A contemporary western set in the heart of rural East Anglia was crowned the best short film from the region at the 2017 Norwich Film Festival, and now the search is on to find a new film that is worthy of the 2018 title.
Filmmakers from across the east are being given the chance to have their short films featured in this year's Norwich Film Festival which will take place in November, and organisers have now opened submissions for filmmakers to send in their entries.
Last year the East Anglian award went to Suffolk director Tom Shrapnel for his black and white film The Knackerman which tells the story of Ron, an ageing knacker who must decide the fate of his own horse when it falls ill and also face his own mortality.
NFF co-director Craig Higgins described it as 'a stunning 15-minute film' and said that organisers were now looking forward to seeing the 2018 entries hoping to follow in its success.
'We are really keen on being able to support East Anglian filmmakers and to have a screening dedicated to East Anglian films in the festival,' he said.
'We take any genre as long as it is 25 minutes or under. For us it is a really good opportunity to support local filmmakers and to shine a spotlight on them.
'It also means other people from the area can see the films that are being made locally and it is great for networking too.'
The East Anglian category is open to all filmmakers from Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire or who have made a film in the region.
Alongside the East Anglian category, the festival has also opened up submissions for a number of other categories which are open to filmmakers from around the world, including best short film (under 25 minutes), best animated film, best student film and best documentary film.
The festival is also a qualifying short film festival for the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) - an accolade it shares with the Cannes and Venice film festivals - and so winning an NFF accolade could also open up opportunities for further awards.
Filmmakers have until July 18 to send in their entries to Norwich Film Festival which is now in its eighth year.
Last year's event featured 95 shorts and five feature films.
For more information about the festival and how to submit films, visit www.norwichfilmfestival.co.uk
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here