WEST LIBERTY, WV, Sept. 7, 2017 — Plans are underway for the annual West Liberty University 48-Hour Film Festival presented by The Highlands to be held Sept. 15 – 17 and ending with a screening and awards ceremony at Marquee Cinemas, located at the Highlands Shopping Complex.

Students get a chance to see their work on the big screen during Film Fest at the Highlands Marquee Cinema.

All currently enrolled students from West Liberty University are eligible to participate, along with students from high schools in Marshall, Ohio, and Brooke counties. Students will be required to create a short film in just 48 hours to compete for cash prizes for the top three places. Other prizes will be awarded in a variety of categories.

“The event begins on Friday, Sept. 15 when participants will randomly draw the name of the genre, character, prop, and line of dialogue that must be used in some way in their film. The participants will then have a total of 48 hours to fully write, shoot, and edit a 6-10 minute short film. Participants may work in teams of one to three persons, and are solely responsible for their own cast, crew, equipment, and locations,” explained Jared Thompson, director of the 48-Hour Film Festival. “It’s a unique opportunity for students.”

Only 12 teams will be permitted to register and final submissions will be received at 7 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 17 at the public screening.

“This year we are expanding the participation to area high school students in Marshall, Ohio, and Brooke counties, so it’s extremely important for any interested students to preregister in advance to guarantee there place in the festival,” Thompson explained.

Team participants, family, friends, and spectators will be admitted to the event at no cost to view and enjoy the screenings, however donations will be accepted at the door. All proceeds will be used for future WLU Film Festival projects. (To view the First Place film from last year’s fest, click here.)

Any student who is interested in participating as an individual or a team can contact Jared Thompson at 304-336-5523 or jthompson@westliberty.edu for more information, or visit westliberty.edu/filmfest. Complete rules can be found on the website.

Preregistration of teams is encouraged and all teams must be present at the Film Festival kick off on Sept. 15.

This year’s festival is presented by The Highlands, Marquee Cinemas, and West Liberty University.

Students from the College of Arts and Communication are active in the television and recording studios of WLUTV-14 throughout the year, developing and producing more than 6 television shows weekly, seen on Comcast Channel 14. In addition, WLUTV-14 is streamed live online to an unlimited number of viewers. 

For more information on the Department of Journalism and Communication in the College of Art and Communications, please call Professor Brian Fencl, chairman of the department, at 304-336-8433.

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