April 2, 2001
NEW FILM FESTIVAL FOCUSES ON CAPTURING "SPIRITUAL
EXPERIENCES"
LOS ANGELES, CA- The Damah Group, a new non-profit
group based in San Clemente, has announced it
is accepting submissions for the first Damah Film
Festival - Spiritual Experience in Film. The festival
will be held October 10-11 in Seattle. Awards
will be being presented at the Experience Music
Project near the base of the world-famous Space
Needle. This celebration of short films is open
to filmmakers of any experience level from first-timers
to veteran directors.
A preliminary list of jurors for the Damah Film
Festival includes film critic and radio talk show
host, Michael Medved, Hollywood publicist Michael
Levine, and Chris Willman, senior writer for Entertainment
Weekly, with more to be added. More than $15,000
in prize money will be awarded, and films will
be screened on the Internet as well as the festival
site, www.damah.com.
Damah is unique among short film festivals because
it does not limit submissions by genre or format.
The only required element for an entry: filmmakers
must capture "spiritual experiences" by telling
stories of struggle and redemption, preferably
with unexpected endings. Entrants will compete
in categories for films one, five, 15 and 30 minutes
in length.
Not focusing on the technical opens Damah to
a wider range of would be cineastes. "This is
an event where student or a soccer mom can compete
on a level playing field with a professional,"
says festival spokesperson Spencer Burke, creator
of Theooze.com.
"Though technical mastery of the craft is important,
the power of the story is our first concern."
Damah is a Hebrew word meaning "inspirational
metaphor." It is a form of storytelling often
seen in the parables of the New Testament in the
Bible.
For information regarding the Damah Film Festival,
please contact Kathlee Roscoe of The Damah Group
at (949)361-6030 or visit the festival Web site
at www.damah.com.
