CCH Film Festival for the Entertainment Industry
Each year CCH hosts a Film Festival for the Entertainment Industry at a well-known screening theater near the epicenter of the Hollywood production and representation communities. The event is attended by film, television and new media executives, producers, directors, and other production professionals, as well as agents and managers. It is a yearly event to celebrate our student’s films and creativity.
As many as 10 films, documentaries and other projects from CCH students are screened through a customary jury process. A reception follows where CCH students can mingle with their future peers in the entertainment industry. Many CCH students have arranged industry meetings through the Festival and others have received job offers and development deals.
The College also uses the evening to honor those companies that have shown significant support to our students, often giving large discounts on goods and services or even free services. Among the companies that have been so honored are Kodak, Fuji Film, Panavision, Fotokem, Abel Cinetec, and Birns & Sawyer.
48 Hour Film Festival
Each year during the Winter academic quarter, CCH hosts a student-run competition - the 48 Hour Film Challenge - through which student teams are given an equipment package and a set of set requirements, and have from Friday to Sunday morning to write, shoot, and edit a short film.
The competition ends with a gala awards ceremony and reception in which prizes are given to the top three films as chosen by an industry jury, and honorable mention given to 10 other film projects.
3 Hour Screenwriting Challenge
The 3 Hour Screenwriting Challenge was created by a student at Columbia College Hollywood and takes place every Spring academic quarter. Students have three hours to write a short script under monitored conditions in our writing lab. The scripts are then given to an industry panel of jurors who determine three winners and 10 other scripts designated for honorable mention. At the ceremony and reception honoring the student participants, CCH acting students perform the winning scripts.
External Film Festivals
In addition to our Film Festival for the Entertainment Industry, 48 Hour Film Challenge and 3 Hour Screenwriting Challenge, the Career Development office keeps an up-to-date calendar of both domestic and international film festivals. Film festivals are a significant way to get noticed and gain a solid foothold in the industry. Our student and alumni films are frequently winners and “Official Selections” of film festivals around the globe, including The Sundance Film Festival. The Career Development Office offers many strong resources to help you find the best festivals for your film submissions, get you entered and get you noticed. Be sure to check the requirements for each festival as the requirements can and do differ.
