The Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival is all about showcasing the outstanding work of first and second time filmmakers. It's our sole focus and it's what we do really well. The event takes place in scenic Middlebury, Vermont in late August each year. Our 5th Annual festival will roll out August 22-25, 2019.
Over its first four years, MNFF has been incredibly fortunate to attract a diverse array of passionate new filmmakers from around the world working across all genres who are creating brilliant work. We seek out compelling and memorable stories about underrepresented communities. We encourage risk taking and boundary breaking in the films that we select. We have created partnerships with prestigious organizations like the Vermont Symphony Orchestra and the Jacob Burns Film Center that give our filmmakers truly distinctive opportunities to advance their craft and careers. Our stages have been graced by an amazing and eclectic array of talented directors, actors, producers, writers and distributors, including Barbara Kopple, Steve James, David Wasco and Sandy Reynolds-Wasco, Mohammed Naqvi, Bill and Turner Ross, Ricki Stern and Anne Sundberg, Alexandra Dean, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard, Michael Murphy, M. Emmet Walsh, Allan Nicholls, Sally Roy, Beth Levison, Russell Banks, Dick Lehr and many others. And, at the heart of it all, MNFF offers a festival environment that is genuinely and deeply supportive of the emerging new voices in independent filmmaking. Check out our many reviews from filmmakers and you'll know why Middlebury is such a worthwhile and essential destination.
We are already planning MNFF5 and look forward to presenting another innovative and exciting event. We have booked four great venues to screen our 2019 selections: the historic Town Hall Theater, the recently renovated Marquis Theater, the beautiful Dana Auditorium and the inviting Twilight Hall, the latter two both at Middlebury College. We anticipate having as many as 85 slots available for accepted entries and selections will be made by a panel of judges led by the Festival’s Artistic Director, Jay Craven, noted Vermont filmmaker, impresario and educator.
We always encourage our filmmakers to come to the Festival, engage in Q&A sessions with audiences following their screenings, network with peers in the peaceful surroundings and immerse themselves in the pleasures of small town Vermont. And we house our filmmakers in the wonderful homes of area residents, an unforgettable experience that distinguishes MNFF from so many other festivals. We'll be offering stimulating Craft Panels this coming year and welcoming celebrated directors, actors and writers to our stages. To round out the Festival experience, there will be multiple happy hours and night time parties happening during the event at vibrant venues around the Middlebury area. And, of course, we cap it all off with the wonderful VTeddy Awards at the Closing Ceremonies, where our winners take home the coveted VTeddy in recognition of their outstanding work. Keep up with all the developments for the 2019 MNFF at middfilmfest.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Finally, what further sets the Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival apart is what comes after the event. The MNFF has created the Vermont Tour that will give our top filmmakers valuable additional exposure. Now in its second year, a selection of our top films will be booked into welcoming venues around our home state of Vermont in the winter months following the Festival. We offer screening fees to our participating filmmakers and encourage them to personally go on Tour and present their work all over the state. Getting out there and getting recognized is a big boost to new filmmakers and the MNFF completely supports this process.
The Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival offers the following Awards and Prizes:
- The VTeddy Award, our coveted and iconic custom made tuxedo-clad Teddy, in the following categories: Best Narrative Feature, Best Narrative Short, Best Documentary Feature, Best Documentary Short, Audience Award-Feature, Audience Award-Short
- The Hernandez/Bayliss Prize for the feature film that best captures the triumph of the human spirit and honors the inspirational power of independent filmmaking in the global community of emerging filmmakers. Value: $1000.
- The Clio Visualizing History Prize for the Advancement of Women in Film, honoring a woman filmmaker whose feature film boldly portrays the story of a person or events of historical significance, and representing a significant new dimension in MNFF’s support of women filmmakers from around the world. Value: $1000.
- The Gaia Prize for Environmental Filmmaking, honoring a feature film with exceptional insights into environmental issues. In recognition of Gaia, Mother Earth in Greek mythology, this award seeks to encourage new filmmakers from around the world to bring widespread attention to global sustainability concerns. Value: $1000.
- The Shouldice Family Prize for Best Vermont-Made Film, honoring a Vermont-based filmmaker whose short or feature length film is of exceptional quality. Value: $1000.
- The Vermont Symphony Orchestra Award for the Best Integration of Music Into Film, given to a short film director. Value: In-kind support from the VSO that includes the pairing of a rising composer with the winning filmmaker in the making of her/his next short film and multiple live performances of the film's score simultaneous with the film screening as part of the VSO's statewide and always anticipated Made in Vermont Tour. A remarkable and clearly distinctive award, by any standard.
- The Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival also offers screening fees to our winning filmmakers for allowing us to present their work as part of MNFF's Vermont Tour. The Festival, in addition, underwrites all the costs of booking the Tour venues and marketing the Tour screenings. Fees are determined prior to the start of the Tour.
