Yemi Olakitan: All you want to know.. : Pan African Film and Art Festival Call for Entry

Tuesday, 2 June 2020

Pan African Film and Art Festival Call for Entry

PAFF Newsletter Art, Film & Cultural News & Events

The staff of the Pan African Film Festival wants you and your family to stay safe during this Covid-19 Pandemic. As the coronavirus continues to rip through our nation leaving behind thousands of victims in its path, our communities of Blacks and Brown have been infected and their residents killed at a disproportionate rate residents across the country. After this virus is done infecting… our world will not be the same.”

Although COVID-19 has been slow to arrive in Africa, or at least has been slow to be detected there, the wave is coming. They are preparing for disaster. Right now the numbers may appear manageable. The African countries with the most confirmed COVID-19 cases are South Africa (1,934), Algeria (1,666), Egypt (1,560), and Morocco (1,374). No sub-Saharan country other than South Africa has more than 1,000 cases. The countries hardest hit are those most connected with international travel, especially to France. (Kenya, at 184 cases; Ethiopia, at 56; and Nigeria, at 276, have numbers that remain suspiciously low.) Burkina Faso—not an especially connected country, or one with a huge population—has 414 cases. Every country in Africa has testing kits, many of them due to the largesse of China’s Jack Ma. In some countries, such as Rwanda (110), quarantines and the careful tracing of contacts have kept the numbers down.

PAFF family, please continue to adhere to the following guidelines to HELP SLOW THE SPREAD OF COVID-19 in our communities:

Stay home if you can and avoid any non-essential travel. Avoid social gatherings of more than 10 people.
Practice social distancing by keeping at least 6 feet — about two arm lengths — away from others if you must go out in public. Stay connected with loved ones through video and phone calls, texts and social media. Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after being in a public place, or after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing. If soap and water are not readily available, use a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
Clean and disinfect household surfaces daily and high-touch surfaces frequently throughout the day. High-touch surfaces include phones, remote controls, counters, tabletops, doorknobs, bathroom fixtures, toilets, keyboards, tablets and bedside tables. Follow CDC guidance.
Cover your coughs and sneezes. Use a tissue to cover your nose and mouth, and throw used tissues in a lined trash can. If a tissue isn’t available, cough or sneeze into your elbow — not your hands. Wash your hands immediately.

We hope to see you next year at the 29th Pan African Film Festival. Until then, we’ll continue to keep you and your family in our prayers.

The 29th Annual Pan African Film Festival (PAFF)

Opens Its “Call for Entries”

The Pan African Film Festival (PAFF) is gearing up to once again take moviegoers on a cinematic world journey with international film screenings with the announcement of its “Call for Entries”.

The 29th Annual PAFF, America’s largest and most prestigious Black film festival, will be held in February, 2021 either with a physical festival in Los Angeles, a world-wide virtual festival or a combination of both. Over the years, PAFF has showcased films from all parts of the world, representing such countries as the United States, Angola, Nigeria, Jamaica, New Zealand, Rwanda, Canada, Mozambique, Venezuela, Egypt, the Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, Ghana, Brazil, Kenya, Fiji, Mexico, the U.K., South Africa, England, Japan, Trinidad & Tobago, France and Canada. With the pulse on the international film market, PAFF has opened the minds of its audiences, and transported them to far-away places and back home again. “Over the years, filmmakers the world over have become more sophisticated in telling their stories,” says Asantewa Olatunji, the director of programming for PAFF. “In our ever-shrinking world, it is so important to understand the experiences and points of views of the world’s diverse peoples and cultures.”

Last year, more than 40,000 people attended the film festival, which has long been a highly anticipated event in Los Angeles attended by local, national and international guests. PAFF currently accepts only online applications and submissions. As of June 1, 2020 filmmakers wanting to submit to PAFF2021 can submit through FilmFreeway at filmfreeway.com and typing in the Pan African Film Festival or can go to the PAFF website www.paff.org and clicking onto the FilmFreeway button or the “Submit a Film” button on the menu.

ELIGIBILITY:

PAFF accepts applications for films, videos and webisodes made by and/or about people of African descent. (Please note: the filmmaker need not be of African descent.) Preferably, submissions should depict positive and/or realistic images and can be of any genre — drama, comedy, horror, action/adventure, animation, romance, science fiction, experimental, historical/epic, etc. PAFF accepts narrative and documentary features, shorts and webisodes.

COMPETITION:

The PAFF competition categories are: Best Narrative Feature, Best Narrative Short, Best Documentary (Short or Feature), Best Director — First Feature, Best Web-Series, plus a variety of Audience Favorite Awards. Films in competition must be copyrighted no earlier than 2019. With the exception of Audience Favorite Awards, films are judged by industry professionals. In addition to competition awards, other programming and festival special prizes will be awarded.

SUBMISSION PERIODS:

Early Submissions (Reduced Entry Fee): Currently being accepted through July 15, 2020.

Regular Submissions: July 16-September 20, 2020.

Late Submissions: September 21- October 30, 2020.

Extended Late Submissions: October 31-December 10, depending on available space.

After December 10, the submitter must contact submissions@paff.org to obtain permission to submit.

For submission instructions, information, fees and registration kindly go to www.paff.org and click onto “Submit a Film”. For questions regarding submissions, email submissions@paff.org.

ABOUT THE PAN AFRICAN FILM FESTIVAL

In its 29th year, the Pan African Film Festival (PAFF), is America’s largest and most prestigious Black film festival. Each year, it screens more than 185 films made by and/or about people of African descent from the United States, Africa, the Caribbean, South America, the South Pacific, Latin America, Europe and Canada. In conjunction with its simultaneous Art Showcase, PAFF holds the distinction of being the largest Black History Month event in the US.

PAFF was founded in 1992 by award-winning actor Danny Glover (“The Color Purple,” “Lethal Weapon”), the late Emmy Award-winning actress Ja’Net DuBois (best known for her role as Willona in the TV series, “Good Times”) and executive director, Ayuko Babu, an international legal, cultural and political consultant who specializes in African Affairs. PAFF is a non-profit corporation dedicated to the promotion of ethnic and racial respect and tolerance through the exhibit of films, art and other creative expressions.

The goal of PAFF is to present and showcase the broad range of Black creative works, particularly those that reinforce positive images, help to destroy negative stereotypes and depict an expanded vision of the Black experience. PAFF believes film and art can lead to better understanding and foster communication between peoples of diverse cultures, races, and lifestyles, while at the same time, serves as a vehicle to initiate dialogue on the important issues of our time.

For more information, please visit www.paff.org or email info@paff.org.

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