Film Festival Accepting Submissions From NJ Students

RAHWAY, NJ — Submission are now being accepted by the Big Dreams & Silver Screens Youth Festival (formerly the Rahway Film Festival Jr) for its second season.

Submissions are open to New Jersey students in grades 3 through 12, and is meant to encourage students’ storytelling capabilities through the lens of filmmaking.

Submissions are open through May 15. There is no cost to submit and participation is free.

Big Dreams & Silver Screens Youth Festival encourages New Jersey students to create a short film, under 30 minutes in length. The film can be a fiction, based on a book in current student curriculum, an original idea, or a documentary focused on their personal role model. Movies may be filmed on a smartphone, digital camera, camcorder, or other device.

This program is competitive and not all submissions will be selected for presentation. The films that are selected will then be adjudicated. The films will be screened at Patria Latin Bistro, a long-standing sponsor of Rahway International Film Festival and Big Dreams and Silver Screens, in Rahway, on Saturday, June 3 from 2 to 4 p.m.

The winner will be announced and celebrated immediately following the film presentations. The grand prize winner will have their film screened at the main film festival, Rahway International Film Festival taking place on Sept. 22 to 24 at their new venue, the James Ward Mansion in Westfield and will also be offered a guest appearance on Edison TV's show "Classic Movies with Ron MacCloskey" (with parental consent).

All films are to be submitted through the festival’s FilmFreeway platform at https://filmfreeway.com/festival/BigDreams. Teachers and/or parents may also submit on behalf of their students. The submitter will be responsible for all communication with festival directors and must monitor their e-mail accordingly.

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