The world’s only film festival dedicated solely to bike-themed independent short movies takes place every April in bike-loving Portland.

Ranging from animations to documentaries to love stories to comedies and much more, the Filmed By Bike festival is approaching the ten year mark, and has just opened up a call for entries for the 2012 festival. Submissions are limited to eight minutes and must revolve around the central theme of cycling (obviously). In each of the previous years, hundreds of entries are submitted, but only the best 30 make the cut, as evaluated and judged by an esteemed jury of nine bicycle and film enthusiasts from the Portland-Seattle area. There is no fee to submit a movie, entries are open to worldwide filmmakers, and the deadline for entries is January 20, 2012.

Staged at and around the Clinton Street Theater in Portland, Oregon, the festival involves music, bike culture, street partying, unicycles, penny farthings, and movie screenings, and has attracted bike lovers and film makers from across the country. Although there are no plans to extend the festival to other cities, there are DVDs for sale and limited screening rights available from the website.

Filmed by Bike 2011 takes place the weekend of April 13-15, and you can get into the mood and prepare for your submission by checking out the 10th Anniversary Festival Trailer below. The trailer was made by producer Burk Webb, a filmmaker well known for both cyclocross videos and movies about unicycling zombies(!) featuring his Unicycle Bastards crew in Portland, Oregon.

by Lee Jarvis.

Interested in finding more TV, film and video production jobs in Chicago?

Join Media Match at Bangers & Lace in Chicago! Alongside our sister website, Music Jobs, we will be meeting and mingling at an informal (free) gathering in Chicago’s West Town/Wicker Park neighborhood.

Who is invited? Everyone!

Our wonderful members (that’s you), who include editors, producers, DPs, animators, directors, camera operators, production houses, effects specialists, journalists, sound designers and more. Also attending will be some of the team behind Media Match, and you can ask us questions, share your feedback, get to know our musical tastes and initiate new rivalries just in time for the football season. We want to meet new faces, see old friends and spend some time getting to know our local members. If you can stop by at any point, it’d be great to hang out with you.

INFO

Where? Bangers and Lace, 1670 W.Division, Chicago, IL (view map)
When? Thursday, October 6th
Time? Starts at 5:30 pm – 9:30pm
Price? FREE
Cool? Then RSVP here if you’re coming

Hope to see you there!

The Media Match Team

Media professionals worldwide will gather to celebrate all things computer graphics with the week-long extravaganza that is VIEW Conference and VIEWFest, featuring four award-winning keynote speakers and the Italian premiere of Disney/Pixar’s ‘La Luna’.

Taking place in Turin from October 25th to 28th, VIEW Conference is four days of “inspirational talks, extraordinary educational workshops, and astounding visual and audio experiences“, and is attended by a vast scope of TV, Film, Video, Graphics and Audio professionals . It sees contributions from various filmmakers and computer graphics artists, as well as the inventors and visionaries behind products and technologies that have changed the way we work.

Recently they have announced the addition of Randy Thom, award winning Sound Designer for Skywalker Sound. Thom’s first film credit was as a post-production Sound Recordist for the film Apocalypse Now (1979), and he has since designed, edited, or mixed the sound for 99 live-action and animated films, receiving two Academy Awards and a further 14 nominations along the way.

Other keynotes speakers include Sharon Calahan, Director of Photography / DP at Pixar, Tom Wujec (Autodesk fellow) and Cory Doctorow (contributor to The Guardian / The New York Times / Publishers Weekly / Wired). There are far more speakers and workshop hosts, including; Scott Farrar (Senior VFX supervisor, ILM, ‘Transformers 3′), Roger Guyett (VFX Supervisor, ILM, ‘Cowboys & Aliens’), Davide Pesare (Technical Director, PIXAR, ‘La Luna’), Enrico Casarosa (Director, Pixar Animation Studios, ‘La Luna’), Peter Nofz (Digital Effects Supervisor, Sony Pictures Imageworks, ‘Green Lantern’), Adriano Rinaldi (Head of Effects, MPC, ‘X-Men: First Class’), and many more.

Discussions over the four days will touch on topics such as the impact of games in modern design, robotics, augmented reality, the challenges of designing, character rigging for animation feature movies, and helping people understand how to turn concept art into creatures. VIEW Conference also appeals to professionals from other areas of visual effects and computer graphics, by delving into the world of Graphics Designers for automotive design, vizualisation and in-vehicle safety, as well as medical imaging. There will be workshops on design and innovation, as well as exhibitions from industry names such as Autodesk, Adobe and Nvidia.

For more information check out http://viewconference.it/

Immediately preceding the conference, is VIEWFest, the Computer Animation Festival and Italian evolution of global touring digital film festival Resfest. Running from 21st to 23rd October 2011, VIEWFest features director Enrico Casarosa from Pixar Animation Studios introducing the Italian premiere of ‘La Luna’. other higlights screening include “In Praise of Love (Elogie de l’amour)”, written and directed by Jean-Luc Godard, ‘Fratellini D’Italia’ (‘Garibaldi and the kid Brothers of Italy’), and futher Italian premiers.

For more information check out http://www.viewfest.it/


by Lee Jarvis.

Held at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles, The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard have once again joined together to host their 10th annual conference on the role of music in film and television. The event, on October 24-25, reaches out to all kinds of industry professionals, and anyone interested in agent jobs, composer jobs, director jobs, producer jobs, music supervisor jobs, songwriter jobs and many more.

Speakers at the conference include composers for blockbuster films The Fighter, The Hangover, and hit TV show Mad Men, as well as record label bosses and TV production company execs. Marketers and music supervisors will also share advice on how to connect your art with the right people. Outside of the keynote talks and panels, there are also roundtable discussions and cocktail parties to help people connect.

Panel topics include;
-TV Competition Shows and Their Music
-Real Time Critique: Music Supervisors
-Songwriters Turned Film/TV Composers
-Case Studies of Hit TV Shows and Their Music
-Case Study of Major Fall Films

Expect to learn a lot from the conference; not only how to get your songs into films, TV, commercials, sports programming, trailers and video games, but also how to make money from your placements. Hear about new projects from composers and music supervisors, and see how the film and TV business is evolving in other territories and countries.

For more info check out the Billboard website, and below you can view highlights of The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard’s 2010 Film and TV Music Conference.

Readers interested in networking with TV and Film industry pros should also check out our very own Speed Networking event coming up on September 21st, also in Hollywood.


by Lee Jarvis.

Always a big date in the film industry diary, the 36th Toronto International Film Festival is fast approaching. This year, the week-and-a-bit of September 8th to 18th sees over 250,000 people flock to see over 300 films from a wealth of independent directors and Hollywood studios. It also often lays the foundations of the preceding Oscar race. In recent years, we have seen movies such as ‘Ray‘, ‘Slumdog Millionaire‘, and ‘Precious‘ hold early screenings at the festival and go on to win Academy Awards the following spring. Since it’s inception in 1976, the festival has become on of the most anticipated and influential events of the movie-world, with many arguing that it may have even surpassed Cannes.

Known as ‘the festival of festivals’ for the way it has always tried to bring in the best cinema from around the world, TIFF is non-competitive – there are no Best Picture of Best Actor awards to be lobbied for, and no jury to stir up a fuss. Instead, the main prize is a People’s Choice Award, which is given to the feature-length film with the highest ratings from the festival audience. 2010 saw a standing ovation and first accolade of many for Colin Firth and ‘The King’s Speech‘.

2011 kicks off with a Davis Guggenheim documentary on the iconic rock band U2 entitled, ‘From The Sky Down‘. This will also mark the first ever opening with a documentary. In the official Press Release, Piers Handling, Director and CEO of TIff, says, “Davis Guggenheim’s fascinating account of this world-renowned band is the perfect film to kick off our 11-day celebration of artists, stories and voices from around the world”. More films will be announced throughout August.

Attended by a wide range of film industry professionals, with all kinds of itineraries and budgets, the festival has several ticket options, allowing you to pick and choose individual films, or opt for one of many package deals. Check out all the options here.


by Lee Jarvis

The 48 Hour Film Project is an international tour spanning over 80 countries, in each of which a team of TV and Film production professionals make a movie – that is, write, shoot, edit and score it – in just 48 hours. Last year saw over 40,000 participants ball their wears, emphasising the amount of growth the project has seen since it’s inception in 2001.

The whirlwind weekend aims simply to encourage filmmaking and promote filmmakers in various locations across the globe, holding events in 55 different US cities including Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Boston, Austin, Washington DC, and more. On the Friday night, you get a character, a prop, a line of dialogue and a genre, all to include in your movie. 48 hours later, the movie must be complete. Then it will show at a local theater, usually in the next week. Having the 48 hour time limit is not meant to be seen as restricting, instead emphasizing that creativity and teamwork skills will serve you well. There is also something liberating about just going for it, and getting the shots, editing, and effects completed rather than talking too much about them and accomplishing nothing.

From the 48 Hour Film Project’s History, “Back in May 2001, Mark Ruppert came up with a crazy idea: to try to make a film in 48 hours. He quickly enlisted his filmmaking partner, Liz Langston, and several other DC filmmakers to form their own teams and join him in this experiment. The big question back then was ‘Would films made in only 48 hours even be watchable?’ The answer was a resounding ‘Yes’ “.

Entries for the Chicago weekend (July 29th) have just opened today (register here), and a full calendar can be found here. Rules and information for filmmakers can be found here, and they even include a list which you can join if you are not able to form your own team but wish to offer your services as part of a team in your area. (That’s right……… here.)


by Lee Jarvis.

The Chicago Underground Film Festival is an annual event showcasing independent, experimental and documentary films from around the world. Building on last year‘s success, CUFF once again provides a place for cutting-edge filmmakers and film fans to delve into the lesser known (or, lesser-screened) independent film scene. Established in 1993, the festival has become the largest underground film fest in the country, and has also grown into an important date in Chicago’s cultural scene.

“What you get for your money is not just admission to the films but admission to a subculture”

– Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

When Jay Bliznick and Bryan Wendorf began CUFF, they wanted to create a festival for the kind of films they wanted to see, which were, in their words, “primarily films that the established film festival circuit – increasingly dominated by distributor product – refused to show.” Unlike many other independent film events, they aimed not to imitate old guard, market-driven events such as Sundance, but instead chose to focus on the artistic, aesthetic and fun side of independent film-making. CUFF promotes works that dissent radically in form, content and technique from both the tired conventions of Hollywood and the increasingly stagnant IndieWood mainstream.

This year’s festival is held once again at the Gene Siskel Film Center, and will offer a mix of independent features, shorts, documentaries, experimental films, fine art films, avant-garde videos, as well as nightly parties and concerts, drawing on the cross-over blend of artistic creative talent that is thriving in Chicago.

The event runs from Thursday June 2nd until Thursday June 9th, and the schedule can be found here.

by Lee Jarvis

This weekend, Chicago welcomes the third incarnation of CIMMfest. The Chicago International Movies and Music Festival is a weekend full of entertainment highlighting the crossover between film and song, punctuated with short documentaries, live concerts, panels, art exhibits, music videos and more. Musicians, indie filmmakers, producers, directors, students and enthusiasts from all backgrounds get the chance to mingle and enjoy works from a whole depth of like-minded folk.

“We’re really excited to bring together movies and music from all over the world to Chicago. CIMMfest is unique in its scope, from ethnographic films about Balkan folk songs to Mike Watt in concert, to video mashup DJs, to live musical accompaniments, and music from all over the map: Brit pop, hip hop, gospel, experimental, Americana, funk, industrial, and more.” says Josh Chicoine, CIMMfest Director. ” We aim to show our interconnectedness through the lens of film and music.”

The Festival sees 70 films being screened from over 20 countries, and includes 17 world, North American and US premieres. There are also free screenings at the Chicago Cultural Centre, a variety of afterparties at venues including Subterranean and Berlin, a Record Store Day celebration event at Big Star, and an event called Chicago Punk Night at Double Door.

Tickets for various screenings and events are available individually, via this CIMMfest page at Brown Paper Tickets, or you can purchase a Movie Pass, which lets you see all 30 of the films for one price of $45. Included with your ticket is a one-year subscription to Time Out Chicago magazine ($9.99 Value).

So, get out and about over the next three days and see and share as much of the festival as you can!

Fancy a quick preview? How about ‘Gravity Was Everywhere Back Then’….

2nd Gravity Was Everywhere Back Then trailer from Brent Green on Vimeo.

The story of a man who builds his cancer-stricken wife a magical house in a desperate act of love, accompanied by an all-star musical line-up. Self-taught animator Brent Green uses stop-motion photography to illuminate Leonard Wood’s doomed gesture. See it at WPAC, 2215 W. North Ave., Saturday, April 16 at 10:30pm.)


by Lee Jarvis.

Before the Chicago Food Film Festival, there was the NYC Food Film Festival, which is now approaching its 5th year. The festival sprang from the imagination of Festival Director George Motz, the documentary filmmaker behind the award-winning Hamburger America film and book, along with co-creator Harry Hawk, formerly of Schnack and Water Taxi Beach. Through documentaries, features and short films, the Festival showcases the best, and the most memorable, of the world’s favorite foods. Along with a heaping helping of mouth-watering films, the festival serves up the food that guests are watching on the screen for a multi-sensory, full-bodied experience.

In 2009, acclaimed director Ron Mann called the festival “his absolute favorite” after his film Know Your Mushrooms was screened and followed by a 10-course mushroom-inspired tasting menu from Next Iron Chef star Brad Farmerie of Public and Double Crown. Other past events have included a screening of Whole Hog by Joe York, during which over 1000 people feasted on whole hog barbecue. Following a screening of the food film classic Big Night, the audience enjoyed a re-creation of the famous Timpano featured in the film. And at the World Premiere of Florent: Queen of the Meat Market, for one night only the audience was treated to memorable menu items from the shuttered iconic restaurant.

The First Annual Chicago Film Festival will take place over September 24-25th 2010 and is an exhibition only. Starting in 2011, the Chicago Food Film Festival will be a competitive film festival accepting entries in the Spring of 2011.

Chicago Food Film Festival 2010 Trailer from George Motz on Vimeo.

THE FILMS…

Beer Wars
Dir. Anat Baron – 90 mins website
An amazing journey into the heart of corporate beer and the small independent brewers it leaves in its wake.

The Best of Hamburger America
Dir. George Motz – 15 mins website
An abbreviated version of the film that was the nexus of the NYC Food Film Festival.

Celeriac
Dir. John D. Reilly – 2:20 mins
A nail-biting super-short thriller about a stalk of celery and a knife.

CUD
Dir. Joe York – 16 mins website
Meet Will Harris, a 5th generation rancher that has rejected the corn-fed, feedlot cattle model in favor of raising grass-fed cattle.

The Death & Life of Ice Cream
Dir. Orrin Zucker – 3:20 mins website
Mezmerizing time lapse of melting ice cream. Amazing to see on the big screen.

Eat Your Fill
Dir. Mark Irving – 13 mins website
A man embarks on his annual mission to eat every menu item at the Wisconsin State Fair that is either deep fried or on a stick.

Mr. Okra
Dir. TG Herrington – 12 mins trailer
A portrait of a man who sells produce from his rolling farmstand/pickup truck in New Orleans. Winner of the Audience Choice Award, 2009 NYC Food Film Festival.

Obsessives: Soda Pop
Dirs. Meredith Arthur and Eric Slatkin – 13 mins website
Get to know John Nese, the owner of Galco’s Soda Pop Stop in Los Angeles, and his lifelong obsession with independent soda-makers. Winner of the Audience Choice Award, 2010 NYC Food Film Festival.

The Perfect Oyster
Dir. Craig Noble – 6 mins website
There really is no one who can wax poetic about oysters like Brent Petkau. 2008 NYC Food Film Festival Feature Film Award winner Craig Noble returns with this portrait of a man and his oysters.

Pie As A Lifestyle
Dir. Michael Gebert – 6 mins website
Take a trip to the Chicago pie shop Hoosier Mama in this episode of Michael Gebert’s video podcast Sky Full Of Bacon.

Check out THE FOODS, the full schedule, and buy tickets at the official site, Chicago Food Film Festival.

Lee Jarvis.

Online video website Vimeo has just announced that they are to hold their first ever video festival and awards event. In contrast to other online video sites, Vimeo focuses on original content, quality production and editing, and allowing users to share their work with groups of their peers.

Having just celebrated their fifth anniversary, Vimeo will launch the Festival + Awards in New York City on October 8-9, 2010 at IAC Headquarters and the SVA Theater. The Festival promises to “bring the world of online video to life like never before”, with two days of screenings, education, panels, installations, parties, and more. Line up, activities, speakers and of course, parties, will be announced shortly. Submissions for the awards are now open, and categories include….

The Vimeo Award: The Best Video Award will be selected by a group of judges from multiple categories and the Vimeo Awards staff. Winner will receive a $25,000 grant to produce new work.
Narrative: Live-action narrative fiction told through the medium of film/video.
Remix: A film/video that is comprised of elements such as sound and picture of other works which then combines them to become a metamorphic work.
Original Series: A periodically released collection of episodic content.
Documentary: Short films/videos that seek to document compelling actuality or reality.
Music Video: Short films/videos that accompany a complete piece of music or song.
Animation: A simulation of movement created by displaying a series of pictures or frames.
Motion Graphics: The use of the principles of graphic design to create a film/video using animation or filmic techniques.
Experimental: Short films/videos that experiment with new ideas, forms, techniques, and expressions that are often characterized by the absence of a linear narrative.
Captured: Videos that capture an artistic expression or performance.

Honorary Awards:

Digital Maverick: Honorary award for pioneering spirt in the world of online video.
The Feature Presentation: Honoring the vanguard and innovative release of unique feature film online.

The Vimeo Awards will accept submissions from June 3, 2010 – July 31, 2010 for a $20 (U.S.) fee per-video ($5 for Vimeo Plus members) at www.vimeoawards.com. Entrants can submit any original work as long as it has premiered online between June 3, 2008 and July 30, 2010 or has never been premiered anywhere.

For more information on the Vimeo Festival & Awards, head to http://vimeo.com/awards.

Lee Jarvis.