The South Georgia Film Festival will begin accepting submissions beginning April 6.

https://filmfreeway.com/SOUTHGEORGIAFILMFESTIVAL

Celebrating the creative spirit, the South Georgia Film Festival will be accepting submissions showcasing the beauty of the region and its people.

We are seeking submissions in four categories:
– High School Aged Students
– College Students
– Shorts
– Features
Preference will be given to filmmakers from Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee and South Carolina. Winners in the high school and college categories have the opportunity to receive scholarships to Valdosta State University.

Submitted films will be screened on the campus of Valdosta State University March 1 – 3, 2019, in the Student Union Theater. Films will be judged by experts in the region. Awards for each category will be given by regional sponsors along recognition for other notable achievements, such Best Production Design, Best Documentary or Best Acting.

The total running time (everything) must be under 15 minutes in length for the Shorts, High School and College categories. Feature films are not limited based on length.

All participants will be invited to attend the screenings and discussions at the campus of Valdosta State University. Chosen filmmakers will be notified of their film screening by February 25, 2019.

We accept films on a rolling schedule:

Very Early Deadline          –            July 2, 2018
Early Deadline                   –             September 26, 2018
Regular Deadline              –             December 8, 2018
Very Late Deadline           –             January 25, 2019

We absolutely will notify filmmakers by February 25, 2019, but intend to do so sooner.

https://filmfreeway.com/SOUTHGEORGIAFILMFESTIVAL

The three day film festival on the campus of Valdosta State University featuring filmmakers from around the country and the world. Hosts a film competition for high school and college filmmakers as well as professional filmmakers from around the world.

This year’s big winner was Katheryne Garrido whose film Daydreamer won Best High School, Best Directing and Best of Fest. Garrido, from Gastonia, NC, won a scholarship to attend Valdosta State University.

This year’s college winner was Laura Holliday’s The First Month.  Holliday recently graduated of Idyllwild Arts Academy in California and attends Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles, she recently was recognized as a Sundance Ignite Fellow at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Holliday’s film, currently available on FUNNY OR DIE, was an autobiographical story of a young woman going off to an Arts Boarding School.

“Cursed World Problems” by Doug Hawley – Open Category
Hawley is a film professional in Los Angeles. His film is a satirical look at a family dealing with old world curses.

 

All three films were awarded a lovely trophy from Harmon’s Awards here in Valdosta, and they also received tickets to Wild Adventures theme park for the 2018 season. Both the college and high school winners also received a $2,000 per semester scholarship to attend Valdosta State University.

Thanks to an award from American Youth Film Festival, the runners-up in the High School and College divisions were also recognized. Derek Walker, from Decatur, received the High School runner-up certificate for his film “Global Dynamics: A Robot Doc.” Javad Daraei, from Karaj, Iran, was recognized as the college runner-up for his film “Limit.”

“Daydreamer” was also recognized as the best film in competition overall. This year’s judges, which included filmmakers, panelists and local celebrities, reviewed all of this year’s films and decided to recognize much of the work of filmmakers in other ways as well.

That recognition included:

Best Narrative was awarded to Laura Holliday’s The First Month.
Best Documentary was awarded to David Johnson and Sonja Norris for 19 Year: The Story of Dick Rockey, Tom Odom and Valdosta State University Football.

Best Actress was awarded to Doree Seay from Cursed World Problems.
Best Actor was awarded to Davod Moeini Kiya from the film Limit.
Best Ensemble Cast was awarded to the cast of The First Month

Best Production Design was awarded to Limit.
Best Cinematography was awarded to Dwayne Green for The Butcher.
Best Sound Design was awarded to Colin Guthrie for Western Jubilee.
Best Editing was awarded to Gabby Fiszman for Utforska.
Best Director was awarded to Kathryne Garrido for Daydreamer.

“We would like to thank Georgia Power for their generous contribution to the festival,” said Brown. “Audrey King of Georgia Power was able to present the awards Sunday at the South Georgia Film Festival ceremony along with our own Sonny Shroyer.

“This year’s festival also received a tremendous amount of support from the Valdosta State University College of the Arts and a grant from the Georgia Council for the Arts. We greatly appreciate that.”

Community sponsors such as Valdosta Daily Times, WCTV, the City of Valdosta, the Valdosta-Lowndes County Chamber of Commerce, the Turner Center, Fairway Outdoor, 92.1 Talk, Tipsy Transit and Fusion Marketing were instrumental making this year’s festival a success.