Flickers is a wonderful organization that not only presents RIIFF every August, New England's only Oscar qualifying film festival, with more than 6,000 submissions and with filmmakers traveling to RI from all around the world, but they also have other great "film-lanthropy" programs like the Flickers: Children's Hospitals International Film Festival that provides a free program of fantastic short films from around the globe to young patients in hospital beds across the US and Canada, and the 7DayPSA filmmaker competitions that challenges filmmakers to create broadcast quality TV public service announcements for deserving non-profits that provide needed services to the community and who can't afford to have a PSA professionally produced.
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I came to George Marshal at Flickers in 2009 with an an idea of how we could help non-profits that provide needed services to their local communities but who could not afford to get a public service announcement produced for television. From this, the 7DayPSA competition was born, starting here in Rhode Island and spreading to other states. The events challenge filmmaker teams to write, shoot and edit a public service announcement for a deserving local non-profit in just seven days. The results have been amazing as the winning spots are broadcast for one year on local television stations and placed on the internet to make the public aware of the services that are available and raising the awareness of the needs of each non-profits. FLICKERS is working on expanding this effort and with a little more support, it will expand across the country.
Flickers is always finding ways to expand on its "film-lanthropy" projects that use film to improve the lives of others. In 2016 Flickers created the Children's Hospitals International Film Festival (CHIFF) that brings a free program of wonderful short films from around the world to the young patients at children's hospitals in the US & Canada. CHIFF is now in a dozen hospitals, with more added every month. At a time in their lives when they have little control over their lives, the kids get to vote on which films will win the festival awards at their hospital's events.
As a Board member of Flickers, I have seen first-hand its impact with filmmakers and artists and how it has jump started and benefited careers. Flickers has spent 31 years discovering and supporting new talent. It is the real deal!
Lawrence J. Andrade
Board
Review from Guidestar
Flickers and the multiple efforts that it has created, including RIIFF, Kid's Eye, and most recently the national 7DAYPSA competition, are not only adding to the quality of life in RI but also bringing national attention to the state and is contributing to the state's economy. The 7DAYPSA competition that challenges local indie filmmakers to produce public service announcements for local non-profit organizations that provide services to the community. It was recently created by RIIFF and has now spread from Rhode Island to events in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut and beyond.