Check out the full list of winners from the 2023 Louisiana Film Prize Junior festival
The 2023 Film Prize Junior broke attendance records and awarded over $12,000 in scholarships and media grants to student filmmakers at the awards ceremony on Sunday, April 23.
This special festival is presented by the Prize Foundation and is part of the Shreveport Regional Arts Council's Artbreak! Festival. It featured screenings of a record-breaking 92 films from 50 schools across Louisiana, 28 of which are Title One schools.
Student filmmakers and their teachers, families and friends were able to view the films during in-person screenings and vote on their favorite for the Audience Choice award.
"We were blown away by the attendance and exuberance of these teachers and kids who came from all over the state to show their film and to celebrate filmmaking," said Prize Foundation Executive Director and Founder Gregory Kallenberg. "Film Prize Junior is one of the most important things we do, and seeing these kids being transformed by this program is incredibly inspirational to me and Team Film Prize Junior."
The festival also hosted a virtual red carpet for the student filmmakers and an industry-led mentorship panels for students and teachers. This year introduced the interactive exhibit Production Island where students were given guided hands-on access to cameras as well as lighting and sound equipment.
There were also hands-on demonstrations with teams from Panavision, MBS Equipment Company, Crafty Apes and Bossier Parish Community College. There were representatives from IATSE #478 demonstrating Hollywood-style digital animation and filmmaking, hair and makeup styling, lighting techniques and more. All of these events were free to attend for students and their teacher sponsors. Additional support for the event was provided by Louisiana Economic Development's Entertainment Division and Louisiana Film and Entertainment Association.
The 2023 Film Prize Junior winners were:
For the high school division, Reap What You Sow from Woodlawn High School in Baton Rouge received the Audience Choice Award for Best Short Film and received a $1,500 equipment grant, $240 for student celebration and $250 to the sponsoring teacher.
A panel of industry professionals voted for the Judge's Choice Award which was presented to Ghost from Caddo Magnet High School in Shreveport. The school received a $2,500 media grant along with $1,000 for student celebration and $1,000 to the sponsoring teacher.
For the middle school division, the Audience Choice Award went to The Green Room from Caddo Middle Magnet in Shreveport, earning a $750 equipment grant for the school and $250 for the sponsoring teacher.
The Judge's Choice Award went to Cherrywinche from Plainview High School in Glenmora with the school receiving a $1,500 equipment grant, $500 for student celebration and $500 to the sponsoring teacher.
Films were also recognized for best of animation and best of each film genre.
High School Winners:
Best Animation - Pride for Our Planet from Bruin Theater Alliance in Kenner and Shamefaced from New Orleans Center for Creative Arts.
Best Comedy - A Black Girl's Court Room from Northside High School in Lafayette.
Best Drama - Ghost from Caddo Magnet High School in Shreveport.
Best Sci-Fi / Fantasy - A Tabletop Journey from West Ouachita High School in Monroe.
Best Thriller - Reap What You Sow from Woodlawn High School in Baton Rouge and The Janitor from Plainview High School in Glenmora.
Best Documentary - Martha's Journey from New Orleans Military & Maritime Academy.
Middle School Winners:
Best Animation - The Costume Gift from First Baptist Church School in Shreveport and To the Moon and Back from Southfield School in Shreveport.
Best Comedy - The Green Room from Caddo Middle Magnet in Shreveport.
Best Drama - Cherrywinche from Plainview High School in Glenmora.
Best Sci-Fi / Fantasy - Virtual Exit from Harriet Tubman Charter School in New Orleans.
Best Thriller - Plaything from McKinley Middle Academic Magnet School of Visual & Performing Arts in Baton Rouge.
Additionally, select films were chosen to receive a Founder's Circle Award. The Founder's Circle provides $250 grants to the schools to create films for next year's festival.
High School Winners:
A Day in the Office from Benton High School in Benton.
Marwan's Suit from Warren Easton Charter High School in New Orleans.
Outside My Comfort Zone from John Ehret High School in Marrero.
Sean the Sleeper from North Caddo High School in Shreveport.
Something for Your Mind from West Ouachita High School in Monroe.
The Circle from Captain Shreve High School in Shreveport.
Nowhere Girl from C.E. Byrd High School in Shreveport.
Do Black Lives Matter? from Booker T. Washington High School in New Orleans.
Middle School Winners:
Moe-Shin from Bossier Parish School for Technology & Innovative Learning in Bossier City.
Little Red from Donnie Bickham Middle School in Shreveport.
Time Traveling through Middle School from First Baptist Church School in Shreveport.
Misunderstood from Catholic Schoolhouse.
The Djin from T.H. Harris Middle School in Metairie.
More: The annual ArtBreak Festival celebrates Caddo Parish students creativity
Film Prize Junior is the student version of the Prize Foundation's flagship festival, Louisiana Film Prize. The competition was created by Film Prize founder Gregory Kallenberg's son Tobias.
The festival aims to incentivize students to become engaged in the collaborative, multidisciplinary art form of filmmaking and creative entrepreneurship while guiding students through the entire process from pen to production to marketing of the film.
For more information about the program and to view this year's films, visit the Film Prize Jr. website.
Meredith G. White is the arts and culture reporter for the Shreveport Times. You can find her on Facebook as Meredith G. White, on Instagram and Twitter as @meredithgwhite, and email her at mgwhite@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Check out all of the winners from the 2023 Louisiana Film Prize Junior
