Valleywide Inter-College 48 Hour Film Challenge - REMINDER!

It’s Back! The Valleywide Inter-College 48 Hour Film Challenge!

March 25th through 27th, 2011

Kickoff – Friday, March 25th, 6:00 pm
University of Advancing Technology - Theatre
2625 W. Baseline Road Tempe, AZ 85283

Turn in your finished film by 6:30pm on Sunday, March 27th at UAT

A panel of industry judges will choose the winners and trophies will be awarded at our Screening and Awards Ceremony – Wednesday March 30th at 7:00 pm in the UAT Theatre

To participate – email UAT Professor Paul DeNigris (pdenigri@uat.edu) by March 23rd

Inspiration: The Third & The Seventh

Here's an amazing FULLY COMPUTER GENERATED short film we stumbled across on Vimeo, "The Third & The Seventh." Truly amazing stuff.


The Third & The Seventh from Alex Roman on Vimeo.

Using Depth of Field for Storytelling

Here's a great article we picked up on the DSLR Video Shooter blog:

“To make your video look like film use shallow depth of field.” This is a line I hear a lot, especially from DSLR shooters and it could not be farther from the truth. Yes, films use shallow DOF but that does not make them films. Depth of field is a tool with which to sculpt your shots. So just because we can now shoot at F1.2 does not mean we should. I know most of us are recovering from Large Sensor Deficiency Syndrome but with a little education and therapy, we can move on.

Read the rest here!

Master Cinematographer Roger Deakins on Shooting with ARRI ALEXA: "Film Had a Good Run"

nofilmschool.com reposted a great interview with master cinematographer Roger Deakins, originally posted on /film:

[Shooting on Digital] gives me a lot more options. It’s got more latitude, it’s got better color rendition. It’s faster. I can immediately see what I’m recording. I can time that image on set with a color-calibrated monitor…. Am I nostalgic for film? … I mean, it’s had a good run, hasn’t it?

Here's a peek at the cinematography of True Grit, for which Deakins is nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar, and which might end up being his last movie shot on film:

How to Blow Up a Helicopter: The "Takers" Way

Picked this one up on The Big Picture blog a few days ago. It's a clip from the Takers DVD on how they staged a killer helicopter explosion through a little special effects elbow grease and a little visual effects know-how. Definitely worth a look!

Valleywide Inter-College 48 Hour Film Challenge

It’s Back! The Valleywide Inter-College 48 Hour Film Challenge!

March 25th through 27th, 2011

Kickoff – Friday, March 25th, 6:00 pm
University of Advancing Technology - Theatre
2625 W. Baseline Road Tempe, AZ 85283

Turn in your finished film by 6:30pm on Sunday, March 27th at UAT

A panel of industry judges will choose the winners and trophies will be awarded at our Screening and Awards Ceremony – Wednesday March 30th at 7:00 pm in the UAT Theatre

To participate – email UAT Professor Paul DeNigris (pdenigri@uat.edu) by March 23rd

The Rules:

1. Each school may be represented by as many teams as they choose.
2. A line of dialogue, prop, and genre will be assigned at the kickoff on March 25th. The line of dialogue must be spoken onscreen and the prop must be handled by a character in the film!
3. ALL preproduction, production, and post MUST be done during the 48 hours immediately following the kickoff.
4. Professors may provide creative and technical advice to their students – but CANNOT do any of the work for them!
5. Films must be NO LESS than 2 minutes and NO MORE than 4 minutes long, including credits!
6. Films must be turned in as an H.264 file. No exceptions! Make sure you leave yourself enough time at the end for compression.

Francis Ford Coppola: On Risk, Money, Craft & Collaboration

The99Percent.com recently ran a great interview with master filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola:

Over the course of 45 years in the film business, Francis Ford Coppola has refined a singular code of ethics that govern his filmmaking. There are three rules: 1) Write and direct original screenplays, 2) make them with the most modern technology available, and 3) self-finance them.

Anyone who has taken UAT Digital Video classes surely knows the esteem in which Mr. Coppola is held by your professors. Check out the article for some insight into why.

Phoenix Film Festival "Show Us Your Shorts" Contest!

ATTENTION FILMMAKERS!
SHOW US YOUR SHORTS AND WIN!

Who loves short shorts? We love short shorts! Grab your camera and create a :30 second promo for the Phoenix Film Festival (PFF). Get people excited about attending this year's festival while showcasing some of Arizona's local talent.

ONE GRAND PRIZE
-Two festival passes to the 2011 Phoenix Film Festival (takes place March 31-April 7, 2011)!
-Your film showcased on the festival homepage!
-Bragging rights!

Three runners up will also have their films shown on the festival homepage.

RULES
-You must use the official PFF logo, dates, and location image found at phxfilm.com/​logos.zip
-Your film must be 30 seconds long. No more. No less.
-Your film must be PG rated. No nudity, no swears, no gratuitous violence.
-You must own the rights to everything in your film (music, etc.) or it must be royalty-free

TO ENTER
-Download and use one of the required logos at www.phxfilm.com/​logos.zip
-Shoot and edit your promo
-Submit your completed promo to our Vimeo group by 11:59 PM on March 14, 2011. Title your film, "PFF Promo Contest Entry." Be sure to include your full name in the video description.

JUDGING
Films will be judged on creativity, originality, and effectiveness of message. We want your short to get people pumped to come watch films at Arizona's biggest and best film festival.

NOTES
You may submit up to two entries. Good luck!

ENTRIES MUST BE RECEIVED BY 11:59 PM ON MARCH 14, 2011!

stillmotion Short Film Contest

Found this cool opportunity on the planet5D blog a couple of days ago. Planet5D and the folks at stillmotion education are partnering for a short film contest, and the grand prize is one of these babies, a Kessler CineSlider:

The theme is "discovery" and the due date is March 7th. Entries must be 30 to 60 seconds long, must be uploaded to Vimeo, and the link emailed to shorts@stillmotion.ca

Read all the rules here!

Adjunct Digital Video Professor New Executive Director of IFP/Phoenix

Congratulations to University of Advancing Technology adjunct Digital Video professor Webb Pickersgill for his appointment as executive director of Independent Feature Project of Phoenix.

IFP/PHX is an influential organization for Arizona filmmakers, organizing events like the annual Phoenix Film Festival and the 48-Hour Film Challenge.

Pickersgill will assume the role after the 2011 Phoenix Film Festival in April.