V48HOURS 2010 – A Furious Filmmaking Competition
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First Timer Guide to Surviving
There is a lot of information on this site. It can be kind of overwhelming for first timers. The bare minimum you need to do is the Ten Things on the home page.
Follow those requirements and you are good to go. Everything else is just garnish. Take in the rest of the site as you need to.
The last thing we want to do is scare you away from participating. For the record we've had everyone from 11yr olds through to 75yr olds compete. If you want to make a film - you will make a film. We're here to help show you how.
If you are reading this, then it's fairly safe to assume you may never have made a film before. If you have made a film before you may have never made one in 48 hours.
If you know nothing about V48HOURS and are scratching your head as to what it's all about please go to our About page, where you'll hopefully get the idea. Assuming you've checked the About page, here is a quote to get you started:
Pick up a camera. Shoot something. No matter how small, no matter how cheesy, no matter whether your friends and your sister star in it. Put your name on it as director. Now you're a director. Everything after that you're just negotiating your budget and your fee. --- James Cameron
We chose that quote to annoy those who act like they're sucking a lemon when the term mainstream cinema pops up. We here at V48HOURS celebrate all types of film, especially populist filmmaking. If you want to make serious experimental work, then this is probably not the competition for you. If you pull a face when a friend mentions seeing the new Farrelly Bros film, this is definitely not the place for you.
First-timers registering a team and taking part in V48HOURS, you are about to become a director or a writer or a producer or all of the above! And you'll do so, by having to do it... there really is no other way.
You'll also, for the space of 48 hours at least, be giving over your life to film making you will eat, drink, sweat and (if you are organised and lucky enough to manage to get some sleep) dream film for two days straight.
Where to start
Registering a team versus Joining a team
To take part in V48HOURS you can either Register your own team, or join another team.
This decision should be based not on how much you know about film making but on how much responsibility you want to take on. Register as the leader of a team and the buck stops with you. No one will receive any more glory in the event of victory or agony in face of defeat than yourself.
Join someone elses team and you've got less responsibility, but you do have to live with the fact that someone else will ultimately be in charge.
If you are a complete first timer then it is well worth thinking about joining a team to learn the ropes. You can find out more about that in the Building/Joining a Team section.
If you want to register a team and be the one in charge read on.
Registration
Having decided to run a team you must first register. We advise you to get in early as soon as registration opens preferably, there are only so many slots and if you don't get in quick your city may fill up, in which case you'll need to join a team to take part.
There is a timer indicating when registration opens and then when it ends. We'll try to update the News and City Info pages as places begin to fill up.
Registration will cost $185.00 and you can fill in the form in the Registration Area.
Payment is by credit card only. You might be saying "But I don't have one" - well welcome to the first lesson about filmmaking. Filmmaking is 90% perspiration, 10% inspiration. So find someone who does have one and pay them. Or pick up a pre-paid Visa debit card at any PostShop - pay $5 (I think) and load it up with as much money as you need. It's a perfectly usable Visa card, good for online transactions.
If you are under 18 and are wanting to register a team you must have a Guardian around and they must also register as Team Leader for legal reasons.
If you are a School Team you must click the check box marked school team in the registration area.
What next?
For V48HOURS first timers there are some important things outlined below that you should read. They are:
Safety
We want you to survive... No, really, we do.
Making a short can be a hazardous enterprise. Please take every precaution in being safe. A few tips on being safe during the competition before going any further.
- Have a well-stocked first aid kit with somebody on set at all times.
- Have a map to the nearest hospital/emergency clinic available at all times.
- Have a fire extinguisher nearby at all times (Really, we mean all times. You'd be surprised at just how many things can catch fire on a film set that you wouldn't expect to.)
- Ask your crew sensible questions like "Does anyone have any allergies or medical conditions I should know about?"
- If you are outdoors remember sunscreen. Sunburnt actors can be hell on continuity if you need to do more shooting the next day. Plus, you know, long term risk of cancer is not cool either.
Do not walk out into traffic. Be road wise. Just because you are holding a camera doesn't mean that you can stand in the middle of the road to get the shot.
If your script calls for violent sounds/screams etc, let people living near you know that you are making a film so they don't call the cops when they hear strange sounds coming from your house/flat/location.
- If taking off to far-flung locations let people know where exactly you are going.
- DO NOT take prop guns/knives/weapons out in public places. This is a really bad idea that could end up with you being arrested or worse. Even if you have notified the police that this is what you are planning on doing, they have to respond if someone claims to have seen someone with a weapon and doesn't understand you are making a film, and it will be a hassle. Just don't do it. The police have been pretty accommodating but after previous armed offender call outs you may just find yourself being charged or at the very least getting a large bill for wasting their time.
- Unless you have a pyrotechnics licence and a registered safety officer on set, DO NOT consider trying to do any sort of real explosion, we don't care how small. If you want to do anything but it doesn't look or feel safe - just don't do it. Don't be stupid. Play smart, play safe.
Making a V48HOURS Film
A V48HOURS Film is not just a film that you make in 48 Hours there are certain requirements to what you hand in - some are technical, and some are for the sake of competition.
First timers often get caught out by the technical, especially when it comes to handing in your film and everything else that needs to go with it. For that reason that is the first thing we are going to cover (aside from Safety, because safety should always come first!)
What you need to hand in (i.e, Deliverables)
Before you do anything else you should get to grips with is what you need to hand in at the end of the V48HOURS competition.
We can almost guarantee that if you are trying to figure things out at the end of the competition, you will be too tired to and make a mess of it - so make sure you understand all this well ahead of time.
This is REALLY IMPORTANT! If you can't hand in your film in a way that can be played back you will not only be ineligible for any of the fabulous prizes, your film won't be shown at all. Read this next section very carefully.
Note: Some of what comes next is technical, some of it a bit legal. Even if you don't understand it at all that's ok - all that means is that you need to is to start talking to people you know until you find someone who DOES understand it and rope them into being in your team. Thousands of others have managed it, you can too.
You can also read our Technical FAQ or ask questions on the Forum."
Handing in your Short
Shorts will be handed in at the competition headquarters for your City.
If you are not in one of the competing cities you can hand in your short as described in the Out of Towners section
All shorts must be in a large clearly marked A5 envelope.
Assign one person whose job is to do the following.
- Buy an A5 envelope.
- Write the team name, short film title and genre on the envelope.
- Put your tape/DVD in it and then seal it.
Tapes or DVDs have gone missing and teams have missed out because of non-labeled tapes and no envelopes.
No envelope means disqualification. Label everything clearly.
Give this job to one person who gets some sleep.
Duration of Short
Your short must be NO SHORTER than 1 minute and NO LONGER than 7 minutes, including a max of 60 seconds for credits. Running time starts at first picture or audio cue of your short.
The Tape/DVD
Your film must be handed in on
A) A Standard Definition MiniDV Tape in PAL format (What is PAL!? What is MiniDV!?). Short Play (SP) mode only.
or - IF you really can't submit MiniDV tape
B) A Region 0 (Region Free) playable DVD-R in PAL format. Note: While DVD-R are allowed they are advised against as their ability to playback fault free rests on a number of factors that can go wrong much more easily than with MiniDV tapes. You have been warned.
We CANNOT ACCEPT ANY OTHER FORMATS at hand in. If you are unsure what format your camera is or don't understand the above please ask someone on the Forums.
Quadruple check you are handing in an PAL master. Check your settings. If it is in NTSC (or any format other than PAL) the short will be not eligible to screen.
Aspect Ratio
Your film must playback in a 16:9 aspect ratio for the heats. If you want your film to appear in a different aspect ratio such as 4:3, it must still display as 16:9 video and be pillar-boxed. 16:9 is described in the Technical FAQ
If after reading the Technical FAQ you are still unsure what is meant by aspect ratio then you can read about it at Wikipedia or ask on the Forums.
The heats will all be judged based on a 16:9 delivery. You MUST hand in a 16:9 tape (or DVD).
The bottom line is test your camera and make sure you know how to use it and your edit system so that you can deliver in 16:9 for the heats.
Colour Bars & Tone
Your tape must be cued at the start of colour bars and tone. Ten seconds of bars and tone must be included. This is described in the Technical FAQ
Countdown & Title Board
The tape must include the following after your 10 seconds of bars and tone: A 5-10 sec countdown and then a title board in standard Arial/ Helvetica type onscreen for 5 seconds:
o YOUR TEAM NAME
o YOUR CITY
o YOUR TITLE OF SHORT
o YOUR GENRE
Please make the type in your title board fill 3/4 of the screen. White text on Black background.
Clean Tape The tape must not include any other footage than your short, bars & tone, countdown and title board. You cannot hand in a tape that has your finished short appearing after wild footage.
I.e. Use a BRAND NEW TAPE when recording the finished short, or a DVD that automatically plays or has a simple menu with just the short on it.
Release forms and copyright
You must have obtained written release forms for every person, location and piece of music used/featuring in your film.
Release forms are written agreements that state you are allowed to use people/places/music etc in you film.
Releases forms must be filled in and signed by the appropriate person or their guardian if that person is under 18 years of age. As Team Leader you are responsible for this happening.
You can download the releases on the Paperwork page as you are registering.
You also must not have used any copyrighted images or imagery, sounds, video etc without the permission of the copyright holder.
This is always kind of a complicated area so you can read more on our Copyright & Legal FAQ.
Competition Rules
Ok - now that the technical things are out of the way - time to remind you about the rules.
A basic rundown of the rules is as follows:
You make a 1 minute to 7 minute short film in under 48 hours.
You include all of the random elements provided to you at the competition launch.
You make the film in the style of the Genre provided to you at the competition launch.
EVERYTHING is done within that 48 hours. Cheaters get caught and disqualified, don't cheat.
You hand in your short as described above.
The film includes in the credits.
This film was made as part of V48HOURS 2010
The more detailed rules are on the Rules Page. You MUST read them. If you have any further questions you can post them on the Forums
Competition Checklist
Before the weekend go through the following list to make sure you understand where you are going to need to be, with what, and when.
Competition Pre-start Random Elements & Genre Deadlines Disqualification (Are we cheating if?) Screenings
Competition Pre-start
At least one but no more than two members of each team MUST arrive at their designated competition start point by 6.00pm sharp on the Friday night. They should bring a pen, paper and a watch. (exception:
Out of Towners - check details on the Out of Towners page.)
There is no cellphone use or contact with the outside world permitted from the designated competition start points until the competition starts at 7.00pm. Any such contact will result in immediate disqualification. Teams failing to arrive for the pre-start will be disqualified from entering. See your region details about where you will need to arrive for the pre-start. (Unless you are an Out of Towner
Random Elements & Genre
Random elements and genre are announced at the competition pre-start.
Your short must have included all the elements that you were told on the night(e.g line of dialogue, character, prop and anything else this year) in a film in the style of the appropriate genre - so you need to make sure that the people at the pre-start communicate this clearly to the rest of the team. Missing elements/incorrect elements will cause disqualification, and understanding the genre of your film is vital to swaying over the judges.
Deadlines
The competition takes place between 7.00pm Friday and 7.00pm Sunday, any film handed in after 7.00pm Sunday will be ineligible for the competition.
We want to screen all shorts - so, if you ARE late you can still hand in your short - but you MUST do so by 11pm on Sun. Anything later cannot be screened as it's unfair to all those others who killed themselves trying to get it in on time and missed by 5 minutes.
One second too late is still too late. See City Info link (above) for where you will need to hand in your film.
Cheating or Disqualification
Before you enter the competition, it's important to remember that trying to get some sort of unfair advantage is REALLY NOT THE POINT.
If you think what you're doing MIGHT be classified by others as cheating, then you are probably right.
Final decisions as to whether something is or is not cheating will be down to the organiser. Past years disqualificaton judgements have excluded exceptional shorts for such crimes as having pre-recorded footage playing on a tv in the background. You have been warned.
We do this tough love thing because if we don't then we have no answer for when the other teams come complaining about leniency given to such and such team. And then society breaks down and cars are tipped over and set on fire.
Don't write one word before 7pm April 16th. This is the number one rule.
Screenings
Films are first screened at your regional heats. The time and place of each heat will be announced on the News page
Ok - That's pretty much the basic guide to surviving V48HOURS.
Once you have registered or joined a team, keep an eye on your City Info to find out all the details in your city, make sure you read the complete rules, check out the various FAQs (listed at left), post on the forums, and try and pick up as much info as possible before the competition itself starts.
It'll make your V48HOURS life easier - honestly.