TEWKSBURY TWP. — Kristen McClurken, formerly of Tewksbury Township and now of Los Angeles, is  enlisting the help of area residents to help her win the “Audience Prize” in a Nikon Film Festival. 

Her 140-second film, NEXT – Sound Familiar?” was selected from a competitive pool of more than 1,220 entries worldwide as a top 50 finalist in the Nikon “A Day Through Your Lens” online competition.

As a finalist, the movie is eligible for the top Judges Award of $100,000 and the Audience Prize of $25,000.

“NEXT – Sound Familiar?” is an amusing compilation of some of the personalities and experiences McClurken encountered while holding part-time, behind-the-counter jobs at area stores (McDonalds in Whitehouse Station, Little Brothers in Flemington and Mangels Chocolates in Chester), as well as in Orange County, Calif.

McClurken, who currently works primarily behind-the-computer for the Disney-ABC Television Group at its Prospect Studios in Los Angeles, appears at the end of the film.

She wrote, produced and directed her submission with the help of Los Angeles cinematographer Adam J. Richmam. 

McClurken and Richman are 2009 graduates of the Dodge College of Film and Media Arts at Chapman University in Orange, Calif.

McClurken also graduated from Old Turnpike School in Tewksbury and Voorhees High School.  

Readers can view and vote for her submission at the Nikon Festival Web site (nikonfestival.com).

Registration is not required. The direct link is http://www.nikonfestival.com/blog/2009/12/15/next-sound-familiar-2/

To give the film the highest points possible, viewers must hover over, and then click on, the 5th (last) star below the title, “NEXT:sound familiar?”).  

According to a Nikon, Inc. press release, the goal of the Nikon Festival is “to celebrate, inspire, and harness the current popularity of content creation shared through social media.”