce Labey, of 13th Parish added: “This is a great opportunity for original ideas to move from the small screen to the big screen, and it’s always a totally different experience to see video work with a real audience present. Naturally we hope that aspiring film makers will also be inspired by the wealth of film we will present during the festival.”
Pictured: Locally-born scriptwriter Jenny Lecoat sees the festival as an opportunity to challenge perceptions.
The best submissions will be rewarded with weekend tickets to most events at the Festival and some work will be screened to a live audience. The audience will choose the winner, and a there will be a top prize of £100 presented at the festival closing ceremony on May 19th.
Earlier in the year the festival organisers also launched a scriptwriting competition.
The ‘Jenny Lecoat Award’ seeks to commend short film scripts that tell “innovative or untold stories” about women “that raise or challenge women’s issues, or that show female characters in a light not usually seen in mainstream cinema and television".
Pictured: Organisers promise to release more details about the festival next month.
The festival is being held at the Jersey Arts Centre from 17-19 May and organisers say they will be posting more details on their website in May.
More details about the competitions can also be found at the site.
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