Goethe-Institut now accepting entries to Science Film Festival

German cultural center Goethe-Institut is now accepting film, television and interactive media submissions for this year's Science Film Festival.

First held in 2005, the Science Film Festival aims to promote science literacy "and facilitates awareness of contemporary scientific, technological and environmental issues through the medium of film and television content," according to its website.

Through the films it selects, the festivals wants to show that "science can be communicated in an educational as well as entertaining manner through audio-visual media."

The Science Film Festival is organized by Goethe-Institut in Cambodia, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Palestinian Territories, the Philippines, Sudan, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and Vietnam with local partners. According to the festival, it reached over 750,000 people in these countries last year.

The Science Film Festival will be held from October 1 to December 18, 2016. The deadline for submitting entries to Goethe-Institut is March 8, 2016. This year's theme is Material Science, "with the aim to understand how materials are put together, how they can be used, how they can be changed and optimized better to do more amazing things."

Previous themes include Bionics, Nanotechnology, Einstein, Forests and Future Technologies.

Here are the winner's of last year's Science Film Festival:

Life Force 2: Borneo (The Visual Effects & Cinematography Award)

The Show with the Mouse: Glass Engraving (The IPST Education Award, which goes to the film that is "an excellent example of science journalism intended for young audiences aged 6 - 12")

Killer Whales – Fins of Change (The Ecofilmprize)

The Phoney War of Alan Turing (The Discovery Award, which honors films that make "an outstanding effort to promote learning about science to the general public.")

Brussels – City of Light (The Technology Award, which goes to the film that best "sheds light on technologies that improve living conditions and environmental sustainability.")

A new award will be added this year: the Interactive Media Award, to be given to "digital content that involves the user through a high level of interactivity with the opportunities offered by the medium."

Filmmakers, producers and broadcasters interested in joining this year's Science Film Festival will find the application form on the Goethe-Institut website. — BM, GMA News