The WIFI Film Festival connects back to Topeka’s towers on April 19-22
Photo from WIFI Film Festival
Here’s to any and all film fans. The WIFI Film Festival is here again on April 19-22. The WIFI Film Festival is a two-day event hosted in Topeka, Kansas, where people can submit movies they’ve filmed into a competition along with a variety of workshops.
The Submission fee for creators is $20, except for local students. Individuals looking to attend the event are in luck, as the festival is free for those willing to make the drive. For those unable to attend in person, the awards will be shown on Facebook.
The festival’s reach is not just local either. “We do get submissions from over 100 Different countries across the world. We are an international festival,” founder Matthew Nyquist says. For those interested in competing, WIFI Film Festival is accepting submissions up to April 1 this year.
As for the workshops, Washburn English Professor Dr. Andy Farkas will speak on his book, as well as some comedic film conventions. Kansas City filmmaker Lolo Lauren, radio host Ethan Jackson, producer of the Pulpit Christian Watkins, entrepreneurship expert Rick LeJuerrne, Sue Vicory, along with a panel of female filmmakers, and founding trustee Alan Holzman, known for films like Survivors of the Holocaust, will all be in attendance, providing event-goers with knowledge on their experiences.
One of the previous submissions was Elvira Lind’s The Letter Room, which starred Oscar Isaac. Yet, that is not to say one needs to have some big name Hollywood actor to win anything. There’s even categories for local middle schoolers, high schoolers, and any Washburn University students or alumni.
The festival started in 2019 after “one of my collaborators out in Hollywood told me right at the beginning, you should really start a film festival there,” Nyquist says. “The idea was to connect students with professional filmmakers, both through showing their work here, as well as bringing in guest speakers and workshops and things both locally. In Hollywood, people and kind of helped foster that community between local and Hollywood and professionals, both with Washburn and now kind of the larger Topeka community.”
Other than having to cancel in 2020 due to the pandemic, the WIFI Film Festival hasn’t missed a year since they got up and running. There are 22 awards to win, with the best overall film winning $100. They also have a Linktree for any links needed that are not already here.
With a free, two-day chance to take a deep dive into the art of filmmaking, this is a great chance for anyone—regardless of skill level—to learn and grow in the space at the 2024 WIFI Film Festival.
The festival is located at 1700 SW College Ave. Henderson Learning and Resource Center, RM 316
