LJMU MA Short Film Festival returns for its 4th edition

4 Years, 4 Film Strands, 4 Paper Bird Awards… The 2024 LJMU MA Short Film Festival returns, online and live in Liverpool.

Liverpool John Moores University is proud to announce that the LJMU MA Short Film Festival is returning for its 4th edition, scheduled to take place online from the 15^th – 22^nd March, and in-person from the 18^th – 22^nd March 2024. 

Established in 2021 and organised by MA Film students as part of their studies, the festival showcases outstanding student films from around the world in four strands: Fiction, Animation, Documentary and Experimental.

The 2024 programme features 38 films from 21 countries, with student filmmakers competing for one of four coveted Paper Bird Awards, bestowed on the winning film by judging panels comprised of industry experts, academics, previous winners and LJMU students. Visitors to the festival website will also be able to vote for their favourite film to receive the Audience Paper Bird Award.

After the success of last year’s live awards events, the LJMU MA Short Film Festival returns, enhanced and expanded. For the first time ever, the festival will be fully hybrid, meaning that audiences will have the choice of how they want to watch: in-person at one of our screenings or online at ljmumashortfilmfestival.org.

Live screenings of each individual film strand will take place at LJMUs Redmonds Building across 18^th – 21^st March. Each screening will be followed by a live Q&A with some of the filmmakers featured in this year’s programmes, giving audiences the opportunity to ask questions and discover more about individual films.

If you are in the Liverpool area, why not take the opportunity to experience this year’s programme in person? In addition, our yearly closing awards event will take place on Friday 22^nd March at Scale Liverpool and in another first for the festival, this will also be streamed live across our social media channels -what’s more, all these events are 100% free to enter!

The LJMU MA Short Film Festival is curated and delivered as part of the MA ‘Exploring Film Festivals, Distribution and Exhibition’ module. This pioneering approach to post-graduate study is spearheaded by Dr Lydia Papadimitriou as part of the MA Film course.

Co-organising and curating a real festival enables our MA students to gain hands-on experience in a variety of disciplines, including, trailer editing, social media campaign management, public relations, and live event management. The transferable skills developed over the course of the festival are also deployable in a variety of sectors, meaning that students gain from their studies both academically and professionally.

Emily White, international MA student and festival co-organiser, said:

“As a Canadian, I am proud to be a part of the LJMU MA Short Film Festival, which reflects the diverse cultural make-up of the city of Liverpool through its commitment to showcasing the talents of student filmmakers globally. The festivals module has enabled my classmates and I to get first-hand experience of working within the Film Festival and wider Film industry, which will support us as we look to develop our professional careers going forward.”

This year’s festival will feature 38 films across the categories of Fiction, Animation, Documentary and Experimental, and is sure to entertain, surprise, and stimulate audiences.

Dr Lydia Papadimitriou, Festival Director, said:

“I am so pleased that the LJMU MA Film Festival is going from strength to strength. For the first time since we started off in the middle of the pandemic, the festival is now going to be fully in-person and fully-online, offering the best possible combination to reach audiences both locally and globally.

“This year’s MA Film students have done an amazing job selecting an outstanding programme out of 2746 film submissions, and we are now gearing up to presenting all four strands – Fiction, Animation, Documentary and Experimental – to audiences and jurors. Join us to experience the festival for yourselves!”

Martin Jones, Festival Coordinator & Tutor added:

“This is my second year as festival coordinator, and over the past 12 months, it has been my ambition for the festival to grow in terms of presence and visibility. The live events we have introduced for the 4th edition are sure to excite and stimulate audiences. Our key remit at the festival is to promote the quality of student filmmaking from all corners of the globe, and the 38 films that have been selected for this year’s edition are sure to continue that endeavour.”

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