This past weekend Starmada Media took part in the New York leg of the 48 Hour Film Project, an annual festival that challenges filmmakers in 100 different cities to write, produce and edit their own short films (4 to 7 minutes in length) within a 48 hour time period. In each location participants are given their genre, which they pick out of a hat, and three elements which they must include in their film (a character, a prop and a line of dialogue). The challenge itself proved to be a bit of a roller coaster ride - a daunting yet exhilarating event. Below is a brief timeline of our experience.
Friday
2:30pm - We head north towards Manhattan via the New Jersey Turnpike. New York is a Mecca of filmmaking, and the demand is met by retail stores which supply equipment and expertise not found in most parts of the country. We opt to take advantage of this by arriving early and detouring to one of the better-known outlets to purchase a shoulder mount for our camera. The mount is designed to fit with a special lens apparatus we purchased last year and will allow us to be more mobile for the weekend's shoot as well as for future projects.
5:30 - New equipment in tow, we arrive at The Village Pourhouse on 3rd Avenue, the designated meeting point for the 48 teams participating in the event. After a quick dinner we wait for the coordinators to open up the table for registration.
6:30 - Registration begins for all the teams. We are then separated by screening group (there are five screening groups which have their films shown on different nights in New York) and called up one-by-one to pick our genres.
7:00 - Each team has now chosen their genre (ours is comedy) and the elements are announced: The character is Mickey or Michelle Sellers, a criminal. The prop is a coffee mug and the line of dialogue is "You're going to do what you want to do". Now that we have the information we need we are free to leave and begin working on our films.
9:30pm - After a two hour drive we arrive back home in Cherry Hill, NJ and begin writing the script. We decide that with limited cast and crew the best approach is a simple one, and after some debate we finally arrive at the decision to make a short instructional video for aspiring criminals. Mickey Sellers will be the guide and will carry with him a coffee mug throughout most of the video.
Saturday
1:30am - Exhausted from the trips to and from New York and the writing session, we agree to break for the night and get some rest.
8:30am - Following a night with limited sleep, team members split off to prepare for the day ahead. Matt Sundell (cinematographer and Starmada co-founder) assembles the shoulder mount we bought in New York while Neill (director and also a Starmada co-founder) goes on a scavenger hunt for props we think we will need based on the script.
11:00am - We reconvene to put the finishing touches on the script with our cowriter and star, Dave Primiano, while waiting for the rest of the team to arrive.
1:00pm - Lunch is served, and once the entire cast and crew is assembled we leave for the set.
2:00pm - We arrive on location and begin to set up, but there is a problem with the equipment - a smudge on the lens that we are unable to get rid of. We abandon the shoulder mount and lenses and decide to shoot on a tripod using the built-in camera lens.
10:00pm - Exhausted from eight hours of production with no break we are at last shooting the final scene. By now it is just Matt, Neill and Dave - the rest of the cast and crew has departed.
11:00pm - After cleaning up on set and packing the equipment away we head back to Matt's house. Matt rests while Neill captures the footage from Mini DV tapes onto the computer so it can be cut using editing software
Sunday
2:00am - Neill finishes capturing and heads home to rest.
3:30am - Matt wakes up and begins to edit.
9:00am - Matt and Neill meet up so they can finish editing. Matt has created two versions, one of which he has made shorter to cut out certain scenes he has deemed repetitive. Each version has a different flow and Matt and Neill disagree on which is more effective.
12:30pm - After a short debate they compromise on a final version which incorporates all the scenes but in a different order. This allows everything to be included while moving at a similar pace to the shorter film. Matt begins to export the footage into two different file formats (at the suggestion of the 48 Hour Film Project's main web site) while Neill prepares the final paperwork.
2:00pm - Matt has finished creating the video files. He throws one onto a data DVD and another onto a thumb drive while Neill runs through the checklist to make sure they have everything they need to turn in the finished product.
2:30pm - Neill departs for New York.
6:00pm - After a half-hour drive to the NJ Transit train station in Hamilton, NJ and an hour-and-a-half train trip Neill finally arrives back in New York. He makes his way over to the Village Pourhouse and discusses the weekend's events with the other filmmakers while they wait for the coordinators to announce that they can turn in their films.
6:30pm - Neill hands in the project one half hour before the deadline and, with the final task completed, heads back home after what has proven to be a daunting yet rewarding weekend.
