Black Voices Matter 2020
RULES & REGULATIONS
Non-competitive festival. All projects will be shared on IGtv IN PERPETUITY.
1. Director, Writer, and/or Producer must be a member of the Black community.
2. Projects will be accepted and shared on a ROLLING basis. Event date listed is for FilmFreeway purposes only.
3. Filmed theatrical performances, Web Series, Readings of Books/Excerpts, Film, Music Videos Instagram Videos, TikToks - All Qualify.
4. No restriction on dates of production.
5. Submission must be an mp4 download. Downloadable Vimeo links will be accepted.
6. Include your social media handles and requested hashtags for proper credit.
8. Non-English language works must have English subtitles but should retain the original language audio.
8.. Entrants must comply with all of these Entry Rules & Regulations, including deadline(s) and entry material requirements, and selected film requirements.
9. Multiple entries will be accepted provided they are submitted individually.
10. All materials (film/project, poster, Instagram handles, contact info, etc) must be readily available within your FilmFreeway submission.
11. PROJECTS WILL BE SHARED ON IGtv IN PERPETUITY. This may affect distribution opportunities for film projects. Please keep this in mind before submitting.
Any questions may be directed to team@bigdreamsandsilverscreens.org
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A Statement from Big Dreams & Silver Screens/Westfield International Film Festival:
We regret to report that we will not be hosting either the Westfield International Film Festival or the Big Dreams Youth Film Festival in 2020.
We believe in transparancy and would like to share the reason for our hiatus.
The festival first began seven years ago as a small one night only event in Rahway. It has since grown to the four day affair that you have come to know and love. Gina Marie Rodriguez (Founder/Festival Director) and Stacy Ignacio (Assistant Director) have personally and annually funded the majority of the event since its inception.
Our move to Westfield has afforded us remarkable new opportunities, for which we are very grateful, but with those opportunities have come increased costs. As additional fundraising efforts have not yielded the necessary funds, we are no longer able to continue funding this production, nor the Big Dreams Youth Film Festival.
We are speaking with the Town of Westfield and our venue, The James Ward Mansion, with aspirations of returning next year, in 2021.
We appreciate the support of our existing sponsors, filmmakers, and patrons and hope that we have made you proud these last seven years.
If you are still owed deliverables at the time of this statement, please know that we are working towards finalizing all open projects. You may feel free to reach out to us with any questions or concerns.
With the greatest thanks and appreciation,
Gina & Stacy
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Big Dreams Youth Film Festival is an annual film festival exclusively for New Jersey students in Grades 1 through 12! Selected films will screen at our 4th Annual Big Dreams Youth Film Festival at the James Ward Mansion in Westfield, NJ on May 11, 2019.
Are you a New Jersey student? Do you have a story to tell? Share it with us!
Documentaries, Narratives, Animation are all welcome.
Submissions are FREE, FREE, FREE!
Parents and/or teachers may submit on the behalf of students. All contact will be conducted with whomever submits the film.
PLEASE BE CERTAIN TO CHECK YOUR E-MAIL. This is how festival directors will communicate with all accepted filmmakers.
**This festival is for students in New Jersey, USA ONLY! Applicants must submit to ONE category only. All others will be disqualified.
For more information, follow our website at https://www.bigdreamsandsilverscreens.org/youth-festival.
The grand prize winners will have their film screened at our main event, Westfield International Film Festival (a Big Dreams and Silver Screens production) and will receive a trophy for their accomplishments.