Cucalorus seeks films, speakers, virtual reality, dance, performance and more for 22nd Annual Film Festival and CONNECT Conference

WILMINGTON, N.C., April 14, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Cucalorus is officially accepting applications for the 22nd annual Cucalorus Film Festival and CONNECT Conference, November 9-13, 2016! Artists can submit films (all genres, all lengths), performances, dance, music videos, virtual reality, artistic interventions, installations and multi-media stories. Entrepreneurs can submit to the CONNECT Conference; applications for speakers, panels, workshops, and pitches are being accepted now.

The festival takes place in a walkable nine-block radius of historic downtown Wilmington, North Carolina. Thousands of filmmakers, artists, and entrepreneurs explore the intersections between creativity, capital, culture and cocktails through a unique tapestry of playful and funny programming focused on discovery. Accumulated attendance at the 2016 Festival and Conference was 17,000 plus. MovieMaker Magazine recently named Cucalorus one of the "50 Film Festivals Worth The Entry Fee" for 2016, and in January, Huffington Post included Cucalorus on its list of the "10 Best Film Festivals You've Never Heard Of."

The schedule combines festival hits with a bold international program and a massive selection of more than 190 shorts. The diverse lineup of new films is joined by cleverly crafted special programs, including Dance-a-lorus, a virtual reality lounge, Cuctails, and a Blue Velvet inspired installation called "The Bus to Lumberton." Cucalorus is organized into a slate of thematic programs dedicated to social justice, emerging artists, works-in-progress, shorts, dance, festival hits, international cinema, music videos, and North Carolina. New programmatic focuses specifically support American female directors and producers, directors from the US South, and African American directors.

The CONNECT Conference was launched last year through a partnership between Cucalorus, UNCW Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and tekMountain. CONNECT showcases visionary leaders who are using innovation and entrepreneurship to transform the economy. The conference includes keynotes (eHarmony co-founder Galen Buckwalter spoke in 2015), rocket pitches, TED-style talks, and a host of panels focusing on industries ranging from health care to fashion. According to Executive Director Dan Brawley, "Something special happens when you bring hundreds of talented filmmakers together to meet the entrepreneurs who are shaping our economy. We think CONNECT has the potential to create long-term creative partnerships and will become a place where bold new ideas find the capital to get off the ground."

Cucalorus' general call for entries extends through late July, with separate deadlines for Dance-a-lorus performance pieces and Works-in-Progress. The regular deadline is June 23 and the late deadline is July 14. Cucalorus is also currently accepting submissions for the fifth annual Surfalorus Film Festival and a range of other year-round programs. For more info about submissions, contact programming coordinator Natalie Lentz at [email protected]. All film submissions must include an entry form, submission fee and a self-portrait of the artist as a flame-breathing sea creature. Filmmakers living in the City of Wilmington do not have to pay entry fees. For more information visit: www.cucalorus.org/submit_a_film.asp

Cucalorus is sponsored in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, the North Carolina Arts Council, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, University of North Carolina Wilmington, tekMountain, Sage Island, and Brooks Pierce.

Cucalorus Film Festival
815 Princess Street
Wilmington, NC 28401
Natalie Lentz, Programming Coordinator
[email protected] / 910.343.5995

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SOURCE Cucalorus

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