Grand Motoring Film Festival Call For Entries 2023

March 7, 2023 - Now entering its seventh year, the Grand Motoring Film Festival has established itself as North America’s premier event celebrating the intersection of the automotive and cinematic arts. And for the second year in a row, this iconic event is handing the keys to the most exciting up-and-coming filmmakers in the automotive world with its second juried awards program.  Vying for honors during last year’s Grand Motoring Film Festival, 20+ film finalists representing remarkable cinematic explorations of automotive culture were screened over two days.  Each brought a unique perspective on the cinematic arts with two films having their World Premieres, and two more having their North American Premieres.   

“Last year was our first year inviting filmmakers to submit films for consideration, and while I was expecting a good response, I never anticipated the wealth of talent that was shared with us, from all parts of the globe,” said event founder Guy Smith. “It shows not only the sheer amount of great automotive films out there, but the hunger for a showcase like this.”
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With this year’s event looking to top last year’s in both prestige and elegance, Grand Motoring Film Festival is actively seeking out bold new cinematic explorations of the automotive arts, regardless of length or format.  Priority will be given to films that have yet to premiere and would debut during the festival. 

Grand Motoring Film Festival finalists and winners represent the best documentaries, web videos, brand films, TV shows and more, and entries across the landscape of automotive culture are invited to submit. If your work shares our love of horsepower, make plans to join us November 2-3 on Hilton Head Island for high octane screenings and awards program!

Serving as our esteemed judges representing film and television, automotive, and media industries are some of the biggest names in cars and industry leaders from all points of the automotive spectrum, including former editor and publisher of Autoweek Dutch Mandel, Pixar Animation Studios Creative Director of Franchise Jay Ward, “Death Race 2000” star Simone Griffeth, and Silodrome.com founder and senior editor Ben Branch.   
Expanding their roster of judges in 2023, the Grand motoring Film Festival has announced the appointment of additional jurors.

• Tara Klein: Creative Director at Hearst Autos whose 14 years in automotive media have given her a front-row seat to the transformation of the automotive landscape.
• Michael Harley: VP of Marketing & Communications at Hennessey Performance, and  automotive industry veteran who has held key roles at Kelley Blue Book, J.D. Power and Associates, Autoblog, Autotrader, and Autobytel.
• Steve Chavez: 30+ year creative veteran of the advertising industry, currently the US CCO for Bastion, an independent agency network overseeing brands like Mazda, GMC, Buick and Toyota.
• Ian Jones: SVP, Managing Director Qualfon, has led creative campaigns and consumer experiences in the automotive industry with key roles at Autoweek, BBDO, and Leo Burnett for brands including GMC, Buick, Dodge, and more.

The seventh annual Grand Motoring Film Festival will be held No. 2-3 in Hilton Head Island’s at the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina, with a VIP welcome reception, awards program, and headliner film screening, and at Coligny Theatre where films and shorts will be screened along with exclusive Q&A experiences with the filmmakers.

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About Grand Motoring Film Festival:
Returning for its seventh extravagant celebration of automotive movie magic, the Grand Motoring Film Festival welcomes film fans back to the world class Arts Center of Coastal Carolina on Thursday, November 2.   This two-day star-studded event, which celebrates films and shorts that capture the thrills of the automotive world, has become the ultimate kick-off to the Concours weekend with its signature mix of red-carpet elegance and high-octane excitement.   The Grand Motoring Film Festival will commence at the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina Thursday evening November 2nd with an elegant VIP reception featuring some iconic celebrities of the automotive world as well as static displays of classic and collector cars.    When the curtain goes up, film fans will be dazzled by short works, world premieres and a feature film that cuts across genres in showcasing the intersection of automotive and cinematic arts. Adding to the excitement of this year’s event will be the juried awards show, bestowing honors on the year's top motoring films.   Attendees can also expect to meet some of the stars and enjoy a Q&A with some of the creative forces behind the films.  A second day of screenings and filmmaker panel discussions will take place Friday Nov. 3, 2023 at Coligny Theatre from 10:00am - 5:00pm.   Full schedule of films to be announced.