Show Me Shorts Film Festival

Don’t you wish there was somewhere you could hang out during the International Film Festival in Auckland between movies? Somewhere to go with those friends you bumped into after the last movie and want to have a quick coffee or glass of wine and a catch up with?

Introducing the Film Café! Show Me Shorts is proud to present this new segment of the NZIFF programme, hosted by The Edge in the opulent grotto that is the Wintergarden (under the Civic).

No longer will you be forced out into the cold rain of winter! Inside this cosy cave you will find good coffee and strong liquor, festival going information, art installations and interactive games, plus a happy hour and free screenings of short films and filmmaker talks in lunch hours and early evenings. You are welcome!

From Saturday 16 July until Sunday 31 July (the final day of the Festival), the Film Café will be open from 12pm weekdays and from 2pm on weekends. Daily film events will be held at 6.30pm as well as weekday lunchtime events at 12.30pm.

One Film Café programme highlight already confirmed is a package of the latest films from the Media Design School. Included in this session will be ‘Das Tub,’ one of the school’s most-awarded student films. ‘Das Tub’ recently won Best Short Short at Aspen Shortsfest – an Oscar qualifying category, as well as Best Director for course leader James Cunningham at the Honolulu Film Awards. The film was also nominated for a prestigious VES Award (the Oscars of the visual effects world) in early 2011.

Script to Screen are coordinating the Film Talks, which promise opportunities to engage with visiting filmmakers and learn from their experiences. Among the interactive installations present in the Film Café, the Film Archive celebrates 30 years of New Zealand short film history via a set of viewing stations loaded with one short film for each year.

We are now calling for entries for the 2011 Show Me Shorts Film Festival.

Exciting news this year is that due to popular demand we are including a section for international films. That means if your film does not qualify as a New Zealand or Australian film, although you aren’t eligible for our awards you can still enter.

We have also made another small change due to audience feedback: Shortening the minimum and maximum film lengths, and the maximum time since the film was made. The new requirements are for all films to be between 2 and 20 minutes, and made within the last two years.

If your film meets those criteria, visit the ‘enter your film’ page for entry guidelines and details on how to submit your short film now!

A contract position is available for an outstanding candidate to coordinate key aspects of the Show Me Shorts Film Festival 2011, with the support of the full festival management team.

Show Me Shorts is an annual national short film festival screening the 40 best Kiwi and Australian short films in 10 cinemas around the country. The festival is now in its sixth year and experiencing strong steady growth in terms of audience numbers (up 20% year on year) and additional programming components, such as workshops and special events in partnership with other organisations.

This is an opportunity to join a small team dedicated to delivering a robust audience-driven festival on an ongoing basis. This busy Auckland based role will begin immediately at 8 hours per week, increasing to 16 hours per week over the coming months as the festival dates approach.

The right person will have excellent organizational skills, strong relationship building skills, copy writing ability, high attention to detail, basic accounting knowledge and advanced computer literacy. Energy, enthusiasm, initiative, drive and interest in short films are also essential. Experience working in a similar environment would be an advantage, particularly in event management. You will be part of a highly motivated, fun and interesting team of people who run the Show Me Shorts festival each year.

The tasks required in this role will be varied and challenging, with great opportunities to learn about the film industry and engage at all levels. You will be required to work both independently and as part of the team. You will need your own laptop plus access to and the ability to operate all of these programmes and applications to intermediate level: Word, Excel, Gmail, Google Docs, Photoshop and WordPress.

Applications must be received by 5pm Monday 14^th February 2011. Send brief CV and cover letter by email to: Gina Dellabarca, Festival Director, Show Me Shorts Film Festival Trust – gina@showmeshorts.co.nz.