Virtual series to feature winners of 2020 short film competition

Following the successful launch of its first-ever virtual film festival this fall, the Lake Placid Film Festival announced it will host a second online short-film series starting in February 2021.

“We know how hungry audiences are to see movies and gather with fellow film-lovers, and the response to our first-ever virtual film festival proved it,” said Gary Smith, chair of the Adirondack Film Society, the festival’s parent organization. “It was such a thrill to reach so many people from around the world. And instead of waiting until next fall, we’ve decided to do it again this winter.”

The upcoming online series will showcase films honored in the 2020 Your Shorts Are Showing competition. Those films include:

·    First Place Gold Winner: “The King and the Pawn,” Caleb Blue, director, O’Fallon, Illinois
·    Second Place Silver Winner: “Fig,” Rami Cohen, director, Los Angeles, California
·    Third Place Bronze Winner: “Rehak,” Pierre B, director, London, U.K.

Smith said that in addition to this winter’s online event, the films will also be screened at the 2021 Lake Placid Film Festival, scheduled for October 20-24, 2021.

“We considered an amazing group of films for this year’s competition,” said Smith, who said filmmakers from around the world submitted their work. “In the midst of a pandemic, it’s gratifying to see remarkable art is still being created. And we’re excited to share these films, and introduce their filmmakers, online with audiences from around the world.”

More than 1,000 viewers from 18 states registered to watch the first online series, which ran for eight weeks in September and October. Each week’s short film was followed by a live conversation between the film’s director and a moderator.

While the online events are offered free of charge, Smith said the festival has launched a fundraising campaign to help support ongoing technical and administrative costs. “We want to make art as widely available as possible during the pandemic,” Smith said. “But it isn’t cheap, and we’re hopeful our audience responds generously.”

For more information or to donate to the group’s annual appeal, visit adirondackfilmsociety.org or lakeplacidfilmfestival.org.

The Adirondack Film Society brings film, film education and the arts to members, practitioners and the general viewing public. The Society proudly supports year-round programming in the Adirondack Park, and also sponsors the Adirondack Film Commission, the Adirondack Filmmakers’ Coalition and the annual Lake Placid Film Festival.

Screen shot from “The King and the Pawn,” directed by Caleb Blue