Ocean City Film Festival Seeks Original Short Films For 6th Annual Film Challenge

OCEAN CITY, MD — June 6, 2023 — The Ocean City Film Festival presents the 6^th Annual Ocean City Film Challenge to filmmakers and aspiring filmmakers across Delmarva and beyond.  Registration is free and now open at www.OCMDFilmFestival.com.

The challenge is for filmmakers to produce an original short film about Ocean City that is no longer than 15 minutes and made between July 1 and July 31, 2023. Any artist who wishes tell a story about the resort, preferably suitable for viewing by all ages, may enter. Films must be shot in Ocean City or be about Ocean City and follow a cinematic narrative. Films also must include a specific line of dialogue and prop, which will be emailed to registrants on July 1, 2023. The deadline to register for the challenge is July 22, 2023.

“A film can be produced in Ocean City, in a way that is visible within the film,” B.L. Strang-Moya, creative director of the OC Film Festival, said. “Or the film can be shot outside of Ocean City, but Ocean City has to be central to the premise of the film. The film must tell an actual story in the form of a fiction narrative. We cannot accept any vacation footage, music videos, or any such media that would not be considered traditional cinema.”

Final cuts are due on Aug. 13, 2023, and submitted online along with other deliverables. The winning films will premiere on Saturday, Aug. 19, 2023, 7 p.m. at the Ocean City Center for the Arts and will also be screened at the Ocean City Film Festival in March 2024.

Prizes include an Ocean City hotel stay, swag bag, and two all-access passes during the 2024 OC Film Festival. 

“Ocean City is a beautiful landscape, and there’s so much that artists can take advantage of right here in town,” said Strang-Moya. “There are many ways to tell a story through motion picture, and the challenge pushes filmmakers to explore these boundaries.”

Contact the Film Festival at OceanCityFilmFest@gmail.com with questions.

The Ocean City Film Festival is a program of the Art League of Ocean City.

The Art League of Ocean City is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing the visual arts to the community through education, exhibits, scholarship, programs and community art projects. Financial support comes primarily through membership dues from individuals and corporate sponsors.