NWA Filmmaker Mixer at Ozark Beer Company

Elizabeth McCurdy and Barry Cobbs, co-directors and founders of Rogers Short Film Festival, are setting the stage for another opportunity to present short, independent films from across the U.S. and beyond.  But their energy and enthusiasm is bubbling over so they decided to convene filmmakers and supporters at a mixer from 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. Thursday, November 17^th at Ozark Beer Company, 109 N Arkansas Street, Rogers, AR.

Elizabeth McCurdy started the NWA Filmmaker Mixer hoping to create a regular meeting for filmmakers and enthusiasts in NWA. It is a neutral event, inviting all film related organizations to co-host and spread the word with their networks. 

The Rogers Short Film Festival was born in 2021—but was dreamed of by cofounder, Barry Cobbs, for many years prior to that. Cobbs, serving as senior producer and Elizabeth McCurdy, production manager, are members of the creative team at StudioChunky. The pair launched the festival because they recognized a need for short films to be the feature attraction, rather than a subset of a film festival dedicated to feature length films. But as the festival grows, there may be talk of introducing feature length films in the future. The festival serves as a hub for filmmakers to connect with other creatives, show their work, and further their careers. 

McCurdy is practically bubbling over when she describes the rapid growth of the festival after just 2 years. “We had a 400% increase in attendance last year…and we expect those numbers to again double,” as she encourages filmmakers to attend the November 17 event at Ozark Beer Company.

Cobbs invites creatives to “Get out of the edit bay and kick things off with our filmmaker shindig at Ozark Beer Company…” and then submit their films by December 23 to “see why filmmakers think Rogers Short Film Festival is one of the best in the nation.”

The Rogers Short Film Festival

The Rogers Short Film Festival will host the third season of short films March 3 – 5, 2023 at the Victory Theater in Downtown Rogers. The young but rapidly growing festival allows filmmakers to compete against their peers in categories based on experience and budget.

Categories:
•Student Category K-12: Open to all filmmakers in the K-12 educational levels.
•Student Category Postsecondary: Open to postsecondary, undergraduate and graduate students of colleges, universities, and trade and technical school.
•Amateur: Open to nonprofessional filmmakers not backed by a production company or outside funding.
•Professional: Open to all professional filmmakers.

ALL categories include: narrative film, documentary, animation, and experimental.

CLICK HERE to check out film freeway for additional information about deadlines, fees, and categories.