MicroCinema Scene

Jason Pankoke, publisher of the highly regarded Micro-Film Magazine has announced that the 8th issue will be released on October 8th. The printed issue will be preceded by a free digital sampler issue that will be available via the Micro-Film site.

Pankoke is still accepting submissions for the issue with a deadline of July 20, 2008.

MICRO-FILM 8 will be a 64-page opus (with our first-ever, full-color cover!) that takes a refreshed look at current and upcoming independent cinema. Many of your favorite writers will return for this go-round, such as L. Rob Hubbard and Anthony Zoubek, and will be joined by guest contributors such as Eclectic Screening Room editor Greg Woods. Content and cover prices TBD; distribution will primarily be through the MICRO-FILM Web site and select independent book stores nationwide.

If you are a film/entertainment writer interested in contributing material to MF 8, contact us at editor [at] micro-film-magazine [dot] com to request submission information. MICRO-FILM is a non-paying gig, so please consider this before making contact.

One of the key elements of MicroCinema Scene has always been the Forums. From a personal standpoint, I’ve met some great people through the forums, including John Oak Dalton who I went on to work with on Sex Machine. In addition to making a lot of new cyber-friends, I’ve learned a LOT about filmmaking by asking questions and participating in the discussion.

However, with the latest redesign of MCS, the forums kind of got lost amidst everything else. They’ve still been humming along in the background, but we wanted to bring them front and center. You’ll now find the five most recent discussions listed in the sidebar on every page of the site.

If you’re curious what it’s all about, here are a few cool places to start:

• Scenes from Scenes from Oblivion
  FilmGal takes us behind the scenes of a micro-budget features and gives a ton of information about shooting a guerilla style feature.
• Before and after (effects done in FCP)
  Miguel Coyula posts some amazing clips illustrating the kind of color correction and compositing he brings to his films.
• Rode VideoMic test footage
  Gonzorrific’s Andrew Shearer experiments with a Rode VideoMic and posts the results.
• HACK - Documentary about MicroCinema Filmmaker
  Here’s a complete documentary about Frankie Latina and starring American Movie’s Mark Borchardt. You can watch the whole movie from the comfort of the Forums.

These are just the tip of the ice berg, and we’d like to encourage you to jump in, sign up and become a part of this great community.

Go to the MicroCinema Scene Forums!

Alex Ferrari is making quite a name for himself. In 2005 he directed the $8,000 short that could: Broken. Ferrari has continued to exploit digital technology to give his projects a very impressive scope
and professional sheen. Nothing has changed with his latest offering, Red Princess Blues: The Book of Violence, an animated short, written and co-produced by Ferrari. The short serves as a prequel to his feature length debut, Red Princess Blues. Currently in pre-production, the film follows a young woman on a quest for revenge. Alex has interrupted his busy pre-production schedule to answer a few questions.
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The Blue November MicroFilm Festival has announced it is seeking entries for its sixth annual festival. The festival is an intimate affair, held in a Coffee House in Seattle. Best of all, there is no entry fee. Here are the details straight from festival organizer Captain Chambers:

The Sixth Annual Blue November MicroFilmFest is a totally free festival that supports the artist first and foremost, with a dedication to vision and artistic integrity in cinema, music and the arts. Designed for the truefilmmaker and the art of film, this festival focuses on the people behind the creation. It is free to those who attend, and it is always free for the artists.

Anyone can enter, and submissions will be carefully considered before being accepted or rejected. All art forms are open for submission: poetry, dance, performance, music, art exhibition and film. We are searching for the unique and the overlooked; we want to see it all!

The Call-for-Entries is open March 5th until August 15th of 2008. Participants can visit www.blue-november.com for the official rules and entry form. We encourage involvement from the local community, and invite anyone who submits an accepted film or artistic work to speak at the event. The promotion of the artist remains a primary goal of Blue November.

The Blue November MicroFilmFest has a tradition of working hand in hand with the people, organizations and businesses of the arts community. The Festival has maintained a standard of supporting the art of cinema and the creative vision of the director, the support of art in all forms and the tradition of a free festival for artists, filmmakers and patrons.

This coming November, the Green Bean Coffee House will play host to the further development of the Blue
November MicroFilmFest in Seattle. We have expanded yet again, and this year will include a broader reach
into supporting charity and the Greenwood neighborhood. Working together, like minds have coordinated an event that will exhibit unique cinema, local artists and Seattle musicians. The tradition continues.

Visit Blue November for the Official Entry

MK12 is a motion graphics/animation/sound design shop in Kansas City, MO. They produce amazing music videos, film titles, commercials and just about anything else you can think of. For the past four years they’ve been working on a 30 minute animated film entitled History of America. It’s not the most exciting title, but the film isn’t about the “true” history of America. Instead, it’s the History of America the way you wish it might have been - with cowboys fighting Astronauts.

The short is a lot of fun to watch and the design and animation is quite simply - eye popping. Lucky for us, MK12 has made it available to watch online for free via Ventilate.ca. I’m not sure how long it will be up, so do yourself a favor and download the high-res MP4. It’s well worth the download time.

[Via Josh Oakhurst]

One of the things that I love about the world of no-budget movie making is the poverty-inspired ingenuity. Resourceful filmmakers have devised ways to build D.I.Y. dollies, c-stands, car mounts and just about other piece of production technology. But here’s one I haven’t seen: a $3 mount for your boom mic.
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Friend and prolific b-movie filmmaker John Polonia passsed away suddenly yesterday of a heart aneurysm. He was 39 and leaves a wife and young son.

John was an incredibly funny person who enjoyed home and family life and could talk movies with a great fervor. He turned this love of movies into a memorable filmmaking career.
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MicroCinema Scene was launched in 2003. Since that time, we have amassed a large collection of articles related to filmmaking. We decided to organize this information and re-launch it as a new feature: The No-Budget Film School!

Currently, the No-Budget Film School encompasses everything from holding an audition to organizing a screening for your completed film. The unique thing about these articles is that they are all written by filmmakers who have worked on low-to-no budget movies. A lot of the information you find here is not covered in mainstream filmmaking books - because it is unconventional. It addresses the real issues that arise when you are scraping together all the resources you can get your hands on and making a movie despite almost impossible odds.

Use this collection of articles, and when you have a question or need additional information use our commenting system or head to the forums.

So, check out the No-Budget Film School, grab a camera and get started on your next film. We want to see it!

No-Budget Film School

DV guru Adam Wilt has written a lengthy and very in-depth review of Sony’s new EX-1 Camcorder. The EX-1 is seen by many as Sony’s response to the Panasonic HVX200 which has quickly become a favorite camcorder among indie filmmakers. The fact that this camera is the first camcorder from Sony’s Cine Alta group only adds to the lust factor.
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The season premiere of Joe Swanberg’s new web series Butterknife is now live! People seem to either love or hate Swanberg’s work, and this series is probably only going to reinforce your feelings. It stays true to Swanberg’s shaky, shoot-on-the-fly aesthetic, but filters it all through the detective story genre. Episode 1 is titled Plastic Hassle and introduces the lead characters - a private investigator (played by Ronald Bronstein) and his wife (played by Mary Bronstein).