Finalist Selections Nearly Complete

After viewing about 350 minutes of student films, the first round of evaluations are nearly complete. Phew!  Even after being directly involved in this process since 2001, I'm still amazed at the level of sophistication and innovation that so many of these films bring.  And just for the record, I do not serve as a judge for any of the panels.  

So What happens next?  Quite simply, after the finalists are selected for inclusion in the main public screening event,  a program for the festival screening will be put together, and each filmmaker notified.  Each of these will be designated as an "Official Jury Selection."  Finally,at the conclusion of the May 9th screening,  winners are announced for each category and awards presented.  And then everyone in audience gets $50,000 in cash!    ummmm.. okay, the "cash" part isn't true.  But what is true is that everyone in attendance will be treated to some absolutely amazing student films.