Hugh Jackman and Tony Blair launch global film competition

HollywoodNews.com: Today, Faith Shorts 2012, the Tony Blair Faith Foundation’s global short film competition, opens calls for entries from around the world. Any young person aged between 14 – 27 is invited to submit a short film showing how faith impacts their life and the lives of those around them. These films will be judged by a high profile panel including: Tony Blair, Hollywood stars Hugh Jackman and Jet Li, Bollywood star Anil Kapoor, Oscar- winning producer David Puttnam, the Grand Mufti of Bosnia and British actress Dawn French. The winning filmmakers will be flown to London to have their films premiered at 195 Piccadilly, the home of BAFTA. The Foundation is accepting film submissions from 29th March 2012, with the competition closes on 9th July. Faith Shorts is designed to be as accessible as possible. Those who don’t have access to film making equipment can apply to win a portable video camera, in order to enter the competition. This pitch competition also opens on 29th March and closes on 7th May 2012. Entrants need to outline their thoughts for a film to enter into the main competition, and the winning entries will be sent a small video camera with which they can film their entry. Through sharing personal stories and providing insights to their world, young people are given the chance to correct some of the presumptions that exist around religion and religious views, and show that faith means different things to different people. This competition also counters the notion that religion is not only a source of conflict. For the last two years Faith Shorts has been inundated with stories of solidarity, strength and solace. Last year a group of Canadian Baha’i rappers won the competition overall, producing a creative and uplifting rap encouraging young people to be agents of social change. A Christian Filipino film student focused on the darker side of religion and the way in which faith can be tested in moments of adversity and a Muslim high school student worked with her class in the UK to explore the true meaning of Islam. Tony Blair, Founder and Patron of the Tony Blair Faith Foundation and Faith Shorts Judge said: “I am delighted to announce the launch of Faith Shorts 2012. Now in its third year, this global short film competition provides young people with a creative and [...]