The doors to the 2018 DIY Film Festival are open!!!!

A call to arms!

Loving embraces only.... we encourage all who are do it yourself filmmakers to submit your film to the DIY Film Fest.

We're now in our 15th year, and have been honoring the very best in Do It Yourself filmmaking.  
"When the cost of filmmaking is as much as a pencil and a piece of paper, then we'll find true art."  (Jean Cocteau)

We get entries from across the globe; we've had filmmakers submit films from Nepal, India, Georgia, Ukraine, Iran, Israel, South America, North America, Europe and Africa.  

We're an ONLINE FESTIVAL - where we celebrate the winners online and win editing packages from Pinnacle Editing Systems and take advantage of online distribution through 

Here's what you'll see if you click on the entry to the right of this page:

15th Annual The DIY Film Festival March 31, 2018 to March 31, 2019                       Select a Category of Entry to View                     Dramatic Feature Student Films Documentary Feature Comedic Feature Animation Dramatic Short Documentary Short Comedic Short Mocumentary                International Film Video Short Feature Competition Film Market Submit Online OPEN CALL FOR ENTRIES • Select a Category  of Entry to continue. Dramatic Feature Student Films Any genre, feature length or short film is eligible  in this category as long as it was produced under  the auspices of an educational institution. Documentary Feature Comedic Feature Animation Dramatic Short Documentary Short Comedic Short Mocumentary DIY FILM FEST PO Box 248 Santa Monica CA 90406 USA diyfilmfest@yahoo.com http://diyfilmfest.com

And the 2018 winners are...

We are pleased to announce the WINNING FILMS for the 2018 DIY Film Festival. 

Please take a look at these titles as they represent the finest in Do It Yourself filmmaking.  

BEST FILM - BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

"A FORCE IN NATURE – JOHANN EYFELLS" 

DIRECTED BY HAYDEN DE MAISONEUVE YATES

"Portrait of an Artist as an Older Man." Proof that the need to create strikes people anywhere on the planet.  Wonderful exploration of the famed Icelandic artist. 

Hayden demonstrating how hats and cameras have shrunk.

"Jóhann Eyfells, a 93 year-old Icelandic sculptor living in Texas, reveals the forces that shaped his life from his early years in Iceland, the land of fire and ice, to his professional life as an artist and teacher in Florida. 

After the death of Kristin Eyfells, a sculptor, painter, and his wife of nearly 60 years, Johann moved from Florida to Texas. Despite the loss he still feels for Kristin and his physical age, Jóhann continues to create new massive and monumental works exploring our understanding of time and space while struggling to find recognition for both Kristin and himself in the artistic world.

Filmmaker with artist Eyfells in 2016

A Force in Nature: Jóhann Eyfells from Alien Spaceman on Vimeo.

The DIY Laurel Flying High! Congrats Hayden

BEST DIRECTOR - 

TAMIR RAWLINGS  

for "LITTLE STAR" 

DIRECTED BY TAMIR PETER RAWLINGS

Production Still from "Little Star"

An elegiac look at memory, and those who represent our deepest bonds on the planet. Terrific visuals give the audience a sense of nostalgia for an earlier time and relationships that are thicker than water.

"After picking up an unexpected passenger, Scott and his older brother Kirk travel along Montana's "Hi-Line." As the road trip hits one rough patch after another, Scott tries to remember the simpler times when they were close."

Still from "Little Star"

Little Star teaser (2017) from Tamir Rawlings on Vimeo.

BEST FEATURE COMEDY 

"SERIOUS LAUNDRY"

DIRECTED BY KEN WEBB

Director Ken Webb and his cast from Serious Laundry

A comedic look at murder and mayhem that begins in a casual conversation in a laundrymat. Darkly sly and entertaining trip into a murderous fantasy.

Director Ken Webb

"When a young man gets seduced into helping with the removal of a dead body, he must find out the truth behind the corpse before he loses his life or gains a fortune. It's a madcap comic heist film with a lot of heart."

BEST COMEDY SHORT

"HANDS FREE: “HOW MAY I HELP YOU?” 

DIRECTED BY AMY SCHLOERB

Comedienne Amy Schloerb

A comedic look at what everyone wonders is really going on with hands free questions. 

Actor/Director Amy Schloerb works in television (Black-ish, Criminal Minds, 1600 Penn), has an animated stand-up comedy web series and created a laugh out loud look at one woman's hands free encounter.  

BEST SHORT DRAMA

Don't Hide the Madness

"DON’T HIDE THE MADNESS"

Filmmaker Kimberley Rai

DIRECTED BY KIMBERLEY RAI

A young woman searches for a tool to express to her parents what it feels like to have bipolar. A documentary short from a talented South African artist who explores depression in this moving short film. 

Here's a sample of her earlier work "I am Princess Vlei" 

Here's a sample of her work:

"Dancing with Demons" a film by Kimberley Rai from Kimberley Rai on Vimeo.

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

"KWANXWALA – THUNDER"  

DIRECTED BY SARAH SHAMASH


A unique look inside a native North American tribe of Alert Bay, Canada that struggles to retain it's identity in a challenging and changing landscape. 

Canadian Artist Filmmaker Sarah Shamash

Teaser: Kwanxwala - Thunder from Sarah Shamash on Vimeo.

BEST STUDENT FILM

"AFTER THE RAYNE" 

DIRECTED BY WASLY CASTILLO

Filmmaker Wasly Castillo

"After the Rayne" tells the story of a six-year-old girl, her emotionally distraught father, and a babysitter who wants to help them. When a mother passes away on vacation, the father tries to deal with his pain and still take care of his daughter. He turns to a college student for help. (Film school: St. John's, Queens, NY) 

Filmmaker Castillo and actress Dolce Demce

JURY AWARD

FIXIT FABLES 

Still from Fixit Fables

DIRECTED BY OAN LINDBLAD

An entertaining cast of young kids, brings inventive life to this short story that is set in their imaginary world.  Reminiscent of Stranger Things, this unusual group of inventie children who are hired to "fix things" takes the viewer on a unique adventure.

An awesome acceptance speech by filmmaker Oan.  "Closer to honesty" should be the anthem of every DIY filmmaker, and Oan has put together an acceptance speech that rivals any we've seen. A great shout out to his film program at UCSC (Santa Cruz).  

Take a minute or two to watch this excellent acceptance speech below.
Fixit Fables - Winner of The DIY Film Festival Jury Award from Oan on Vimeo.

BEST WORLD CINEMA

"VISMRIT: FORGOTTEN" – NEPAL - 

DIRECTED BY ANIMESH SAPKOTA

Filmmaker Sapkota

Shot in Nepal by first time Director Animesh Sapkota, this film is reminsicent of the visual imagery of Satijyat Ray, Fellini or Terrence Malick in its stark use of unusual faces, vistas with little or no dialog. The pacing lulls the viewer into a world where poetry of light and image become more important than what is said.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF THE 
DIY FILMMAKERS.

INTERVIEWS WITH THE WINNING FILMMAKERS WILL BE FEATURED IN A PANEL TO THE RIGHT OF THIS POST AS SOON AS WE CAN GATHER THEM.

THANK YOU ALL FOR SHARING YOUR FILM WITH US!!!

"When the cost of filmmaking is as much as a pencil and a piece of paper, only then we'll find true artists in cinema." Jean Cocteau

THE FINALISTS ARE ANNOUNCED!!!!

We are pleased to announce the finalists for the 2018 DIY Film Festival. 

Please take a look at these titles as they represent the finest in Do It Yourself filmmaking.  

The winners will be announced in the next couple of weeks.

FEATURE FILM FINALISTS

"LITTLE STAR." DIRECTED BY TAMIR RAWLINGS

SERIOUS LAUNDRYDIRECTED BY KEN WEBB

COMEDY FILM FINALISTS

THE BIGGEST GAME INTOWN. DIRECTED BY JOHN NAVA

HANDS FREE: “HOW MAY I HELP YOU?” DIRECTED BY AMY SCHLOERB

DOCUMENTARY FINALISTS

KWANXWALA – THUNDER  DIRECTED BY SARAH SHAMASH

VOICES IN THE DARK. DIRECTED BY REBECCA HOWLAND (Article)

Director Rebecca Howland

A FORCE IN NATURE – JOHANN EYFELLS DIRECTED BY HAYDEN DE MAISONEUVE YATES

A Force in Nature: Jóhann Eyfells from Alien Spaceman on Vimeo.

MIRAGE DIRECTED BY ELI HAYES (WEBSITE)

STUDENT FILM FINALISTS

FAITH THROUGH THE STORMS DIRECTED BY DINA SIX 

THE DANCE DIRECTED BY JASON RHODES

FIXIT FABLES DIRECTED BY OAN LINDBLAD

AFTER THE RAYNE DIRECTED BY WASLY CASTILLO

JUST LAST YEAR DIRECTED BY MIKAL EWING, ALLA BAVEA

DON’T HIDE THEMADNESS DIRECTED BY KIMBERLEY RAI

WORLD CINEMA FINALISTS

EL HOMBRE QUE SIEMPRE HIZO SU PARTE - THE MAN WHO ALWAYS DID HIS PART – ECUADOR - DIRECTED BY ORISEL CASTRO AND YORK NEUDEL

VISMIT: FORGOTTEN – NEPAL - DIRECTED BY ANIMESH SAPKOTA

BRIDE PRICE VS.DEMOCRACY – SWEDEN - DIRECTED BY REZA RAHIMI

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF THE FINALISTS!!! 

LONG LIVE THE DIY FILM SPIRIT!!!

WINNERS WILL BE ANNOUNCED IN A COUPLE OF DAYS OR WEEKS.