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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Sikskiyou students embrace Middle School Fridays ... What are your plans for Super Bowl Sunday? ... Inner Peace: How can politics promote inner peace? ... Sikskiyou students embrace Middle School Fridays ... What are your plans for Super Bowl Sunday? ... Inner Peace: How can politics promote inner peace? ... CINEMA Record number of films submitted to Ashland film festival Number of films seeking screening for 15th year of AIFF is up 16 percent Comment By Local report DailyTidings.com By Local report Posted Dec. 21, 2015 at 4:08 PM By Local report Posted Dec. 21, 2015 at 4:08 PM » Social News A record-setting 1,233 films were submitted to the Ashland Independent Film Festival for the upcoming 15th festival, which runs April 7-11. This represents an increase of 170 films over the previous festival year, a 16 percent increase. “The Ashland Independent Film Festival is no longer a hidden gem,” said Richard Herskowitz, the festival’s director of programming. “Filmmakers want their work screened here because they know that the festival attracts enthusiastic, intelligent audiences who love film, and who embrace filmmaking with an independent vision. The festival’s reputation for discovering and selecting great films has made it a springboard to wider distribution and acclaim.” Herskowitz noted that the selection of films has increased at a strong pace over the years. The festival has nearly doubled the number of entries received in the past five years — 716 films were submitted by the entry deadline for the 2012 festival year. “This robust pool of entries allows us to choose from among the very best of independent films,” said Herskowitz, who added that he has already screened more than 10 films that he feels are likely to make it into the final program. Films that played in 2015 at the film festival and the Varsity World Film Week (which is curated by AIFF), and went on to wide acclaim include five of the 15 documentaries recently shortlisted by the Academy Awards: "Cartel Land," "The Hunting Ground," "Listen to Me Marlon," "The Look of Silence," and "3½ Minutes." "Meru," the climbing documentary that was screened as a special benefit for the film festival, also made the Oscar short list. For the next two months, Herskowitz and his team of professional and volunteer film screeners will cull through all 1,233 submissions and dozens of invited films to choose 90 to 100 films from which they will create the five-day festival. Each film submitted to the festival is viewed by two screeners, and if recommended, continues up the ladder of reviewers to the senior programming team and, ultimately, Herskowitz, who gives the final thumb’s up - or down. The festival program will include family friendly shorts and animations, as well as ground-breaking documentaries and cutting-edge features made by Academy Award winning veteran directors, first-time movie-makers, and local filmmakers. The complete festival film line up is revealed at the Festival Preview Night, which is free and open to the public. This year, Preview Night will be held at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 15, at Southern Oregon University’s Music Recital Hall. Trailers from selected films will be shown. While entry for the main festival is now closed, there is still one more category open — the LAUNCH film contest for students (kindergarten through undergraduate) in Coos, Curry, Douglas, Jackson, Josephine and Klamath counties in Oregon, and Siskiyou and Del Norte counties in Northern California. Entry to this contest is free, and there are prizes of $200 to $500 available. Films for this category must be five minutes or shorter in length. Complete rules can be found at www.ashlandfilm.org/launch . Film lovers who are in the Ashland area on Feb. 28, are invited to the festival’s Oscar Night Gala and dinner to watch the awards streamed live on two 30-foot screens and root for their favorite films of the year. Reservations are required. Details are at www.ashlandfilm.org The festival is now accepting volunteers, and will hold an orientation meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 12, at the History Ashland Armory. A complete list of volunteer jobs and requirements can be found at www.ashlandfilm.com . By Local report DailyTidings.com By Local report Posted Dec. 21, 2015 at 4:08 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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