Producers compete in 48-hour film festivalThe Tallahassee Film Festival is just two weeks away and contestants all over Tallahassee are excited about this year’s event.
FAMU, FSU and TCC students had a chance to participate in the 48-hour contest that allowed aspiring directors and producers to get beneficial feedback from industry professionals.
Students had just 48 hours to forge, script, shoot and edit a five-minute story. At the start of the contest, the teams received e-mails with a theme, a specific prop and a line of dialogue that had to be prevalent in the storyline.
Thirty-five teams have submitted their work, and the voting will be open online from March 31 – April 8 at www.tallahassee.com.
Festival director Carolyn Smith believes there will be a wide variety of activities that movie buffs can enjoy. Last year produced a variety of undiscovered talent that thrust small-time filmmakers into the limelight.
“They would come to the festival for the four to five days and they would go to lots of films, they would go to Q and As, question/answer sessions, after the films where some of the film makers or producers were there,” Smith said. “They would attend educational sessions about film making, script writing and then the after parties at night.”
Out of more than 100 submissions, 12 were lucky enough to take home the top honors. Rewards included cash prizes and chances for the filmmaker’s film to be shown at the IMAX Theater downtown.
FAMU students are also contributing to this year’s festival. Alexandria Collins, Alvin McBean, Britney Buchanan, Esi Yamoah and Spencer Henderson submitted the film “The Finish Line.” The story follows a young man who has severed all relationships in his life and is trying to find his way back to redemption.
“After only having about two hours of sleep and waking up at six in the morning, it was still all worth it. I am happy to say that I had such talented friends to help create this vision.” Yamoah said.
“Breaking Upwards,” a film that premiered during the 2009 Tallahassee Film Festival, garnered so much national attention it is now available to rent on DVD on iTunes, Netflix and Amazon.
The festival will run through April 6-10 and is open to the public.