Palms Springs heats up with shorts

Palm Springs International Festival Of Short Films Heats up with Student Awards Presented By Kodak

On of the countries most respected short film festivals is The Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films & Film Market.
Heating up the desert community the Festival will be held from August 31 to September 6, 2004. Once again Kodak will honor the best in student filmmaking with ten awards including The Kodak Award for Best Student cinematography. The first place winner of the Best Student Cinematography Award will receive an invitation to attend the 2005 Cannes International Film Festival to showcase a clip of their film in the Kodak Showcase, presented by the Kodak's Emerging Filmmaker Program.

The Tenth Annual Palm Springs International Short Film Festival and Film Market will present over 300 short films on three screens with concurrent Film Market facilities featuring over 2000 shorts, making it the largest short film festival and market in North America. While some people are golfing or in the pool filmgoers will have the opportunity to watch the top short films at this prestigious short festival. The Festival offers 20 awards in ten different categories featuring cash prizes and/or film stock. All submitted films eligible for film market participation for no additional submission fee. Winning films in Live Action and Animation categories are automatically qualified for nomination consideration by AMPAS in the short film categories.

The very active Film Market at this festival is a big plus for distribution companies, studios and other film industry related businesses. With access to viewing 2,000 shorts during the Market, it truly is an opportunity to scan through the newest and best of up and coming filmmakers. Many of the participating filmmakers do make it a point to travel to the arid desert community to meet and greet industry types and the audience.

Kodak, a major sponsor of the Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films and Film Market, provides film stock to winners in five of the Festival's student categories including Best Student Animation, Best Student Documentary, Best Student Live Action (over 15 minutes) Best Student Live Action (15 minutes and under) as well as Kodak Award for Best Student Cinematography. Kodak will award a total of $7,500.00 in film stock during the Festival, with each first place winner receiving $1,000 in film stock, while second place winners will receive $500.00 in film stock. All student filmmakers in competition are eligible for these awards. The deadline for film entries is July 15th.

All of the participants in the annual Kodak Showcase in Cannes have won prestigious student competitions within the United States. The criteria for consideration of the Kodak Award for Best Student Cinematography will include unique uses of the camera, use of lighting or creative lighting techniques, unique looks of creative processing of the film, how well the camera is used to tell the story, and frame composition.

Designated by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) as an
award-qualifying festival and accredited by the International Short Film Conference (ISFC), the Palm Springs International Festival of Short Films is the largest short film showcase in North America. The Festival has captured Hollywood's attention as a scouting ground for new filmmaking talent and is well attended by those in the business of buying and selling short films. In its tenth anniversary edition, PSIFSF will present over 300 short films from over 40 countries with several exciting sidebars and special events. Submissions are accepted online at www.psfilmfest.org.

Keiko Beatie