Tropfest Film Festival – 19th Feb

Tropfest today announced that Tropfest film making veteran Jason Van Genderen is set to compete as a Telstra Mobile Masterpieces finalist alongside filmmaking duo Christian Doran & John Frohlich and Tropfest’s first ever finalist from the Northern Territory, Samantha Young.
The world’s largest short film festival, just to big it up, has run the mobile competition alongside Telstra for three years. Telstra Mobile Masterpieces films must be entirely shot on a mobile phone or tablet device otherwise it is classed in the same league as a Michael Bay film.
Young’s film, Smokers are People Too was made in just seven days on the streets of Darwin. Her film has also made it into the 16th Finalist Competition – where the public everyone gets to vote on ten films.
It’s simple, to vote all you need to do is go on Tropfest’s YouTube channel, watch all the films and vote which one you think deserves to go up on the big screen. So you just need some popcorn and a beer and that’s your vote secured.
The three film’s themes couldn’t be more varied. Van Genderen takes a heart wrenching look into the life of a single dad. Doran and Frohlich have made a dramatic film about a father passing on advice to his son, while Young has a satirical look into the social taboos of being a smoker.
Tropfest’s Founder and Director John Polson says advancements in mobile film technology have really spurred on mobile film entries this year.
“These days, almost everyone has a mobile phone. Which means with just a little bit of know-how, anyone can tell their story.
“Our audience and entrants have embraced the Telstra Mobile Masterpieces competition because it creates a truly level playing field for entrants, and that’s a big part of what Tropfest is all about.” he says.
The three Telstra Mobile Masterpieces will compete for $5,000 in cash, courtesy of Telstra. Actually, BBM are now thinking of entering as the prize does sound tempting!
The films will be shown as a part of the Tropfest festival and screened live on Sunday 19 February to an anticipated audience of 150,000 at free outdoor public events across Australia.