The concept was to shoot and edit a feature length film within three consecutive days and then screen it to a festival audience. The premise behind this concept was that making films was easy, but getting people to see them was hard. So could you complicate the ‘making’ in an attempt to attract an audience to see it?
With digital technology the process of making a film became easy and accessible. It is simple. However, the process of getting it seen, or getting someone to pay for it, is currently complex. But are we trying to shove a square peg into a round hole? Are we using the old rules of cinema an assuming that they’ll still work?
With the 72 projects, the biggest appeal was the fact that the films were already selected for the festival. As a filmmaker, that is valuable. We usually compete for ages to get into prestigious festivals. Once we knew that Galway would screen ‘Watching & Waiting’ if we shot it, everyone was onboard. It’s possible to make a film in 72 hours anytime of the year, but doing it within a festival was critical because that would ensure two things: audience and an Internet Movie Database (IMDB) credit. Perhaps greatest advice for a filmmaker, before they even pick up a camera, is to think of who will see the film and how/ where will they see it? It is like the adage about whether a tree that falls in the forest makes a sound if no one is there to hear it. If your film doesn’t get seen, it doesn’t exist. It’s that simple. Getting people to see it? Well that’s complex. There’s space below for people to comment upon this concept and offer thoughts. Let’s keep the discussion going!
