Fifth Annual Bethesda Film Fest Showcases Short Documentaries by Local Filmmakers

From Bethesda Film Fest:

BETHESDA, MD – The Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District announces the fifth annual Bethesda Film Fest, a documentary film festival featuring short documentary films. Entries must be received by January 4, 2017. Filmmakers from Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. are eligible to apply. A documentary by a young filmmaker, under 18 years of age, may also be chosen.

Selected filmmakers will show their documentaries at the formal screenings on March 17 and 18, 2017 at Imagination Stage located at 4908 Auburn Avenue in downtown Bethesda. Selected filmmakers will receive a $500 honorarium. Young filmmakers will receive a $250 honorarium.

Entries will be viewed by the Bethesda Film Fest selection panel, consisting of award-winning documentary filmmakers Sam Hampton, co-founder of Docs In Progress and Hampton Consulting & Film; Chithra Jeyaram, Founder and Creative Director of Real Talkies production company and Robin Smith, Founder and President of production company Video/Action.

Filmmakers in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. are eligible to submit a short documentary film, 5-30 minutes in length. All topics are eligible. Films must have been completed within the last two years. Young filmmakers, under 18 years of age, may also submit work. Filmmakers may only submit one film for consideration. There is a $25 entry fee; filmmakers under 18 years old pay a $20 entry fee. Filmmakers chosen for the 2016 festival are not eligible and may apply again for the 2018 festival. Selected filmmakers are required to attend the screenings on March 17-18, 2017 and speak about their work.

Entries can be submitted online at www.bethesda.org. Filmmakers may also apply by mailing a completed application, submission fee and DVD including the documentary, 5-30 minutes in length, to Bethesda Film Fest c/o Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District, 7700 Old Georgetown Rd., Bethesda, MD 20814. Entries must be received by January 4, 2017.

For an application, please visit www.bethesda.org or call 301/215-6660.

From award-winning theatre to independent films, downtown Bethesda’s Arts & Entertainment District is filled with inspiring artists and art venues. The Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District is managed by the Bethesda Urban Partnership, Inc., and is the producer of The Trawick Prize: Bethesda Contemporary Art Awards, Bethesda Painting Awards, Bethesda Fine Arts Festival, Bethesda Artist Market, Bethesda Art Walk, Dance Bethesda and Play In A Day.

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