ATLANTA — Got a thirst to see the very latest film creations from America’s up-and-coming filmmakers? Sprite Films™ today debuts four original short films developed from script-to-screen by four talented college student filmmaker teams from across the country. Starting today through August 31, America can view the short films at Sprite.com and vote to crown one team with the Fan Favorite Award. For the first time in the program’s history, the team which creates the winning short film selected by a Green Ribbon Panel will be awarded the exclusive opportunity to work on a $30,000 contract job for Sprite and The Coca-Cola Company.
“The Sprite Films program returned this year to encourage self-expression and authenticity among student filmmakers nationwide with the challenge to develop a script that brings to life an aspect of urban culture while boldly delivering a story from their individual point of views,” said Kimberly Paige, Assistant Vice President, Sprite. “Sprite has long been a cultural advocate that embraces youth innovators, and we value the talent and vision of these young filmmakers – one team of which will assist the brand in the near future for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work alongside us on a special film project.”
The Filmmakers
The expressive and innovative group of student filmmakers chosen to participate in the 2013 Sprite Films program includes the following:
| College/University | Short Film Title | *Filmmaker | Film Crew Members | |||||||||||
| Columbia College | “Heart of the Hood” | Sam Bengtson | Ryan Farmer (Line Producer) | |||||||||||
| Chicago | (Producer) and | Ben McBurnett (Director of Photography) | ||||||||||||
| Sean Grasse | Andrew Kunkle (Editor) | |||||||||||||
| (Writer/Director) | Alex Huges (Second Line Producer/Locations Manager) | |||||||||||||
| Lila Yanow (Production Designer) | ||||||||||||||
| University of | “No Doubt About It” | Manhea Kim | Wesley Ambrecht (Producer) | |||||||||||
| California, Los | (Writer/Director) | Meja Shoba (Producer) | ||||||||||||
| Angeles (UCLA) | Ursula Loscalzo (Director of Photography) | |||||||||||||
| Marcy Silver (Production Designer) | ||||||||||||||
| Savannah College | “Paint the City” | Noah Sterling | Megan Melrose (Producer) | |||||||||||
| of Art and Design | (Writer/Director) | Eric Dickinson (Director of Photography) | ||||||||||||
| (SCAD) | Ross Helton (Editor) | |||||||||||||
| Brian Oskins (Visual Effects Supervisor) | ||||||||||||||
| Kristen Sabo (Production Designer) | ||||||||||||||
| Elon University | “Break the Night” | Dean Coots | Michael Tahan (Producer) | |||||||||||
| (Writer/Director) | Will Anderson (Director of Photography) | |||||||||||||
| David Gwynn (Director of Photography) | ||||||||||||||
| Will Simon (Editor/Production Manager) | ||||||||||||||
| Tina Tozzi (Associate Producer) | ||||||||||||||
| *Indicates the students who stand to win the trip to AFI FEST, the American Film Institute’s (AFI) film festival and/or the $30,000 contract job for Sprite and The Coca-Cola Company. | ||||||||||||||
Fan Favorite Award
The four short films will be live on Sprite.com\films in August for viewing and voting nationwide. Fans based in the United States ages 13 and above can vote for their favorite short film every day during this voting phase. With each vote, fans will be entered into a sweepstakes for a chance to win a trip to Universal Orlando Resort for four people – including hotel, airfare and theme park tickets to both Universal Studios Florida and Universal’s Islands of Adventure. The winning film team of the Fan Favorite Award will see a $5,000 prize from Sprite donated to their university’s film department. In addition, a special trip will be awarded to the winning film team to attend AFI FEST, the American Film Institute’s (AFI) film festival – an annual celebration of international cinema from modern masters and emerging filmmakers – November 7-14, 2013 in Los Angeles.
Green Ribbon Panel Award
The Green Ribbon Panel comprised of film industry experts will critique the technical aspects of the short films and select one winning submission for a first place award. The short film team selected by the Green Ribbon Panel will win a $30,000 contract job with Sprite and The Coca-Cola Company.
Sprite Films hosted the student finalists at CinemaCon – the annual gathering of the motion picture theatre community in Las Vegas – where they discussed their projects and future plans in the film industry with influentials in the industry. In addition, the finalists participated in a special Q&A with some of Hollywood’s leading actors and directors before beginning work on their own short films.
Sprite Films will spotlight the program in movie theaters across the country during the month of August, including consumer-facing promotional materials such as branded cups, popcorn bags and theatre displays.
The History of Sprite Films
The Sprite Films program was formerly the Coca-Cola® Refreshing Filmmaker’s™ Award, which was presented annually by Coca-Cola beginning in 1998. The program has continued through the Sprite brand for the past three years and will move forward to engage youth nationwide with real-life challenging opportunities to leverage their talents, ignite fresh thinking and realize their potential for greatness behind the camera and beyond.
About The Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is the world’s largest beverage company, refreshing consumers with more than 500 sparkling and still brands. Led by Coca-Cola, the world’s most valuable brand, our Company’s portfolio features 16 billion-dollar brands including Diet Coke®, Fanta®, Sprite®, Coca-Cola Zero™, vitaminwater®, Powerade®, Minute Maid®, Simply®, Georgia® and Del Valle®. Globally, we are the No. 1 provider of sparkling beverages, ready-to-drink coffees, and juices and juice drinks. Through the world’s largest beverage distribution system, consumers in more than 200 countries enjoy our beverages at a rate of 1.8 billion servings a day. With an enduring commitment to building sustainable communities, our Company is focused on initiatives that reduce our environmental footprint, support active, healthy living, create a safe, inclusive work environment for our associates, and enhance the economic development of the communities where we operate. Together with our bottling partners, we rank among the world’s top 10 private employers with more than 700,000 system associates.