SmartFone Flick Fest#History

The SmartFone Flick Fest was founded by filmmaker and educator Angela Blake and actress, producer, and radio presenter Ali Crew,{{cite web | last=Taffel | first=Jacqui | title=Smartphone festival | website=The Daily Telegraph (Sydney) | date=23 August 2017 | url=https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/wentworth-courier/sydney-smartphone-film-festival-finds-global-success/news-story/fa120fe2959ad9f09a23e6f1a96aa3bb?nk=733431292d86640485ae53aee49c1cc7-1747965112 | access-date=23 May 2025}} with the first edition held in 2015.{{cite web |title=SF3 |website=FilmFreeway |date=7 October 2023 |url=https://filmfreeway.com/SF3 |access-date=3 November 2024}}{{cite web |last=Kornits |first=Dov |title=The rise and rise of smartphone films – Australia leads the way |website=FilmInk |date=26 October 2024 |url=https://www.filmink.com.au/public-notice/the-rise-and-rise-of-smartphone-films-australia-leads-the-way-2/ |access-date=3 November 2024}}

The second Gala event was streamed live for the first time to international followers.{{cite web | last=Falkenstein | first=Glen | title=Smartfone Flick Fest (SF3) 2016 wraps in Sydney | website=FalkenScreen | date=27 August 2016 | url=https://falkenscreen.com/2016/08/27/smartfone-flick-fest-sf3-2016-wraps-in-sydney/ | access-date=23 May 2025}}

For the third event in August 2017, 130 films were submitted from around the world, including entries from Nigeria, India, Iran, and Ecuador. The jury of 13 judges included Australian playwright and screenwriter Louis Nowra, cinematographer Pieter de Vries, and Susan Botello, who founded the International Mobile Film Festival in San Diego, California, in 2009.{{cite web | title=The red carpet is in your pocket™ | website=International Mobile Film Festival | date=22 May 2025 | url=https://internationalmobilefilmfestival.com/ | access-date=23 May 2025}}

In 2019 the SF3 Best Feature Film Category was introduced. Sad Sachs, a film about a Jewish family directed by Joel Perlgut won Best Film, Best Screenplay, Best Actor (Jared Jekyll), and Best Actress (Stephanie King).{{cite web | last=Sirmai | first=Geoff | title=Sad Sachs wins Smartfone Flick Fest: Jewish film wins five awards | website=J-Wire | date=19 September 2019 | url=https://www.jwire.com.au/sad-sachs-wins-smartfone-flick-fest-jewish-film-wins-five-awards/ | access-date=22 May 2025}}

By 2020, the festival had received a total of over 2000 international entries since the inaugural edition in 2015. SF3 was held during the COVID-19 pandemic in that year, for the first time streaming the whole event online. A new award category, "ISO" (isolation) was introduced.{{cite web | title=Local Filmmakers Feature in Smart Phone Film Fest | website=Sutherland Shire Australia | date=6 September 2020 | url=https://www.sutherlandshireaustralia.com.au/news/local-filmmakers-feature-in-smart-phone-film-fest/ | access-date=23 May 2025}}{{cite web | title=Blue Mountains and Sydney Locals Take Home Prestigious SmartFone Flick Fest Awards | publisher=Blue Mountains | date= 17 Oct 2020 | url=https://www.bluemts.com.au/news/blue-mountains-and-sydney-locals-take-home-prestigious-smartfone-flick-fest-awards/ | access-date=23 May 2025}}

In 2021, a First Nations award was introduced, for "the best and most promising filmmaker – worldwide - who identifies as First Nation, Indigenous, and/or Aboriginal". Three new Indigenous Australian ambassadors were appointed: journalist and producer Stan Grant, actor and director Wayne Blair, and screenwriter Jon Bell. Other new appointments were SF3 Kids Ambassador is (Emily Prior), and African Ambassador, Kenyan filmmaker Wanuri Kahiu. Phillip Noyce, Kriv Stenders, Nicole da Silva, Jason van Genderen, Kerry Armstrong, and Christopher Stollery returned as festival ambassadors.{{cite web | title=Smart Phone Film Festival | website=What's On Sydney | date=7 May 2021 | url=https://www.whatsonsydney.com/reviews/smart-phone-film-festival-1774 | access-date=23 May 2025}}

In 2022, hundreds of entries were submitted for the 8th SF3,{{cite web | title=Newtown High students awarded smartphone film fest firsts SSH | website=South Sydney Herald | date=8 November 2022 | url=https://southsydneyherald.com.au/newtown-high-student-awarded-smart-phone-film-fest-first/ | access-date=22 May 2025}} including over 300 shorts and 18 feature films. In that year, the festival took place live on screen in two cinemas Sydney over a weekend in February, and was screened online until 13 March. Among the finalists was the short film Leader, made by English actor and filmmaker Chris Overton, who had previously won an Academy Award for his short Silent Child.{{cite web | title=SmartFone Flick Fest (SF3) | website=IF Magazine | date=1 March 2022 | url=https://if.com.au/event/smartfone-flick-fest-sf3/ | access-date=22 May 2025}} Leader is about climate change.{{cite web | last=Gbogbo | first=Mawunyo | title=Films shot on mobile phones to be screened from Australia at international festival | website=ABC News | date=25 February 2022 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-26/smartfone-flick-fest-mobile-phone-films-movies-festival/100863494 | access-date=22 May 2025}} Another finalist was a social justice documentary titled Eight Minutes Forty Six Seconds (the title relating to the murder of George Floyd by a police officer in the US), about Aboriginal deaths in police custody, made by 17-year-old Kara Rose, an Aboriginal student at NIDA. Also in 2022, two young brothers from Lebanon, aged 5 and 9, were finalists with their film titled The Magic in Liberia.{{cite web | last=Keuchkerian | first=Karine | title=Two Lebanese Kids Are Finalists In Australia's International SmartFone Flick Fest | website=961 | date=27 September 2022 | url=https://www.the961.com/lebanese-announced-finalists-in-international-smartfone-flick-fest/ | access-date=22 May 2025}}

In 2023, previous records were broken, with over 458 submissions received, including 28 feature films, by filmmakers from over 60 countries. {{cite web |last=Cooper |first=Justin |title=Smartphone film festival winners announced |website=City Hub |date=24 November 2023 |url=https://cityhub.com.au/smartphone-film-festival-winners-announced/ |access-date=3 November 2024}}{{cite web |last=Kornits |first=Dov |title=SF3 > The Smartest Film Festival in Australia |website=FilmInk |date=1 October 2023 |url=https://www.filmink.com.au/sf3-the-smartest-film-festival-in-australia/ |access-date=3 November 2024}}

The 10th anniversary edition was held on the weekend of 16-17 November 2024 in Sydney, and online until 2 December.{{cite web | website=Australian Directors' Guild | title=The SmartFone Flick Fest | date=1 September 2024 | url=https://www.adg.org.au/event-5795650 | access-date=22 May 2025}} There were 45 feature film entries and 330 shorts entered from all over the world for this competition. Ahead of the competition, director Phillip Noyce talked of the festival being "ground-breaking", and a rare opportunity for emerging filmmakers to screen their films in front of an audiences.{{cite interview| first=Phillip |last=Noyce| author-link=Phillip Noyce | title=Director Phillip Noyce on AI and smartphones in filmmaking | website=ABC listen| publisher= Australian Broadcasting Corporation | date=15 November 2024 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/news-specials/director-phillip-noyce-on-ai-and-smartphones-in-filmmaking/104605004 | access-date=22 May 2025| format=audio }} In addition, in partnership with the 13th annual MINA Festival (run by the Mobile Innovation Network and Association{{cite web |title=Home |website=MINA |date=5 September 2024 |url=http://mina.pro/events/ |access-date=3 November 2024}}), a joint festival was held on 8 November at ACMI in Federation Square, Melbourne, featuring the best films.{{cite web |title=The rise and rise of smartphone films – Australia leads the way |website= Sydney Times |date=28 October 2024 |url=https://www.sydneytimes.net.au/business/the-rise-and-rise-of-smartphone-films-australia-leads-the-way/ |access-date=3 November 2024}} MINA, run by Max Schleser, is the longest-running mobile film festival in the southern hemisphere.{{cite book | last=Weiss | first=Bart | title=Smartphone Cinema: Making Great Films with Your Mobile Phone | publisher=CRC Press | date=22 November 2024 | isbn=978-1-04-013483-2 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t90oEQAAQBAJ&q=Smartphone%2520flick%2520fest&pg=PT158 | access-date=23 May 2025 | page=}}

In April 2025 Screen NSW announced that the festival would be a recipient of funding from its 2024/25 Audience and Industry Development Program funding.{{cite web | title=Screen NSW puts more than $720,000 towards festivals and businesses | website=IF Magazine | date=23 April 2025 | url=https://if.com.au/screen-nsw-puts-more-than-720000-towards-festivals-and-businesses/ | access-date=22 May 2025}} The festival opened for entries in May 2025.{{cite web | last=Kornits | first=Dov | title=SF3 launches 2025 smartphone film festival | website=FilmInk | date=8 May 2025 | url=https://www.filmink.com.au/public-notice/sf3-launches-2025-smartphone-film-festival-a-world-of-storytelling-in-your-hands/ | access-date=22 May 2025}}

The SmartFone Flick Fest is a festival for films made using mobile phones, by filmmakers of all ages. It is held annually in Sydney, and awards over {{AUD|50,000}} in prizes. {{as of|2024}}, the films are screened at the Palace Chauvel Cinema in Paddington.

Filmmakers of all ages from anywhere in the world are eligible to enter the competitions, so long as the entry has been filmed entirely on a smartphone or tablet. Finalist films are shared with other film festivals across the globe

The festival also holds workshops throughout the year, both live and online. SF3 teaches teach in partnership with the National Institute of Dramatic Art, the Powerhouse Museum, the Actors Centre Australia, WIFT NSW, as well as local councils and arts centres across Australia, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, South Africa, Ethiopia, Jamaica, America, Europe, and Asia.{{cite web |title=SmartFone Flick Fest |website=SF3 |date=1 September 2024 |url=https://sf3.com.au/about/about-sf3/ |access-date=3 November 2024}}

In 2024, the categories were:

• SF3 Best Film for short films (20 minutes and under)
• SF3 Best Feature Film
• SF3 Kids Award (18 years and under)
• SF3 AI Award, for short films made using AI (inaugural award)
• SF3 Mini Mobile Award, for films up to 3 minutes long
• SF3 Social Media Video Award

In 2025, the categories are:{{cite web | title=SF3 - SmartFone Flick Fest | website=ScreenHub Australia | date=2025 | url=https://www.screenhub.com.au/opportunity/sf3-smartfone-flick-fest-2657987/ | access-date=22 May 2025}}

• SF3 Gala Finals / Best Film for short films
• SF3 Best Feature Film
• SF3 Kids Feature Films
• SF3 Mini Mobile Award
• SF3 AI Award

There are also a number of other prizes awarded, including Best Cinematography, Best Director, People's Choice Award, Best Actor and Actress, etc.; in total, 36 across the four categories announced for 2025.

The 2024 ambassadors of SF3 are: filmmakers Phillip Noyce, Kerry Armstrong, Christopher Stollery, Kriv Stenders, actress Nicole da Silva, smartphone filmmaker Jason van Genderen, producer Anthony Kierann, Sydney Morning Herald journalist Garry Maddox, cinematographer Pieter de Vries, disability advocate Emily Prior, First Nations filmmaker Darlene Johnson, and Venezuelan actor Luis Fernandez.

In 2016, Sydney actor Christopher Stollery won Best Film with his film No Budget.

In 2022, Darcy Yuille's One Punch won SF3 Best Feature Film, before going on to screen at many other festivals, winning best film at Berlin Independent Film Festival, Dublin Smartphone Film Festival, the International Mobil Film Festival based in San Diego, and the Spanish festival Cinephone – Festival Internacional de Cine con Smartphone. In addition, Yuille won Best Director and Best Cinematography at the African Smartphone International Film Festival.{{cite web |first=James |last=Fletcher |title=Darcy Yuille: One Punch Man |website=FilmInk |date=5 July 2022 |url=https://www.filmink.com.au/darcy-yuille-one-punch-man/ |access-date=3 November 2024}}

In 2023, Lodi, made by American actress, producer, and director Courtney Coker, won Best Feature Film, Best Director Awards, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay awards.{{cite web |title=A complete list of our 2023 Award Winners |website=SF3 |date=13 January 2024 |url=https://sf3.com.au/a-complete-list-of-our-2023-award-winners/ |access-date=3 November 2024}} A horror film called Paralysis, created by American writer-director Levi Austin Morris, won Best Feature Film. Paralysis also screened at 14 other film festivals in same year, winning seven awards.{{cite web | last=Maddox | first=Garry | title=SmartFone Flick Fest: Sydney and Melbourne festival of movies made on phones | website=The Sydney Morning Herald | date=17 November 2023 | url=https://www.smh.com.au/culture/movies/gimmick-or-game-changer-what-mobile-phones-are-doing-to-filmmaking-20231115-p5ek2i.html | access-date=23 May 2025}}

In 2024, the Best Film award was won by 15-year-old Charli Fletcher, who also won four other prizes, for her film Don't Ignore Me.{{cite web | title=Smartphone Film Fest Award Winners Announced -15yo scoops the pool! | website=Sydney Times | date=20 November 2024 | url=https://sydneytimes.net.au/entertainment/smartphone-film-fest-award-winners-announced-15yo-scoops-the-pool/ | access-date=22 May 2025 }}{{Dead link|date=June 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Idiotproof, co-directed by Laura Brogan Browne and Jonathan Lagudi and starring Lagudi, won the SF3 Best New Filmmaker Award, and also screened at many other festivals, including the Toronto Smartphone Film Festival, New York Mobile Film Festival, Dublin Smartphone Film Festival, and others. It is being developed into a feature film in collaborating with screenwriter Damian Overton.{{cite web |last=Kornits |first=Dov |title=Short Film of the Week: Idiot-Proof |website=FilmInk |date=13 October 2024 |url=https://www.filmink.com.au/short-film-of-the-week-idiot-proof/ |access-date=3 November 2024}}

The festival featured on a list of "The World's Best Smartphone Film Festivals" on the Mobile Motion Film Festival website in 2019.{{cite web | last=Horrocks | first=Simon | title=The World's Best Smartphone Film Festivals | website=momofilmfest.com | date=14 June 2019 | url=https://momofilmfest.com/best-smartphone-film-festivals/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230610180820/https://momofilmfest.com/best-smartphone-film-festivals/ | archive-date=10 June 2023 | url-status=dead | access-date=23 May 2025}} According to the Hawkesbury Phoenix in 2024, SF3 is "one of the world's largest and most prestigious smartphone film festivals".{{cite web | title=The SmartFone Flick Fest (SF3) Enters Big 10th Year After Stellar Rise | website=The Hawkesbury Phoenix | date=4 October 2024 | url=https://www.hawkesburyphoenix.com.au/the-smartfone-flick-fest-sf3-enters-big-10th-year-after-stellar-rise | access-date=23 May 2025}} SF3 also features in books about making films with a smartphone.{{cite book | last=Schleser | first=Max | title=Smartphone Filmmaking: Theory and Practice | publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing USA | date=26 August 2021 | isbn=978-1-5013-6035-0 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8201EAAAQBAJ&q=Smartphone%2520flick%2520fest&pg=PA5 | access-date=23 May 2025 | page=}}

• List of films shot on mobile phones
• Mobile Motion Film Festival, a film festival in Switzerland

==References==

{{reflist}}

• {{official|https://sf3.com.au/}}
• [https://www.iphone-cinematography.com/festivals.html Mobile Film Festivals] (list of 21)

Category:Film festivals in Sydney

Category:2015 establishments in Australia

Category:Film festivals established in 2015

Category:Mobile phone films