1:1 Super 8 Festival

The warm Florida sun will be shining on our super 8 festival in less than 2 weeks! Here's the poster for the event. Makes you hungry, no? We've got 25 films at the lab, ready for pick up tomorrow. (Seems like I've been making daily runs to Exclusive over the past couple months). This will be the end of the One Take Super 8 Event season. 4 events, 3 provinces, 1 state, 100+ films. This will be a great way to finish off 2009, before we start planning for our 10th anniversary year (and not to give anything away, but we're in the makings of a great surprise in early 2010. Stay posted!)

Here's the list of participants whose films you'll see in Florida:

Sebastian Bellotti, Eddie Ceasar, Billy Chadwick, Pedro Fernandez, Christiane Foucher, Moriah Jordan, Steven Lambiase, Jarred Moore, Alexander Robinson, Matthew Schectman, Michael Spitale, Jacqulynn Sutton, Aynsley Thaler, Alberto Sanchez, Derek Taylor, Jay Forsyth, Eric Fuhrmann, Felipe Cardozo, Ryan Ratliff, Nicolas Sacci, Ian Rosenberg, Devin Brockwell, Katherine Skelton, Alex Rogalski

Montreal pics

The pics do a good job of showing what a

night we had with Double Negative in Montreal. I'm particularly fond of the bikes piled against the fence (That's how we love people coming to our shows!) Daichi Saito's face is hidden while cleaning the projector, but his Elmo was a standout, handling 800 ft reels with no problem, and a super bright xenon lens. The big screen was perfect for the space, but almost too big, as we just fit it under the ceiling. Clearly, we didn't take any pics while the films were playing, but there wasn't a square inch of floor space empty. Luckily we found a way to raise the projector high enough so no one's head would block the light.

Double Negative OTS8 - Postively Amazing

Sometimes when we broach the 30+ marks for films in an OTS8 event, I get a little nervous.
We usually set the limit at 25 filmmakers, but then some stragglers come in and beg to take part, and a couple others have a reel they shoot and want to submit, and before we know it, we're nearing 3 dozen films. Usually, this doesn't make me too nervous, as it's often inevitable, that people's schedules don't turn out and they land up not finishing a film in time. But recently, that's not the case. Winnipeg has consistently offered more than 30 films at WNDX, and Montreal couldn't close submissions quick enough. Barely a day after posting their call for films over 30 participants were paid up and ready to go (we didn't even have time to get the translated version posted).

So, when 33 films land on my doorstep waiting to be processed, I start asking a lot of questions.
1- Will the venue be big enough? (there's an exponential audience factor that directly correlates to how many films we show).
2- Will people be able to watch over 30 films in one sitting? I consider it a badge of pride for those who do. For example : "Hey, how was your weekend?" "Pretty good. I watched 33 films on Saturday night."
3- Will the projector hold up? This is always a concern, as super 8 projectors weren't really intended to show feature length films.

As is often the case, all the anxiety is unnecessary and things turn out wonderfully. This was the case on Saturday night in Montreal. High atop a 4 storey warehouse loft (La Brique) in Mile End, Double Negative set the stage for a film screening to remember. 33 films, packed house (standing room only doesn't really describe it), big screen, bright projector and a dizzying array of films from experienced veterans to first time filmmakers.

I'll post some highlights over the next few days (maybe I'll snag a Double Negative member to review some of the films). All I can say at this point is that I've seen over 500 films during the decade of OTS8 events, and I saw some films in Montreal that showed me things I've never seen before. It is stunning to believe what's possible through in camera edits. The versatility of this medium still hasn't been fully discovered and its exciting to know that OTS8 is help pushing its boundaries. There are some photos from the event, we'll post in coming days. If you were lucky enough to snag one of Marie Douce's hand made programs count yourself lucky. They were as unique and well crafted as the films, and a great memento from the night. Let's hope the DN crew is interested in doing this again, as it's clear there is a big demand in Montreal for some small guage film fests.

Regina Review and Montreal Poster

The picture you're seeing is for our Montreal One Take Super 8 Event. Beautiful design and screenprint by Marie Douce. The digital image doesn't do them justice, but look for them hanging up around the city. Marie will be designing the programs as well.

Things are moving along for the Montreal event. The lab received the films late last week, and they're ready for pick up very soon. Expectations are high for this line up, and I know the films won't disappoint.

Can't believe it's already been a week since we wrapped up Regina's super 8 success. Yet again we had a capacity crowd well before the 8pm start, with people waiting outside the theatre for an intermission, hoping for a seat to open up. The highlight of this year's event were so many live performances to go with the films. Krystal Lewis followed up on last year with Mad Libs 2, providing a live interactive narration that got the crowd involved with a cinematic version of the board game. Eric Hill added another dimension to his 'Reversomotion' film (playing the film from tail end first), with his keyboard and amp in an improvised performance.

Brett Bell took it to another level doing a live foley for his pure one take. Assisted by Terryll Loffler on tin flute, Brett used office garbage bins to creative effect to replicate the sound of walking up steps and using a slide. And to end the live performances of the night we had a OTS8 first with Dan Suchoboki and another performer dressed all in black doing an interpretive dance in front of the screen during his film. Looked great and added a completely new dimension to his animated film.
These soundtracks and performances always make the OTS8 a must see event, as the live aspect expands the cinematic experience.

berny hi. and Jemma Gilboy collaborated on a cinematic love letter that crossed the pond, shot in both Edinburgh, Scotland and Regina, SK. It creatively, succinctly and very romantically showed the small differences between the couple's lives in places thousands of miles apart. The French new wave touches were perfect.

The buzz film of the night had to be 'Big Jim' directed by Charlie Hill. I can't count how many questions I was asked about who made the film, what camera they used, how incredible the shots were planned out, and more. As the director informed me, it was a family affair, as Charlie's sons Eric and Ryan (who have participated in OTS8 for many years) helped fulfill their dad's vision of a pure documentary portrait that pays homage to the verite docs of the NFB's Unit B. I can't describe the film anywhere near as strongly as it conveys its images, but it focuses on a pallette jack driver (Big Jim) working at a Canada Post sorting facility warehouse. It was a perfect subject for the use of super 8, and the B/W stock captured the light perfectly in the fluorescent lit warehouse.

28 films. great work. and another Regina OTS8 in the books. Thanks to everyone for coming out, to the filmpool for their support, as well as our sponsors SaskFilm, SMPIA, Exclusive Film, RPL Theatre and the Saskatchewan Arts Board. We're transferring the films at the moment, and with any luck will have DVDs ready for sale before the end of 2009.

TONIGHT!

We're hours away from the premiere of 28 new Saskatchewan super 8 masterpieces.

Films - check
Soundtracks - check
Programs - being picked up at this very moment
Audience - eagerly awaiting tonight!

I'll admit I took a sneak peak at some of the films while splicing them on the hand winds, and it's going to be a fun night. Some zombies, cats, forklifts, laundromats, and animation. As always, it's a wide assortment of cinematic styles.

Looking forward to seeing everyone there. Show starts at 8 and we expect a packed house.

p.s. Look for a recap of the show tomorrow, and the new poster for the Montreal OTS8!