PKX Festival
April 18-20, 2024
Trolley Barn Gallery
489 Main st, Poughkeepsie
Call for Entry: Short Films
The 2024 PKX Festival (fka Reel Exposure) features youth-produced short films – narrative, animation, experimental, and documentary – created by talented young artists, ages 13-19 from across the world. All genres of short films under 10 minutes will be accepted. Films should be appropriate for PG13 audience.
Call for Entry: 2d & 3d Art
The PKX Exhibition celebrates imaginative and original artworks created by young people who have a passion for their medium. If you feel your work is too weird, too different, or too crazy – it’s perfect for this exhibition – where teen artists take the lead on taking art in a new direction.
The annual PKX Festival, hosted by The Art Effect, plays a pivotal role in advancing the development of the Youth Arts Empowerment Zone (YAEZ) centered in and around the Trolley Barn Gallery.
The YAEZ is a long-term initiative that fosters youth-driven place-keeping through artistic expression, empowering the existing community within this space. This three-day festival features music, public art installations, family-oriented activities, film showcase, teen art exhibtion, and more! The PKX Festival is a platform for youth artistry, embracing both emerging and accomplished young artists. Carefully curated films take the spotlight in a compelling showcase, while selected 2-D and 3-D artworks grace the walls of The Trolley Barn Gallery.
The success of The PKX Festival is the culmination of the dedicated efforts of The Art Effect’s workforce programs, which include YAEZ Liaisons, the Trolley Barn Curatorial Team, MADLab, and Spark Studios. These programs work to oversee the range of festival elements, ranging from reviewing art submissions and the conceptualization of themes, to the precise curation of the exhibition, the crafting of promotional content, the selection of performers, the coordination of community activities, and the creation of striking public artworks.
The PKX Festival is a symbol of community, unity, while celebrating the creativity and talent residing in Poughkeepsie, NY. It is This event is truly created by youth, FOR EVERYONE.
Empowering
Poughkeepsie
PKX Festival is a building block to the development of the Youth Arts Empowerment Zone funded by the NEA Our Town Grant in the City of Poughkeepsie, NY. The Youth Arts Empowerment Zone will establish a youth-led arts district in and around the Trolley Barn Gallery with The Art Effect as the anchor arts institution.
“Seeing a film you put all of this work into actually get attention, to have people genuinely enjoy something you made at Reel Exposure, it’s really special, especially when you’re just starting out. It was a call to action for me, like, ‘This is something you’re supposed to do, keep at it!” – Matthew Hamilton, 2020 Reel Exposure Participant
Thank you to our 2023 Festival Sponsors
Please consider becoming a sponsor to help support the youth arts programming taking place in the Hudson Valley right now!
This program is partially funded by monies received from the New York State Council on the Arts and is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. The Art Effect empowers youth to develop their artistic voice to shape their futures and bring about positive social change.
