Last night, quite randomly, I was invited by Shelley and Andrew to join them at a film festival held in the courtyard of the World Financial Center. The festival is known as "Tropfest" and its focus is short films. The festival was started in Sydney, Australia in 1993 with one film being screened for an audience of 200 at the Tropicana Café (hence the name). The festival has grown steadily over the years and presently there are festivals in various cities. Last night was the New York festival, with audiences from Toronto joining via satellite.
The idea behind Tropfest is that filmmakers submit short films, no longer than 7 minutes, which include, one way or another, the Tropic Signature Item. This signature items vary from objects such as umbrellas, the number eight, and, this year's item, a sunflower. Of all the submissions, eight are chosen as finalists, and screened at the festival in front of audiences and judges. Prizes are awarded for Best Actor, Best Actress, People's Choice (audiences vote by texting their favorites), and Best Film.
The festival last night began by screening eight films from past festivals as the "Best of Tropfest" and continued into the night with the eight finalists from this year. At the end, an awards ceremony is held to honor the winners of the contest. The films were very amusing ranging from comical (a suicidal sunflower befriends his owner), drama (a Norwegian film about a love triangle), and documentary (great white shark hunters in Australia). The winner of the contest and the People's Choice Award last night was a film shot entirely on a cell phone using words from signs around New York City and Sydney to send a message regarding homelessness.
No comments:
Post a Comment