Film Forum WM awarded funding by Screen WM

Posted August 19th, 2010 by Tom Hewson

Film Forum WM have been awarded funding by Screen WM.

This is obviously great news for all the grassroots filmmakers who attend our regular meet-ups. The prospect of making FFWM something of value and importance is more palpable than ever, so from now on we’re going to take FFWM up a notch, considerably.

We thought it essential to inform you all on our proposed ideas. Below is a mere list of those ideas we have in the pipeline for improving FFWM, but by no means is this an accurate reflection of how exhaustive the ideas actually are (but of course, in a good way):

  • Most importantly, we aim to improve our bi-monthly meet-ups, but still ensure we maintain the casual, informal charm of the evening.
  • Bring the ‘industry’ *shudder, horrible term* to FFWM’s avid film community. Guest speakers may include potential employers, collaborators, producers, filmmakers who have made an impact…
  • Maintain regular updates on FFWM website with all the latest news and events for our film community.



As stated, these are but a few ideas we’re working on, so it would be appreciated if you kept your eyes peeled over the coming months.

We honestly look forward to seeing you all at our next meet-up on Tuesday (24th Aug). Any ideas of your own is obviously encouraged and welcomed.

Thank you.

Film Forum WM August Meet Up

Posted August 10th, 2010 by Andrew Hewson

Attention Filmmakers!

Film Forum West Midlands next meet up will be on Tuesday 24th August @ The Victoria Pub from 7pm.

The idea of these meet ups is to give filmmakers a networking platform from which they can meet people involved in different aspects of filmmaking from directors to actors to editors in order to source equipment, make contacts and flourish.

The entire evening is very INFORMAL so therefore it is really up to you if you approach it as a casual drink or an opportunity to network and get projects off the ground.

*We have tables reserved in the backroom near the bar.

Address: The Victoria Pub, 48 John Bright St, Birmingham, B1 1BN

Facebook Event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=116141575104148&ref=ts

See you there.

Call For Film Submissions!

Posted June 28th, 2010 by Andrew Hewson

ArtsFest 2010 (10 – 12 September 2010)

ArtsFest is open for film submissions. ArtsFest is the UK’s largest free arts festival and takes place in the heart of the country, Birmingham.

Last year ArtsFest featured over 80 different shorts (and a few feature films) ranging from music videos to animated comedies to live action dramas.  The films were shown in one of Birmingham’s premier venues located in the centre of the city, The Crescent Theatre.  This is to be the venue again for the film strand in September 2010.

Films should be submitted on a playable DVD and sent to:

ArtsFest, Sam Groves, 129 Northfield Rd, Kings Norton, Birmingham, B30 1EA

Eligibility Guidelines

The film needs to have some connection to the West Midlands; this can come from a variety of avenues. For example, the filmmakers/actors etc may come from the region or have family that are/were based in the region. The filmmakers/actors etc may have studied in the region. The film may have been shot within the West Midlands. The film may have been shown in the West Midlands over the last 12 months. If you are unsure as to the strength of your connection to the West Midlands, please do not hesitate to get in touch with Sam Groves (contact details below).

The film can be of any length and of any genre.

Deadline:

Saturday 17th July 2010

For more information contact:

Sam Groves, ArtsFest Film Strand Co-Ordinator

Sam.groves@hotmail.co.uk

07779 255 779

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=134364893257446&v=info&ref=ts

Film Forum WM June Meet Up

Posted June 17th, 2010 by Andrew Hewson

Hello Filmmakers!

Film Forum West Midlands next meet up will be on Tuesday 29th June @ The Victoria Pub from 7pm.

The idea of these meet ups is to give filmmakers a networking platform from which they can meet people involved in different aspects of filmmaking from directors to actors to editors in order to source equipment, make contacts and flourish.

The entire evening is very INFORMAL so therefore it is really up to you if you approach it as a casual drink or an opportunity to network and get projects off the ground.

*We have tables reserved in the backroom near the bar.

Address: The Victoria Pub, 48 John Bright St, Birmingham, B1 1BN

Facebook Event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=131489443542471

Hope to see you there.

Micro Budget, Massive Sucess

Posted June 8th, 2010 by Andrew Hewson

MICRO BUDGET, MASSIVE SUCCESS – Professionally Handling Constraints Of Microbudget Filmmaking To Achieve Maximum Success

DATE: Monday 28th June 2010

TIME: 09:30-17:00

LOCATION: Light House, Wolverhampton, WV1 1HT

INFO: A few break through films are resurrecting the microbudget spectrum of the market. With filmmakers facing tougher times and the inability to compete with studio films at the box office, how does a small film find its way to an audience via sales agents and distributors.

The Producers’ Forum in association with The Light House Media Centre & Women in Film and TV presents a panel event with highly regarded indie filmmakers Elaine Wickham and Jan Dunn. With their company Maeve Films, they are now veterans of 3 theatrically released, award-winning feature films which they refer to as their Microbudget Trilogy. They created this term in the hope that they can finally draw a line under their self enforced restraints having proved themselves in a volatile and closed-door industry. They will discuss how best to make films that could put you on the national, if not international, map and allow at least a dip of a toe into the water of the British Film Industry. They will conclude the discussion with a case by case study of each of their films.

SCHEDULE:
09:30 Arrival and coffee
09:45 THE CALLING screening
11:35 Break
11:50 Q&A with Jan Dunn and Elaine Wickham
13:00 Lunch Break
13:45 Afternoon Case Studies and workshop
16:15 Break
16:30 HD Presentation by The Light House
17:00 Close

COST:
Full member: both sessions £0
Associate member/WFTV Member/Light House: morning session £0
Associate member/WFTV Member/Light House: both sessions £25
Non-member: morning session only £50
Non-member: afternoon session only £50
Non-member: both sessions £80
(Prices exclude VAT)

REGISTRATION:
Spaces on this event are limited. To reserve a place please email Rebecca on info@producersforum.org.uk or call 0121 265 7145

Social Boom Birmingham

Posted June 8th, 2010 by Andrew Hewson

Social Boom Birmingham returns for its second event on Thursday 10th June 2010, 6pm – 9pm at The Cross, Moseley, Birmingham, B13 8HW.

This informal networking event is a fantastic opportunity to meet some like minded creative folk who all have a passion for celebrating their creative community.

If you fancy popping along, come and say hi to organiser Gail Owen who’ll be there to welcome people.

To find out more, email Gail at gail.owen@mytvonline.co.uk.

Or you can also get in touch with Creative Boom Birmingham by emailing birmingham@creativeboom.co.uk.

Seeking Film & Cinema Experts

Posted May 26th, 2010 by Andrew Hewson


Paid Opportunity: £15 – £20 per hour

mac, Britain’s liveliest arts centre re-opened its doors in May 2010 following a £15m makeover. We have welcomed people back into our much loved, newly refurbished cinema, showing major releases and the best in independent film programming.

As part of our creative learning programme we are looking to recruit experienced Artist Tutors for a number of subject areas, including Cinema Studies, to teach Film Theory and are seeking a leader for mac’s Film Club.

Applicants should have a minimum of two years experience in delivering creative participatory activities to the public in either arts, community or educational settings and be able to provide a stimulating learning experience that enables participants to achieve their creative potential.  Deadline for applications is 28th May.

For full details and how to apply please visit the job opportunities page of our website: www.macarts.co.uk


Filmrats – Tuesday 25th May – Live Music & Short Films

Posted May 12th, 2010 by Andrew Hewson

Filmrats’ next event is on Tuesday 25th May @ The Sunflower Lounge. Doors open from 8pm.

For those of you who have never been or know about our event, Filmrats is a multimedia evening of short films and live music, a hybrid of different creative artistry coming together to showcase their talents, enjoy music, film and to socialise. The night is held bi-monthly at The Sunflower Lounge, in the heart of Birmingham city centre.

We are always looking for filmmakers, musicians and other performance artists. If you want to showcase your talent then please get in contact! Entry is £2, so come along and remember to send in those short films on DVD format to:

Filmrats, Flat 3, 889 Bristol Road, Selly Oak, Birmingham, B29 6ND

Website: www.filmrats.co.uk

Twitterwww.twitter.com/filmrats

Facebook: www.facebook.com/filmrats

Email: filmrats@hotmail.co.uk

Please RSVP Here.

* We will be celebrating our 1st Birthday! So the first 20 people through the door will get free Birthday cup cakes and the first 10 people will also get brand new Filmrats badges!

Producers’ Forum Networking Event

Posted May 10th, 2010 by Andrew Hewson

DATE -  Wednesday 26th May 2010

TIME – 18:30-20:00 (followed by drinks in the bar)

VENUE – MAC, Queen’s Ride, Birmingham, West Midlands, B12 9QH

This month we are returning to the MAC and would like to take this opportunity to have a good catchup with the regions filmmakers. We invite you to come along to share news with us and eachother about the exciting projects that you are working on. This is a great opportunity to find out about the productions that will be taking place in the region and provide you with an opportunity to make new contacts and share resources.

Also, we are currently developing our strategic plan for 2010-11 and want to hear from you about your training needs so that we can ensure that we are providing relevant training.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND – Anyone who wants to find out what exciting projects are taking place in the West Midlands and who wants to feed into The Producers’ Forum’s strategic plan for 2010-11.

COST - Free (Cash bar). Please rsvp on http://pfnetworkingmay2010.eventbrite.com/

If you have any questions please contact Rebecca on info@producersforum.org.uk or 0121 265 7145

2 Weeks 2 Make It Competition

Posted April 27th, 2010 by Andrew Hewson

One of the UK’s most exciting crossover filmmaking competitions, 2Weeks 2Make It is coming to the West Midlands. 2Weeks 2Make It is on the lookout for teams of filmmakers, animators and other digital creatives based in the West Midlands to enter the inaugural West Midlands event. Applications can be made now through the website www.2weeks2makeitbrum.co.uk.

2Weeks 2Make It is a music video competition first started in Yorkshire in 2006. The concept pairs randomly drawn teams of filmmakers and musical artists who then have exactly two weeks to shoot and edit a music video from scratch. The final submitted videos will be judged by an industry panel with the following prizes on offer:

Winning band: One week of free studio recording time.
Winning creative team: A guaranteed £1000 budget to shoot a music video for a record label.

The competition kicks off on Fri 21st May 2010 and will comprise of three key events:

1. A 25-place Music Video Professional Workshop (Fri 21st May 12.30pm Fazeley Studios) comprising a series of seminars by industry professionals including professional music video directors and producers. Topics will include producing and directing effective low budget music videos, distribution and producing a video to tight timescales. Places are limited for this event and will be booked via Screen West Midlands website (more information to follow)

2. A Launch event (Fri 21st May 7.00pm Fazeley Studios), which will include a master-class from a select panel of industry professionals and the official competition draw, where a simple random drawing of participating film teams and bands will decide who works with whom! From that point, they’ve got 2Weeks 2Make It!

3. A Screening event (Tue 15th June) for all participants.  All submitted films will be shown and the winners revealed, with prizes being awarded to the winning entries. Following this all participants will be invited to an after-screening party to relax, network and celebrate their involvement in this ground-breaking competition.

The competition is being organised by Carl Timms – Account Director at Made Media, one of Birmingham’s top digital media agencies, and a former winner of 2Weeks 2Make It 2007. He says “Its a tough but very rewarding competitive event. The aim is to have fun and encourage teamwork, initiative and creativity whilst working to a challenging fixed deadline. Its perfect for any filmmakers who’s ever wondered how they might cope under that sort of creative pressure.”

The event’s primary funder is Screen West Midlands with additional sponsorship from Fullrange Media, Made Media, Fazeley Studios and Blue46 Studios. Jason Hall, Head of Innovation, New Markets & Skills at Screen West Midlands says “Its very exciting – I’m a big fan of anything that brings together people from different creative disciplines and gets them collaborating on a new project. The combining of the music and creative screen industries in this way is unprecedented in the Midlands and presents a new opportunity for talented filmmakers and musicians to pull together and create something extraordinary.”

The gathering of bands and music resources is being handled by Little Chris, host of Rhubarb Radio’s Brumcast show. He says “The competition is a great opportunity for unsigned bands all over the region. Music videos are an increasingly important part of musical promotion. 2Weeks 2Make It offers bands an opportunity to add a free completed music video to their press kit, which will in turn help the promotion of the region’s bands around the UK and beyond.”

The competition is now open for registrations from both filmmakers and musical artists. Registration forms, prize details and competition details are available at www.2weeks2makeitbrum.co.uk.

Updates and further information are available on Twitter (@2weeksbrum) or by following the “2Weeks 2Make It Brum” fan page on Facebook. For more information, please contact Carl Timms at carl.timms@mademedia.co.uk or on 07779179796.