Advocacy for Community Stories
The International Mobile Film Festival in San Diego, California has been around since the Spring in 2009. As such, it made a call for films to be screened in a live in-person traditional film festival in California. This was not an awards ceremony in-person with films online.
The purpose of the festival was to display a show of respect to everyone in the world making movies using only mobile phone cameras to shoot them. No other mobile devices qualified. It promised to showcase all the films on a large screen in San Diego in the film festival.
Festival founder Susy Botello has been an advocate for artists and filmmakers for years. Many years before launching the festival, in fact, as someone who worked in the video and indie film industry.
IMFF helped democratize movie making and video production for many people around the world, who back in the early days, and years since the festival’s launch, were searching the web and finding IMFF at the top of their search results.
People who were shooting with other mobile devices and cameras, such as DSLRs, iPods, GoPros, and other portable cameras, were not qualified to compete in the film festival. But Susy embraced them as storytellers in the community and built relationships with them.
IMFF attracted people who were unable to afford, or get their hands on video cameras to share their stories, or realize their dream to make movies.
Susy spoke as an advocate for mobile filmmaking and addressed the democratization of storytelling through film with a program that she created for the festival back in the summer of 2009, just months after launching the festival. The program is called Community Stories.
In 2013, “Cinecell” whose name was Kangai Godlove found IMFF online.
“Godlove” was the name his mother had given him. Godlove reached out to IMFF founder Susy Botello, personally. He shared a short film he made using a mobile phone camera. The film was called “Street Children.” Godlove’s film was his own story. He was part of the community as an orphan himself. He had hoped to come “to America and be a rap singer and filmmaker” one day.
Godlove asked Susy for some feedback on mobile filmmaking. He told Susy that in Cameroon it was hard to find the gear she was suggesting, and shipping was risky. At that point, Susy told him that if he could get his hands on a car’s steering wheel, and mount the phone in the center of it, he would have a hand-held stabilizer. That suggestion opened up his imagination. Godlove built a tripod from bamboos!
Susy continues her advocacy for mobile filmmaking and embraces the community of mobile filmmakers and videographers around the world.
In 2017, Susy launched the SBP Podcast Mobile Filmmaking for everyone who planned to make smartphone films, or was interested in mobile filmmaking. The podcast features mostly mobile filmmakers in over 190 weekly episodes. The podcast is a great source of inspiration for indie filmmakers.
The expenses of running the film festival and the podcast are difficult. Susy Botello, through her company, has been and continues to be an ongoing and supportive advocate for everyone in the global community since 2009. You can support, and give back, by becoming a patron or one time supporter.
WATCH Cinecell’s video About IMFF:
Watch “Street Children” A Community Story featured at IMFF:
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