A former Kamloops resident and his colleague have been singled out to produce a short film and they have been given $10,000 to ensure the project’s success.
Simon Ryder and David Strasser, who live in Vancouver, recently pitched a project called The Third Bandit, the story about runaway teens who travel across B.C. to meet up with a counter-culture crusader. The duo submitted their film idea in the TELUS STORYHIVE competition and was among the top 15 finalists selected from B.C.
Now in its fourth edition, STORYHIVE’s aim is to provide local creators in the arts sector with funding and distribution opportunities. To date, the program has invested more than a million dollars in the creative industry in Western Canada and has provided grants to more than 100 projects.
A total of 30 finalists were selected from B.C. and Alberta and filmmakers will be given the funding to bring their concepts to life. Once the films are completed, they will be distributed on TELUS Optik TV on Demand. The finalists will then ask the community to vote for them online as they compete for one of the top two awards, to be announced in March 2016. Winners will receive customized career training and a scholarship to the Banff Television Festival.
