Established in 2014, Byzanfest is the world’s first and only online festival that screens short-films made by Eastern Orthodox Christian filmmakers. The Festival will go live from Sunday 21st July until 4th August 2019, running concurrently with live venue screenings which are hosted by Global Screening Partners.
As the world’s media and entertainment have become increasingly on-demand and interwoven with social media, Byzanfest saw the opportunity to venture into an emerging concept: the online festival. New and innovative, such an event is not limited by the physical constraints of traditional venue-based festivals. Byzanfest looked ahead towards the future of entertainment and wanted to engage globally with both Orthodox and non-Orthodox audiences. The Festival encourages interactivity where viewers can share through all social media platforms. The Festival showcases films which reflect Orthodox Christian themes, beliefs, culture and values, as well as being artistically creative. It is worth mentioning all funds raised from this Festival will go towards funding small individual Orthodox film and art projects.
The name ‘Byzanfest’ is in honour of the great Byzantine Empire, a place of wisdom, art and faith. Although it may no longer exist, the mindset and values of Byzantium are embodied in the creative works of Orthodox Christians in the Digital Era.
Byzanfest is an initiative of TRANSFIGURE MEDIA, an online organisation that specialises in showcasing, distributing, networking, mentoring and funding the creative works of Orthodox filmmakers and artists. The primary goal is to prove to artists and the world that someone who lives the Orthodox faith can integrate that phronema flawlessly into their creative process. Just as Christ transfigured before three of His disciples to reveal His Glory, may we through art express Christ and transfigure the world and culture around us.
You can watch Byzanfest 2019 at https://www.byzanfest.com.
You have until the 4th of August to vote for Audience Favorite.
Award ceremony will be streamed live on the 4th of August (Melbourne, Australia timezone) on the Byzanfest Facebook page.
