This past Jan. 26, the Kern High School District held their seventh annual 18 Hour Film Project, filmmaking challenge. Student teams from all over the school district were given the opportunity to compete in a “red-carpet” style awards show that took place at Maya Cinemas in Bakersfield.

Students had 18 hours to write a script, put together a cast and crew, do pre-production, acquire and use filming equipment and devices, edit, and submit a final movie. Teams were given a film category, a character, a prop, and line of dialogue that had to appear in each film.

Students competed for cash, prizes, and trophies. They got to watch their films on the big screen at Maya Cinemas along with their friends and family. Also in attendance were educators and supporters in the field of cinematography, videography, and social media through the application of multimedia tools. Judging the competition was local filmmaker Rickey Bird of Hectic Films, celebrated anchorwoman and public relations manager for the Kern High School District Lisa Krch, along with other prominent figures in the field of education and film production.

The evening’s host and organizer, Bryce Hatch, stated that over 60 entries were submitted this year, including schools outside of the district. Winners were selected from six categories. Additional awards were given for acting, producing, editing and a grand prize winner.

When asked if he anticipated this annual event to continue into next year, Hatch said, “we don’t aim to stop.”