IN 2019, The Peter Solis Nery Foundation International Film Festival (The PSNFIFF) was established.
I conceived it as a festival of three-minute silent films.
I knew I couldn’t keep it annually, so I settled to run it biennially.
***
Despite the pandemic, we pursued our 2021 film fest.
My idea was that precisely because of the pandemic, we should encourage creativity and self-expression.
After all, if we can’t have a face to face screening, we can always have online streaming, which seems to be the new direction of films anyway.
***
We are back this year.
The contest is now closed.
I am arranging the ten qualified films to be juried.
We are selecting three winners: the grand prize, and two special jury prizes.
The grand prize will receive P10,000 and a medallion.
The two jury prizes will receive P1,000 each.
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Two respected filmmakers have already said yes to sitting in the jury, so I am happy.
I’m not sure if I should move on, and compose a jury of all-filmmakers this year; or if I should remember my vision, and let lay men and women, non-filmmakers, to weigh in.
Anyway, I am very happy with the one multi-awarded filmmaker in the jury.
Such juror lends so much prestige to the films of these year’s Peter’s Prize.
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Idea: But what if, The PSNFIFF 2023 will include the screening of short silent films that have been submitted for sharing, and not necessarily wanting to compete for the prize?
A friend in Canada was hoping to submit an entry.
He couldn’t make it to the deadline because of life in Canada.
But he said that he wants to finish the film and submit it if I would accept and screen it as a non-competing film to The PSNFIFF 2023.
Beautiful idea.
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To be honest, a rather beautiful one and a half minute film was submitted to the contest.
I had a heavy heart disqualifying it because it was very well-made, but it was a minute short.
It was a one-minute silent film, not even a two-minute silent; and my contest is for three-minute silent.
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But now that the idea of a non-competing category was planted in my mind, would I screen such a film?
Oh, yes! Definitely.
The Peter Solis Nery Foundation International Film Festival aims to be the outlet and viewing platform for silent films that are short.
While we specify a 3-minute silent in our competitions, I have no problem programming one-minute films, or even 5-minute films.
They just have to be silent.
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What does a non-competitive category mean for us?
Firstly, that there works created, or being created; that we are not alone in our vision for short silent films.
But maybe more importantly, that people have faith in us, and in what we do.
That filmmakers recognize The PSNFIFF, and would like to show support, not necessarily to win the prize.
So yeah, this also sounds like expansion, a post-pandemic evolution of The PSNFIFF.
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The PSNFIFF could be in September or October this year.
I’ll be out for most of July and August.
And while I think I can still remotely manage things from Australia and New Zealand, I really don’t want to ruin my vacation that way.
I think that I would need the whole of September to have a great festival in October.
Or, I can start pacing work from now and all of August to push for a September event.
But seriously, I am looking at October.
***
So yeah, I am opening that door for non-competing silent films running 5 minutes and under.
Make your films, talk to me, ask questions.
I’m looking at an August 15 deadline for this.
But do not push your luck.
Submit early.
Because if nine films are submitted before then, I may have to put a close to submission.
I really don’t want to have more volunteer films than our ten prize-competing entries./PN
