Six short films by students in the Ballard High School Video Production Program have been named Official Selections of the National Film Festival for Talented Youth (NFFTY). This competitive festival showcases outstanding work by filmmakers age 22 and younger. NFFTY is a rare opportunity for high school students to share the spotlight with college students from our nation’s best film schools. This year, NFFTY received nearly 700 entries from 40 states and 22 countries. NFFTY opens at the Seattle Cinerama Theater on Thursday, April 26 and continues through Sunday, April 29 at the Seattle Center.
Official Selections for NFFTY are determined by a jury of professional filmmakers. These short films by Ballard High School video students have been selected for screening.
Cogs by Brendan Inkley, Nadia Komen & Cybele Olsen
English Pocket Mirror by John Hall, Sydney Jarol & Dylan Miller
Lost & Found by Brianna Kadem, Peter Lee & Bryan Quandt
The Number by Alex Guettler, Ana Krafchick & Helen Miller
Roll Play by Lily Bennett, Enjuli Chhaniara & Dayan Flynn-Walsh
Safe at Last: The Story of Antwaan Dixon by Nate Sawtell, Dylan Spence & Louis Weissman
An additional honor has been bestowed on Lost & Found. It will be screened on the prestigious Closing Night program. Both Lost & Found and The Number are the first short films by students in their initial year of the BHS Video Production Program.
Immediately following the Closing Night screening, Jury Prizes and Audience Awards will be announced. In addition to screenings and awards, NFFTY includes forums on filmmaking. For a complete schedule of events (including this year’s Future of Film Expo), show times, and ticket information, visit www.nffty.org.
NFFTY itself is the brainchild of Ballard High School video alumnus Jesse Harris (’04). Harris made history in 2004 when Living Life, the feature film he had written and directed as a senior project, was purchased by FilmMates and given a theatrical release. (It opened in Seattle in April, 2005.) The festival was co-founded by Harris, Kyle Seago (’07) – also a Ballard High School Video alumnus - and Jocelyn RC (Bellevue High School, ’07). A growing list of sponsors and partners, such as Bing, Volvo, Xbox 360, Expedia, and Vitaminwater have paved the way for this sixth annual event.
