- News
WXXI News
- TV
- Radio
- The Little
- CITY
- Education
Information for
- Events
- Support
Support WXXI
myWXXI, Membership, Corporate Sponsorship, Planned Giving, Volunteer, Vehicle Donation
Pledge Now!
more... - Cultural Calendar
Rochester Teen Film Festival

Rochester Teen Film Festival
August, 2024
at the Little Theatre
Film screening, awards ceremony, and reception
WXXI Public Media and the Little Theatre are proud to sponsor the Rochester Teen Film Festival, a collaborative, juried media competition for youth (13-18 years old) in the Greater Rochester region and beyond. The screening and awards ceremony will be held on in August of 2024 at the Little Theatre. This event will feature general admission (unassigned) seating, and concessions will be open for sale (eating in the lobby and auditorium).
Entry Requirements
WXXI Public Media and the Little Theatre are proud to announce and invite entries for the Rochester Teen Film Festival, a collaborative, juried media competition for youth in the Greater Rochester region and beyond.
Film Submissions Guidelines:
- Films and videos are created by high school teens (ages 13-18 years old)
- All genres are welcome
- Videos must be appropriate for school-based audiences
- Videos cannot exceed 10 minutes
Purpose: The purpose of the festival is to honor the work of urban, suburban, and rural teen filmmakers and give young people an authentic opportunity to participate in a real film festival.
Awards & Judging: All submissions are judged by a jury and finalists have been selected to have their films shown at the Little Theatre. The young filmmakers selected as part of this year’s festival will also have a chance to earn one of the following four awards, each of which comes with a cash prize:
The Philip Seymour Hoffman Award honors the life and legacy of the late Academy Award-winning actor and Fairport, New York native. The annual award is given to the teen whose film is chosen by the judges as “Best of Fest.” The award was established in association with the Hoffman family with funds raised during The Little Theatre’s Philip Seymour Hoffman Tribute Film Series.
Alex Ketchek Award for Best Animated Film is presented by the Ketchek family and Animatus Studio. Alex Ketchek, a 2010 Rochester Teen Film Festival finalist, tragically passed away in 2013.
The Jack Garner Award for Best Director is a new annual award in the memory of long-time RTFF jury member and much beloved and spirited national film critic. It is given through the support of Bonnie Garner and the Garner family.
The Marilyn O’Connor Award
is presented to a film that addresses a social issue through the lens of compassion, equity and social justice. Marilyn O’Connor has never crossed a picket line. She’s been fighting for equality and justice as a youth, a parent, a public defender and Family Court Judge. She was recognized for mentoring young women in the practice of law as the recipient of the NYS Women’s Bar Association’s Betty Weinberg Ellerin’s Mentoring Award and was one of the founders of the Greater Rochester Association for Women Attorneys, an organization that supports and encourages women in the legal community.
Dr. Brian Bailey & Heather Layton provide funding for the Jack Garner Award for Best Director and the Marilyn O’Connor Award
WATCH THE FILMS OF THE 2023 FEATURED FINALISTS
TRUMPET PRACTICE, Eli Jeffrey from Penfield High School, Penfield, NY
Received the Phillip Seymour Hoffman Best of Festival Award
HOMELESSNESS IN ROCHESTER, Michelle Meletiche from East Upper School (RCSD), Rochester, NY
Received the Marilyn O'Connor Awared for Social Justice
65 MILLION YEARS LATER, Jack Saxon & Harrison Saxon from Animatus Studio, Rochester, NY
Received the Alex Ketchek Award for Best Animated Film
THE HUNT, Sam Owens from Webster Schroeder High School, Webster, NY
Received the Jack Garner Award for Best Director
Cúinas, Mischa McCarthy from SONAR, Kerry, Ireland
Received the Best Acting Award
NURSING SHORTAGE IN AMERICA, Alejandra Sanchez Colon & Sakariya (Zack) Nur from Edison Career & Technology High School (RCSD), Rochester, NY
Received The Best Public Awareness Film Award
I’M NOT WHO YOU THINK YOU ARE, Clyde Sheridan from High School of Art & Design, Astoria, NY
Received the Best Cinematography Award
FLY OR DIE, Kyshawn White from Greece Arcadia High School, Greece, NY
Received the Best Editing & Visual Effects Award
SAMPLE VIDEOS FROM PAST FILM FESTS
Support Resources
Educators: Use these resources (lesson plans, video, tip sheets) from our public media partners to support students/teens working on their Rochester Teen Film Festival submissions.
Video/Audio Production Tips (from PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs)
- Copyright & Fair Use
- Interviewing: The Art of Asking Questions
- How to Properly Focus
- Been There, Lit That
- Get That B-Roll
- (Make Your Footage) Pop
- Mic Check 1,2
Royalty Free Music (free music available for independent filmmakers)
Sparking Ideas (from PBS American Portrait)
- "You Don't Know What it's Like to..."
- "My American Story Began When..."
- "I Stand For..."
- More story prompts
Strategies to Elevate Student Voice
The Rochester Teen Film Festival and showcase event is made possible with support from:
![]() | ![]() |
Past Festival Finalists
Preview past films submitted to the Rochester Teen Film Festival:
2022 Award Winners
2021 Festival Video Playlist | 2020 Best of Fest 2011-2019 | 2019 Festival Video Playlist | 2018 Festival Video Playlist | 2017 Festival Video Playlist | 2016 Festival Video Playlist | 2015 Festival Video Playlist | 2014 Festival Video Playlist | 2013 Festival Video Playlist | 2012 Festival Video Playlist | 2011 Festival Video Playlist
Free Teen Animation Workshop
THE WORKSHOP IS NOW CLOSED. All spaces are full
Where Animatus Studio, 34 Winthrop St, Rochester, NY 14607When: August 3, 2023 1-3pm
Who: Open to local teens, 13-18 year olds with an interest in animation (space is limited)Details for this 2 hour basic animation class include for each student:
1. A tour of Animatus Studio & samples of the animation work.2. Explain how animation works by making a flipbook & zoetrope strip.3. Hands-on animation. Frame by frame shooting of paper cutouts under the animation stand using a digital camera & DragonFrame professional stop motion software.
4. Examples of the process of creating professional 2D cartoon animation with hand drawn & digital processes, including Toon Boom & After Effects software in use.
REGISTER Registration is now closed
This workshop is offered through Animatus Studio
The Animation Workshop event is made possible with support from:
![]() | ![]() |