Toronto Media Company Launches Festival for Films Based on Books

by Staff
2.5.08

BookShorts, a media and production company based in Toronto, recently launched the Moving Stories Film Festival to celebrate the blending of moving images and the printed word. Amateur and professional filmmakers may submit recent films or videos based on any form of literature, including poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction.

"The idea is to bring literature and film together," BookShorts founder Judith Keenan told the Book Standard. "The whole point of the festival is to raise the profile of filmmakers, muscians, and authors." BookShorts was founded in 2004 with the mission of creating "self-contained shorts" that entertain as well as prompt the viewer "to delve further into the world the author has created by reading the book," according the Web site.

Filmmakers interested in the Moving Stories Film Festival may submit work based on or directly inspired by poetry, fiction, or nonfiction that is in print and available for purchase by the general public. Priority is given to films under ten minutes that were created after September 1, 2007, and inspired by work published during the current year. There is an entry fee of ten dollars prior to the February 15 deadline, fifteen dollars prior to March 15, and twenty dollars prior to April 15. For complete guidelines, visit the Moving Stories Web site.