This year’s 78th Annual Cannes Film Festival had local representation in Libby Ritchie, whose short film “Spread” was chosen to be shown at the event.
Ritchie noted that attending the festival was a unique experience, saying, “It’s rare to have an entire city fiddle with people who share a single passion. The energy of fellow filmmakers was tangible as we attended networking events and film screenings in large theaters.”
When setting out to create the short film, Ritchie said that she and her team knew there was a chance of being selected to screen at Cannes, but it was not a guarantee.
The film was created for the 48 Hour Film Project, where teams produce a short film in a weekend, with the opportunity to screen at the festival.
“Spread” was selected out of more than 5,000 short films made for the 48HFP and was written, shot, and edited from scratch in two days. Ritchie was the editor of the project.
“We gathered a cast and crew of talented and driven filmmakers with the shared purpose of making something for purely creative purposes. It’s amazing to see that a creative passion project can be valued by fellow filmmakers and screened to audiences far and wide,” she said.
The film was honored by the 48HFP’s “Filmapalooza” in Seattle, Wash., where it was named a finalist in the “Yes We Cannes Global Film Challenge.” This earned them a place in the Cannes Film Festival Short Film Corner.
Ritchie’s journey in filmmaking began in high school when she took a video production class where she had “one of those special teachers who loves what they do and takes an interest in their students.”
She took three years of video production classes with him and fell in love with editing, deciding that it was what she wanted her future career to be.
“I’m still in touch with that teacher, and he has championed my success from the same teaching role, in the same school, until retiring recently,” Ritchie said.
Ritchie said the best thing about her work is that it supplies her with “a genuine variety of tasks, creative concepts, teams to collaborate with, and new ways of thinking.”
She said she’s never been bored at work, and she finds satisfaction in the combination of creativity and technical skills that she can use every day.
When asked what inspired her, she noted that part of working in the film industry is getting to watch movies, TV shows, and even TikToks and call it research.
“Any video media I see, including short videos on social media feeds, is something that I can draw inspiration from,” she said. “Sometimes I watch a video that is so outside the expected treatment that it really makes me think about how I can continue to push the boundaries of storytelling, while still adhering to the tried-and-true of what works.”
Ritchie said she works on a wide range of content, spanning from “silly TV spots to trending social media posts to informative pharmaceutical testimonies.”
She continued that she finds something worthwhile in everything she works on, no matter the subject.
“My favorite projects to work on are the ones that have a specific story to tell and will have a lasting impression on the target audience for that specific piece,” Ritchie said. “Stories that are especially heartfelt always feel particularly fulfilling, and I also look forward to projects that shed light on a niche subject that would not otherwise be brought to light for the general public.”
