PB Film

Student Showcase Of Films Call For Entries

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SUBMISSIONS NOW OPEN For

The 28^th ANNUAL PALM BEACHES STUDENT SHOWCASE Of FILMS

Florida's Largest Student Film Competition and Award Show

 

PALM BEACH COUNTY, FL (October 17, 2022) – The Maze Runner trilogy. How To Get Away With Murder. Spenser Confidential. And Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

These are some projects that talented past winners from the Student Showcase of Films have on their professional reels. Florida students could be next on Hollywood's radar!

Submissions are now being accepted for the 28^th Annual Palm Beaches Student Showcase of Films (SSOF). The competition is free and open to aspiring filmmakers, writers, graphic designers, and digital media artists currently enrolled in any high school or college in Florida.

"The SSOF remains an enduring educational and artistic opportunity for Florida students as we expand our outreach efforts, invest in our future industry professions and leverage our community as an entertainment destination," said Michelle Hillery, the newly named Commissioner of the Palm Beach County Film & Television Commission.

Students have a chance to win more than $20,000 in cash, scholarships, and prizes. For nearly three decades, SSOF has awarded more than $1.6 million.

Here are the categories:

Burt Reynolds Scholarship
Sara Fuller Scholarship
Mel Maron Scholarship
College Feature Short
High School Feature Short
Documentary
Music Video
Animation
Environmental PSA
Commercial PSA
Screenwriting
Poster Design                                                               

As a tribute to the legacy of film legend Burt Reynolds, the SSOF will present to a Palm Beach County high school senior, The Burt Reynolds Scholarship Award, a $5,000 cash prize. Mr. Reynolds was a longtime supporter and frequent presenter at the SSOF Red Carpet Award Show. Runners-up in this selection process will have a chance to win one of two prizes; The $1,000 Sara Fuller or the $1,000 Mel Maron Scholarship Award.

Interested faculty and students should visit pbfilm.com/ssof for more details and entry guidelines for each category. The deadline for entries is January 30, 2023.

Winners will be announced at the live awards show on April 21, 2023, hosted at the newly renovated and expanded Maltz Jupiter Theatre in Jupiter, Florida.

At last year's show, Channel 20 orchestrated a 3-camera live broadcast shared through all the SSOF and Film Commission social media channels. The 2022 Awards Show featured a dazzling original opening film and performance by the host, Frank Licari. The live event also showcased student films, award presentations, student acceptance speeches, a professionally produced video package highlighting the Burt Reynolds Scholarship finalists, original graphics, appreciation to SSOF judges, special recognition award categories, and much more. In addition, SSOF announced a new scholarship program—the Mel Maron Scholarship, in memory of the Hollywood legend.

The list of 2022 celebrity presenters included reality T.V. star and rapper Vanilla Ice and Ted Melfi, the director of Hidden Figures, a film nominated for three Academy Awards. We also had several local television personalities, including Caroline Coles, Breaking News Anchor and Traffic Reporter for WPBF News Channel 25, Matt Lincoln, News Anchor for WPEC CBS 12 News; and T.A. Walker, Entertainment Reporter for WPTV News Channel 5.

Entries are viewed and evaluated by a panel of 50 entertainment industry experts from around the globe. Some past judges include but are not limited to Rap star Vanilla Ice, Emmy-winning writer and show-runner Chic Egleem, American Idol and America's Got Talent musical director Michael Orland, ESPN filmmaker Billy Corben, award-winning visual effects superstar Adam Howard, casting giant Ellen Jacoby. Hollywood composer Hal Rosenfeld, Emmy-nominated actress Kelsey Scott, Emmy, and Grammy-nominated composer Ryan Shore, acclaimed international artist Ralfonso “Ralf” Gschwend, movie stuntman Mike Kennedy, TV and film producer Elayne "E.K." Keratsis, and more.

The awards show is hosted by award-winning actor/director Frank Licari (South Florida PBS' On the Town in The Palm Beaches with Frank Licari) and has previously attracted a standing-room-only audience of students, celebrity presenters, industry professionals, government dignitaries, media and more. Previous presenters include Vanilla Ice, singer Howie D. (Backstreet Boys); T.V. host Montel Williams; former Palm Beach Post pop culture writer Leslie Gray Streeter, actors Cheri Oteri (SNL), Linda Blair (The Exorcist), Bruce Campbell (Ash vs. Evil Dead), Clint Howard (The Waterboy), Thomas Ian Nicholas (American Pie), Anthony Anderson (Black-ish), Ice-T (Law & Order: SVU), Martin Kove (The Karate Kid), Billy West (Futurama), Hector David Jr. (Power Rangers), Conrad Ricamora (How To Get Away With Murder) and Zack Gottsagen (The Peanut Butter Falcon) and of course, the legendary Burt Reynolds.

The SSOF is the cornerstone of the education outreach initiative of the Palm Beach County Film and Television Commission. The competition engages faculty and school administrators in guiding student participation. The SSOF is funded by the Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners through the Department of Housing & Economic Development and the Palm Beach County Film & Television Commission. Award sponsors include Suzanne Niedland (Suzanne Niedland Documentary Scholarship), Keep Palm Beach County Beautiful, Inc. (Environmental PSA Award), Film Florida (Sara Fuller Scholarship), Michael Chasin (Nellie & Fred Chasin Screenwriting Award), and Ralfonso “Ralf” Gschwend (Poster Design Award).

 

Website:       pbfilm.com/SSOF
Facebook:    facebook.com/StudentShowcaseofFilms
Twitter:         twitter.com/StudentFilmsFL
Instagram:    instagram.com/studentfilmsfl

 

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