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Pro8mm Asks You to Think Big, Shoot Small
It’s a problem that every novice moviemaker faces when he or she thinks of entering a film festival: With only a single, cruddy camera, no means of editing and the bare minimum when it comes to both talent and location, how can I shoot to get the look I want? More importantly, how do I have any chance of going up against other movies if a festival only accepts perfectly polished, finely edited, big-budget masterpieces? For many, that is where the festival process ends, leaving moviemakers with the taste of failure in their mouths and great ideas wasted. But this no longer has to be the case.
With Pro8mm’s second Think Big, Shoot Small Film Festival Challenge, those who enter the festival are asked to do just that, defying its participants to shoot on a single roll with editing only allowed to be done in-camera. The irony of this is that with these technical limitations, Pro8mm has opened up a world of possibilities for beginner moviemakers looking to tell a great story. The true challenge is in coming up with an interesting story and then being innovative enough to shoot it creatively with only the essentials: A camera and some film. While it is a difficult task—a task that many big-budget directors would not be able to accomplish if you asked them to try—it is one that can be taken up by even the least experienced moviemaker, proving that no matter your monetary restrictions, a good idea goes a long way.
MM caught up with Rhonda Vigeant, one of the people in charge of the challenge, and discussed the reason behind creating the festival, what its esteemed panel of judges is looking for in a winning movie and what it is that makes the festival stand out amongst others.
Douglas Polisin (MM): How did the idea for Think Big, Shoot Small come about?
Rhonda Vigeant (RV): The idea for Think Big, Shoot Small grew out of wanting to find the least expensive and creative way for our clients to test various Pro8mm film stocks and Super8 cameras. We thought it would be much more fun to have a festival where you would shoot a creative project with one roll rather than shooting test charts on a wall. Not only does it establish the aesthetic of using film, but also defines the work flow of shooting on film and screening on digital. Now that HD is becoming the dominant display format, we have adapted the concept of the original Think Big, Shoot Small to include High Definition Display. By getting filmmakers to see the result of film on Blu-ray, they will get a chance to experience the next generation work flow.
The first Think Big, Shoot Small festival in 2007 was only offered in standard definition. There were about 30 entries spanning several generations, from college students to retirees, four countries and fantastic finished entries as diverse as the filmmakers themselves.
MM: What are the most important things the judges are looking for in the entries?
RV: Originality (score from one to 10). A high score would be given for a film that is truly original with lots of creative touches, including the use of special effects, costumes, the richness and originality of the story idea and/or other filmmaking techniques.
Technical Expertise (score from one to 10). A high score would be given to the film that has good composition and exposure with few technical errors. It should have good color quality, sharpness and titles at the beginning and ending of the film. If the film is animation or claymation, a high score needs to have the above as well as smooth transitions and timing. It should look like a movie not a slide show.
Artistic Merit (score from one to 10). A high score would be given for a film that is rich in complexity and dramatic impact. Does this film move you? Does the film elicit an emotional response whether it be tears or laughter? Does the film draw you in? Does the film appeal to you and touch you in ways that other films just don’t?
MM: What do you see as the advantages to shooting with 8mm compared with other kinds of film?
RV: Super8 is the most affordable of the film formats. Most people have access to cameras very cheaply from a relative’s closet, eBay, thrift stores or yard sales. For a very small investment of $108.00, you can try the same filmmaking principles used in Hollywood, and in the larger formats, on a tiny budget (that is, film stock, processing and scanning on a million dollar state-of-the-art industry scanning machine that does native HD transfers). The Super8 film is cartridge-loaded and easy to pop in the camera. Filmmaking doesn’t get much cheaper than that! By entering Think Big, Shoot Small in HD you can experience the workflow in creating a creative project, in High Definition, with minimal cost. We hope that once people see their work on Blu-ray it will inspire them to continue working this way for both production and archiving. There is still nothing comparable to the look and feel of film, and many filmmakers just assume that they cannot afford it, or that it is too difficult a craft. Many filmmakers see digital as inexpensive because you can shoot volumes of it for little cost, but you do not need volumes to tell a great story. In fact you can do so in two and a half minutes, the length of a Super8 roll. Since Super8 was originally designed as a consumer product, compared to 16mm or 35mm, you do not need formal film education to work with it. Super8 is much more about creative instinct rather than technical understanding of how to work film equipment. You could give a Super8 camera to a five year old and they could shoot something. The intriguing thing about Think Big, Shoot Small is to see where that creative ingenuity lies. Film should not be something to be feared or intimidated by based on cost or technical skills. Super8 opens up these paths to the craft of film beautifully.
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COMMENTS | POST A COMMENT 
- Comment by Rhonda Vigeant on 2/04/09 at 12:22 pm
Thank you Movie Maker for posting this article. We really hope it will inspire contestants to give THINK BIG SHOOT SMALL a try. The last time we did this in 2007 it was a blast!!
- Comment by Malcolm on 11/01/09 at 7:12 am
Good to see that Super 8 is still being used. I have a Braun Nizo S800 camera and for the type of film production needed for this competition, the camera can play an importan part in editing in camera, as we did some 30 years ago.
I also have sound sync equipment that can be coupled with the camera to produce perfect lip sync and many years ago our club (now defunct) produced several winning films in competitions with Midlands clubs.
I no longer use this equipment and if any aspiring film makers are interested, I can be contacted on and could be persuaded to add lots of film making bits and tap recorders to keen amateurs at a very low cost just to see it in the hands of someone making good use of it all.
All the best with future competitions and keep up the good work with super 8.
Malcolm
- Comment by شات on 11/22/10 at 11:44 am
- Comment by شات on 11/22/10 at 11:45 am
- Comment by شات on 11/22/10 at 11:45 am
نت لوق
<a href="http://www.sau1di.com/">شات صوتي</- Comment by شات on 11/22/10 at 11:46 am
- Comment by شات on 11/22/10 at 11:47 am
- Comment by برودكاست on 12/15/10 at 2:12 pm
- Comment by alarabforum on 3/25/11 at 9:46 am
Thank you Movie Maker for posting this article. We really hope it will inspire contestants to give THINK BIG SHOOT SMALL a try. The last time we did this in 2007 it was a blast!! sabaya alarab forum
صبايا العرب- Comment by sniper2 on 9/26/11 at 3:16 pm
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