CinefestOZ Film Festival is encouraging young filmmakers across the South West to search for creative gold with the announcement of the theme for Cinesnaps 2021 – “Treasure”.

The Cinesnaps Short Film Competition encourages young, aspiring South West filmmakers, Youtubers and vloggers to create and showcase original short films of 3-5 minutes.

Now open to ALL secondary students in the South West and Albany regions. Entry is free and participants can enter either the “Years 7-9” or “Years 10-12” categories.

The competition will culminate in the Cinesnaps Grand Finale where a panel of judges, headed by Cinesnaps Patron Myles Pollard, will provide feedback to the finalists infront of more than 200 guests at a youth red carpet screening during CinefestOZ 2021.

The 2021 Cinesnaps Short Film Competition opens  on 1 December, with entry packs available at cinesnaps.com.au

This year, 23 production teams from nine schools across the South West, including Albany, entered this year’s Cinesnaps, the theme of which, “Suitcase”, inspired some very creative entries as students navigated their way through Covid-19 restrictions.

Each of the finalists were given feedback on their films from a jury of esteemed filmmakers, which this year also included producer Kate Separovich and casting director Annie Murtagh-Monks.

The competition was won by Poppy Treloar for her film Sand Box while 2018 and 2019 back-to-back winners James Kenworthy and Cooper Warrick were runners-up with The Decoy.

CinefestOZ Community Manager Gabrielle Whirledge said: “This year’s field of entrants not only showed great versatility but also an artistic resilience that this year in particular required from young creatives.”

The Cinesnaps Short Film Competition forms part of CinefestOZ’s Cinesnaps Schools Program, which includes festival incursions with filmmaker Q&As, school excursions, teachers’ professional development sessions and the newly created CineOnline hosting various film related content.

Interested schools, teachers or students can find out more at cinesnaps.com.au

CinefestOZ will return to the South West in 2021 with a feast of live screenings and events from 25-29 August. Set in the seaside centres of Bunbury, Busselton, and the Margaret River wine region, the Festival premieres films and special events in the region’s cinemas and venues, making for an unforgettable six-day getaway.

Heading into its 14th year, CinefestOZ provides a unique opportunity for audiences to rub shoulders with the stars on the red carpet ahead of film screenings and listen to exclusive In Conversations with filmmakers at some of the South West’s most picturesque venues.

2021 will also see the return of the CinefestOZ Short Film Prize, which was introduced in 2020 as a way of turning the spotlight on WA and Australian filmmakers.

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CinefestOZ acknowledges the Wardandi people, the spiritual and cultural custodians of this land on which we live and work. We honour and respect the significant role First Nations people play in our community and in guiding us and allowing our festival to flourish. Please take a moment to think about the land you currently reside upon wherever you may be and acknowledge those who went before you and those yet to come.