PORTLAND — The list of more than 30 finalists has been announced for The Extra Credit Adventure Edit video contest, hosted by Maine Outdoor Film Festival. The films will premiere online at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 13. The premiere is free but viewers must register on MOFF’s website to receive the viewing link.

MOFF will be giving away two awards — a Jury and Audience award — in five categories and more than $2,500 in cash and gear prizes. The Jury award will be decided by a MOFF jury but the Audience award is decided by popular vote. The public will be able to rewatch the films and vote for their favorites from Thursday, May 14, to Tuesday, May 19, and awards will be announced on Wednesday, May 20.

MOFF launched the video contest back in April with the goal to inspire and support filmmakers while providing a positive distraction for the public via the online premiere. With over fifty submissions the response by filmmakers has been overwhelmingly positive.

“It’s such a wild moment in the world right now. And what we’re seeing in this body of work is the response to this time from some amazing artists,” says MOFF director, Nick Callanan. “My heart was leaping up and down as I reviewed them. I think people are really going to enjoy this set of short films.”

Films were entered in one of five categories: Nature Meditation, Profile Piece, Highlight Reel and Old Timers Edit. The Old Timers edit didn’t receive enough submissions to warrant inclusion, so that prize money was shifted to a “Maine-made” category, as 23 of the 36 submissions were from Maine.

Some films feature high-energy sports while others are more introspective, “It [the film] feels especially potent right now, reminding us of the physical togetherness from which we currently have to abstain, and reinforcing the notion that a slower, more deliberate rhythm could be a healthy adjustment for the world moving forward,” says accepted filmmaker Dylan Ladds of Portland about his film “Dip and Sway,” a music video for a song of the same name by Maine recording artist Elsie Gawler, filmed last summer.

In the Modern Times Public Service Announcement category, filmmakers used the resources they had nearby at home to make inspirational or educational films.

“Social-distanced filmmaking was interesting. I shot primarily with a 70-200 and coached the interviewees on attaching a lav mic,”: said Portland-based filmmaker Japer Lowe. “Quarantine required a hyper-local storytelling style that saw me pointing my camera at family and friends. In documenting their coronavirus coping strategies I was exercising my own.”

For a full list of accepted films and a short synopsis, please visit MaineOutdoorFilmFestival.com.

The Maine Outdoor Film Festival, founded in 2012, is an international film festival featuring films about outdoor adventure and conservation. Held annually in the summer, its first multi-day event, MOFF 2020 Portland, is slated for July 30-August 2 in Portland, Maine. MOFF 2020 Portland and associated satellite screenings celebrate the outdoor community and inspire expression. Film submissions for the 2020 season are open, learn more at MaineOutdoorFilmFestival.com

For more information or questions contact Nick Callanan, director, at Nick@NoUmbrella.com or (207) 672-3344 or Mary Haley, operations director, at MOFF@MaineOutdoorFilmFestival.com or (2070 399-3128.

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