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2025 High School Essay Contest

  • Double Exposure
  • Nov 10
  • 2 min read

The 2025–26 edition of the High School Essay Contest is now open for submissions. Double Exposure is Columbia University’s undergraduate film and media journal.

This contest was created to share the voices of young writers—who, we’ve found, are often just as deeply (if not more) connected to the media landscape and culture as the rest of us.

Students can submit up to one essay in each of the following four categories, which correspond to the editorial columns of Double Exposure’s web edition:


Reviews: A review of a movie, TV show, or any piece of media—from a recent release to a cult classic, or even something completely underground.

Theory & Criticism: A space for deeper thinking—compare multiple films, analyze a recurring motif, or dive into the texture of a genre like film noir.

Behind the Camera: About the act of creation itself. Interview someone working on something exciting, tell an untold story from film history, or write about your own process. There are no fixed guidelines here—if it belongs on paper, it belongs here.

Festival Review: As the name suggests, this is about insights into a community event. It does not have to be a piece of reportage on TIFF, Cannes, or Venice. We find that personal experiences with local festivals, events, and workshops can often be more genuine and endearing. 


Essays should be between 500 and 1500 words. For inspiration, check out past articles on our website. At Double Exposure, we care about creativity above all else. Please make sure that the work you submit is original and free of AI. We only accept PDF files. Use of media is welcome; however, please limit the file size to under 10MB. There are no formatting requirements, but make sure that your submission is legible.


Deadline: January 9th, 11:59 PM Eastern

Submit through: 


Thank you for loving film,

Double Exposure

The Undergraduate Film Journal of Columbia University


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