23rd Annual Whitaker St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase runs July 21-30

ST. LOUIS - June 12, 2023 - PRLog -- 23rd Annual Whitaker St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase
Dates: Screenings July 21-23 and 28-30
Tickets: Individual GA tickets are $15, $12 for Cinema St. Louis members and students with valid and current photo IDs
Location: Hi-Pointe Theatre, 1005 McCausland Ave.
Passes: 5-film passes are available for $65, $50 for CSL members; VIP passes are available for $140, $105 for CSL members
Ticket and Pass Purchase: cinemastlouis.org/st-louis-filmmakers-showcase

The Whitaker St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase, an annual presentation of the nonprofit Cinema St. Louis (CSL), serves as the area's primary venue for films made by local artists. The Showcase screens works that were shot in the St. Louis region or were written, directed, or produced by St. Louis-area residents or by filmmakers with strong local ties who are now working elsewhere.

The 91 films in this year's Showcase is spread across 17 film programs ranging from narrative and documentary features to multi-film compilations of fiction, experimental, and documentary shorts. Feature length film programs include Q&As with filmmakers. In addition to the film programs, this year's event includes three free master classes focused on key aspects of filmmaking.

All film programs screen exclusively at the Hi-Pointe Theatre. Three master classes will also be offered, two at the theater and a legal-issues master class will be held at the offices of Capes Sokol in Clayton.

The July 30th closing-night awards presentation will take place in the Hi-Pointe Theatre from 7:30 - 10:30 PM, with awards announcements beginning at 8:30 PM. Announced during the event will be nearly two dozen Showcase jury awards — including the Essy Award, a $1,000 prize to the overall Best Showcase Film. Cinema St. Louis staff will also announce the films that will move on to the 32nd Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival in November.

The 91 films and three master classes in this year's Showcase include the following:

• Animated and Experimental Shorts
• Doc Shorts
• Master Classes
• Narrative Shorts
• "The Box"
• "Anthem: Road to Redemption"
• "Bring Dat Mono Back"
• "Somewhere in Old Missouri"

The Whitaker Foundation again serves as the Showcase's title sponsor. The foundation's twofold mission is to encourage the preservation and use of parks and to enrich lives through the arts. The Chellappa-Vedavalli Foundation is underwriting both the Showcase's master classes and the Essy Award, a $1,000 prize for the Best Showcase Film.

The event's other sponsors include Arts & Education Council, Capes Sokol, Cheshire, Explore St. Louis, Grizzell & Co., Lindell Bank, Missouri Arts Council, Missouri Division of Tourism, Missouri Film Office, Regional Arts Commission, St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission, and St. Louis Public Radio.

For more information, the public should visit cinemastlouis.org/st-louis-filmmakers-showcase (https://www.cinemastlouis.org/st-louis-filmmakers-showcase).

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