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Return Of The Project Twenty1 Filmmaking Competition

April 25, 2008

Project Twenty1 is now accepting team signups for its 2008 Filmmaking Competition. Filmmakers eager to take on the challenge are invited to participate and bring a brand-new film from concept to screen in 21 Days this summer. The competition’s launch event, where all filmmaking teams will learn the secret “Element” that their film must include, will take place Saturday, July 19 and their films will be due at the drop event on August 9, 21 days later.

For those who prefer to submit a short film or feature already completed, Project Twenty1 is accepting entries to the 2008 Philadelphia Film-A-Thon as well, which works “more like a standard film festival,” according to founder Matt Conant. The 2008 Project Twenty1 Film Festival will take place at International House, 3701 Chestnut St. in Philadelphia, on the weekend of Oct. 4 and 5, 2008, and will consist of the best entries to the Film-A-Thon as well as the competition films.

Project Twenty1 is the brainchild of animator Stephanie Yuhas, composer Quang Ly, and filmmaker Conant. According to Conant, “This is our third year, but it’s the first time we’ve done both the competition and the Film-A-Thon as part of the same festival. We’ve also added a workshop with casting director Beverly McDermott, who has worked with directors like Ron Howard and Jerry Lewis.” Yuhas added, “We started Project Twenty1 when we saw all our friends graduate from college, and stop making films. Life, and the need to earn a living, often gets in the way of doing what you love. We give filmmakers that extra little kick in the pants by providing them with an audience, and by partnering with other festivals. Most filmmakers can’t afford 20 different submission fees, so we send the films around the country for them.”

The “Best Film” in the last Project Twenty1 was from Team 509 out of Turnersville, New Jersey. Their film, IN ZAKK’S CASE, tells the story of a man who has 21 chances to survive a day that is trying to kill him, and went on to screen at the Bucks County Film Festival, as well as on Comcast OnDemand. Others screened at the Big Bang Film Festival in 2007. This year the top films will also receive a commercial DVD release.

Early team registration ends April 30, and the late deadline will be June 30. All films that are completed within the guidelines of the competition and submitted by the drop event will be screened at International House, 3701 Chestnut Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as part of the Project Twenty1 Film Festival on October 4 and 5, 2008. These films will compete for the title of “Best Film” — along with nearly a dozen other categories – as well as a trophy and more than $1,000 in prizes. The deadlines are the same for the Film-A-Thon.

E-mail info@projecttwenty1.com, call 215-253-7640, or visit www.ProjectTwenty1.com for details on how to sign up as a competition team, submit a film to the Film-A-Thon, or become a festival sponsor. Project Twenty1’s fiscal sponsor is International House Philadelphia, a 501(c)3 organization.

Newsletter – April 17th, 2008

PROJECT TWENTY1 – NOT JUST A FILM FESTIVAL

NEWSLETTER – April 17th, 2008

 

In case you haven’t heard, this year’s Project Twenty1 Film Festival will take place Saturday, October 4th and Sunday, October 5th, 2008!  The festival will occur at the newly-renovated International House theater, located at 3701 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia. Better yet, we will be presenting our well-received Film-A-Thon, AND the return of the 21-Day Filmmaking Competition which made us famous.

Whether you have a finished film to submit or short you’ve been dying to make, here is the info:

THE 2008 21-DAY FILMMAKING COMPETITION

Sign-ups for the 2008 Competition are now open and the discounted Early Registration Deadline is April 30th! This year’s Competition will Launch on Saturday, July 19th, when we will announce the secret “Element” that each film must include, and your completed films will be due on or before the Drop Event, which will be held on Saturday, August 9th. All finished films submitted on time that follow the simple, but important Rules will have a screening slot over the weekend of October 4th & 5th, 2008.

Remember, besides the discounted entry fee, the advantage of signing up early includes additional time to gather cast and crew, find locations, and maybe, just maybe, come up with the genre you’re thinking of working in. All you need after that is the Secret Element!

If you have additional questions about the 21-Day Filmmaking Competition, please check the FAQ page.

2008 FILM-A-THON

In addition to the Competition, you can submit your film to the 2008 Project Twenty1 Film-A-Thon!  What does the Film-A-Thon look for in a film, you ask?  Anything goes! We accept all genres, themes, styles, and lengths. We are only picky in regards to quality, so the better your story, and your production value – basically, the better your FILM – the more likely you will be selected by our screeners to be a part of our festival. Got a film you think is ready for the world? Or looking for a Philadelphia venue for your film already making the festival rounds? Submit it! Remember, the discounted Early Submission Deadline is April 30th!

BEVERLY McDERMOTT TICKETS NOW AVAILABLE

For those of you who plan to join us in Philly for the Film Festival in October, we have a special treat!  This year, since our festival has expanded to an entire weekend, you have the option of spending one of the two days (or the morning/afternoon of one) in a workshop with the legendary casting director Beverly McDermott!  This is a must for any aspiring actor or filmmaker to attend, and Beverly (who has cast films for Ron Howard, Jerry Lewis, and more) will be speaking to a small group from 10am-4pm on both Saturday, October 4th and Sunday, October 5th, with a short break for lunch in the middle.  Learn all you ever wanted to know about assembling a Team, casting a film, and making the most of what you have, be it an ultra-indie or a Hollywood budget!  Spend your afternoon with Beverly and your evening at the Film-A-Thon and Competition screenings!  Beverly prefers to speak in intimate settings to a select few at a time, so tickets are extremely limited. Reserve yours now!

NEWS TWENTY1

 

Some of you may have noticed our latest addition to the collaborative environment of Project Twenty1.  We’ve been hard at work forming relationships with other film, music, and media organizations locally and nationwide, and have made our website a place to go to learn the latest in news you may not be able able to hear elsewhere.  We call it News Twenty1, check it out! We recently posted a casting call in Philadelphia for a new horror-themed reality series on behalf of our friends at the CW, and news about an exciting documentary on former basketball great Bobby Love, due to hit the airwaves in Chicago!  Check back often for more industry updates. And if you come across a tantalizing piece of information and want the word to quickly get out to over 5,000 people on our subscribers and myspace friends list, send it along to us!  We’ll be happy to help you spread the word.  It’s all part of what goes into building a community!

LIVE-ACTION, ANIMATION, OR BOTH?

It’s been the topic of debate between filmmakers and animators for years: which is easier to produce? And more importantly, which makes a better final product when all is said and done?  Live-action films require a lot more crew, equipment, and money to do correctly.  Animation can be done by one person in his or her bedroom working tirelessly… but it takes WAY longer to do correctly for the same reason. In our first year of the 21-Day Filmmaking Competition, 2 or 3 of the 17 Teams who finished incorporated some degree of animation into their projects. This year we’re excited to see a number of Teams already signing up to try their hand on both sides of the fence. Who will win? Will we finally resolve this age-old question? Or, will one Team, incorporating crew members from both sides of the fence, take the Grand Prize? Maybe you think you can tip the scales one way or the other? Well, get your crew together and sign up now!  Come May 1st, the Early Registration discount vanishes, so there’s no time like the present.

Plenty more excitement on the horizon, but nothing we can announce just yet.  Stay tuned, and for you filmmakers out there, hope to see your film in the Competition or the Film-A-Thon this summer!

Your friends, as always,

Quang Ly, Stephanie Yuhas, & Matt Conant

Project Twenty1 Producers

www.projecttwenty1.com