New MetroWest Student Film Festival Features Young Filmmakers

NATICK, MA—From The Center for Arts in Natick: The Center for Arts in Natick and Walnut Hill School for the Arts are pleased to announce a collaborative partnership to produce the inaugural MetroWest Student Film Festival.

The Festival features the work of young filmmakers between the ages of 14 -19 who are residents of the MetroWest region. Selected finalists screen their student films for friends, families, and the general public in a 4-day festival to be held in the state-of-the-art screening room at The Center for Arts in Natick, April 4-7, 2019.

Each short film entry will be judged by a panel of industry professionals and enthusiasts for the categories of Outstanding Live Action, Documentary, Animated, Original Screenplay and Cinematography. Along with a Best Director recognition from the Film Viewing Committee and a special Student Choice Award to be selected by the students in the Writing, Film & Media Arts program at Walnut Hill School for the Arts, who will also be involved in the planning and production of the festival.

"This is a great opportunity for longtime partners to expand the work of giving voice and space to young artists. Students come up with some amazing ideas when they put their hearts into it," said Antonio Viva, Walnut Hill School for the Arts Head of School.

The panel of judges will include international documentary filmmaker, Zadi Zokou, best known regionally for his feature length documentary Praying Town, which tells the history of Native Americans and African American slaves of Natick and Southern New England, and Scott Pressler, Creative Director for the nationally acclaimed media design studio, ONE80 Visual and recipient of five Emmy Awards for his work with NBC. The Festival Directors will be TCAN Cinema Program Director, Nicola Anderson and Walnut Hill Director of Writing, Film & Media Arts, Margaret Funkhouser.

The MWSFF will provide an opportunity for the region’s young filmmakers and production teams to explore and create stories through motion pictures, and take part in workshops and networking opportunities with festival participants.

“The addition of a fully equipped digital cinema to our facility has opened the door to new programming possibilities,” adds David Lavalley, TCAN’s Executive Director since 2004. “Both TCAN and Walnut Hill are excited to combine our resources to showcase student filmmakers throughout the MetroWest region.”

Submissions open officially on June 1, 2018. Interested students are encouraged to visitnatickarts.org/mwsff for all entry rules and submission information. Submission deadline for the inaugural festival is December 1, 2018.