Film Festival marks Independence with 50-second film competition

The Trinidad and Tobago Film Festival (TTFF) and Flow are inviting filmmakers to submit short films on the topic of Independence to a film competition celebrating the country’s 50th Independence anniversary. Entitled Side by Side, in tribute to T&T’s national anthem, the competition is seeking the best 50-second films that express what Independence means to the filmmaker. Submissions will be accepted on any interpretation of the word “independence,” and filmmakers are encouraged to be as creative as they wish and explore any aspect of what the word means to them. The competition is open to filmmakers of all ages, amateurs as well as professionals.

Submissions will be accepted until August 1. Directors of the five best films will each win a Flow package of services, valued at a total of $40,000. Additionally, the best film overall will be awarded $5,000 at the TTFF awards ceremony on September 30. Films are to be submitted via private link on YouTube and must be of a minimum resolution of 720 by 480 NTSC. The 50-second film competition is part of a wider TTFF/12 Side by Side Independence Showcase, to take place in August, which will also include community screenings throughout both islands and an exhibition of cinema history in T&T from 1945–1999, at the Academy of the Performing Arts (NAPA), Port-of -Spain.For more information on the Side by Side competition, visit www.ttfilmfestival.com , call the TTFF office at 621-0709 or e-mail hello@ttfilmfestival.com