V48HOURS 2012 – A Furious Filmmaking Competition

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.

Take a quick Look at how the competition works

REGISTER ONLINE To be part of V8HOURS you need to either Register your own team, or be part of a team.

Register A Team.

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.

Payment is by credit card only.

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. Schools teams are entitled to the '2 teams for the price of one' Deal. When you pay for one team, your confirmation email will contain a voucher for another free Team entry. Simply enter this into the DISCOUNT box on the new Registration form.

Joining a team Simply find another person who has registered, and ask to be part of their team. Simple as that really.

‘Canon's top 10 Tips &Tricks for surviving V48HOURS’

NUMBER ONE WITH A BULLET : This is the #1 for a very good reason. And if you don't follow it, chances are you won't be handing a film in on time. So for the love of all things holy, test all your equipment and especially the pipeline from shoot > editing > file. Do it on the equipment you'll be using as well. And please look at what we require in terms of delivery specifications. If you don't submit what we ask for then we may not be able to screen your film.

PRISCILLA QUEEN OF THE TEAM : Choose your team dynamics well. Think ahead. No drama queens onboard. There is nothing worse than someone bringing the mood of the whole team down during the weekend.

EXECUTIVE ACTION : It's a team effort no doubt but it's always best to make sure that you have one person who can make final executive decisions. Films have been ruined by too many cooks in the kitchen. Nothing hurts more than indecision under extreme deadlines.

THE GHOST WRITER: Try and complete your script late Friday so everyone wakes up to a completed script (plus shooting order and rough storyboards if you're game) on Saturday at 6am.

EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED: Think about how many shorts are going to be made the same weekend. Then think about trying something utterly unique or risky. We love Teams that risk it all and go for broke. Don't play it safe and you might just end up in the finals.

FASTER PUSSYCAT EDIT EDIT: Begin editing as soon as you start shooting. You need every second in editing. Let your editor work in the zone and have something ready for you early, then discuss.

EAT DRINK MAN WOMAN: Organise some eats for your hardworking team. Nothing makes people more loyal than catering on film sets. Beg or borrow and pull favours from anyone who has access to making yummy grub.

PLAN 9 : Plan as much as you can in advance. Cast, crew, potential locations and props are just some of the things you should have locked down before the shoot weekend. Everything will probably go horribly wrong on the Sunday afternoon when you're wanting to output your masterpiece to file. So make sure you know what to do (or who to contact) when your computer freezes.

THE ART OF NOISE : Sound. Sound. Sound. Record clean sound. There is nothing worse in all of the 48 than bad sound. We can forgive performances by your parents, cameras with lens caps on, nonsensical editing but judges and audiences cannot stand lousy in camera sound. Find, borrow, steal good external sound gear.

THE MOST FUN YOU CAN HAVE DYING: We like to remind everyone that the #1 reason they're entering is to have a weekend of fun. Everything else is a bonus. It's not going to be easy. In fact the chances are high that you'll be tired and frustrated at times but the feeling you have at the finish line will make up for it. Even if you miss the deadline, you'll never forget that moment. Enter for the experience.