Rochester Teen Film Festival

2024 ROCHESTER TEEN FILM FESTIVAL

Film screening, awards ceremony, and reception

Thursday, August 1, 2024 | 5:30pm

Little Theatre 1 (240 East Ave.)
Doors open at 5:00pm
FREE
and open to the public

WXXI Public Media and The Little Theatre are proud to sponsor the Rochester Teen Film Festival, a collaborative, juried media competition for youth (13-18 years old) in the Rochester region and beyond, honoring the work of urban, suburban, and rural teen filmmakers and providing young people an authentic opportunity to participate in a real film festival.

OTHER SCREENING NOTES

This event will feature general admission seating, and concessions will be open for sale. A reception will follow the screening and awards, held in The Little’s lobby.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

about The Rochester Teen Film Festival, visit WXXI.org

THANKS TO OUR SUPPORTERS

The Rochester Teen Film Festival is made possible thanks to generous support from:

Daemen College
Full Measure

2024 Film Selections

“Marine”
Xana Sterling
Denver School of the Arts

“Parallax”
Payton Szczepaniak, Brian Silloway, & Luca Palomaki
Allendale Columbia

“Mystery of Mei”
Romy Swisa
Midwood High School

“The Chase”
Ismael Torres & Dishawn Hagan, Jr.
Expanding the Field

“Art Generations”
Jack Szydlo
Pittsford Mendon High School

“A Shadow on Me”
Helen Broikos
Penfield High school

“Grillz of Greed: Addicted to the Cart”
Arlo Thompson
Denver School of the Arts

“The Haunted House”
Nate Posthumus
Denver School of the Arts

“Sweeps Week”
Kai Fernandez
Denver School of the Arts

“Not Your Business”
Jason Kolucki
Robert Treat Academy

“Dance like Everyone’s Dead”
Jack and Harrison Saxon
Animatus Workshop

“MOORE”
Sam Owens
Webster Schroeder High School

“FLY or DIE (The Sequel)”
Kyshawn White
Greece Arcadia High School

 

Awards and Judging

All submissions are judged by a jury and finalists have been selected to have their films shown at the Little Theatre. The young filmmakers selected as part of this year’s festival will also have a chance to earn one of the following four awards, each of which comes with a cash prize:

The Philip Seymour Hoffman Award

honors the life and legacy of the late Academy Award-winning actor and Fairport, New York native.  The annual award is given to the teen who’s film is chosen by the judges as “Best of Fest.”  The award was established in association with the Hoffman family with funds raised during The Little Theatre’s Philip Seymour Hoffman Tribute Film Series.

Alex Ketchek Award for Best Animated Film

is presented in memory of Alex Ketchek, a 2010 Rochester Teen Film Festival finalist who tragically passed away in 2013.

The Jack Garner Award for Best Director

is a new annual award in the memory of long time RTFF jury member and much beloved and spirited national film critic. It is given through the support of Bonnie Garner and the Garner family.

The Marilyn O’Connor Award

is presented to a film that addresses a social issue through the lens of compassion, equity and social justice.  Marilyn O’Connor has never crossed a picket line.  She’s been fighting for equality and justice as a youth, a parent, a public defender and Family Court Judge.  She was recognized for mentoring young women in the practice of law as the recipient of the NYS Women’s Bar Association’s Betty Weinberg Ellerin’s Mentoring Award and was one of the founders of the Greater Rochester Association for Women Attorneys, an organization that supports and encourages women in the legal community.