An Opportunity to Follow Along As I Try to Create a Film in 14 Days!
A few years ago on the Digital Video Information Network a bunch of nature and wildlife filmmakers got together to create a film challenge to build friendships, grow as filmmakers and to just plain have fun.
The challenge we were tasked with was to create a short,three minute film in three weeks. We would commit to do the challenge by signing up on the forum and on the day of the challenge we would receive the theme that our film must be based on.
Themes could be as cryptic as JOURNEYS AND DISCOVERIES or simply “WATER.” It was up to each filmmaker to interpret the theme and complete a film. You would think that a bunch of nature and wildlife filmmakers would take a theme like “Water” and every film would pretty much be the same. In actuality, pretty much all the films although based on the same theme were totally original.
At the same time, a group of filmmakers were also running a challenge. These were more “traditional” filmmakers if you will. Using actors, sets, lighting etc. They basically followed the same idea. They’d sign up, a theme would be announced, they have a short period of time to complete a film and then the winners would be announced from all the completed films.
The “traditional” filmmakers would do a holiday challenge where cash donations would be given, a theme would be announced and the winner would get to donate all the money raised to the charity of their choice.
Eventually this merged into the DVC/UWOL Charity Film Challenge we have going on right now. In fact, this is the 5th year they’ve held the challenge. By the way, DVC stands for Digital Video Challenge and UWOL stands for Under Water Over Land.
Not only did I sign up for the charity challenge this year but I’m going to attempt to document the entire process from this beginning to end.
My hope is that you can have a better understanding of how I go about putting together the story, video, music and editing to make a finished film.
I’ve never attempted anything like this before so I have no idea how it will turn out, whether anyone will find it useful or if I’ll even be able to finish the film.
The challenge starts December 2,2012 and ends at midnight Pacific time December 16, 2012. So, I certainly have my work cut out for me.
I hope this journal becomes interactive and you leave comments below and we can start a dialog. I have no clue where this will go so the more you chime in with your comments and thoughts, the more of a benefit this will become.
The category is “hidden as in it’s not going to be accessible by any link unless from the main page etc. So don’t worry about any question or comment being dumb. We’re all here to learn, myself included.
I have no clue what I’ll be posting. I may sit down and shoot some “interviews” with myself. Maybe video or stills from my iPhone out in the field, clips I’ve shot for the challenge. Who knows, this is fly by the seat of your pants filmmaking.
So let’s hope we get a good theme and I can put a finished film together from start to finish!
About Kevin J Railsback
Award-winning filmmaker Kevin J Railsback has traveled as far as Africa to test HD cameras for Panasonic.
His stunning nature and wildlife footage has appeared in productions on National Geographic, Animal Planet, Discovery Channel as well as in commercials for such corporate giants as AT&T.