BestFest Student Films Festival this Saturday, Dec. 10, at 4 PM, at Best Video (FREE)

The 2016 BestFest Student Film Festival screens short films by area high school students this Saturday, Dec. 10, starting at 4 pm. The event—the first in what is planned as an annual event— will be held at Best Video Film & Cultural Center at 1842 Whitney Avenue in Hamden. BestFest Student Films is a project of BVFCC.

The event is free and open to the public.

BestFest Student Films was created to showcase films by area high school students. The festival is open to all high school students from New Haven, Connecticut, and adjacent communities (East Haven, West Haven, Hamden, North Haven, Woodbridge, and Orange).

Among the schools represented in the festival are Wilbur Cross High School and Metropolitan Business Academy in New Haven and East Haven High School.

Local professional documentary filmmaker Brendan Toller will give a keynote address. Toller's second film was picked up by Magnolia Pictures for worldwide distribution this year and was the inaugural offering of Arthouse Theater Day in September. "Danny Says" documents the life and times of Danny Fields, the first manager of The Ramones and a key figure in the 1960s New York City rock counterculture.

Beyond presenting students’ films, the festival serves as an educational resource for student filmmakers. BestFest Student Films presented workshops for students in June and November covering topics including pre-production, lighting, capturing good audio, and effective storytelling techniques.

For more information, call (203) 287-9286 or email BestFest Student Films at bestfeststudentfilms@bestvideo.com. BestFest Student Films can also be contacted through Twitter at @BestFestFilms. Information is also available at