Why You Should Care About The Disposable Film Festival

The Disposable Film Festival is a 4-day screening, panel, and workshop extravaganza that launched in 2007 to highlight the creative potential of amateur filmmakers who use non-professional devices like camcorders, cell phones, point-and-shoot cameras, webcams, and other “disposable” devices to record their stories. Every year the festival kicks off in San Francisco before traveling to cites around the country and world including New York City, Pittsburgh, Portland, Montreal, Beijing, Porto Alegre (Brazil), and Skopje (Macedonia).

Tonight marks the 2011 inaugural festivities in San Fran, and even though tonight’s event is sold out, tickets for all the other events, including a panel with animator Christopher McManus and a workshop/concert with indie duo and YouTube sensation Pomplamoose (highly recommended!) are still available. All events are either free or under $12, making this festival truly open and accessible for anyone.

We think festivals like these not only harness and nurture blossoming amateur talent, but also encourage exploration of the latest motion and video capturing devices, like the Kinect and iPhone 4, for example. If you’d like to try your hand at playing director, submit your movie for inclusion in next year’s festival before November 30th. See our top picks from 2010 below to get those brain synapses (and cameras) fired up.

Sour by Magico Nakamura, Masayoshi Nakamura, Masashi Kawamura and Hal Kirkland

The Lost Tribes Of New York City by Andy and Carol London

After The Rain by Karen Abad