10 years! You don't look a year over super 8!

I know the anticipation was killing all of you. With camera trigger fingers itching, and eyes twitching, let the fun begin!

The one that started it all is embarking on its 10th annual event.

As you can see, the submission form has been formatted for your pleasure. Please complete and send in as soon as possible to the SK Filmpool. Film cartridges will be arriving there this week, giving you 7 full weeks to shoot your masterpiece (and we do mean masterpiece. you have had 10 years to figure out all the tricks needed to master a one take).

As always, the first 25 people to pay their fee will be the first 25 participants. Limited to SASKATCHEWAN RESIDENTS ONLY.

If you have questions or can't contain your excitement, feel free to drop us a line - onetakesuper8event(at)yahoo.com

Thanks again to our sponsors for making this possible: The Saskatchewan Arts Board, Kodak, Saskatchewan Filmpool, Exclusive Film and Video, Regina Public Library Theatre.

JERK features the COMEBACK CAM

For some light Sunday reading, here's a link to a great article written by Julia Askenase about the modern use of super 8. It focuses on the preparations and fun leading up to the 4th Annual OTS8 in Syracuse this past April, organized by the wonderful husband and wife team of Briana and Jason Kohlbrenner. They've posted some of the great OTS8 films from past Syracuse events at the Syracuse Experimental site, definitely worth a visit.

Here's a brief sample from the article:

"Beyond the niche commercial market of well-heeled weddings, however, Super 8 exists as a low-budget artistic format for amateurs and experienced filmmakers alike. When Alex Rogalski founded One Take Super 8 in Saskatchewan, Canada in 2000, he’d grown tired of watching his film friends from university become frustrated by the competitive professional festival circuit. So he created his own forum.

“[One Take] was an idea I had to get filmmakers and non-filmmakers both to make something that was guaranteed an audience,” he says. He designed the event without a jury or prizes, and chose Super 8 because of its many draws . It’s portable and affordable—a roll of film costs around $15—and also has some key limitations. Super 8 lacks the instant gratification and post-production editing capabilities of digital, forcing filmmakers to plan carefully their single take. And because entrants turn their films in blind, the typical screening ends up with a grab bag of quality. “When you do see a film that’s in focus and properly lit and tells a story, it’s like a miracle. Because clearly, a lot could go wrong,” Rogalski says. “I think we want to pull back the curtain a bit on the filmmaking process. You get to see that not everything hits the mark.”

One Take spread organically, as filmmakers from the original event moved to new cities and started local incarnations. But since the late ’90s, the Internet had already been connecting Super 8 enthusiasts all over the map. Super 8 tip sites cropped up, while major websites like Craigslist and eBay facilitated the sales of Super 8 cameras, which are no longer in production. “There’s no doubt that it’s a little ironic that new technology has made Super 8 more relevant,” he says.

At the Syracuse branch, started by Rogalski’s colleague Brett Kashmere, many participants find liberation in the event’s constraints. “They might come in with this enormous script and are like, ‘Oh, we’re going to do this whole thing!’ But once they screw up, they realize they can’t rewind and shoot again,” says Jason Kohlbrenner. “I think this weight gets lifted off their shoulders.”

WNDX 2010 OTS8 is Full.

For some this is great news (those who entered). For others great disappointment (those who didn't).

You snooze you lose in Winnipeg. After less than a week, all of this year's spots for the 5th annual WNDX OTS8 have been snapped up, and soon cameras will be rolling. My, they have a lot of time, as the event will not take place for over 2 months. I can foresee some potential for amazing time lapse or animation work. Who knows what a summer of biblical rains and mosquitos will do for the creativity of these prairie folk.

For those who didn't get in, all is not lost. You can always see if anyone needs an extra hand filming their one take wonder. And it's always worth coming out to the event to see what cinematic charms will grace the screen. Save the date. October 3rd. Gas Station Theatre. It'll be a doozy.

In other news. Saskatchewan, prepare yourself. Submission forms have been tweaked. Film has been ordered. Keep your eyes peeled, cause any day now we'll open up submissions for our 10th event.

5th Annual OTS8 at WNDX!

With summer on the brain, it's hard to believe that it will ever end, but WNDX is set up to storm Winnipeg's art scene for the 5th time this fall, and the call has been sent out for all Manitoba filmmakers to pick up a camera and shoot a reel for their 5th annual OTS8!

Here's a link to their sign up form.

Make sure you sign up by August 13th (actually, sign up today, as the 25 spots always fill up fast).

Looking forward to another great harvest of super 8 wonders from that one great city that never disappoints.

In the meantime, if you need to get your creative juices flowing for shooting a single reel, head up to Gimli next weekend (July 21-25), where some past OTS8 films have been programmed including SINGH by Sunny Sidhu, $100 film festival winner GOTHS! ON A BUS! by Jaimz and Karen Asmundson, and BELT BUCKLE/QUONSET HUT by Terry Mialkowsky and Shannon Jardine.

More details about screening times and locations can be found here.

Summertime!

It's been a while since our last post, so just wanted to let everyone know, we took a short break, but are now busy working on our fall programming.

The 10th OTS8 will be here before we know it. We have a tentative date set (which we'll reveal soon) and we'll be hosted again at the RPL Theatre which has been home to the OTS8 since 2007. We're welcoming back a number of sponsors for this year's special anniversary and adding some new ones.

Also, plans are under way for the 5th annual OTS8 at WNDX. Keep checking back for updates for when submissions open. There's some exciting news developing for making a number of past WNDX OTS8 films available much more widely, for those who have missed past year, or want to see some of the films again.

We'll be updating pretty regularly now as things fall into place. Looking forward to an exciting fall of brand new super 8 work!