The Central Coast Film Society is now accepting submissions from high school students across four counties (Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Ventura, and Monterey) into its new multimedia competition, The “Never Stop Creating” Student Challenge. Submissions are due no later than April 15, and the contest’s categories include filmmaking, screenwriting, photography, podcasting, and the “highlight reel challenge” (editing and/or acting in short/long-form digital content).
All students who submit entries will receive constructive feedback from the Central Coast Film Society board members and will be eligible to be included in the “Never Stop Creating” Student Showcase, which will be available online on May 1 and 2. A panel of judges will review the showcase and select a winner from each category, who will each receive a scholarship of $100. The public will also have the chance to vote for their favorite works during the virtual showcase, which will determine who wins the People’s Choice Award and an additional $100 scholarship.
The panel of judges in this competition are Skye McLennan, the festival director for the SLO Film Festival; Chris Lambert, the creator and producer of Your Own Backyard podcast; Sheryl Franciskovich, the publisher and creative director for SLO Life Magazine; Randi Barros, an instructor at Cal Poly; Ken Napzok, an author and podcaster; Chris Burkard, a photographer and filmmaker; and Josh Ernstrom, a digital media producer for PG&E.
One of the contest’s rules is that each submission must have been completed no earlier than March of last year, as the theme of “Never Stop Creating” is to celebrate Central Coast students who found safe ways to continue creating throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no entry fee to enter the contest nor an admission fee to view the showcase later in May, according to Daniel Lahr (pictured), executive director of the Central Coast Film Society.
“Everything is free for the students and the audience. We want to make sure their outstanding work is recognized and rewarded, and we want that opportunity to be given to everyone regardless of where on the Central Coast they are from,” Lahr said press materials.
For more info on the competition, visit centralcoastfilmsociety.org.
This article appears in Mar 25 – Apr 1, 2021.
