BLYTHEWOOD – In its third year, the Doko Film Fest is bigger than ever with 179 entries from across the United States, India, Canada, Oman, Iran, Poland and Mexico – but with a twist. Due to COVID, the festival will be completely virtual this year. While the event is free, those attending will need to get a ‘ticket’ through a password protected free registration process that can be found at www.dokofilmfest.com.
The Doko Film Fest features high school age filmmakers, from across the USA and beyond, stimulating and entertaining a live audience with their visual storytelling art, organizer Ray Smith said. It’s a place where the filmmakers interact with the audience and other filmmakers to explain their films, to receive reaction and comment on their work.
“This year, Doko Film Fest will be completely online and will stream over two days – March 20 and 21,” Smith said. “The events will start in the early afternoons, which lets the West Coast participate.
“The Film Fest is a place to enjoy films, learn about film making and ask questions,” Smith said. “The films are funny, romantic, animated and interesting.”
Attendees will be able to view films and listen to a live panel of professional film makers providing feedback on the day’s films. Master classes will be led by the following industry professionals: Michelle Eisenreich, Executive Producer, Visual Effects (Innovation in Movies); Matthew Duckworth, Video Producer & Filmmaker (Making Movies with Mobile); Wally Marzan0-Lesnevitch, Screenwriter, Producer & Actor (Script, Screen & Structure: the 3 S’s of Storytelling); Carleen Maur, Filmmaker & Professor of Media Arts at University of South Carolina (Directing Non-Actors) and James Jude Courtney, Stuntman, Actor & Screenwriter (The Art of Playing Michael Myers).
Although the film festival will be free to attend, donations are welcomed, and appreciated. Doko Film Fest is entirely produced by volunteers, and any donations received go towards the continued mission of supporting the arts in the community.
The Doko Film Fest will happen March 20-21, from 1 – 4:30 p.m. each day.
