Tropfest

Hollywood is the Holy Grail of cinema for every aspiring filmmaker all over the world, and one country is doing something groundbreaking that can get their film-maker hopefuls one step closer to getting there.

Sydney, Australia hosts an annual short-film festival that showcases Australia's most talented filmmakers and allows them to compete for a variety of prizes. However, all eyes are on the 1st place prize-- $10,000, a new car, and a trip to Los Angeles to meet with top industry professionals. This is a dream come true for many Aussie film buffs, who would otherwise have to come up with about $3,000 just to get to the city of Angels, and with no promise of meeting any industry professionals.

Over 100,000 people attend Tropfest each year, making it the world's largest short film festival. 16 finalists are chosen from the hundreds of applicants, and the winner is carefully selected by a panel of celebrity judges, who in the past have included Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett, Sam Worthington, and Russel Crowe.

Click the link to find out more about Tropfest.

Below is a photo from when I went to Tropfest this past December!