The Cambodian National Short Film Festival Back this Year Better than Ever
A total of 35 films are being presented this month during the 3rd National Short Film Festival, which will end with eight major awards being presented on Dec. 20. Photo: Pok Borak
- By Po Sakun
- December 19, 2022 11:18 AM
PHNOM PENH — A total of 35 films are being presented this month during the 3rd National Short Film Festival, which will end with eight major awards being presented on Dec. 20.
“This figure confirms that despite the negative impact of the COVID-19 crisis, young people are still interested in [filmmaking] and continue to work hard to produce their own films,” said Pok Borak, director of the Cinema and Cultural Diffusion Department at the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, referring to the fact that the festival was cancelled two years in a row due to the pandemic.
Organized by the department, the film festival focused on two themes this year: Culture and Social Development, and Creativity and Innovation. And to better celebrate the event, the number of awards in 2022 has been increased to eight: three major awards and five additional ones.
As Borak explained, “[t]he Short Film Festival has become an important crossroads connecting young Cambodians from all walks of life with new experiences in the film industry.”
“It is also a platform for educating and inspiring creative talent as well as the rich vibrancy of short film production in Cambodia,” he said.
Offering young men and women the opportunity to showcase their work on the national stage, the short film festival can serve as a stepping stone to feature films for young filmmakers, he said.
The 35 short films submitted for the competition have been scheduled for screening through Dec. 19 at eight cinemas in Phnom Penh. These include Major Cineplex Aeon 2, Legend Cinema Eden Garden, Legend Olympia, Prime Cinema Samai Square, Prime Chom Chao, as well as the Bophana Audiovisual Resource Center and the French Institute.
The films have been evaluated in two phases by the subcommittee of the festival. In the first phase, seven judges were to review and evaluate all the films submitted and select five finalists. Then a panel of judges would review the five films selected and make a final decision to be announced on the closing day of the festival on Dec. 20, 2022.
The filmmaker winner of the Gold Award with also obtain 12 million riels or $3,000, the winner of the Silver Award 8 million riels or $2,000, and the winner of the Bronze Award 4 million riels or $1,000.
In addition to the 35 films entered in the competition, 33 short documentaries are being presented during the festival. Featuring themes ranging from traditional ways of life and culture to the living environment along Cambodia's Mekong River, they were done in recent years by participants of the documentary filmmaking course at the Bophana Audiovisual Resource Center.
Screenings schedules for all films are available on the festival's Facebook page and at the festival website.
