AOL’s Online Film Competition Targets Hispanics
AOL Latino, with sponsor Mercury Mariner, is giving Hispanic filmmakers the opportunity to showcase their short films to millions of consumers online as part of El Festival De Cine Corto.
As part of the festival, movie fans view and rate new films every week for four months. The Festival includes an open call for submissions as part of an ongoing competition.
The top film each week will be eligible for the semi-final round showcasing 16 of the top shorts. In December, the top five films as voted by users will compete for the grand prize including $5,000 and the chance to meet with a major movie company. Celebrities and film experts will offer commentary online throughout the festival, but will not select the winning films.
Five short films can already be viewed at Entretenimiento.aol.com.
“We are thrilled to give Hispanic filmmakers a major outlet to showcase their works as part of AOL Latino’s ongoing commitment to be the destination for Latinos and Hollywood on the web,” said Angel Sepulveda, director of original programming, AOL Latino in a statement. “We applaud Mercury for joining with us in this first effort to become advocates for an under-appreciated art form and to celebrate all of the Latino unsung heroes of the short film world.”
All qualifying films must be in English language or Spanish and can be from different genres. Shorts must also be between one and 15 minutes in length and submissions must be made by Sept. 1.
“Mercury is proud to support the Latino film community by sponsoring the AOL Latino ‘Festival de Cine Corto,'” said Dave Rodriguez, multicultural marketing manager for Ford and Lincoln Mercury brands in a statement. “Independent film is one of the passion points that Mercury is pursuing this year while integrating into the Latino lifestyle community. We are excited about this opportunity to support up-and-coming filmmakers who represent a character that is similar to Mercury’s new vehicles—single-minded and distinguished.”
