This is Nanjing, a short by Third year Bachelor of Arts Screen student Erika Felton was selected as one of 25 finalists in international short film competition, Foreigners on China.
As a former student of Nanjing International School, she was picked out of 300,000 entries for a world-wide competition seeking out videos on China by Foreigners.
Upon being selected as a finalist, Felton receives US$800 and travel, accomodation and meal costs for the finals in Beijing, being held from 16-20 June. She is up for the major prize which consists of US$5000, access to the Chinese video-making partners, potential future collaborations and access to the Chinese market.
The short is a reflection of her life in Nanjing as a soon-to-graduate, international high schooler, and as someone who later returned to the place she used to call home. An avid YouTuber, Felton first shared the video online, and now sees it compete for the international competition.
Felton spoke to local Nanjing English-language site, The Nanjinger about the nomination, saying “Being a finalist is genuinely insane, I made the film after returning home and realising I finally had something to say from a different perspective. It going from YouTube to being a finalist in this competition is something I’m still shocked by, but so incredibly honoured”.
She continued to discuss what she would do if she were to win the competition: “If I win, I’d love to use the money to help put towards the micro-budget feature film I’m in the process of creating!”
Not even out of her final year at AFTRS and with ambitions for a new feature – Erika Felton is one to watch.
You can see This is Nanjing in full on YouTube.