Filmaka online studio, competition for full feature film
Major Hollywood studios are going online to draw entries from filmmakers from all over the world. You do not have to be a big name any more, people that have the technique and imagination are given the chance and -equally importantly- the cash to make their projects real full feature films, documentaries, advertisements or series.
OK cool down, it has not been officially tried by Hollywood yet. But a couple of established names believe that there is room for that kind of thing. We are talking about producer Deepak Nayar -as Reuters reports he has produced diamonds like Buena Vista Social Club and Bend it like Beckham- and former chairman of Fox Television Entertainment Group Sandy Grushow.
They have formed Filmaka, a site where everybody can upload a short production in different categories. The films are judged by artists of the calibre of director Wim Wenders. So even if the site has a typical online video feel, the whole point here is to get some serious results. This week Filmaka will announce the film contest winner that will then go on and direct a full feature Filmaka production.
As Hollywood starts to rely more on fewer, big budget, “safe” productions, there is growing skepticism as to where new talent and fresh ideas will be sourced from. Although uncertainty is at the moment the only certainty, I feel that discontent is a major incentive for the emergence of new models that will shape the things to come. There was never a time when people were exposed to more video and music. With recent camcorder and editing software developments, it is now possible to make films at a low cost unimaginable a decade earlier.
Of course, the people behind Filmaka know this and want to provide an extra production “push” to see what happens. You see it is still a large experiment. The culmination of Filmaka’s effort and the resulting film is definitely something worth watching out for. As the film industry starts to rely heavily on the Internet and new models, ElectronRun will cover developments as they emerge.
Link 1: Reuters
Link 2: Filmaka
