“Lights, camera, action!”
If you’ve ever wanted to get behind the camera, sit in the director’s chair, or learn what it takes to put together a film, the Dead of Winter 48-Hour Film Challenge is your chance to be in the spotlight — or at least to make the spotlight.
The new Peterborough Kawartha Film Office is hosting the challenge, which is open to filmmakers of all skill levels and experience, in partnership with Film Camp. Beginning with a launch party on Friday, February 16th at 6 p.m. at The Theatre on King in downtown Peterborough, participants in groups of four will have two days to write, film, edit, and produce a compelling short film up to 10 minutes long. The films will then be screened on Sunday, February 18th at 8 p.m. at The Theatre on King.
Registration is now open until 3 p.m. on Wednesday, February 14th. The cost to register as an individual filmmaker is $15, while groups of four can register for $50.
“The 48-hour film challenge is meant to get people in the community engaged with each other, collaborating, and working as a team to tell a story,” says Pawel Dwulit, a cinematographer and one of the founders of the Peterborough Kawartha Film Office. “Filmmaking is very collaborative.”
Dwulit has been involved in organizing the event before, with the last in July 2019, but he assures that, with The Theatre on King’s participation, this year is the “biggest one” yet.
“Ryan (Kerr) and Kate (Story) are awesome supporters of film,” he says, referring to the theatre’s artistic director and artistic administrator. “It’s great to have them be a part of it this year, and hopefully this is something that can become a big community partnership between the new Film Office initiative and The Theatre on King for a long time.”
The collaborations will begin right at the Friday launch party, where participants will have the opportunity to connect with one another and ask questions. Those who are not already in a four-person team will be divided into teams that are fair and well-rounded in terms of roles. The launch meeting will be livestreamed for those who cannot attend in person.
Each group will then be given an inspiration package, which has various rules or challenges to ensure teams don’t show up with scripts already written but are rather embracing the challenge of completing the whole film process within the two days.
“We might (ask) some teams to do certain narrative structure like ‘man versus society’ or ‘man versus self’, for example,” says Dwulit, noting that the only other criteria are the film must be under 10 minutes long and rated 14A. “But people can really take it wherever they want in terms of the genre and use as many actors as required.”
There is no requirement in terms of equipment or camera quality necessary for creating the films. In past years, many of the films have been shot entirely on a phone camera. Dwulit and Drew Antzis, the founder of Film Camp, will be in attendance among others to connect with participants and educate on various aspects of production, from editing software to maximizing the use of the camera.
“I’m hoping we get to meet with every team and help them navigate the biggest possible hurdles that they may encounter based on their idea, whether that’s editing or building a schedule,” Dwulit explains. “We want everybody to have a successful film at the end, whether it’s shot on a small digital camera, on your phone, on a GoPro, or however else. We want it to look cinematic and help you tell your story at that higher level.”
Dwulit notes there will be plenty of opportunities for hands-on learning as the teams go out to direct, film, and edit their films over the next 48 hours.
“You can learn (everything from) editing to directing talent to gathering audio on location to working with whatever camera you have to maximize its capability,” says Dwulit. “It’s building each other’s ideas and problem solving together. It’s thinking about how you make this look a certain way with limited resources. Those types of challenges are on every size of production, so it’s great to experience that.”
At the end of the weekend, the teams will meet back at The Theatre on King for a screening of all the films. Tickets to the screening for film supporters are $10 or pay what you can at the door. A virtual screening will be available for those unable to attend.
Prizes will be awarded as decided by industry community members. While the categories are so far undecided, they will be focused on problem-solving and overcoming obstacles as opposed to judging the actual turn out of the film.
In coordination with the Peterborough Kawartha Film Office’s goal of introducing Peterborough and the Kawarthas as a film destination, Dwulit is hopeful that the 48-hour film challenge will become a semi-annual event.
“It’s great to be in a really creative community which has lots of creatives and artists at all levels and types,” he says. “This is something that can really help us generate a new kind of point in the community where people can get together around more solemn collaborations and I’m really excited for that.”
Registration is now open for the Dead of Winter 48-Hour Film Challenge. Visit ptboklfilmoffice.com/48hr-film-challenge for more information and resources for producing the best film.
VIDEO: “Drip” from the 2019 48-hour Film Challenge
"Drip" – Team #1 – 48 Hr Ptbo Film Challenge
July 2019 – 48 Hr Film Challenge – Team # 1 – "Drip"
Posted by PTBO Film Challenge on Wednesday, July 31, 2019
