The Moondance International Film Festival is an independent annual film festival and awards competition that takes place in the fall in Boulder, Colorado

Boulder, Colorado

Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...

. The first Moondance Film Festival was held in 2000.

The festival honors filmmakers, writers and composers who actively increase awareness, provide multiple viewpoints, address complex social issues, and strengthen ties between international audiences. According to the festival's website, the festival and festival entrants are "independent, mostly uncensored (except for gratuitous violence), totally unfettered, often irreverent, and definitely not beholden to any special interests. We select films, written works and music with these criteria: a unique story, well-told."

Inception

The festival was founded in 1999, following the events of the Columbine High School massacre

Columbine High School massacre

The Columbine High School massacre occurred on Tuesday, April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School in Columbine, an unincorporated area of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States, near Denver and Littleton. Two senior students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, embarked on a massacre, killing 12...

, by film technician and Boulder resident Elizabeth English. The intention was for the festival to be an empowering outlet for underrepresented storytelling and for people to share their perspectives in a fresh and non-violent way. English's desire was "to make a ... difference in the world and make the audience a part of that." The festival also offers an opportunity for writers, composers, and filmmakers to participate in workshops with professionals and receive a consultation.

English named the festival Moondance as a complimentary contrast to the Sundance Film Festival

Sundance Film Festival

The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...

, where in 22 years no women filmmakers had won. In its first year, the Moondance festival was only open to women, but it subsequently has been open to all.

Past sponsors of the festival have included Jodie Foster

Jodie Foster

Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster is an American actress, film director, producer as well as a former child actress....

, the Writer's Guild of America – West

Writers Guild of America, west

Writers Guild of America, West is a labor union representing film, television, radio, and new media writers. The Guild was formed in 1954 from five organizations representing writers, which include the Screen Writers Guild...

, Celestial Seasonings

Celestial Seasonings

Celestial Seasonings is a tea company based in Boulder, Colorado, United States that specializes in herbal tea but also sells green, wellness, red, white, chai, holiday and black teas. They account for over $100,000,000 in herbal tea blends sales in the United States annually. All of their teas are...

, and Oprah's "O" Magazine.

Spirit of Moondance Award

Women writers and filmmakers. Men may be co-writers or co-filmmakers, but the entry must be submitted by a woman.

Seahorse Award

Male writers and filmmakers. Women may be co-writers or co-filmmakers, but the entry must be submitted by a man.

Sandcastle Award

Male and female writing or filmmaking teams where both men and women or a man and woman work as a team on the project.

Gaia Award

To encourage and inspire contemplative, meditative, spiritual and inspirational films and scripts. The award is presented to the person who seeks to elucidate and improve the spiritual quality of all life on the planet, and contributes to the betterment of the world spirit.

Columbine Award

Work which reflects non-violent conflict resolution, alternatives to violence, or show why violent resolution to conflict is counter-productive. The submitted material may not contain gratuitous violence.

Dolphin Award

Young people 18 years of age or younger, male or female. Moondance accepts submissions for this award in the genres of short narrative, documentary, multi-media, music videos, or animation video film, as well as short screenplays, short stories or short stageplays.

Abyss Award

Very well made and meaningful thriller, horror or supernatural films, written works and film scores. An abyss, usually in the ocean, is a chasm that is so deep and vast that its extent is not readily visible, without further exploration. The winning works in this awards category also have a deeper, and often hidden, message, lesson, moral, or important idea that bears further thought.

Atlantis Award

Writers, filmmakers and composers who have submitted projects, in any category, from a foreign country outside the U.S.

DGA Director Award

Presented to the filmmaker whose film is screened at Moondance and who is selected by both the Directors Guild of America

Directors Guild of America

Directors Guild of America is an entertainment labor union which represents the interests of film and television directors in the United States motion picture industry...

 and the Moondance executive director to win this coveted award.

Calypso Award

To encourage a spirit of enterprise in saving the environment, habitats and wildlife by creative individuals from around the world. Presented to the person who expands knowledge of our world, seeks to improve our quality of all life on the planet, and contributes to the betterment of humankind.

Neptune Award

Male or female writer or filmmaker, over the age of 75, who has created either a single work of the highest quality or a body of quality work, and who continues to strive for excellence in his or her career in the entertainment industry, and who inspires and encourages others by his or her example.

Cinema Pioneer Award

Special recognition of a living pioneer in early cinema; a person who had a significant role in contributing a body of work to the silent-film era, either as a writer, director, producer, cinematographer, film editor, actor or actress.

Living Legacy Award

To honor and recognize women in the film industry who have contributed most to insuring that women's work is recognized and appreciated for its worth, who help women achieve success in film, and who have themselves contributed a vital body of work, and who and continue to contribute to this vital effort.

External links

• Official Site
• Moondance International Film Festival at the Internet Movie Database
  Internet Movie Database
  Internet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
  
  
• Moondance Festival Award Categories