Midwest Movie Maker

Artwork for 'Retribution' by Alaina Tennant In Fall 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, 17-year-old Evelyn Smits and 13-year-old Camila Figueroa teamed up to write, cast, direct and shoot a short film. The Northeast Ohio girls initially set out to make a one-minute video based on the concept of “hearing the end of the world.” In the end, they produced a 15-minute horror film involving nearly 50 people, including a diverse cast and crew made up of young women.   Retribution follows the story of a teenage girl who hears a humming while with her friends. That humming turns out to be the preamble to Doomsday. The story builds as the event affects the girl's friends and soon everyone she comes into contact with. After spending three days developing and writing the script, the team used video reels to cast through NEohioPAL, the Northeast Ohio Performing Arts List .     From left, filmmakers Mia Thomas and Evelyn Smits set up a shot. “Because of COVID, we had to do everyt...

FunMill Films second annual film festival is accepting submissions now Technology has opened up the world of filmmaking to nearly anyone who wants to make their passion project. You can write the screenplay, draw the storyboards, shoot the footage, edit the film, and premiere it on YouTube, Vimeo or another similar service all on your phone . What technology can’t do - not yet, anyway - is give your film true industry cred. One way you can gain that stamp of approval? Have your movie screened at a film festival.  What a film festival can do for your movie Even today, most industry professionals see film festivals as an arbiter of talent. Though submission criteria vary, most festival organizers will view, select and screen the best films submitted. Large or small, festivals want to succeed. Sharing great stories with audiences is how to do that. If your film is selected for screening, it tells a producer or financier that you are serious about your passion and can create consumable...