48 Hours of Mayhem!

...and maybe no Steemit.

Well, fellow Steemitians, the time is coming soon when I have to take a break from typing nonsense on the keyboard to try to create magic on the screen!

For the last decade or so, the 48 Hour Film Project has been causing near breakdowns to film makers and film maker wannabes across the planet. On different weekends in different cities around the world, teams compete against the clock to write, practice, shoot and edit a film before the 48 hour deadline expires. For some of us, part of that 48 hour deadline includes driving to the host city to submit the film by hand.

Now, face-to-face drop-off of your movie isn't the trick of the 48 Hour Film Project. The trick starts at the beginning of the 48 hours. Everyone who wants to compete has to build their team and register for the event. It costs a little bit of money to enter. And each team must send a representative to the kick-off meeting to sign-in and wait for contest to start at exactly 7:00 pm. At that moment, the teams can reveal the elements for their movie.

1)Genre
2)Line of Dialog
3)Character Name and Occupation
4)Prop

These items are randomly given and they MUST be part of the movie, which cannot be any longer than 7 minutes, excluding certain parts of the credits.

The genre is usually the biggest stumble. Luckily, there are two choices, so if you don't like one, you can try the other. Hopefully, your team has secured locations that will fit one of the genres. Then you have to come up with a story to tell in 7 minutes that fits that genre. Teams have spent the time from 7:00 pm until early the next morning writing a script. Usually, you don't want the writers to be part of what goes on Saturday, because they are exhausted by then.

The line of dialog is the next stumble. Someone has to say the line of dialog exactly as it is written. If nobody says it correctly during the film, the film is disqualified. My first year of doing the 48 Hour Film Project, I had every actor say the line at some point, just to prove that I wrote the film around the line.

Character Name and Occupation isn't much of a stumble, but that depends on your genre. Trying to determine how a house organizer will fit into a horror film can be a bit tricky. And, you have to say the character's full name and occupation during the film. And that character has to be a part of the film, not someone who is just mentioned. So, it can cause some issues with the story.

Finally, the prop. Depending on the prop, it could be a background item or a significant part of the story. One year the prop was a toilet. So, I filmed almost the entire film inside of a bathroom and made sure that the toilet was seen. Unfortunately, a lot of teams put in the prop as an after thought and it doesn't appear very much in the movie.

Once the script is written, then it is time to get everyone rehearsing and setting up the scenes. When a city hosts the 48 Hour Film Project for the first time, the teams have to show a prominent landmark in the film. Luckily, I don't have to do that. But, getting locations is hard with zero budget and we usually try to use someone's house or a public area. Doing filming in a public area has all sorts of issues and can cause problems with the authorities.

Now that everyone is on board, the filming begins. I try to get things wrapped up on Saturday night. There have been stories of teams that were still filming on Sunday afternoon, hours before having to turn in the film. Not the best planning.

Of all the things that could hinder progress, editing the film is it. While film editing software has gotten better, the dreaded waiting for something to compile can be illness causing. Watching the time until finished actually increase after minutes of compiling about drives you mad. As that time ticks up, you look at the clock as it ticks away, wondering how many traffic laws you can break to get to the drop-off on time.

Of course, the best part is finally dropping off the film on time. What a relief. You can even wait around to hear about all the teams that didn't make it, which is sad but also another relief in knowing that you just accomplished a very hard task.

Finally, a few weeks later, all the teams come together and get to watch their film on the big screen. That is a fun experience....until you see another team that put together a film that looks like Hollywood paid for.

If you are interesting in film making, the 48 Hour Film Project is a great way to start. Check to see if your city hosts one!

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Let the positive energy sing!

More Power to the Minnows!!