$0.00
Until FRIDAY NIGHT PREMIERES!
What an incredible showing of films and we want to congratulate each and every team that turned in a movie this year. It was the closest judging we’ve had in years (maybe ever) and we wish we could have moved on so many more films.
The Finalists for 72 Film Fest 2024 are:
OBSTRUCTIONS:
Filmmakers are oftentimes hit with limitations and hurdles: budget, equipment, locations, actors, makeup effects, visual FX, scheduling etc and sometimes artists challenge themselves with creative limitations to create a particular feeling for a film. Think Dogme95 movement, Stanley Kubrick only using practical light, or Danny Boyle shooting 28 Days Later on MiniDV (and now it’s sequel on iPhone). While a 72 Hour Film already provides you with a unique challenge, for 2024 we are going to explore some other potential limitations and obstacles filmmakers may come across in the form of OBSTRUCTIONS.
There are 25 Obstructions designated in ONE of FIVE Skilled categories: Acting, Writing, Editing, Cinematography and Production Design. Each obstruction is meant to push you, challenge you, and inspire you to tell your story in a particular way. Think requiring an ensemble cast, or maybe a cast of only one. Making a non-linear film, or only shooting in POV. Students are required to pick ONE OBSTRUCTION, Amateurs TWO, and Pros THREE, and may pick only ONE obstruction PER CATEGORY. They are color coded, so don’t pick more than 1 of each color.
We want the obstructions to influence your films thematically as well as technically. Let the deliberate choices influence the story/character/arc of the film.
| SKILL | OBSTRUCTION | Description | Clarification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cinematography | POV | Whole film shot in Point of View | |
| Cinematography | STATIC | No Camera Movement at all throughout film. | We are going to allow Zoom. Camera should not physically move or be moved during shot. |
| Cinematography | SINGLE TAKE SCENES | No visual cuts within each scene. You can cut upon entering a new scene but must have no visual cuts within that scene etc. | It's possible you can hide cuts. If we can't see the cut it won't be considered a visual cut. It has to be hidden tho. |
| Cinematography | MIRROR GLASS | No shots may have direct line of sight. They must be shot through a window, a transparent object, a mirror etc. | Window, Transparent Object, Mirror aren't the only thing you can shoot through. It just needs to not be a direct line of sight. Be creative. |
| Cinematography | DOLLY JIB | Camera must be moving throughout entire film but not handheld. | Steadicam/Gimble Ok. We don’t want to see any movement primarily through “Shakycam” handheld. Think floating cam, dollies, jibs, sliders etc. |
| Writing | CHAMBER | Entire film must take place within 1 location. | |
| Writing | PARALLEL | Must tell at least 2 parallel stories. | |
| Writing | MUSICAL | Every scene must include singing. | |
| Writing | UNRELIABLE | Tell a story where the narrator is unreliable. | This does not have to have literal narration. |
| Writing | ASIDE | Every scene must have a fourth wall break. | |
| Acting | SILENT | Tell/Act the story with No Dialogue. | No Dialogue, but diagetic sound ok. |
| Acting | CAST OF 1 | Only 1 Cast Member throughtout film. | Only 1 Cast Member. That Cast member can play as many roles as you want. Also - we are going to allow animals alongside the Human Cast Member. |
| Acting | YOUTH | No Cast over the age of 12 throughout film. | |
| Acting | NO YOUTH | No Cast under 55 throughout film. | |
| Acting | ENSEMBLE | No Scene less than 5 People throughout film. | All scenes need 5 people. They do not all need to be speaking in every scene etc. |
| Production Design | THE VOLUME | All shots must be either green screened or rear projected. | |
| Production Design | PERIODPIECE | Setting must be from 1940’s or earlier. | |
| Production Design | Soundstage | Must shoot on a constructed set | Since it wasn’t clarified as Full Film, this may be a scene. Cannot be a throwaway shot tho. |
| Production Design | The Future | Setting must be at least 30 years in future | |
| Production Design | MONSTER FX | Main Character must be a monster with makeup effects | We are going to allow any physical monster effects not just makeup which includes puppetry. Digital effects do not count towards this. |
| EDITING | NON LINEAR | Story must be non-linear/non-chronological | |
| EDITING | ADR | All Dialogue and Sound must be done in Post. | |
| EDITING | HYPERCUT | No shot should last more than 5 seconds. | Do not do a "YouTube cut" where you are just cutting a few frames out of a single shot every 5 seconds. It should be visually different to count as a cut. |
| EDITING | SPLIT SCREEN | Entire film must be told in a split screen. | |
| EDITING | VFX | Must include special digital visual effects throughout | By throughout it doesn’t mean present on every frame/scene etc. It just needs to be integral. |
2024 HOSTS:
2024 JURY:
Full Episodes:
Comatoast meets Shrug!
Pecos Bill and the Wranglers meets Star Wipe!
Ah Muh Face meets Crowded Elevator!
Skinhunger meets Screenburn!
Every year filmmaking teams from across the country compete in timed film competitions like the 72 Film Fest. On each episode of Tales from the 72, we pair up two teams to chat about the fun and challenges of making a movie in a weekend. War Stories will be shared, advice will be given, and with any luck lifetime friendships will be made.
If you’ve participated in more than 3 years and want to be a part of the podcast, use contact form.
Let’s bring together all the filmmakers, writers, editors, actors and other screen artists in Frederick! Whether you’ve participated or even helped out on 72 Film Fest, or you’re a creative wanting to meet other likeminded folks, let’s make some connections and have some fun. Check the Frederick Filmmakers Meetup or Frederick Filmmakers FaceBook Group for casual meet ups, movie trips and more! If you’d like to host an event, let us know and you can share to the group.
