2009 48 Hour Recap
The 5th Annual
48 Hour Short Film Challenge got off to a rousing start with over 175 filmmakers, actors and actresses attending the official revealing of the 2009 Guidelines at the
Clarendon Hotel. Fifty-two teams of
filmmakers from Arizona, Southern California and Las Vegas participated in the challenge with 48 teams making the deadline.
"This is was one of the best collections of talent so far," said Jae Staats, Director and Founder of the A3F. "Being our 5th year, I think the filmmakers really tried their best to
create memorable movies and they certainly succeeded in doing so!"
This year's guidelines directed teams to base their films on the Theme,
A Significant Loss, a Line of Dialogue,
"This changes everything." and a
backpack as the prop where one or more characters had to either open or close a backpack. The filmmakers were wildly imaginative in writing a script for their 1-5 minute shorts.
"We had a boxer with
paranormal visions, a husband seeking revenge for the death of his wife, an intervention for a guy with an
iPhone addiction and even an entire movie based on the game of Monopoly," explained Jason Francois, a judge and Assistant A3F Director. "The scripts just seem to get more creative and better with each challenge."
The drop-off location this year was the rooftop of the
Clarendon Hotel where filmmakers were greeted with a
beautiful view and also Raw Revolution live food bars. "The table looked like a Best Buy," remarked Jae in reference to all of the DVD's, mini-dv tapes, thumb drives and computers handed in by the filmmakers.
For the first time ever, the A3F kicked off a
challenge within a challenge by hosting a 30 second commercial contest for the
Raw Revolution energy bar company. Teams could elect to make a commercial ad for Raw Revolution with the winning spots premiering at the Top 20 public screening.
The
Top 20 Public Screening on March 5 sold-out in just 3 days with 463 people cheering on the filmmakers, cast and crew members. With heart-wrenching dramas and uproarious comedies playing to the delight of the audience, the night was an overwhelming success!
Over $1800 in cash prizes, sponsor donations, posters and certificates were given out at the
Awards Ceremony immediately following the screening. In addition to these great prizes, filmmakers took home a sense of pride and accomplishment for making the coveted Top 20.
And the night finally concluded with the official
After Party at
1130 The Restaurant where everyone mingled, chatted and celebrated the success of their own work and efforts and the 5th Anniversary of the
Almost Famous Film Festival. What a five years it has been!
