Press release from Count Basie Theatre
The third annual edition of PROJECT FX, the statewide student film competition presented by the Count Basie Theatre and Bank of America, is now live at www.projectFXbasie.com. Starting now, students enrolled at any New Jersey high school or college can visit the site to learn about entering the competition, with an internship experience with Sony Pictures Classics, a high-end Sony camera, and $1,000 cash at stake as the contest’s grand prize.
On Saturday, March 18, 2017, the Count Basie Theatre will proudly host the daylong PROJECT FX Festival, which will include workshops with film industry professionals, plus a showcase of the top vote getters in both the high school and college categories.
PROJECT FX is open to students enrolled in any New Jersey high school or college as of September 1, 2016. Students have until January 15, 2017 to enter their films, which will then be judged upon by a panel of regional and industry-wide experts. Last year’s PROJECT FX competition and festival attracted more than 80 high school and college applicants from throughout the state (go here to view last year’s finalists).
Entries into the PROJECT FX 2017 competition are limited to ten minutes, and must have been produced no earlier than January 2015 by students then and presently enrolled full-time in any New Jersey high school or college institution. Interested students will upload their films to either YouTube.com or Vimeo.com, and then fill out the official festival entry form at www.projectFXbasie.com. A $25 non-refundable fee is required to enter the competition, and films previously entered for PROJECT FX consideration are not eligible.
From there, a subcommittee and cast of master adjudicators will critique entries using a point system to rate each film’s storyline, cinematography, technical aspects, sound and editing. In February, the ten highest vote-getters in both the high school and college categories will be posted on the competition’s Facebook page, where a separate tally of “Likes” and “Shares” will also factor into final scoring.
Take it here for full competition rules, regulations, prerequisites and scoring guidelines for the competition, which is sponsored by Bank of America. Details on the March 18 onsite festival and workshops/panels will be released closer to that date.
