FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Oct. 14, 2015 For More Information: Brenna O'Malley, 301/215-6660, Ext. 142 Stephanie Coppula, 301/215/6660, Ext. 120

FOURTH ANNUAL BETHESDA FILM FEST TO SHOWCASE SHORT DOCUMENTARIES BY LOCAL FILMMAKERS

Submissions are being accepted for March 2016 Film Festival

October 14, 2015 (Bethesda, MD) – The Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District announces the fourth annual Bethesda Film Fest, a documentary film festival featuring short documentary films. Entries must be received by January 8, 2016. Filmmakers from Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia are eligible to apply. A documentary by a young filmmaker, under 18 years of age, may also be chosen. Selected filmmakers will be invited to show their documentaries at the formal screenings on March 18 and 19, 2016 at Imagination Stage located at 4908 Auburn Avenue in downtown Bethesda. Selected filmmakers will receive a $500 honorarium. Young filmmakers will receive a $250 honorarium. Entries will be viewed by the Bethesda Film Fest selection panel, consisting of Erin Essenmacher, Chief Programming Officer, National Association of Corporate Directors; Anna Reid Jhirad, Founder of Marigold Productions, LLC and Larry Kirkman, professor of Film and Media Arts and Dean Emeritus of the American University School of Communications. Filmmakers in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. are eligible to submit a short documentary film, 5-30 minutes in length. All topics are eligible. Films must have been completed within the last two years. Young filmmakers, under 18 years of age, may also submit work. Entries can also be submitted online at www.bethesda.org. Filmmakers may also apply by mailing a completed application and DVD including the documentary, 5-30 minutes in length, to Bethesda Film Fest c/o Bethesda Urban Partnership, 7700 Old Georgetown Rd., Bethesda, MD 20814. Entries must be received by January 8, 2016. For an application, please visit www.bethesda.org or call 301/215-6660. From award-winning theatre to independent films, downtown Bethesda’s Arts & Entertainment District is filled with inspiring artists and art venues. The Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District is managed by the Bethesda Urban Partnership, Inc., and is the producer of The Trawick Prize: Bethesda Contemporary Art Awards, Bethesda Painting Awards, Bethesda Fine Arts Festival, Bethesda Artist Market, Bethesda Art Walk, Dance Bethesda and Play In A Day.

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