BMW Shorties 2009 Short Film Competition Deadline Nears

14 days remain for young Malaysian indie filmmakers to submit their short film entry

Kuala Lumpur (PRWEB) June 21, 2009 -- Only 14 days remain for budding Malaysian film directors to submit their short film to the BMW Shorties 2009 Short Film Competition and make a name for themselves in the indie film circuit.

The BMW Shorties 2009 is the third season of BMW Malaysia's annual short film competition launched in 2006 to champion talented individuals within the Malaysian cinematic community.

Following a second successful year that saw several BMW Shorties films receiving greater international attention, this year's grand prize of a production grant remains at RM 75,000, enabling the winner to make a professional short film. Introduced as a new ruling this year, the number of winner/s may or may not be limited to only one participant and the distribution of the award sum will be at the judges' discretion. Also new to the rules in BMW Shorties 2009 is the time limit which has been shortened to 12 minutes which makes it more challenging for the filmmakers

"BMW Shorties has achieved one of its stated goals much earlier than expected - providing international access for young Malaysian filmmakers - we intend to do the same this year and would like to urge aspiring directors to grab this opportunity," said BMW Malaysia's Press and Corporate Affairs Manager, Vijayaratnam Tharumartnam.

As part of its ongoing commitment to support the cinematic arts, BMW Malaysia will be organizing the BMW Shorties 2008 Judges Clinic in HELP University College with indie film champion Tan Chui Mui, and actress Ida Nerina sharing their experience in film making with aspiring young directors.

The theme for this year's short film competition is "LIFE," a subject that is expected to showcase diverse thoughts and interpretations from the contestants. The competition is open to aspiring Malaysian filmmakers of 18 years and above, as long as they have never won in any local or international film festival, competition or awards.

Entries will be judged based on their originality of idea, creativity in interpreting the theme, story telling ability, direction and emotional pull. Film school students and first-time film makers are encouraged to send in their short film entries for consideration. Deadline for entries is at 5pm on Tuesday, 30th June 2008.

The winning entry for this year's BMW Shorties will be announced at a premiere which will be held on 13th August 2008.

All information regarding BMW Shorties 2009 including application forms, the Judges' Clinics, the voting processes and viewers' participation, can be found at http://www.bmwshorties.com.my and BMW Shorties on both Facebook and Twitter http://twitter.com/BMWShorties.

About BMW Shorties

The BMW Shorties was launched in Malaysia in late 2006. It is an independent cinema platform that has become one of the most anticipated annual filmmaking events in Malaysia. The campaign has successfully built strong rapport within the indie film industry, complimented by the overwhelming support from the media.

The BMW Shorties has accumulated a total of 136 entries over the last two competitions. The BMW Shorties films have so far reached the international film festivals of New York, Rotterdam, Oberhausen Film Festival, Clermont-Ferrand, Dubai and Naoussa.

Issued by:

BMW Malaysia Sdn Bhd
Vijayaratnam Tharumartnam, Corporate Affairs Manager, Malaysia
Telephone: (+603) 8887 3822, Fax: (+603) 8887 3801
E-mail: vijayaratnam.tharumartnam(at)bmw.com.my

For media queries, please contact:
Fleishman-Hillard Kuala Lumpur
Nico Marco / Teoh Seet Heng / Yau Tze yip
Telephone: (+603) 22832730, Fax: (+603) 2283 2750
E-mail: nico.marco(at)fleishman.com / seet.teoh(at)fleishman.com / tze.yau(at)fleishman.com
Media Website: www.press.bmwgroup.com

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