With the conclusion of our third Carson City Shorts film competition, “Love Notes,” we mark the close of a remarkable year at Silver State Storytellers. After a brief period of rest and reflection, we are excited to celebrate our achievements, learn from our experiences, and eagerly anticipate what lies ahead.
Successes:
We are thrilled by the overwhelming participation of enthusiastic filmmakers in the City Wide, Carson Creepy, and Love Notes Short Film Competitions, resulting in a total of 46 new works from Nevada filmmakers. We are immensely proud of each film that crossed the finish line and grateful to our partners at Brewery Arts Center for providing a platform to showcase these films.
Furthermore, we are pleased to have established meaningful partnerships with other organizations and local businesses. We appreciate the support received from Action Camera, Buzzard Creek Movie Memorabilia, Three Moons Trading Company, and Starbucks at Firecreek Crossing, who generously provided awards to our filmmakers throughout the year. We are also thankful for the new partnership with The Cordillera International Film Festival, which showcased our Carson Creepy Judge’s Choice Winner at their Fright Night event. This partnership is expanding as we will be putting the seven Audience Choice and Judge’s Choice films up against each other in a poll, with the winning film receiving a sponsorship to be entered into the 2024 Cordillera International Film Festival. Find out more and cast your vote here!
Lessons Learned:
While we received mostly heartwarming feedback from our post-event surveys over the past year, some recent responses were disappointing. We strive to provide a platform for all storytellers, understanding that art can be provocative and subjective. However, we acknowledge the need to reword our rules for clarity. Moving forward, we will ensure appropriate warnings for film content.
The feedback from Love Notes was particularly concerning, with some teams expressing disdain for others’ work. This behavior goes against the spirit of our competitions, which are meant to celebrate creativity and diversity of interpretation. We encourage a supportive and respectful environment for all filmmakers.
Regarding judging, we have made changes to improve the process, including implementing discussions among judges to determine winners. Contrary to some feedback, our judging is based on objective criteria, not personal relationships. We stand by the integrity of our competitions and strive to create a fair and inclusive platform for all participants.
The Future:
We are looking forward to kicking off this next year with some exciting writer’s workshops. We’re partnering with Brewery Arts Center for Mark Twain Days this May to bring three writer’s workshops to the Carson City community. The Art of Effective Communication Writing: A Workshop for Nonfiction and Marketing Scribes, VerseCraft: Elevating Fiction with Poetry, and Crafting the Perfect Script: Writing for the Silver Screen will be held at Comma Coffee on May 10th and 11th. Secure your spot in the classes today by clicking the links!
This summer we are trying something a little different. We’re delighted to announce that We will be hosting the first-ever Moon Rocks Sci-Fi Short Film Competition in the Carson City Shorts summer slot. Last year during our open genre “City Wide” short film competition we received quite a few Sci-Fi films and our committee is delighted to embrace this theme as Nevada’s history is littered with stories of the weird and extra-terrestrial. More details and registration coming soon!
We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Malevolent Mouse Productions, bringing the Reno 48-Hour Film Project into the Silver State Storytellers program. Taking place on August 23rd-25th, this challenge pushes filmmakers to create a short film in just 48 hours. Join us for this exciting opportunity to showcase your talent, with the winning film advancing to the prestigious 48-Hour Filmapalooza event in Seattle.
Silver State Storytellers remains dedicated to celebrating art and filmmaking, and we look forward to another year of storytelling excellence. Join us as we continue to elevate the art of film in our community.
