For Immediate Release
Langley City, BC – The City of Langley's Arts, Recreation, Culture, and Heritage (ARCH) Committee and the Langley Arts Council are excited to announce the three jurors granting awards at the inaugural Langley City Film Festival (LCFF) that will take place from Friday, October 20th to Sunday, October 22nd, 2023.
The jury will be Christine Stewart, Eli Hirtle, and Maureen Levitt.
Christine Stewart is a west coast filmmaker/media artist whose work has been shown at many North American, European, and Asian festivals and venues. Christine also teaches at Emily Carr University of Art + Design, where she is an Associate Professor in Film + Screen Arts as well as Assistant Dean in Design and Dynamic Media. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Access to Media Education Society and is past staff/board at VIVO Media Arts.
Eli Hirtle is a nêhiyaw(Cree)/British/German filmmaker, visual artist, and curator based on Lekwungen Territory in Victoria, BC, Canada. His practice involves making films about Indigenous cultural resurgence and language revitalization, as well as investigating his nêhiyaw identity through beadwork. Current areas of interest are learning how to speak his ancestral language of nêhiyawêwin and mentoring emerging Indigenous artists. Eli currently serves as Curator, of Indigenous, and Contemporary Art at Open Space Arts Society.
Maureen Levitt is passionate about the power of truth in storytelling, community development, networking, cross-cultural awareness, and diversity. She has a long career in film and television, collaborating with and mentoring emerging and experienced Canadian filmmakers, broadcasters, and production companies. Maureen and her work have served to break ground, supporting multicultural recognition and visibility, and advocating for social justice. Since 2017 Maureen has been an Independent Film and Television Consultant as a program mentor, juror, and story consultant.
The jurors will be selecting the winners for the following categories:
General Awards (Applicants aged 19+)
- Stock; Stop Motion, Animation, or Experimental Films (from 30 seconds up to 5 minutes including credits)
- Short (over 5 minutes up to 40 minutes including credits)
- Feature (over 40 minutes up to 90 minutes including credits)
High School Student Awards (Applicants up to 18 years)
- High School Student Short (10 seconds up to 60 seconds including credits)
- High School Student Medium (over 1 minute up to 3 minutes including credits) High School Student Long (from 3 minutes up to 5 minutes including credits)
“We are thrilled to welcome these esteemed and accomplished filmmakers to the festival as our jury,” said Councillor Rosemary Wallace, ARCH Committee Chair. “Together they will embark on a journey to highlight the artistic achievements and honor the compelling storytelling in this year’s festival. We thank them for their dedication to artistic excellence and their thoughtful lens on cinematic expression and all that independent film offers.”
The jurors will meet to view the submissions after the June 30 deadline. Applications are available at https://filmfreeway.com/LCFF2023. A shortlist of films will be shown at the film festival and prizes will be announced during the event.
Media Inquiries:
Samantha Paulson, Communications Officer
mediainfo@langleycity.ca