A 7-year-old girl from St. Paul, Minn., made an experimental short film and managed to get it screened at Columbia for the college community to see. It was one of nearly 100 short films by young directors from across the country for a three-day celebration of amateur filmmaking.

The sixth annual CineYouth Festival took over the 1104 Center, 1104 S. Wabash Ave., May 6-8, for a series of screenings centering around short films by directors under the age of 20. The festival was organized by Cinema/Chicago, the nonprofit film group that also puts together the Chicago International Film Festival. In addition to the screenings, CineYouth featured a series of educational workshops for young filmmakers.

“We also love to honor the youth filmmakers and that’s what CineYouth really does,” said Rebecca Fons, CineYouth’s festival director. “It gives us a chance to reach out to those filmmakers who, hopefully, we’ll see at the Chicago International Film Festival in years to come. It’s important to nurture and honor that talent.”

The festival’s opening reception was held May 6 at Film Row Cinema on the 8th floor of the 1104 Center. It featured an appearance by two 2009 Student Academy Award winners: Joaquin Baldwin and Brendan Bellomo. Their winning films were screened, as well as their early work, followed by a Q-and-A format session with the audience.

“It’s a really great chance to look to people who are still young—they’re in their mid-20s—and talk to them about how they found the success, what their next steps are … their track and their plans,” Fons said.

Columbia sophomore film major Matt Storc, whose horror-comedy “Doorway to Death” was featured in the festival, said he was glad to see a festival giving directors his age the opportunity to showcase their work.

“I think that the younger filmmakers are kind of pushed off to the side, you know, thinking that they might be picking up a camera and just recording movies in their backyards or something, but they really do have something to say,” Store said. “I’m really glad a festival like this exists.”

Fons said the festival’s workshops teach skills such as digital editing, story development, casting and low-budget special effects in order to prepare youths for careers in filmmaking.

“[CineYouth] is not just about watching films, but it’s also about learning how to make films, learning more skills that maybe they didn’t have when they first started making films,” she said. “They can come away from CineYouth with not only some collaboration and some brainstorming ideas, but also some really great, usable skills that they learned at the workshops.”

Storc said he saw the festival as an opportunity to begin making professional connections with other filmmakers his age.

“It’s a good way to network, because that’s what Columbia’s all about,” he said. “It’s a good way for all these 20-year-olds—and younger—to get together, talk to each other and maybe find common interests. All the films are kind of put into categories, so you could find common interests there, and maybe even form working partnerships for a lifetime.”

Fons said Cinema/Chicago received about 300 submissions for the festival, which were then screened and evaluated by a jury of Columbia film students to determine which ones made it into the festival. However, she said the jury also wanted to help the growth and development of the applicants whose films weren’t accepted.

“All those students whose films are not accepted, we do give them jury feedback,” Fons said. “They aren’t just getting a ‘No, you’re not in.’ It’s, ‘We’re not accepting your film this year, and these are the reasons. Here are some constructive criticism points for you to take away with it so you’re not just totally denied, you have a little bit of something to work with.’”

Aren Zolninger, a junior film major, was a member of the screening jury. She said she used the submitted films as a learning opportunity.

“I was glad to be a part of it because I was learning from other people’s mistakes and other people’s successes,” she said. “You’ll see this pure little thing where someone totally made something around this idea, and they weren’t concerned with the production value. I think that’s something film students really need to focus on. Are you telling a story, or are you just making things look nice?”

Zolninger said Columbia was a good place to hold the festival, because in addition to exposing the young filmmakers to the school’s environment, it exposes students to a wide variety of short films.

“I think film students need to see as many short films as they can, just because it’s the hardest thing you make, and it’s the first thing you make,” she said. “ They’re so hard to write, because every minute counts. I think it’s beneficial for students to see them, so I think it’s good for us that [the festival] is here.”

teach skills such as digital editing, story development, casting and low-budget special effects in order to prepare youths for careers in filmmaking.

“[CineYouth] is not just about watching films, but it’s also about learning how to make films, learning more skills that maybe they didn’t have when they first started making films,” she said. “They can come away from CineYouth with not only some collaboration and some brainstorming ideas, but also some really great, usable skills that they learned at the workshops.”

Storc said he saw the festival as an opportunity to begin making professional connections with other filmmakers his age.

“It’s a good way to network because that’s what Columbia’s all about,” he said. “It’s a good way for all these 20-year-olds—and younger—to get together, talk to each other and maybe find common interests. All the films are kind of put into categories, so you could find common interests there, and maybe even form working partnerships for a lifetime.”

Fons said Cinema/Chicago received about 300 submissions for the festival, which were then screened and evaluated by a jury of Columbia film students to determine which ones made it into the festival. However, she said the jury also wanted to help the growth and development of the applicants whose films weren’t accepted.

“All those students whose films are not accepted, we do give them jury feedback,” Fons said. “They aren’t just getting a ‘No, you’re not in.’ It’s, ‘We’re not accepting your film this year, and these are the reasons. Here are some constructive criticism points for you to take away with it so you’re not just totally denied, you have a little bit of something to work with.’”

Aren Zolninger, a junior film major, was a member of the screening jury. She said she used the submitted films as a learning opportunity.

“I was glad to be a part of it because I was learning from other people’s mistakes and other people’s successes,” Zolninger said. “You’ll see this pure little thing where someone totally made something around this idea, and they weren’t concerned with the production value. I think that’s something film students really need to focus on. Are you telling a story, or are you just making things look nice?”

Zolninger said Columbia was a good place to hold the festival because in addition to exposing the young filmmakers to the school’s environment, it exposes students to a wide variety of short films.

“I think film students need to see as many short films as they can, just because it’s the hardest thing you make, and it’s the first thing you make,” she said. “ They’re so hard to write because every minute counts. I think it’s beneficial for students to see them, so I think it’s good for us that [the festival] is here.”

For a full list of the films featured in CineYouth and for more information about the festival, visit CinemaChicago.org/CineYouth.