PRESS RELEASE
As little monsters around Australia prepare their films for Trop Jr, it’s been announced that the entry deadline has been extended by one week – with the new entry deadline at 6pm on 17 October 2013.
This gives entrants four weeks from today to complete their films – plenty of time to create a winning Trop Jr film.
In previous years Trop Jr finalists and winners alike have spent just a few weeks over the school holidays producing films for the competition. With four whole weeks left to submit a film and the September school holidays looming, it means that kids out there still have plenty of time to get filming.
2012 Trop Jr winners, 15-year-old school friends Max Barden and Tim Sheehan from Kew, Victoria, created their winning film on a budget of only $20. The boys started their film Let’s Make a Movie, a comedy about the difficulties in picking a genre for a Trop Jr film, just a few weeks before Trop Jr entries closed.
In typical Trop Jr tradition, films must contain the Trop Jr Signature Item, which for 2013 is – MONSTER.
Film and Entries Manager at Trop Jr, Henry Kalaf, says there’s already been interesting interpretations of the TSI “We’ve got films with Monsters in all shapes and sizes, big, small, furry and scaly – there’s been a lot of effort gone into filming!”
"Entries have been open for just a few weeks and already the quality of work submitted has been incredible. We can't wait to see how many other great short films are delivered between now and October 17th" says Kalaf.
But you don’t need to be a seasoned filmmaker to enter. Whether you’ve got state of the art gear or just happen to stumble across Mum and Dad’s old video recorder, success at Trop Jr is just one great idea away!
Now in its sixth year, Trop Jr is expecting this year’s competition to be its biggest yet. With a $5,000 cash prize for the winner, Trop Jr is a one-of-a-kind launching pad for young filmmakers (aged 15 years and under). It’s a unique chance for kids to show off their wild imaginations, cinematic talents and – for 2013 at least – their inner monsters.
From all the films submitted by 17 October, a max of 16 finalist films will be selected to screen to thousands of people at a free, outdoor event in the new, bigger-than-Big-Foot venue, Centennial Park, on December 8, 2013.
Trop Jr is presented by the Australian Children’s Television Foundation (ACTF).
For the more musically-inclined, Tropscore Jr is also open for entries with a mammoth $2,000 up for grabs for the winner, thanks to APRA AMCOS! Composers of film music aged 15 and under can write a score to accompany Harri Gilbert’s short film ‘Where’s My Sandwich?’ from the Trop Jr competition held earlier this year.
Singer-songwriters, rockers, electronic wizzes and musical geniuses of all types are encouraged to enter. The Tropscore Jr entry deadlines remain 6pm, 10 October 2013.
Trop Jr will take place on 8 December 2013 in Centennial Park, Sydney.
Too old for Trop Jr? Those 16 years and older should head to tropfest.com/au for festival details.