Call for entries: Wyoming Short Film Contest

From a press release:

The Wyoming Short Film Contest is back and open for submissions. With the first year in the history books and the 2008 winner's check in the mail all things are set to go for another year of film. Shown above is one of four films by David Gonzales, last year's award winner. It's about Jackson Hole surfers at "Lunch Counter" on the Snake River. For David's other films, go to filmwyoming.blogspot.com.

"We're proud of our contest, and excited to offer it a second time," said Colin Stricklin of the Wyoming Film Office. "This [contest] is a great way to support local filmmakers and to get the message out about shooting in Wyoming." With a first prize of $25,000 towards the budget of the winner's next made-in-Wyoming film, that's a sizable chunk of support indeed for one lucky filmmaker.

Partnering this year with media hosting service mDialog.com, the 2009 Contest is going fully digital. Entrants will upload submissions directly to an mDialog channel for judging. There, films are converted into high quality MPEG-4 h.264 videos, preserving sound and picture quality without the hassle of snail mail.

All submissions are due on or before April 30, 2009, and must be 15 minutes or less in length. All styles and genres are welcome, and the only content requirement is a tie to Wyoming, whether it's shot in the state or features Wyoming as a character in the storyline. There is no entry fee, no limit on submissions, and no residency restrictions to enter.

"Last year we saw a wide range of film submissions," said Michell Howard, manager of the Wyoming Film Office. "We had entries from California, Canada, and even places like South Korea, not to mention Jackson Hole, Sheridan, and Cody."

For full contest rules and submission instructions, visit http://www.filmwyoming.com/ and click the "Wyoming Short Film Contest" button.

FMI: Lori Hogan, 307.777.2889 or lori.hogan@visitwyo.gov