A day in the life of HDV

There is a great (and somewhat geeky) article in Showreel aboutHDV on the set of 24. It has lots of discussion of the way that 24 is shot and goes into great detail about some tests that were done with the new HDV format cameras (which will probably replace the miniDV) format for lower-budget productions. Some great insight on shooting on film versus video as well as some post production information as well.

Copyright Criminals Remix Contest

If you want to practice your editing and remixing skills you can enter the Copyright Criminals Remix Contest, which is hosted by ccMixter, which is the site that enables anyone to download, sample, cut-up, and share Creative Commons licensed audio. The contest is connected with the documentary Copyright Criminals and features voiceovers from De La Soul, DJ Qbert, Public Enemy, Matmos, Coldcut and Negativland. If you win, your work will be included on the DVD of the film as well as the companion CD. The deadline for entries is 9:00 p.m. Pacific Time, February 28, 2006.

Firefox Flicks

The Firefox Flicks contest gives you a chance to create an ad for the best web browser, Firefox. The rules are explained on the site, but the short version is that it has to be 30 seconds long and can be either animated or live action. The prizes are great and include $5000 (US Dollars) in gift certificates to B&H, who have a wide range of photo and video gear. The judges are experienced industry folks, so it's also an opportunity to show off what you do. One of the Friends of Firefox Flicks is Celtx (whose preproduction and scriptwriting tools are used at the school). The deadline for the contest is March 31st, 2006.

Bad Metaphor Podcast

While it's not directly film related, I thought that I'd let readers know that I've started a podcast with my son, who is 9 now, and the show is called Bad Metaphor. There is one episode up now with another one recorded and waiting to be edited. John and I talk about things that he and I find interesting. You can get the show via the site a few different ways or can just subscribe to it through the Bad Metaphor page on iTunes and automatically get new shows as we put them up.

Bicycle Film Festival

Only a couple of weeks left to enter the Sixth Annual Bicycle Film Festival. Do you have any films that would fit? Send them in. The festival travels around (just like a bicycle!).

:: The Flux :: Independent short films, student film, filmmakers, and indie movie fans ::

The Flux is a place that shows videos, has reviews and a collection of resources for those who tell their stories through a screen. They're also accepting submissions for what they are billing as "the world's first iPod Video Film Festival". The deadline is January 25, 2006, so there isn't much time.