The 90-Second Newbery Film Festival is an annual video contest I founded in which kid filmmakers create short movies that tell the entire stories of Newbery-winning books—preferably with a fun twist. We’re in our twelfth year, and after two years of virtual screenings, I’m excited to announce that the 90-Second Newbery is back with LIVE SCREENINGS in six cities! These screenings are huge fun and we consistently draw sold-out audiences of hundreds of folks, so make your FREE reservations now:

Saturday, February 18, 2023
The OGDEN, UTAH afternoon screening for the 12th annual 90-Second Newbery Film Festival. Co-hosted by me and author Keir Graff (The Tiny Mansion, The Phantom Tower). At the Treehouse Children’s Museum (347 22nd Street). 6 pm. Get your tickets here.

Friday, March 3, 2023
GENERAL DEADLINE for movie submissions to the 12th annual 90-Second Newbery Film Festival.

Saturday, March 11, 2023
The CHICAGO screening for the 12th annual 90-Second Newbery Film Festival! At the Pritzker Auditorium at the Harold Washington Library Center (400 S State St). Co-hosted by me and author Keir Graff (The Tiny Mansion, The Phantom Tower). Bookselling on-site by City Lit Books. 2 pm. Get your FREE tickets here.

Saturday, March 25, 2023
The BOSTON screening for the 12th annual 90-Second Newbery Film Festival! At the Rabb Auditorium at the Boston Public Library Central Library in Copley Square (700 Boylston Street). Co-hosted by me and author Rebecca Mahoney (The Valley and the Flood and The Memory Eater). Bookselling on-site by Trident Booksellers & Cafe. 3 pm. Get your FREE tickets here.

Saturday, April 15, 2023
The BROOKLYN screening for the 12th annual 90-Second Newbery Film Festival! At the Dweck Auditorium at the Brooklyn Public Library (10 Grand Army Plaza). Co-hosted by me and Chris Grabenstein (Mr. Lemoncello’s Library, The Smartest Kid in the Universe, and more) with special guest Newbery honoree Rita Williams-Garcia (One Crazy Summer and more). 1 pm. Get your FREE tickets here.

Sunday, April 16, 2023
The TRENTON, NJ screening for the 12th annual 90-Second Newbery Film Festival! At the New Jersey State Museum Auditorium (205 West State Street, Trenton, NJ). Co-hosted by me and Chris Grabenstein (Mr. Lemoncello’s Library, The Smartest Kid in the Universe, and more). 3 pm. Get your FREE tickets here.

Saturday, April 22, 2023
The SAN ANTONIO, TX screening for the 12th annual 90-Second Newbery Film Festival! At the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts Will Naylor Smith Riverwalk Plaza. Co-hosted by me and Nikki Loftin (Wish Girl, Nightingale’s Nest, and more). On-site bookselling by The Twig. Made possible by our partners at Bexar County Digital Library Bibliotech and the Hidalgo Foundation through the generosity of H-E-B Texas Grocery. 11 am – 12 pm. Get your FREE tickets here.

Thanks so much to my co-hosts Keir Graff, Rebecca Mahoney, Chris Grabenstein, and Nikki Loftin for being part of this.

It’s not too late to make your own movie for this year’s 90-Second Newbery. It’s open to young filmmakers up to 18 years old, and adult help is allowed. The deadline is March 3, 2023, so get busy now! (Need technical help and moviemaking advice? We have video resources and how-to guides.)

Want inspiration? Check out the video at the top of this post, in which kids from the Treehouse Museum in Ogden, Utah put their own spin on Arnold Lobel’s 1973 Newbery Honor Book Frog and Toad Together. The original Frog and Toad short story “The Garden” is a gentle lesson about learning to be patient with natural processes. But perhaps the original story is too patient, and what the story really needs is three ruthless assassins who are out to destroy Frog and Toad!

(Want to bring the 90-Second Newbery Film Festival to your town? Drop me a line at james@90secondnewbery.com.)

The 90-Second Newbery relies entirely on private donations and grants to keep going! It’s only through your generosity that we can continue bringing our free public screenings and book-to-movie workshops to libraries and schools nationwide. You can make your (tax-deductible!) donation here. Donations are handled through our fiscal sponsor Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization.