It’s a festival Benalla knows well, it’s helped launch several successful careers, and now it’s up for an award recognising its value to the community.
Next year the Benalla Short Film Festival will have been an integral part of the Rose City for a decade.
It came about as a result of a film workshop that proved so popular it spawned an idea that has become an annual event.
So it will be no surprise that it has been nominated in the Local Achiever Award category of the 2023 Community Achievement Awards.
These awards celebrate people who have contributed to their community, in big ways or small.
The festival was nominated for the award. The nomination submission highlights the roots of the festival and how it got to where it is today.
“The (original) film workshop was organised by two locals, Anna Smith and Bernice Vance,” the nomination reads.
“It was hoped the workshop would inspire young filmmakers to continue in the field and enter their own short film in the inaugural 2014 festival.
“Ten entries were included in that (festival), with Australian actor Tom Burlinson officially opening the evening via a video presentation.
“Support also came from many in the film and TV industry, with Matt Preston from MasterChef wishing Anna and Bernice all the best with their venture.”
At that first event, films were judged by acclaimed theatre director at the Melbourne Theatre Company Matt Scholten, Melbourne TV producer Frank Bruzzese and screenwriter, director and television producer David Forster.
In the ensuing years, the festival went from strength to strength, and it has seen several celebrity judges take part.
Those include John Orcsik (Cop Shop), Tom Long (Sea Change), Tony Bonner (Skippy) and Krista Vendy (Neighbours).
At the 2018 festival a film called iRony took out the best film award and launched the career of Perth-based student director Radheya Jegatheva.
As a result he was offered a job with Pixar in Hollywood.
Benalla’s Anna Smith is still leading the festival, which is set to take place in November.
“I’m very excited. I couldn’t believe it when I got the email about the award,” Ms Smith said.
“The team are feeling very honoured.”
Ms Smith said when she was planning the inaugural festival she had no idea it would be going from strength to strength nearly a decade later.
“I just plan one at a time,” she said.
“We’re still growing and the standard of the entries this year is very high.
“About half of the entries this year are from international filmmakers.
“We’ve got films from Spain, Germany, Brazil, India and Romania and lots from Australia.”
Ms Smith said entries were still open and films could be submitted until July 15.
“The 2023 Benalla Shorts will run alongside the Benalla Festival in early November,” she said.
“We are still to confirm the venue, but I have spoken to council to see if the new cinema on the lakeside will be an option.”
That still needs to be confirmed and the Ensign will confirm that information when it is set in stone.
Ms Smith said she would like to thank everyone who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to create Benalla Shorts.
“Thank you to Kevin Perry, without his expertise this festival would not be a success,” she said.
“And I would like to thank Let Us Entertain You for auspicing Benalla Shorts, and all the local businesses and the community for the ongoing support.”
If you would like to submit a short film, visit filmfreeway.com/benallashorts