Submissions are being accepted for the 8th annual Oxford Film Festival. You can send your film from May 20 to September 1 for the 2011 festival which runs February 10-13, 2011.

There is also a late deadline of September 15 and WAB extended deadline of October 1. Usually that means higher entrance fees but I don’t know. ANYWAY, get off your lazy butt and get your film in.

The categories are; animation, documentary feature, documentary short, experimental, narrative feature and narrative short. You can submit entries online using withoutabox.com or you can download a form at oxfordfilmfest.com.

Oxford is a smaller festival but one that is gaining in reputation. Professionals of many varieties have nothing but nice things to say about their experience at the fest.

The schedule for 2011 will be ready six weeks before the start of the festival which is non-profit. It is head at the Oxford, Mississippi Malco Studio Cinema. They also have the “Speed Pitch distribution panel” where filmmakers get one-to-one chance to pitch distribution companies. OH! To be a fly on the wall during THAT.

There are also workshops and activities for filmmakers and fans alike.

For more information on the Oxford Film Festival,either call 877-560-FILM or get in touch with  Melanie Addington at melanie@oxfordfilmfest.com.

 

Mabe and Halprin met watching Super 8 films at Chicago filmmakers. Years of bar room conversations (we assume or at least hope alcohol-fueled conversations) about film later and the two are presenting a selection of their own shorts for the perusal of film aficionados in Chicago. Of course, you CAN drive in from elsewhere or even fly in. No one is going to check ID.

Films—and these are films and not digital work—are from various times and both have worked in 8 and 16 mm. The filmmakers will also chat on their films (or since this is bound to be more intellectual let’s say “there will be elucidations”..I like that. It was in the press release).

This 90 minute (or so) program is at Chicago Filmmakers, 5243 North Clark St)

Admission: $8 general, $7 Student and Seniors, $4 Members

For more information-www.chicagofilmmakers.org.

The fine folks at the Midwest Independent Film Fest have juste announced their annual Comedic Shorts Program (line up to come shortly). The program will be held Tuesday, June 1 and will be chock full of Midwest filmmakers aiming to make you chuckle. All the filmmakers will be on hand to chat with the audience and answer questions following the screening.

June 1st will also be Sony and Abel Cine Tech Night as well. Basically this is a presentation of new film technology from the fine folks at the company’s named above. All you filmmakers take note!

For details and news go to the Midwest Independent Film Fest Website.

The Midwest Independent Film Festival is the only fest dedicated to Midwestern movie makers. They present films the first Tuesday of every month at the Landmark Century Center Cinema (2828 North Clark St, Chicago). They rock. If it were not on Tuesdays I would be there myself every month.

There is a new film festival out there attempting to break some molds and knock some heads together. Well, certainly the former and I just made up the latter. Nonethless the New Media Film Festival is trying to further the visual arts by educating and offering a venue to new forms of visual entertainment.

“New Media Film Festival started as a place for filmmakers to learn about the new formats that media is being shot on. The inaugural year we decided to go with categories to include projects shot on the RED camera and 3D as we have seen the development of training programs, groups, trade associations that are working together to develop ways to utilize the technology to its utmost potential, says Susan Johnston, founder and director of the festival. “It's a fascinating time to explore format potential, people are feeling that technology has caught up with vision, now lets try to find a simple way for all of it to play well with each other. In addition, we have mobile and web content.”

The New Media Film Festival exists to offer a platform to showcase innovative ideas and technology.  Yet it isn’t all about technology and advances therein. The festival aims to find the stories worth telling through these media. Just because something is innovative or even looks great doesn’t mean it is, ultimately, watchable.

“We are a boutique festival that honors stories worth telling in all media that are innovative, imaginative and inspirational. Stories that can make you laugh, cry, think & go beyond the ordinary.” says Johnston.

The festival has a variety of categories--RED, Feature Length, Short, Documentary, Webisode, Webseries, Mobile, Mobisode, and 3-D.

Both fans and filmmakers can learn the who, what, why and how with the experts. They can also even learn to distribute their content in the respective new formats through panel discussions.

When asked about the overall philosophy and aims of the festival Johnston says simply; “All ages, All cultures, All media are welcome, we honor stories worth telling .”

The New Media Film Festival will be held June 11-13, 2010 at the Downtown Independent Theater, 251 South Main St. Los Angeles, CA. For more information log on to the New Media Film Festival website.

Susan Johnston is the CEO of award-winning production company Select Services Films. She worked previously with the Providence & Rhode Island film Commissions. Johnston also helped build three other film festivals (one an Academy accredited fest).