WebFest Brings the Really Small Screen to the Big Screen
By Rivers Wright, June 21, 2016, 9:30am, Picture in Picture
WebFest, a digital/web series festival, is coming back to Austin for a third year. Boasted as the only festival of its kind in Texas, this year the festival joins forces with Austin Creative Alliance to be considered for ACA’s sponsorship. This will allow the festival to apply for grants to bring WebFest to the next level.
The mission of the festival is to celebrate and promote the artistic elements of the medium, and to nurture and promote the art of filmmaking. The festival considers itself a cultural alternative to the commercial film experience.
Since teaming up with Austin Creative Alliance, WebFest has been able to pull out all the stops for the winner with the grand prize being an all-expense paid trip to Marseille, France, to compete against nine other grand-prize winners from other digital film competitions.
Fifty-one films from around the world have been hand-picked to be screened and considered for the prize this year, including a local student given special admission into the fest.
Along with the films, the convention will feature a Youth in Film and Digital Screenplay panel that will highlight the people behind the scenes who rarely get the spotlight.
The Youth in Film Digital Series, moderated by WebFest founder Eric Robbins’ son, explores what it's like working on a film at a young age and will segue into the introduction of the Youth in Film Digital Series competition for 2017.
Other changes for year four of the festival include a Digital Screenplay competition for those written works that have not had the chance to bring the script to life. The time limit for the films will also change from 13 to 22 minutes to tap into the television market should any major networks take interest in anything that is being screened.
Local series chosen to participate in the fest include The Pantsless Detective, Love Guv, Varney the Vampire, and Extinction Event.
For schedule information or to purchase badges, visit www.austinwebfestival.com
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