Please do not claim that you have something to do on Saturday that will be more fun than taking part in the Down to the Wire film competition—at least if you have the slightest interest in filmmaking. Go ahead. Get ready to devote your weekend to the contest.
Tallgrass Film Fest and Creative Rush have joined forces to organize a film competition, and you don’t have to be a film student to participate. You do have to be ready, with your team of talent, by 6 PM Friday evening.
Kylie Brown is the founder of Creative Rush, the group partnering with Tallgrass to make this happen. Creative Rush is a loosely organized group allowing artists—anyone pursuing creative work in their lives—to connect and learn from each other. Their monthly (first Tuesdays) meetings are open to all creatives, and include panels of local artists addressing that evening’s topic. And, Creative Rush occasionally has special events, like this film competition, or the art show they produced at ShiftSpace Gallery in January.
Kylie says, “The partnership with Tallgrass Film Association for Down To The Wire a 24 HR Film Race is just another avenue to expose the creative side of people. This is why we are stressing that you do not need to be a filmmaker to participate.”
The schedule is roughly this: Friday evening at 6 PM, bring your talent team and register and find out (as they’re pulled from a hat) the “location, line, prop, and theme” that will be required of every entry. Leave at 7 PM. Start making a six-minute film. Bring it back in 24 hours. Let the judging and critiquing begin. On Sunday, with the field of entries narrowed down to the best, VIP judges make final decisions, and the best entries are screened that day at the Orpheum.
The meetups earlier in the week, on Tuesday and Thursday at 6:30 at City Arts are optional. If you attend one of the meetups , you can get some tips and more information about the contest. If possible, you will bring some talented friends along—actors, film editors, writers. . . . If you do not already have a team, you could connect with the others looking to form a team there.
Then, on Friday evening, the producer in your group registers--$60 for the entire team. You will get a swagbag. You will get contest rules. And you will be expected back with an edited six-minute film Saturday evening.
Which means that you have 24 hours to make a six-minute film. Sure—get a good night’s rest that night while the other teams brainstorm, write, shoot, and edit. That might get your movie finished. On the other hand, you don’t want it to look like you and 14 others pulled an all-nighter, do you?
It can be done, as the Creative Rush website says, and they have posted some six-minute movies examples and a playlist of others at their website (creativerush.org).
Kylie took part in similar contests when living in Minnesota.
‘I got the idea for this from having the opportunity to participate in a fair few in the past,’ she says, “the first one being in 2004 in Grand Rapids, MI. I was living there and working there as a communications intern. I was always interested in filmmaking, but had no official training and no degree.
“ I was young and it was nuts, there was no sleep, and we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. I had a blast and was hooked. I ended up going to the film school where these 24-hour film festivals were hosted and entering in many, if not every single one, that they had, up until the time I left Michigan to come back to Kansas. I had built a strong team of friends who also were aspiring filmmakers, musicians, and talent, and we ended up registering for other festivals such as the 48-Hour Film Festival in Chicago & Detroit. Half of my team, including myself, wasn't on the track to becoming career filmmakers, but these festivals made us believe we could. I had learned more about production and time management than ever before. So, when I arrived back in Wichita, all I could think was, I am so thankful I had that opportunity when I did, so why shouldn't I help inspire and provide a similar opportunity for someone else? Why not?
“So here we are with the film race actually happening, August 10th - 12th, 2012.”
For more contest details and information on the meetups, go to creativerush.org and tallgrassfilmfest.com.
