Louisiana Film Prize Offers New Incentives for 2015

If you thought $50K was prize enough, think again! Louisiana Film Prize is offering even more to their prize winners for 2015.

Louisiana Film Prize 2015 is set to kickoff this Tuesday, January 13 at 7 p.m. at Artspace. It's an opportunity for filmmakers, actors/actresses, makeup artists, editors, hype men, etc to mingle and rub elbows. I promise you, there are a million and one ways to get involved with Film Prize besides just the actual shooting, so if you're debating on whether or not to attend, just attend. You'll be glad you did.

As for this year, LAFP has introduced some new incentives for the prize winners, including distribution on iTunes through their partnership with Shorts International.

Here's more from Louisiana Film Prize:

LOUISIANA FILM PRIZE ANNOUNCES 2015 FILMMAKING COMPETITION

WITH A $50,000 GRAND PRIZE 

Top 5 Films to Receive Distribution through Shorts International Partnership 

Shreveport, LA –January 13, 2015 — On the heels of a record breaking year, Executive Director Gregory Kallenberg announced the fourth annual Louisiana Film Prize filmmaking competition launch on January 13 at artspace in downtown Shreveport, once again offering up a $50,000 cash prize, the largest cash prize for a short film, in the world. This year’s competition will also offer an added incentive – distribution for the Top 5 films on iTunes through a partnership with Shorts International, and showings at partnering film festivals.

The contest and festival (www.LAFilmPrize.com), held each year in Shreveport, LA, invites filmmakers from all over the world to create and present a short film under one condition – it must be shot in Northwest Louisiana. Filmmakers can shoot their films from January 14 to July 7 (rough cut deadline).

In addition to the Grand Prize, the 2015 competition will also vie for the tradition of “Founder’s Circle” Grants, which are $3,000 awarded by the judges’ panel to 5 participants, and $1,000 cash prizes for best actor and actress. Team Film Prize will also announce its celebrity recipient of the “Big Chief” award soon.

The 2014 Louisiana Film Prize competition broke a record with 105 submissions from all over the country (Los Angeles to New York, Houston to Chicago).  During the festival weekend, the twenty finalists played to sold – out audiences. Film Prize 2015 also announced that close to 1,000 people participated in Film Prize projects. These productions (and festival) yielded close to $2.5 million in economic benefit.

“We’re really amazed by the national attention we’ve received for last year’s competition and festival,” said Kallenberg. “It shows that we’ve started to create a true home for the independent film spirit. We can’t wait to see what 2015 has in store for the Film Prize.”

Louisiana is becoming recognized as a film capital for its large and quickly growing film industry. One of the goals of the Film Prize aims to help nurture the burgeoning indie film community in Shreveport and all of northwest Louisiana, where filmmakers come to create all types of film.

Visit www.lafilmprize.com to learn more information about the Louisiana Film Prize contest and festival.  The deadline for submissions is July 7, 2015.