ed9morelies 10 #1 Posted March 16, 2009 I'm not running this but just thought I'd help spread the word....... PRESS RELEASE: 2W2MI 2009 Is Live! We did it in 2006. We did it bigger in 2007/08, and now 2009 promises to be the breakout year for the region’s most exciting filmmaking competition, 2Weeks2Make It! In a nutshell: musicians and filmmakers compete to make a music video in two weeks, from start to finish, and the best one, as voted by both the public and panel of experts, wins a coveted prize. Past prizes include cash, professional contracts to work with professional musicians, valuable music store vouchers, further training and a lot more. The competition kicks off with a Launch event and Industry Day in Sheffield that promises to be both a fascinating learning and networking experience for the teams taking part. The Industry Day will consist of a series of master-classes and seminars led by folks that have been there before and are willing to share their knowledge about how to make effective music videos and promos. The Launch event in the evening will include live music, a panel of guest speakers and the random drawing of team names from hats to decide who works with whom. We are now proposing this day as Wednesday, 8th April, 2009. In 2009, its Yorkshire-wide! In the past, we have limited bands to having their origins in South Yorkshire, but this year would like to open the doors to musicians from across the entire Yorkshire county, whilst preserving the invitation to filmmakers nationwide. The entire competition would have its base of operations here in Sheffield, where it started. We’re part of Sensoria! This year we are excited to be a part of the Sensoria festival of music and film, which will be kicking off and making noise all over Sheffield from 24th – 30th April, 2009. The 2W2MI gala awards ceremony and screening will take place on the 29th April just before the close of the festival, and promises to be a really lively evening (as it always has been)! Check out http://www.sensoria.org.uk for more details about this amazing festival. How Does It Work? Bands send in their demos. Filmmakers send in their showreels or an example of their work. After our selection committee narrows the participants down to a healthy number, we invite all selected to a special Launch event (8th, April). We will seek to attract musicians from Yorkshire and surrounding area, but the call for filmmakers will be nationwide. This will help to make the competition Yorkshire-centric and attract talent from all over the country to Yorkshire. This year we are aiming at about 50 teams competing throughout Yorkshire At the Launch, all participants will be randomly placed together by as simple a method as putting their names in two different hats and having volunteers choose who will work with whom. No musician will be formally linked to any filmmaker beforehand – these collaborations will all begin on the night of the Launch, so everyone will be in the same boat and no previous development work will have taken place with each other. Teams will then have 2Weeks 2Make It – their videos will be due on a DV tape to us by Friday 24th April. Ok, so that’s a few days longer than exactly two weeks. We’re giving you a couple extra days to allow for any Easter shenanigans back home with the folks or whatnot. Then all the videos will be compiled and screened at a special Awards Ceremony on Wednesday 29th April or thereabouts, as part of the Sensoria Festival of music and film, in Sheffield. We will also create a DVD with all the videos on, which will be on sale at the screening and future SYFN events, as well as many other places (local retailers and shops, online, etc). Eventually, all of the films will be online via SYFN TV and other online distribution methods. Who runs the competition? The competition is co-ordinated by The South Yorkshire Filmmakers Network (http://www.syfn.org), alongside regional partners like Sensoria and Sheffield Independent Film (SIF), and will also include the provision of a programme of masterclasses in music-video production. Participants will analyse successful music videos and debate how to survive the competition and potentially win it. Industry experts and selected guest speakers will add some professional insight to the event and its purpose. What kind of training will we offer? This year we are expanding the amount of training in the forms of seminars and master-classes, based on the success of the smaller-scale training that has taken place over previous years. In 2009, we propose to host seminars and panel discussions on the following subjects: 1. What Exactly is a Music Video?: Using the Product Wisely and to Maximum Advantage – aimed at both musicians and filmmakers, this seminar studies the use of a video as an promotional tool, and explores modern methods of exploiting the medium, including a discussion of exhibition, distribution and sales 2. Making Low-Budget Music Videos – aimed at filmmakers and musicians, this seminar will focus on cost-effective ways of making your video, and explores how to avoid clichés, how to best communicate with your collaborator, and the process of creative adaptation on a limited budget 3. Analysis of Successful Videos – we take a look at some highly successful videos, from big-budget promos for big bands at the height of their stardom, to smaller-but-just-as-effective promos for artists that have helped to shape the stars that they are today. Previous material studied has included work by Chris Cunningham, Micheal Gondry and Spike Jonze, as well as the previous winner of past 2W2MI events from 2005-2008. 4. Panel Discussion – at the Launch, the festivities will break for about an hour, as industry experts share their experiences working in the music promo business, answering questions from the audience and helping teams better prepare for the upcoming two weeks. One panel member will also be a previous 2W2MI winner, and the panel will be chaired by Rob Speranza of the SYFN. What are the Prizes? We are still confirming exactly how this will work in 2009, but we are using the same winning formula as we have in the past competitions. The winning filmmaker will receive £1,000 towards the production of a music video with a signed artist. In 2007, we arranged for filmmakers to work with Kate Rusby, renowned Yorkshire-born singer/songwriter, and pop band ‘Ricky’ in 2005/06. There will also be a smaller cash prize for the winners of the ‘Audience Award’ and prizes for the winning musicians as well. We are now looking into the possibility of winning tracks being distributed via iTunes. There will also be a separate prize for the winner of the Reader’s Award via Sheffield Newspapers (more below). More information on prizes will be available shortly. Want to keep informed? Send an email to rob@syfn.org and ask to be put on our mailing list! Testimonials: Dave Todd of 2006 winning Sheffield band ‘Existend’ says: “Winning the video competition was like turning a corner in our musical career – we had something both professional and visual that record and management companies could use to get a better grasp of our music and the meanings behind it. Since winning, the video has played a major role in us being offered multiple contracts and tours including major support slots in the US.” “Winning ‘2 Weeks 2 Make It’ definitely helped us push forward into the industry’, says Sheffield-based John Watts of 2006 winning production team Watts That Productions? “We have since been accepted onto the books of some of the UK’s top advertising agencies and are going from strength to strength.” And 2007’s winning production team, Digital Ink, says, ‘Winning will help us gain exposure to work with more bands and people that we have met through the competition. Its hard doing what we do in the north of England as a lot of the work that is out there seems to stay in London but the competition definitely showed that there is a lot of talent up here. In terms of the immediate future, we have just been asked to handle the total re-brand of a major TV station as well as direct a “behind the scenes look at Fashion week in New York, London, Paris and Milan” for a top cosmetics company’. The Numbers: For the past two years, 2W2MI has reached over 1100 creative people via its launch events and screenings. We were obviously onto something big since it attracted people from so far and wide across Britain, including filmmakers from Bristol, London, Liverpool and Newcastle, and this year the net for participants is being cast wider than ever. This group of people included filmmakers and musicians (obviously) but also designers, organizational administrators, publishers, agents, distributors, studio-owners, and experts in marketing and publicity. The scheme also results in a large amount of production is a short space of time, an excellent output as a result of a small investment. We are aiming for 50 videos to be produced this year – in 2005/06 and 2007, an average of 23 videos were made each year. Business Link South Yorkshire, who had supported the programme in both 2005/6 and 2007, were extremely happy with the results. This is a quote from BLSY, used in the promotional material for 2007’s Awards Ceremony: “Local bands…have illustrated just how important the Creative and Digital Industries are in South Yorkshire,” said Catherine Grasier, business adviser at Business Link South Yorkshire (2007). “We are supporting 2 Weeks 2 Make It again this year as it is a great way to encourage collaboration between the music and film industries and helps convey the message that there is support available to those wanting to set up a business in this sector.” Other Plans? We will be linking up again this year with Sheffield Newspapers, with whom all of the videos will be placed online, inviting the general public to vote for their favourite in exchange for a special Reader’s Award. This worked out well in 2007 and we seek to build further on that success. Also planned are expansions regarding our DVD sales plan, online video downloads, further links with national and Yorkshire organizations (rather than just South Yorkshire), and a massive campaign to attract filmmakers and musicians from all over Yorkshire and the Humber. Special thanks goes to Sort of…Films Ltd. (http://www.sortoffilms.co.uk) for helping The South Yorkshire Filmmakers Network and others shape this awesome competition since 2005. How Can I Get Involved or Submit an Application? Filmmakers: First, fill out the correct FILMMAKER application form, with as many contact details as possible. You can download these application forms here. Then send it to us with your showreel or an example of your work in the post or send online via email below by Friday, the 20th March. Remember, you will want to show us that you can make a film, and it does not have to be a music video (though this helps). We simply want to see that you are a competent filmmaker, and your participation in the competition would not let your potential musical partner down. Musicians: First, fill out the correct MUSICIAN application form, with as many contact details as possible. You can download these application forms here. It might be a good idea to send us the track that you are thinking might be a good one to use for the actual competition – so think: which one deserves a music video? Your new single? A particularly ‘visual’ piece with lyrics that immediately conjure up interesting images? Get it over to us. SHOULD YOU BE SELECTED TO TAKE PART IN THE COMPETITION: Filmmakers: You will simply need to become a member of the South Yorkshire Filmmakers Network, which will be good for a year from the date of the competition’s start. This will only cost you £25.00 + VAT, and £12.50 + VAT if you are a student. See the list of discounts that the SYFN offers for your annual membership at http://www.syfn.org/discounts.html - its pretty good! Musicians: There will be a £50.00 (plus VAT) registration fee, which will include a ticket to the awards screening and invitation to the launch event! You will of course, get a music video produced for you for this small fee, and enjoy all of the networking and entertainment the competition will provide! Other Participants: Do you think you can support the competition in some way? Have you some facilities at your disposal that would help the filmmakers and musicians better or more efficiently realize their project over the two-week period? Then please get in touch with us via the below email or phone number and let’s discuss how you might help out. Demos and Showreels are to be sent to: Rob Speranza 2Weeks 2Make It 2009 Coordinator The South Yorkshire Filmmakers Network 2nd Floor, Site Gallery 1 Brown Street Sheffield S1 2BS You may also submit your demos / showreel via external link to rob@syfn.org. Please DO NOT send your films or demo tracks as attachments to emails. They will not be opened and you will not be considered for entry. External links or postal deliveries only – thanks! All queries to be directed to rob@syfn.org or 0114 276 2400. For more information and material from previous years’ competitions visitwww.syfn.org. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
