Monday, September 28, 2009
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
Filminute Festival, Publicat la data de 24.09.2009 on 121.ro
One of the many great things about the digital age is how it dramatically increases people’s accessibility to a variety of arts, both as audience and artist. As a budding filmmaker in the 90’s I got to experience this first hand when I shot a short documentary about the Sundance film festival with a simple, Hi8 consumer camera and then one week later watched it air on Canadian national television. Even two years prior to that I couldn’t have dreamed of such thing, because low-cost technology options like Hi8 didn’t exist and weren’t being accepted by conventional broadcasters.
Much of what I learned from that and other subsequent experiences with digital technology, played a big role the creation of Filminute, the international one-minute film festival we launched in 2006 with partners from the filmmaking, design and communications industry. With digital technologies far advanced from where they were in the late 90’s and YouTube freshly launched, we saw in one-minute films the opportunity to offer a format and a platform that would enable professional filmmakers and artists of all stripes and nationalities to showcase their storytelling talents on film to a respected international jury as well as a massive global audience. Four years in and the accessibility of the one-minute format has indeed proven itself with photographers, writers, actors and painters from all over the world joining the list of professional filmmakers who have been featured on Filminute’s annual and exclusive 25-film shortlist, a list that this year will reach audiences in more than 100 countries.
In addition to the range of artists that have successfully taken on the challenge, Filminute can also proudly point to the impressive role of female directors in the festival. In an industry, where an average of 7-10% of directors are women, Filminute can point to 25% of its 2009 shortlisted directors being female. It’s a very strong showing and also reflective of earlier successes by women at Filminute including the 2007 BEST FILMINUTE honours that went to Bulgarian director Kristina Groseva, and last year’s People’s Choice Award won by Hungarian female director Papai Pici.
Together with the wide variety of artists drawn to Filminute, the presence of so many women speaks to what’s possible when the barriers to entry are lowered and new technologies enable a challenging of the status quo.
Filminute’s annual international jury is also built to reflect the wide range of participating directors at Filminute, including women. This year we have award-winning Pakistani novelist Kamila Shamsie on the jury as well as Paris-based Chilean film journalist Pamela Bienzobas. In previous years we’ve had Cannes-awarded Iranian director Samira Makhmalbaf as well the head of the German Film Critics Association, Andreea Dittgen. All of these women are leaders whose presence serves to inspire established as well as up-and-coming filmmakers – men and women.
The accessibility that Filminute inspires also applies to countries. Over 75 countries have submitted films to Filminute over the course of the first 4 years. The U.S, the UK, Canada and Germany are always present, reflecting the strength of the film industries in those countries. However, countries like Romania, Bulgaria, India and Russia are also strong players who have won top honours from the jury and public alike. I’m especially pleased with Romania, one of Filminute’s anchor cities along with Toronto and London. The quality and quantity of films from Romania is always amazing and this year can be seen in 5 incredible films on the 25-film shortlist. It’s all proof that in today’s digital, global culture, no country or gender has a monopoly on good storytelling.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
I ❤ www.m.filminute.com #iPhone beta
Filminute's iPhone-centric beta site was put up this week. Some tweaks here and there, but generally was very smooth from the start. Thx go out to Mobiliciouz, our mobile development partners in Buenos Aires, our tech lead Dan in Bucharest, and our design team that built the Filminute.com site in Toronto
You can view, rate, and comment on the mobile site. However, to place your one vote for The People's Choice, award, please visit the main website.
www.m.filminute.com
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Women play too at Filminute
Women directors, or the lack thereof in the American studio system, has been a hot topic in the news recently. According to the New York Times ("See Any Similarities in These Directors?"), 93% of the approximately 85 live-action movies slated for 2009 release by the six biggest film companies - Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, 20th Century Fox, Universal Pictures, Walt Disney Studios and Warner Brothers - were directed by men.
By contrast, female directors counted for 25% of the Filminute 2009 shortlist. We've always believed that one-minute films level the playing field, and Filminute hopes to continue to prove that point when it comes to the success of both women and men, of all global origins. We continue to insist that nobody has a monopoly on good stories.
Congratulations to Shizuka Kusayanagi, Britt Rayes, Emma Vanhille, Luana Visciglia, and Elena Wen for their submissions now in competition at Filminute 2009. And let's take a moment to again applaud Best Filminute 2007 winner Kristina Grozeva for GAME (Bulgaria), and People's Choice 2008 winner Pici Papai for Quick (Hungary).
By contrast, female directors counted for 25% of the Filminute 2009 shortlist. We've always believed that one-minute films level the playing field, and Filminute hopes to continue to prove that point when it comes to the success of both women and men, of all global origins. We continue to insist that nobody has a monopoly on good stories.
Congratulations to Shizuka Kusayanagi, Britt Rayes, Emma Vanhille, Luana Visciglia, and Elena Wen for their submissions now in competition at Filminute 2009. And let's take a moment to again applaud Best Filminute 2007 winner Kristina Grozeva for GAME (Bulgaria), and People's Choice 2008 winner Pici Papai for Quick (Hungary).
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Twitterの１つぶやきが短編映画になった
ある人の１つぶやきが映画になりました。
といっても長編物ではなく、つぶやきにぴったりの超短編映画です。
Arjun Basuさん（@arjunbasu）さんは毎日Twitterで1つぶやきのフィクションをつぶやいています。すなわち毎ストーリーが140文字で収まっています。たとえば、最新のつぶやきではこんなストーリーになっています、
Read full piece here.
(And if anyone can send us a translation, that'd be fab.)
Merci, Cyberpresse!
Lundi 7 Septembre 2009, 15h00
Cinéma minute, blogue de Jozef Siroka, Cyberpresse
Cinéma minute, blogue de Jozef Siroka, Cyberpresse
La particularité de cet événement : toutes les oeuvres soumises ont une durée exacte de 60 secondes (d’autres règlements ici). La sélection cette année comprend 25 films; vous êtes invités à les coter et à les commenter.
Le gagnant de 2008 (photo) se trouve ici.
Monday, September 07, 2009
The Feel Good Film of the Year..., and other fine clichés
★★★★★ Everybody's a critic. We look forward to your comments on all 25 shortlisted films at Filminute 2009.
Sunday, September 06, 2009
★ OR ★★ OR ★★★ OR ★★★★ OR ★★★★★ ?
★★★★★ Everybody's a critic. We look forward to your comments on all 25 shortlisted films at Filminute 2009.
Saturday, September 05, 2009
Welcome to Filminute
Our mobile site and mobile campaigns will launch soon. Many thanks to our mobile development partners in Buenos Aires whom we'll introduce to you shortly. Stay tuned!
Friday, September 04, 2009
The Weekend Guide to Filminute 2009
THE WEEKEND GUIDE TO FILMINUTE 2009
Where else can you watch an entire film festival in under 30 minutes?
**********
WHO
25 film and animation directors from 13 countries
Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy,
Romania, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Thailand, UK, USA
WHERE
Filminute 2009
http://www.filminute.com
WHAT
One-minute films. 60 Seconds. No more, no less.
WHEN
Rate, comment, and vote, 24hrs a day until September 30
WHO'S WATCHING
Filminute fanatics. Film fans. Filmmakers. The Audience. The Jury.
WHY
Because the films are really great.
Because you get to see Walt in a whole new light.
Because Jim Jarmusch has a cameo.
Because innocence is lost.
Because of the zombies.
Because you get to have your say in who wins.
Because everybody's a critic.
HOW
Go to http://www.filminute.com.
You may also follow Filminute on Twitter at http://twitter.com/filminute
Followers are invited to identify their Filminute-related posts
by including the hashtag #1M or #Filminute
And on Facebook, become a fan at
http://www.facebook.com/Filminute
**********
CO-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND HEAD OF JURY
JOHN KETCHUM
CO-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
SABAA QUAO
STREAMING SPONSOR
LIMELIGHT NETWORKS
The Guardian Weighs in on Filminute
MENTIONS: How Do You Do? (Romania), Heatwave (Romania), Life (Canada), Brains (USA), Drop Dead (US), Goats (Romania), Black Hole (UK), I Like Bird (Belgium), ???/Hell (Ireland-Germany), Me and Jim (Serbia)http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/filmblog/2009/sep/04/filminute-film-festival
Thursday, September 03, 2009
60 WORDS ON 60 SECONDS is back!
EYE WEEKLY takes up a challenge of their own, "60 WORDS ON 60 SECONDS," the now annual review of 5 films from Filminute's shortlist. This year, film critic Chandler Levack selects virgins, hell, zombies, black holes, and musings on Jim Jarmusch. Check it out.
Wednesday, September 02, 2009
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