Tropfest: The World's Most Celebrated Short Film Festival
Tropfest, the world’s largest short film festival, returns for its 19th year on February 20, with the main event being held in the Domain in Sydney. For this year's Tropfest, 16 finalists have been selected from over 700 entries, and will be screened in the Domain as well as at outdoor venues around Australia to an anticipated live audience of over 150,000 film fans.
Tropfest organisers say that the quality of entries they’ve received this year is so strong that they’ve decided to let the 16th finalist be decided by the people. Ten shortlisted entries have been posted on YouTube, and the one with the largest number of viewer votes will be the surprise last film of the evening, and the potential winner of the grand prize -- $5000 cash and the opportunity to attend the prestigious Sundance Film Festival 2012.
Entry to Tropfest is open to filmmakers from Australia and around the globe, and thanks to a new partnership with YouTube, entering is as simple as uploading your video to the internet. For the first time ever, all the international finalists will be flown to Sydney to mix it up on the red carpet with their fellow entrants and a host of local stars. It’s a far cry from the early days of Tropfest, when founder/director John Polson and a modest gathering of mates would screen movies on a blank wall in Darlinghurst’s Tropicana Café.
Now regarded as an event of global importance for up-and-coming movie makers, the Tropfest short film festival brings some of the cinematic elite to Sydney as sponsors, guests and judges. Past Tropfests have seen the likes of Samuel L. Jackson, Geoffrey Rush and Nicole Kidman grace the Domain stage to announce the winners.
While the Tropfest finalists run the full gamut from hilarious to heart-wrenching, from zero budget bang-ups to slick-looking flicks and gritty documentaries, every Tropfest entry must follow two simple rules. First, they must be under seven minutes long. And, they must be original works that haven’t been screened publically elsewhere. To make sure every entry has been specifically made for Tropfest, every year there is a Tropfest signature item that must be incorporated into the film. This year, the signature item is "key."
Tropfest in the Domain kicks off at 3pm. The finalist screenings begin at 8pm, but you’ll want to get there in the early afternoon to bag the best spot, as it gets mighty crowded well before sundown. There’ll be pre-show entertainment, including live bands, DJ sets and antics from your celebrity MCs. Bring along a picnic rug and your own gourmet spread, or tuck into the hot food and cool beverages on sale from stalls dotted around the Domain.
HelloSydney Tip: If you can't make it to the Domain, then catch Movie Extra Tropfest 2011 live on Movie Extra from 7:30pm on Sunday 20 February.
Posted on Feb 10, 2011 by Fiona Davies
