YouthFilm
Northampton Arts Council Call for Entries

The Northampton Arts Council will once again present YouthFilm, a day-long festival of film and video created by local youth in February 2014. The festival accepts film and video entries from throughout the region by young people from 5–18 years old, due by January 20, 2014… so get crackin’!

Is video the most popular creative medium in your household? Young film and video artists are invited to share their work at the Northampton Arts Council’s annual event, YouthFilm – a celebration of the work created by young budding visual artists. Held as a part of the council’s KidsBestFest, a kid-friendly festival of international film, YouthFilm is not only a celebration of the work of local youth – it is an event that builds a bridge between the examination and admiration of others’ work and creating and contributing original work to the field, allowing young artists the opportunity to become part of the world of film-making at a young age.

YouthFilm will be held on Saturday, February 22nd at the Academy of Music on Main Street in Northampton. However, entries to the festival are due by January 20th in order to be considered for screening. Films must be 30 minutes or less and must be submitted in digital form, but entries are not limited by any other restrictions – all genres and subjects are welcome to be explored within the videos.

Here is Emma Strebel’s submission last year titled, “Finding My  Way”:

While the event is designed to provide opportunity for public screenings of work created by those who work in film and video already, the event also presents the opportunity for youth to begin experimenting and learning how to effectively convey ideas through film and video. Basic software for filming and editing videos is available for all sorts of devices, providing kids with easy access to simple tools for digital filmmaking. Very basic video editing can even be done online, using the tools provided by YouTube and similar video platform sites. Young videographers need not be hindered by a lack of access to fancy equipment – good art is not necessarily dependent on fancy or high-tech materials, so start experimenting!

For more information about YouthFilm, contact Tiffany Nova of the Northampton Arts Council at 413-587-1269 or tnova@smith.edu.