One-Minute One-Shots

Below are the 4 one-shots created by the Spring07 6X1 class.

By one-shot, we mean that the film is composed of only one shot with not even in-camera editing. The film begins when the camera starts rolling and ends when the camera stops rolling.









For this assignment, students used 16mm Bolex cameras and some hi-contrast film. The Bolex cameras are hand-wound, rather than battery powered and each wind has roughly 28 seconds. Since this class is all about making one-minute films and this assignment was all about a one-minute take, we had to cheat a little.

We slowed the frame rate of the Bolex to half the normal frame rate. This meant that when projected, the film would play twice the normal speed but it also meant that we could shoot for a full minute because the camera wind was running at half the speed.

Then, we processed the hi-con film using a red safelight. f4 and f5.6 seemed to yeild the best results for the sunny mid-afternoon light with which we had to work.

Then, the film was transferred to video. As I mentioned, the film ran twice as fast in the projector, so we had to slow it down to half the speed in Final Cut Pro. Also, since the film was processed as a negative, we also had to invert (or change to a positive) the video transfer.

Enjoy!

One-Minute SuperDuper8 Animations

Below are all of the four group animations for the Spring 6X1 class. These were filmed using Super 8 cameras and Ektachrome film and the project utilized a multiplane animation technique.

For the multiplane setup, an 18X24 inch glass panel was propped up by two apple boxes so that the ground below the pane was visible through the glass. The ground level served as a background and was often decorated by a backdrop. This first pane was a mid-stage of sorts. Then a second glass panel was propped up about 8 inches above the first panel. This top panel served as a front stage. Finally, the scene was decorated with props, lit and a Super 8 camera hovered about 4 feet above the glass panel.

To see some pictures of the actual class shoot visit the post on the animation shoot

But don't forget to also check out the mini-epic animations, right here!

Extremely Short Festivals for Extremely Short Filmz

So, soon you will have left this class having completed six one-minute projects. Six fun, challenging and I'm sure at times frustrating projects.

So now what?

Well, of course you have a few films to add to your reel . . . AND you can also choose to enter these films into festivals.

Right now, Drucilla (Dru), our Chiweenie (Chihuahua/Dachshund) dog is curled up in my lap. She's got a tiny dog collar for her tiny dog body and a tiny leash, some tiny dog toys and so on. There's a whole market for tiny dogs out there that caters to providing things for these wee creatures.



Likewise, there is a film festival market out there for your tiny films (epic in content as they may be). There are festivals such as the Aurora Picture Show Extremely Short Shorts for any film 3 minutes or under (postmark deadline May 1).

Stay tuned to the Sixty-Second Film Festival which is currently joking that it will "be back in a minute."

There are also festivals that cater to films that originated on film (you will have four of these film films by the end of the semester).



For example, there are several Flicker film screenings aroud the world. These screenings are more informal than your average festival screening though no less fun. The only rules are that your film be under 15 minutes and that it originate on film (though it can be, and in many cases is, shown on video) A great place to start your Flicker curcuit tour is with the founding Flicker in Chapel Hill. The next screening is May 7. There is NO ENTRY FEE for entering the Flicker screenings.

In general, one-minute films are great for festivals. Though they may not serve as the meat and potatoes of any shorts festival (outside of the extremely short shorts category), they are easy for festivals to program because of their length and are nice bursts of fresh air.