The 8th Annual Flint Youth Film Festival Kicks Off July 17, 2023, At The Flint Institute Of Arts With A Selection Of Films By Michigan Filmmakers

FLINT, Mich. - PrZen -- Michigan Productions will host the 8^th Annual Flint Youth Film Festival benefiting the next generation of filmmakers and their efforts to work behind the camera. The Opening Night Reception will feature Mayor Sheldon Neeley, Celebrity Host Colette Boyd

Anchor, WNEM TV5 and 2022 Flint's Got Talent Winner, Ava Safley.

The FYFF is scheduled from July 17, 2023, through July 30, 2023. The festival schedule includes:

JULY 17, 2023  - OPENING NIGHT
Featuring Flint Youth Filmmakers

JULY 17-30, 2023
Movie Screenings

JULY 22, 2023
FYFF Awards  Ceremony (Online)
www.flintyouthfilmfestival.com

JULY 28, 2023
Closing Night Reception

Movie Screenings will be hosted at various locations in Flint as well as online.  Tickets are free and limited.  By registering for a ticket, it will secure you a seat. Seats will be held up to 10 mins before showtime. To reserve a seat: TICKETS

This will be one of iMichigan Productions' premier and eagerly anticipated annual fundraising events. Over 1,000 submissions have been received for the 8^th Annual Flint Youth Film Festival announced today by Executive Producer, Rodney W. Brown.

Each year, submissions for the Annual Flint Youth Film Festival (FYFF) are reviewed by an esteemed panel of judges comprised of media and entertainment industry executives. Previous judges have included Michigan native, Kevin Toney, Pianist Composer and Author; Kiki Shepard, Actress and Founder, The K.I.S. Foundation; Michael Lluberes, award winning writer, director and actor; and Michael J Thorp, Author, Broadcaster and Marketing Consultant.

The Flint Youth Film Festival introduces the art of filmmaking to young filmmakers between the ages of 13 and 25. It provides young filmmakers with venues for developing their storytelling talents. The program provides opportunities to share creative work with peers, the public, and professional filmmakers. By introducing our youth to the film industry, the program provides them with new media to express their creativity, improve their communication skills, and benefit their community.

At present, festival officials are notifying these filmmakers of the official selections that will be part of the festival and getting those films ready to be judged by professionals from around the country.

The festival entrants are divided into four age groups, 13-15, 16-18, 19-21 and 22-25 years of age. The three older groups' films are divided into fiction, nonfiction, experimental and animation open to all ages.

Craft awards also are presented for writing, directing, and cinematography for the two older groups.  Other awards given, which are determined by judges, are The Industry Award, The Heart Award, which is for a film that shows passion from the entrant(s) which outshine all others. And, of course, there is the Audience Choice Award.

The Flint Youth Film Festival is sponsored by iMichigan Productions, Flint Institute of Arts, Share Art Genesee, James A. Welch Foundation, A.G. Bishop Charitable Trust, and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.  This activity is supported in part by Michigan Arts and Culture Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.

IMICHIGAN PRODUCTIONS

iMichigan Productions is a youth-based organization that provides reading and writing skill-based learning through the arts.  Our programs serve to support the youth in developing the necessary skills to pursue a career in the film and television industry.  We serve an average of 300 youth ages 13 – 25 annually.

iMichigan Productions is a 501(c) (3) non-profit led by media professionals with over one hundred years of collective experience in the classroom and behind the lens in producing television, film, video, and other media projects. For more information: www.imichiganproductions.org.

MISSION STATEMENT

Our mission is to inspire emerging filmmakers aged twenty-five and under to harness the power of storytelling to encourage positive change in the world.