June 15 is the deadline for the 19th annual Lake Michigan Film Competition.
The competition is part of the East Lansing Film Festival (ELFF), the largest and second oldest film festival in Michigan. Cash prizes are awarded to films made in the four states that surround Lake Michigan: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin. Completed films that are at least one quarter produced, directed or financed in these states qualify for the competition. Winning films will be screened during the Film Festival. They also qualify to earn Audience Awards.
Categories include feature, documentary, short film and student film.
Under the current deadline, submission fees for every category are $30 but will increase to $50 after June 15. The extended deadline is July 1.
All entries must be in English or have English subtitles for eligibility. Winners will be notified via email by September 15.
One winning student filmmaker will earn a filmmaking package worth up to $5,000, including access to professional video editing software.
Susan Woods founded ELFF in 1998 after she moved to East Lansing with her husband, Dr. Johannes Bauer, current chairperson of the Department of Media and Information at MSU. Prior to moving to East Lansing, Woods was the coordinator of the San Francisco International Film Festival.
“(The Lake Michigan Film Competition) is a prestigious and unique competition in this area,” Woods said. “It’s a great event.”
Woods said ELFF has received more submissions for the competition this year than in previous years. She credits ELFF’s success to positive word of mouth and presenting high quality films every year.
“(ELFF is) a really good film festival, and it’s finally taken off through word of mouth,” Woods said. “I’d say this year is the best group ever.”
Filmmakers can submit entries for the Lake Michigan Film Competition through FilmFreeway, a submissions platform that collaborates with film festivals from all over the world, including the Portland Film Festival in Oregon and the Kuala Lumpur Eco Film Festival in Malaysia.
For a complete list of rules and guidelines, filmmakers should visit https://filmfreeway.com/festival/EastLansingFilmFestival.
The 2016 East Lansing Film Festival will be Nov. 3 through 10.
