Reel Shorts Film Festival

The Reel Shorts Film Festival, held annually in Grande Prairie, Alberta since 2007, is recognized as one of North America's best short film festivals.[1] Its programming focus is short-form cinematic storytelling, screening "gems of storytelling brilliance" from around the world, across Canada, and in the Peace Region.[2][3] The purpose is twofold: to entertain, educate, and engage audiences; and to grow the film-making community in the Peace Region by inspiring, developing, and showcasing its filmmakers. Thousands of submissions are received annually[4] from which 80-105 short films are selected.[5] It is a qualifying festival for the Canadian Screen Awards.[6]

Reel Shorts Film Festival
LocationGrande Prairie, Alberta, Canada
Hosted byReel Shorts Film Society
No. of films80+
LanguageInternational
Websitehttp://reelshorts.ca

History

Terry Scerbak founded the festival as a production of the nonprofit Grande Prairie Live Theatre in 2007.[7] In 2016, she was one of the founding members of the Reel Shorts Film Society which took over the production of the festival in 2017 with the full support and cooperation of the GPLT Board of Directors.[8]

The festival's program has grown from 3 days screening 38 films in 2007[2] to 6–8 days screening 80-105 films since 2014.[5] The 14th edition of the festival, originally scheduled for May 4–11, 2020 but postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, takes place April 26 to May 3, 2021.[9]

Awards

Since 2010, audiences have determined the winner(s) of the Audience Choice Awards. Since 2014, the directors of Audience Choice Awards and Jury Awards have received an award designed by Grande Prairie sculptor Grant Berg.

Audience Choice Awards
Year Audience Choice Short Youth Audience Choice Short
2019[10] The Blue Door (dir. Paul Taylor, UK) All in Good Time (dir. Bonnie Dempsey, Ireland)
2018[11] The Ambassador (dir. Shane Atkinson, France) Rag Dolls (dir. Justin and Kristin Schaack, USA)
2017[12] The Babysitter Murders (dir. Ryan Spindell, USA) Get Up Kinshasa! (dir. Sébastien Maitre, France)
2016[13] Discipline (dir. Christophe M. Saber, Switzerland) Dji. Death Sails (dir. Dmitri Voloshin, Moldova)
2015[14] The Gunfighter (dir. Eric Kissack, USA) Foster Dog (dir. Lisa Alonso Vear, USA)
2014[15] Fool's Day (dir. Cody Blue Snider, USA)
2013[16] A Senior Moment (dir. Michelle Davidson, USA)
2012[17] Sugar (Suiker) (dir. Jeroen Annokkée, Netherlands)
2011[18] The Legend of Beaver Dam (dir. Jerome Sable, Canada)
2010[17] Multiple Choice (dir. Michael Goode, Australia)

In 2014, the festival became competitive and presented the following awards.

Jury Awards
Year Best Live Action Short Under 15 Minutes Best Live Action Short 15+ Minutes Best Animated Short Best Documentary Short
2019[19] The Blue Door (dir. Paul Taylor, UK) Suck It Up (Avaler des couleuvres) (dir. Jan Sitta, France) The Driver is Red (dir. Randall Christopher, USA) The Day Don Died (dir. Steve J. Adams and Sean Horlor, Canada)
2018[20] About the Birds and the Bees (dir. J.J. (Janne) Vanhanen, Finland) The Winkles (Les Bigorneaux) (dir. Alice Vial, France) Two Trams (dir. Svetlana Andrianova, Russian Federation) Fixed! (dir. Cat Mills, Canada)
2017[21] Camping with Ada (Campingliv) (dir. Ina Lerner Grevstad, Norway) La femme et le TGV (dir. Timo von Gunten, Switzerland) Borrowed Time (dir. Lou Hamou-Lhadj and Andrew Coats, USA) 12 Days in Idomeni (dir. Javier Sobremazas, Germany)
Year Best Live Action Short Under 13 Minutes Best Live Action Short 13+ Minutes Best Animated Short Best Documentary Short
2016[22] The Jacket (Die Jacke) (dir. Patrick Vollrath, Austria) Wolf Head (Gueule de loup) (dir. Alice Vial, France) The OceanMaker (dir. Lucas Martell, Belize/USA) The House is Innocent (dir. Nicholas Coles, USA)
Year Best Live Action Short Best Animated Short Best Documentary Short
2015[23] The Way of Tea (Les frémissements du thé) (dir. Marc Fouchard, France) Strings (Cuerdas) (dir. Pedro Solis Garcia, Spain) The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom (dir. Lucy Walker, Japan/USA)
2014[24] Dotty (dir. Mick Andrews and Brett O'Gorman, New Zealand) Oh Sheep! (dir. Gottfried Mentor, Germany) Grandpa and Me and a Helicopter to Heaven (Morfar och Jag och Helikoptern till Himlen) (Åsa Blanck and Johan Palmgren, Sweden)

Film Productions

In the summer of 2012, the festival produced a short film as part of Shoot for Reel,[25] a two-week internship training program for 12 interns which was a collaboration between the festival, Grande Prairie Regional College, and Ricebrain Media, a Vancouver film company whose president (Scott Belyea) grew up in Grande Prairie. The Horizon Project, the short film that Belyea directed during the 11 days of Shoot for Reel,[26] premiered at the 7th Reel Shorts Film Festival in 2013.[27]

The school program of screenings, training,[28][29] and filmmaker class visits is a big component of the film festival.[30] In 2013, the festival produced HB, an 8-minute film directed by Nathan Fast, as part of the Youth Film Mentorship Project.[31] On Sep 29, 2013, it won the Best Overall Youth Short Film Award at the Calgary International Film Festival[32] and a month later won the Young Filmmakers Program Competition Grand Prize at the 2013 Austin Film Festival.[33]

In the summer of 2018, the festival helped fund the production of the short film Aeternitas as part of the 2018 Shoot for Reel,[34] a five-day internship training program for 12 interns led by Writer/Director Gordie Haakstad and Cinematographer Chris Beauchamp, owners of The Distillery Film Company and producers of the film.[35] Aeternitas was nominated for six Rosie Awards in 2019 for Drama Under 30 Minutes[36] and won two of them: Gordie Haakstad for Best Director and Chris Beauchamp for Best Cinematographer.[37]

See also

References
  1. "North America's Best Short Film Festivals". AudNews. 2014-07-31. Retrieved 2017-09-10.
  2. "About Reel Shorts", Reel Shorts Film Festival, retrieved Jan 6, 2013
  3. Turner, Jocelyn (March 26, 2015). "Reel Shorts shattering records". Daily Herald Tribune. Retrieved 2018-01-01.
  4. Gann, Jon (2015). So, You Want to Start a Film Festival: Conversations With Top Festival Creators. Washington, DC: ReelPlan Press. pp. 150–151. ISBN 9781519166654.
  5. Mari Sasano, "Reeling In Alberta" Alberta Views, Oct 2014
  6. Goruk, Kirsten (August 29, 2013). "Reel Shorts Film Festival receives ACCT accreditation". Daily Herald Tribune. Retrieved September 10, 2017.
  7. "Magazine | Art of the Peace". Art of the Peace (Spring/Summer 2007 ed.). Retrieved 2017-09-10.
  8. Rinne, Diana (January 5, 2017). "Reel Shorts brings award-winning zombie movie to GP". Daily Herald Tribune.
  9. Watson, John (April 23, 2020). "Reel Shorts Film Festival postponed to 2021". Daily Herald-Tribune.
  10. "2019 Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  11. "2018 Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  12. "2017 Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  13. "2016 Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  14. "2015 Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  15. "Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  16. "Winner of 2013 Audience Choice Award". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  17. "About Reel Shorts". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  18. "Winner of Audience Choice Award". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  19. "2019 Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  20. "2018 Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  21. "2017 Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  22. "2016 Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  23. "2015 Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  24. "Award Winners". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  25. Kirsten Goruk, "Video internship program launched" Grande Prairie Daily Herald-Tribune, May 31, 2012
  26. Kirsten Goruk, "Grande Prairie becomes Hollywood North" Grande Prairie Daily Herald-Tribune, July 11, 2012
  27. Kirsten Goruk, "Work continues on film shot in GP" Grande Prairie Daily Herald-Tribune, December 20, 2012
  28. Eileen Coristine, "Lights, Action, Revenge" Art of the Peace, Issue #16, Spring 2011
  29. Kirsten Goruk, "Young filmmakers get hands-on training with workshop" Grande Prairie Daily Herald-Tribune, April 24, 2012
  30. "About Reel Shorts", Reel Shorts Film Festival, retrieved Feb 28, 2015
  31. "Winners of Youth Film Mentorship Project", Reel Shorts Film Festival, retrieved Feb 28, 2015
  32. Kirsten Goruk, "Local short film earns award in Calgary" Grande Prairie Daily Herald-Tribune, Sep 26, 2013
  33. THR Staff, "Austin Film Festival Announces 2013 Winners" The Hollywood Reporter, Oct 28, 2013
  34. "2018 Shoot for Reel". Reel Shorts Film Festival. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  35. "About Us". The Distillery Film Company. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  36. "The 2019 Alberta Film and Television Awards Finalists" (PDF). AMPIA. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  37. "The 2019 Alberta Film and Television Awards Winners" (PDF). AMPIA. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
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