PERFORMING ARTS |By Kathleen Kaiser

Deadline for Ojai Film Festival Submissions is Rapidly Approaching

Films, screenplays, animated, features, docs and short all welcomed

(Ojai, CA – June 11, 2018) Submissions will close July 1 for the 19th annual Ojai Film Festival. Ranked as one of the Top 100 Best Reviewed Festivals on FilmFreeway (the number one film submission platform worldwide) the Ojai Film Festival continues to grow in prestige as one of the country’s premier destination festivals. Dates this year are November 1-11.

The festival has a full day of films from the Central Coast called the Gold Coast Screenings. “We want to highlight the quality and variety of films being created in this region,” said Steve Grumette, Artistic Director for the Festival.

The 10-day Film Festival has a reputation for showcasing the best new films from emerging and established filmmakers, and has helped launch a number of careers over the last decade. Since 2000, 15 alumni have received Academy Award nominations, two have won an Oscar, and numerous others have gone on to gain distribution and win prestigious awards.

“Our festival provides a valuable service to filmmakers,” said Grumette, “by giving them access to a sophisticated and highly appreciative audience that includes film industry professionals who can help guide their careers. We are particularly proud of the fact that over a dozen films first shown at the Ojai Film Festival have gone on to win great honors elsewhere, including Academy Awards and Nominations.”

“We added this screenplay competition to the festival,” said Bruce Novotny, Screenplay Competition chairman, “in order to celebrate the very starting point of the creative process — the story. In only two years of it being a part of the event, the quality of the screenplays submitted — from all over the world — has been outstanding, and the live read of our most recent winning script was a big crowd favorite.”

The winning screenwriter receives lodging and passes to the Ojai Film Festival’s Awards Ceremony, where the winning screenwriter is given special recognition, a trophy and a table read staged by the well-established acting community in Ojai.

Among other perks, attending filmmakers receive lodging and passes to the Ojai Film Festival’s Awards Ceremony, where winning filmmakers are presented with several prizes, including trophies, cash awards, best-of category honors, and a Panavision camera rental package worth $60,000 USD for the Best Student Film.

The Festival’s theme is “Enriching the Human Spirit Through Film.” The event provides audiences a diverse lineup of titles from around the world, including many groundbreaking works that would otherwise be inaccessible. Past entries represent over 43 countries. Submissions may be short or long narrative, short or long documentary, or animation.

The Ojai Film Festival gives filmmakers access to a highly appreciative audience of savvy and informed film fans. Ojai’s growing importance on the festival circuit is reflected in the fact that legendary Hollywood producer Peter Guber told the audience at a recent Toronto International Film Festival that “Ojai is the next Telluride.”

ENTRY DEADLINES AND FEES:
FILM – Extended Deadline (July 1) entry fees: Features — $65, Shorts — $60
SCREENPLAYS – Extended Deadline: July 1, 2018 – Fee $55

To enter go to www.ojaifilmfestival.com/entries/
Accepted entries will be notified in mid-August.
The Ojai Film Festival takes place from November 1 – 11, at theaters around Ojai. For details about the Festival visit: www.OjaiFilmFestival.com