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2020 Virtual Youth Film Fest

Join us for the 5th annual Youth Film Fest, ONLINE!

This year we’re leveling up with THREE days of workshops and films -- with movies made by young Memphis and national filmmakers, as well as workshops and presentations led by filmmaking professionals. You'll also have the chance to connect with other student film lovers from across the country.

Youth Fest is a little different this year so be sure to read the How-To-Fest section here to ensure your spot in the workshops and screenings.

Watch and vote for your favorite films!

You decide what film will win the Audience Award!
$300 goes to the awarded filmmaker.

To attend, just click the FREE PASS button and follow the instructions. You will then be able to start adding free tickets for any workshops or screenings that you would like to attend. This all day event is free for students in grades 7-12 and 2020 graduates.

VIEW THE AWARD WINNERS +


Passes

All students between grades 7 & 12 (plus 2020 graduates) can attend for FREE.

*Adults may attend film screenings as Pay-What-You-Can via Schedule page HERE.

  • The free pass is ONLY FOR STUDENTS, between grades 7&12 or 2020 graduates.

  • You MUST sign up for a pass to participate in workshops. Workshops are for students ONLY.

  • Non-students/adults may reserve Pay-What-You-Can tickets to the film screenings from our schedule page HERE.

  • IMPORTANT - Do NOT create more than one pass. All attending students must create their own pass account.

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Memphis Fest Pass

for those who live in Memphis

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National Fest Pass

for those outside Memphis

How-to-Fest

Student How-To-Fest

  1. Create your FREE pass

  2. Explore the schedule HERE for *workshops and screenings

  3. Workshops are for students ONLY

  4. Register for workshop tickets by selecting Order Tickets and filling out the Zoom registration

  5. Pull tickets for screenings by selecting Order Tickets, followed by Preorder Now for Free.

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Adult How-To-Fest

  1. Explore the schedule HERE for available screenings

  2. Workshops are for students ONLY

  3. Pull tickets to screenings by selecting Order Tickets, followed by Preorder Now for Free.

 
 

Check out this year's fest trailer for a taste of some of the films in competition!

Jury

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Zaire Love

Read bio +

Zaire Love is a filmmaker and music maker whose work honors and amplifies the voices of the Black South. She is a graduate of Spelman College, Houston Baptist University, and the University of Mississippi. The South has always had cornbread to share; Zaire is just adding creative packaging and shipping it worldwide through her films and music.

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Jing Niu

Read bio +

Jing Niu's films have screened at dozens of film festivals and museums. She is a recipient of the Helen Hill Memorial Award, two Telly Awards, the Visual Communications AWC fellowship program and the Crosstown Artist Residency. Her music videos have premiered on The Fader, Flaunt Magazine, Sukeban, booooooom.tv and StereoGum. She holds a MFA from Duke University. Jing lives to tell stories featuring strong female leads, and to paint communities of color in a new light.

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Art Jones

Read bio +

Art Jones works with Film, Digital Video and Interactive media in the roles of Director, Director of Photography, Motion Graphics Designer and Editor. He has produced and directed pieces for organizations including MTV, Deep Dish Television and the Women’s Health Project (New York City Department of Health). He has served as Director of Photography on projects for clients including Red Bull, The New York Times, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and on numerous short and long-form films and videos. Jones’ films and new media projects have been presented at the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum, London’s Tate Gallery and media festivals and broadcast outlets internationally. Jones works in a variety of genres, most significantly in documentary and music related pieces.


Screenings

 

Memphis Youth Competition Screening

Aug 28th at 6:30PM CST

15 short films created by Memphis youth in Grades 7 - 12 are presented for competition. Vote for the $500 audience award winner! The grand jury prize winner will receive a one-day $5,000 production package from VIA Productions to film their next short and a $500 cash prize. Awards will be announced on Sunday, Aug 30th at 5PM CST.

This virtual screening is FREE for ALL students between the grades 7 -12 with a Youth Fest Pass. All others can get a ticket HERE.

Vote for your favorite! Cash prize will be awarded to the audience choice on awards night.

*All films screened are created by students between grades 7-12. However, some films do contain adult themes and language.*

 

VIEW AUGUST 28TH SCREENINGS +

A Reason to Protest
Dir. Nick Davis (Power Center Academy)

ACT
Dir. Tina "Zerø" Quarles (Arlington High)

Bobby Reid
Dir. Anna Clements, Tyler Gerard (St Benedict)

Clare Ford Story
Dir. Kendall LeSure (Germantown)

Food For Thought
Dir. Dinah Patt (White Station)

Going Gorillas
Dir. Cameron Boyd (Ridgeway)

In My Room
Dir. Paul Coffield (Crosstown)

Klara
Dir. Leif Love-Cloys (Crosstown)

Phobia
Dir. Evy Allen (Homeschool)

Pretty Face
Dir. Sarah Moran (St Benedict)

Seasons
Dir. Nadifah Rasheed (White Station)

Static
Dir. Ethan Torres (St Benedict)

Wish You Were Gay
Dir. Andrew Cunningham (Bartlett)

Your Own Medicine
Dir. Joey Hopper (Homeschool)

CrewUp Pitch Rally

Aug 29th at 12:00PM CST

Due to our CrewUp mentor teams being unable to film their movies this summer, we are excited to present the CrewUp Pitch Rally! So...what is a Pitch Rally? Great question!

Our pitch rally is an opportunity for each team to put together a 3-5 minute creative video pitching their films to the jury and audiences. A movie pitch is a verbal and/or visual presentation of a film idea with the hope of selling the script or gaining the finances to pay for the production of the film.

Our CrewUp teams have been working hard all year on getting their films ready to shoot. Please join us to celebrate these students, enjoy their creative pitch videos, and vote for your favorite!

Jury Prize: $600
Audience prize: $300

We look forward to our mentees filming all of their projects in the near future!

National Youth Screening

Aug 29th at 5:30PM CST

Enjoy a lineup of some of our favorite short films by student filmmakers from across the world!

*All films screened are created by students between grades 7-12. However, some films do contain adult themes and language.*

 

VIEW AUGUST 29TH SCREENINGS +

An Ecosystem on the Line
Dir. Steven Simpson

Diamond Game
Dir. Nolan Hieu Trifunovic

Doze of Reality
Dir. Wide Angle’s High School Video Team

Fighting for Environmental Justice: The Health Crisis at the US-Mexico Border
Dir. Ilan Jinich

Getting Old
Dir. Hanabi Copon

MAR-E 01
Dir.Isabelle Leonard, Ryan Bowen

MOTHER
Dir. Ejun Hong

PLAYERS
Dir. Ava Bounds

Seeds of Partnership: The Sardari and Morady Story
Dirs. Vanessa Chermak, Sabah Damji , Serra Demirci, Ali Desai, Tamar Farahnik, Hanna Gootin, Talya Havivi, Sanam Ismail, Sam Knoll, Jonathan Nourafshan , Sarah Pretsky, Abdullah Rafique, Akiva Rubin, Yael Rubin, Chloe Saba , Inara Shamji, Amina Tariq, Layla Waller, Zeynep Yildirim

Silhouette
Dir. Lucca Vieira

Stitching a Life: The Story of Trudie Strobel
Dirs. Spirit Avedon, Natasha Clement, Lila Dworsky-Hickey, Ian Kim, Miranda Lewis, Alexander McDaniel, Jaaziah McZeal, Hank Schoen, Coleman Weintraub, Jocelyn Vega, Fernanda Zaragoza

Take Care of Yourself
Dir. Hanabi Copon

The Magic Fortress
Dir. Ella Hicks

Short Film Showcase On-Demand

Available beginning Aug 29th at 11AM CST

Want more great youth films? We thought so! Experience an additional collection of shorts from local and national students with this bonus catalog!

 

VIEW SHOWCASE FILMS +

A Different Conversation
Dir. Lauren Fuchs, Saraiyah Slack, Keren Waldman

A Ship Called Lili: The Lillian Trilling Story
Dir. The Righteous Conversations Project

Compassion For Change
Dir. Aditya Desai

Elevated
Dir. Gracie Marcellus

Grades Expose
Dir. Adriana McDonald, Jennifer Han, Ella Curlin (St Mary's)

Human
Dir. Tajeahia Thompson (East High School)

Kindness Commercial
Dir. Jalyiah Driskill (St Benedict)

Problems & Solutions
Dir. Hannah Gail Flatt (Hutchison)

Reflections of a Melancholic
Dir. Emmanuel Mata (Southwind)

The Escort
Dir. Ava Bounds

The Visitor
Dir. Ethan Torres (St Benedict)

 

Code of Conduct

 

READ THE CODE OF CONDUCT +

INDIE MEMPHIS is dedicated to providing a harassment-free experience for EVERYONE, regardless of gender, gender identity & expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), or film viewing choices. This applies to all in-person and online interactions between participants & attendees. WE ABSOLUTELY WILL NOT TOLERATE HARASSMENT IN ANY FORM. Although we are unaware of any prior incidents occurring at Indie Memphis events, we want all attendees to know the festival is a safe zone that we are dedicated to create and foster for all festival goers, attendees, sponsors, vendors, volunteers, staff, and filmmakers.

Harassment includes, but is not limited to: offensive verbal or online comments related to gender, gender identity & expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, religion, film viewing choices, sexual images in public spaces, deliberate intimidation, stalking, following, harassing photography or recording, sustained disruption of talks or other events, inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome sexual attention. In short, DON’T BE A JERK.

Those who are asked to stop any harassing behavior are expected to comply immediately. If they do not, Indie Memphis reserves the right to remove them from the premises and bar them from future events WITHOUT a refund.

If someone engages in harassing behavior, Indie Memphis organizers may take any action they deem appropriate, including warning the offender or expulsion from the festival with no refund. Harassment claims will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis, at the discretion of Indie Memphis management and/or security staff.

If you are being harassed, notice that someone else is being harassed, or have any other questions or concerns, please contact a member of our staff or Board of Directors IMMEDIATELY. Indie Memphis Film Festival staff can be identified by “CREW” lanyards. If you do not see a staff member, please contact Ryan Watt, Executive Director, and/or Joseph Carr, Artist Services Director, at ryan[at]indiememphis.com and joseph[at]indiememphis.com, respectively.

Indie Memphis staff members are happy to help participants contact hotel/venue security or local law enforcement, provide escorts, or otherwise assist those experiencing harassment to feel safe for the duration of the festival. We value your attendance, and we want everyone to enjoy all that Indie Memphis has to offer.

Participants & attendees violating these rules may be sanctioned or expelled from the festival without a refund at the discretion of the festival organizers. There will be no exceptions to this established code of conduct.

 
 
Youth Film Fest Sponsors
 
 

Follow Indie Memphis Youth on Instagram!

@INDIEMEMPHISYOUTH