On July 2, the LA India Film Council announced a unique online short film competition to encourage creativity and ideas from film students in India and Los Angeles.
“LA – India Connect” will provide an opportunity to students to showcase their imagination, vision and story-telling ability by making a short film based on the ‘Hollywood – Bollywood’ theme. Participants will be judged on their ability to create a film that bypasses geographical boundaries and appeals to audiences everywhere. Films must be no more than ten minutes duration.
The winners of the competition, from India and Los Angeles, will each receive a cash prize of USD$1,000 and an opportunity to gain experience with a leading production company.
The short film entries will be made available to view via the website: www.1takecontests.com. Viewers will be able to vote for their favourite film, and the winning film will receive the “Most Popular FilmAward”.
Additionally, every participant will get an opportunity to generate revenue from their film through Pocket Films, a short film division of 1takemedia.com, India’s leading aggregator and distributor of alternate content.
The competition will be judged by a jury of high-profile film industry representatives from Los Angeles and India, including Shekhar Kapur, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Mahesh Bhatt, Nagesh Kukunoor, D.J Narain – Director, Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Ravi Gupta -Dean, Whistling Woods International (WWI), Mr. D. Suresh Babu- President, Andhra Pradesh Film Chamber of Commerce, Dean Teri Schwartz – UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television and Mr. Steve Weinstein -President & CEO, MovieLabs.
On the occasion, critically acclaimed filmmaker Shekhar Kapur said “The LA – India Connect contest leaves the canvas open for students to paint their imagination through the medium of short films. I encourage all participants to push their creative boundaries and express themselves through their films.”
Dean Schwartz, Dean of the UCLA School of Theatre, Film and Television said, “LA – India Connect will help a dynamic and diverse range of students take their education and creative work a very promising step forward while bringing two of the world’s largest filmmaking communities together for this very important contest. I wish all of the students the very best of luck and look forward to seeing some outstanding and exciting entries.”
Mr. Steve Weinstein, President and CEO, Movie Labs said, “I am delighted to be part of this unique initiative by the LA India Film Council. These are exciting and changing times in the film and entertainment industry with limitless possibilities. The contest will throw new light on the creativity and imagination of students of two different cultures.”
Mike Ellis, President and Managing Director, Asia Pacific, Motion Picture Association (MPA), said, “Hollywood and Bollywood are two of the most vibrant film hubs in the world, and this short film competition is a great way to discover new filmmaking talent from those two exciting film communities. Connecting emerging filmmakers via an online short film competition is an innovative way to stimulate collaboration, experience new stories and provide another avenue for people to enjoy original ideas on screen.”
Mr. Uday Singh, Chairman, LA India Film Council, added, “It is important to nurture talent and give students an opportunity to showcase their work as they are the building blocks of the entertainment industry. This competition is our attempt to connect Hollywood and Bollywood and appreciate and acknowledge talent in both these communities.”
Application Details:
- Open only to film and media students in Los Angeles and India
- No participation fee
- Submissions open from: 2nd July 2012
- Late date for entries: 14thAugust 2012
- For details and entry forms: Visit: www.1takecontests.com
- Call: +91-022-26249185
- Email: info@pocketfilms.in
- Visit www.laindiafilmcouncil.org or www.facebook.com/laindiafilmcouncil for more details on the Council