Film Festival Breaks Record, Signs Broadcast Deal
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThis year's Heartland Film Festival has received more than 1,500 submissions, which is a record number of entries. The Indianapolis-based event will take place in October and has also struck a deal to have its short films featured on a national short movie-centered television network. August 13, 2013
News Release
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Submissions for the 2013 Heartland Film Festival (Oct. 17 – 26) have smashed all previous records across multiple categories. Heartland’s success has grown substantially over the years, with an overall increase of 151 percent in submission numbers since 2009, thanks in part to the Festival's selection as a qualifying festival for the Annual Academy Awards in the Short Films Category in 2011. This means that the winner of the Grand Prize for Best Narrative Short Film will qualify for consideration in the Short Films category of the Annual Academy Awards without the standard theatrical run, provided the film otherwise complies with the Academy rules. Three 2012 Heartland Film Festival Award Winners were selected as nominees for the 2013 Academy Awards and one, “Inocente,” won the Oscar for Best Documentary, Short Subject.
Records were broken in the following categories:
-Overall number of submissions:
-1,521 – up from 1,292 submissions in 2012
-Number of countries represented:
-79 – up from 63 countries in 2012
-Number of High School Film Competition submissions:
-71 – up from 52 in 2012
-Number of countries represented in the High School Film Competition:
-5, up from 2 in 2012
Known throughout the industry as a “filmmakers’ festival,” the Heartland Film Festival (Oct. 17-26) will add even more opportunities for independent filmmakers as it partners with the ShortsHD network to offer select short film category winners the opportunity to be featured in blocks of festival-themed programming later this year. These films will also have opportunities for distribution via iTunes and Amazon Instant Video.
ShortsHD is the world’s first high definition short movie channel. Its programming is categorized into one-hour and half-hour themed blocks that cover a variety of genres, including comedies, musicals, documentaries, thrillers, dramas and animation.
ShortsHD features Academy Award winners and nominees, international festival winners, high quality CGI animation, cinematic gems from international independent moviemakers and award-winning movies from the brightest new directors.
“We are extremely excited about our partnership with ShortsHD,” says Tim Irwin, Heartland’s Artistic Director. “Heartland is proud to be working with a partner like ShortsHD, a vocal advocate of these amazing, often overlooked short films. Between this new relationship and our Academy Award qualifying status the Heartland Film Festival is really making a name for itself within the world of short films.”
“As a kid who grew up in Terre Haute, there couldn't be a film festival I am more excited for ShortsHD to partner with than the Heartland Film Festival in Indianapolis,” says Carter Pilcher, Chief Executive of ShortsHD. “Each year we work with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to release the Oscar Nominated Shorts Films in theatres across the country, and Heartland's position as an Academy qualifying festival makes it a key partner in efforts to promote the world's most entertaining short films and the short film rock stars who make them.”
Select films from Heartland Film Festival will be featured on ShortsHD later this year.
About Heartland Truly Moving Pictures
Heartland Truly Moving Pictures, a nonprofit arts organization, seeks to inspire filmmakers and audiences through the transformative power of film. Its flagship event, the Heartland Film Festival, launched in 1991 and runs each October in Indianapolis, screening independent films from around the world. Each year, the Festival awards more than $125,000 in cash prizes and presents its Festival Awards to the top-judged submissions. Heartland has awarded more than $2.5 million to support filmmakers during the last 20 years. The organization's Truly Moving Picture Award was created to honor films released theatrically that align with Heartland’s mission. By bestowing this award seal to honored films, the award allows studios and distributors to inform audiences of a film’s transformative power and appeal. Heartland is also dedicated to cultivating youth, and thus created the Heartland Institute to provide innovative educational and outreach programs that enrich the minds and lives of youth and aspiring filmmakers. Heartland shares inspiring films year-round in the community through the Heartland Roadshow, bringing meaningful films across Indiana. For more information, visit TrulyMovingPictures.org.
About ShortsHD
ShortsHD is the first high definition channel dedicated to short movies and is available on DIRECTV (Channel 568), and AT&T U-Verse (Channel 1789). ShortsHD is operated by Shorts International, the world's leading short movie entertainment company with the world’s largest movie catalogue dedicated to short movies. Shorts International also operates ShortsTV, which is available in France, Belgium, Luxembourg on Numericable (Channels 134 and 52) and in Turkey via TTNET's Tivibu service. Shorts is the short movie on-demand service available on iTunes movie stores in the US, Canada, Mexico, Japan, Taiwan and throughout Europe. The company is headquartered in London, England with additional offices in Paris and Los Angeles and is led by Carter Pilcher, Chief Executive. Shorts International is owned by Shorts Entertainment Holdings and Liberty Global Ventures.
Source: Heartland Truly Moving Pictures Inc.