The Route 66 town of Moriarty, New Mexico, next month is hosting the New Mexico Route 66 Film Festival that features 66-second films people can upload for submission.
The festival is part of the 66th birthday celebration of Moriarty and nearby Buford, when both towns were incorporated (Buford later was annexed into Moriarty). The Sixty-Six on 66 gala on Sept. 27-29 features a 6.6-mile footrace, Pinto Bean Fiesta and Parade and other events.
The film festival begins at 1 p.m. Sept. 28 at the Moriarty High School Performing Arts Center (map here). The top submission wins $500.
Jerry Ueckert of the RETRO – Relive the Route group in Moriarty said the idea of a 66-second film festival sprung from the short Vine videos that first appeared online a few years ago.
Ueckert wrote in an email:
My daughter showed me all these Vines, and I was amazed at how much story you can pack into a 7 second video. So we thought a 66 Second Video contest would an ideal way to get a lot of entries from people who already have hours and hours of video. Just take any part of what you can put your head and hands on and tell a one minute story of any aspect of Route 66 that you want to. And then load ‘er on up to the FilmFreeway website. The portal itself is so amazingly easy for entry submissions and folk on the other side – previewers (me) and judges, etc.
Because the festival is supposed to be family-friendly, Ueckert has been forced to reject a few films because of vulgar language. Auteurs who are considering submitting a film should keep that in mind.
Ueckert made his own video for the festival that’s an example. It contains footage of the late Route 66 advocate Bob Audette driving La Bajada Hill in an old Model T.
Here’s a promotional ad that asks for submissions:
New Mexico Route 66 Film Fest invites filmmakers of all ages to capture one of the most photogenic and intriguing subjects in the world—The Mother Road!
From “The Grapes of Wrath” and “Cars,” to “Easy Rider” and “Bagdad Café,” artists keep proving there’s always another curve in the story of America’s greatest highway. Route 66 entices travelers of all nations with her rocky peaks and expansive valleys, as she strings together a collection of small towns standing in stark contrast to her iconic cities. Some discover their inner grit when challenged by her dusty, desert-wrecked blacktop. Others marvel at her neon and motor courts as they travel to another era. What is certain, no one who travels America’s Main Street is left unchanged.
Join the ranks of John Ford, Peter Fonda, John Lassiter and Ridley Scott — a group as eclectic as the attractions along the Route — in translating the history, pathos and sheer lunacy of the road that settled the West.
The deadline to submit a film is Sept. 9. More rules for the festival and the spot to submit them online are here.
(Images courtesy of Jerry Ueckert)