Anyone willing to list their TOP TEN Lossfest Films?

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lawriejaffa said:
Yep Michael id agree that the top 10 were a good reflection, the top 3 a bit more comical ;)
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haha! i love you, man. and I sincerely appreciate your mindful appraisal of the films and the fest as a whole. but with all due respect.... eat me. :Drogar-Love(DBG): :) :) :)
 
Hahahah actually Zak (not that it makes my opinion any less annoying to the other two filmmakers) I actually meant the top '2', not yours (and this is just a petty personal opinion of mine - irrelevant bar itself) was a good entry deserved of the top 3. But that is not the issue i hope to promote discussion of (ie what i think are the top films.)

More an encouragment of aspiration over emulation.

So the directors of Placebo and Collections can say 'eat me' hehe if they disagree with my views! But they are themselves accomplished films, just not in my view within the festival remit, or as intellectually deserving artistic works.

Yours was the pinnacle of american romanticism at present - just as Acceptance was for Europe.
 
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well, then we have found common ground. I take it back, brother. :)

i've been a part of these fests as an entrant and spectator since dramafest and the one thing that has not changed is that this web site, built around a camera designed to emulate something it inherently was not, has largely attracted filmmakers who learn and develop their craft thru imitation. myself included to a degree. it's just that instead of imitating tony scott or funny or die videos, i'm exploring the cinematic language as defined by hou hsiao hsien, nuri bilge ceylan, the dardenne bros, kieslowski, etc, etc.

i know, everyone's going "who?"
 
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Norm Sanders said:
..... So feedback/postings can be VERY misleading, because there's no way to tell who's being truly honest in the first place, let alone posting if they didn't like our film(s), etc.
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Yup, but I dont think people are being dishonest intentionally, they are just trying to be fair within the guidelines of feedback. Trying to balance the critique. So a great short may get the same 50/50 focus as a poor short.

For example, I am often harder on the better shorts in my thread reviews. Maybe because it's a stones throw from being a great short or maybe because I get the vibe that they genuinely want feedback and not just a pat on the back. My review might seem negative on the face but they still score high.

Vica-versa with a bad short. They need more encouraging, so you end up giving them 50/50 good/bad feedback, trying hard to think of things that you liked but still give it 2/10.

All in all it can be misleading trying to cushion the blows. I suppose at the end of the day your overall score is the only truly honest thing you will get to see.

Although no-one would probably say it, there's also politics. If you go around being brutally honest (Im sorry but your short was painful to watch) you might open yourself up to a backlash/low marking of your own entry by those scorned. That sounds petty, but Im sure there arnt many film-makers on here that havent played the game on some level....lol. They do it in Hollywood, everyone knows everyone and it pays to be nice and constructive.

which is why some form of anon guestbook thing could be an eye opener for those willing to take the option, not everyone would want that. I sure would.

I had a short film of mine commented on a british newsboard after a festival screening. None of the guys knew me, or even knew I looked at the board. Some really liked it, but some said "it thinks its far cleverer than it is.... I hated it.... far too repetative....I turned it off after 2 minutes"

At first I thought 'ouch', I even joined and responded to one post, but then thought it was probably the best feedback I could have had. I still got a chunk of really positive feedback but the bad was not wrapped in cotton. Looking back I can see where they are coming from and it's suprising how you get over these things once you're onto your next project :)
 
Blaine said:
Hmmmm...time to bring back the brutally honest Kholi-style reviews. :beer:
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Heey! LoL. I wasn't brutal! I was just honest... and I always told people that I didn't know what I was talking about so take my thoughts with a grain of salt.

My 1st place prediction wasn't proper, but my top three were this go. Just not in the right order.
 
I'd like you guys to consider something, though...

The last few times the RED entries won, none of these people actually owned the camera. And, may I be beaten for divulging this info, the rates they're renting them for to shoot their no-budget entries are out of the kindness of people who believe in their talent.

That is to say: the camera is being used by a team that already has talent. You could say "Well, let's see them do it with a D90". Well, they don't have to... because the same people keep proving that they're worthy of the technology.

And it's not to say that others aren't! It's just how I look at it.

As far as thoughts, I'll be around next fest to give honest feedback. After I got burned during the other fest because I was honest, I strayed away from the fests in general.

You can't play in this business if you've got thin skin. But, I don't want to make any enemies either, because the circle's way too small.
 
Michael Anthony Horrigan said:
It is interesting considering that only a few REDS are in every Fest yet a RED has won the past 4 in a row. Crazy odds.
This is a film making site though...

My bet is that a script based site would judge these movies very differently.

Nothing wrong with that though. I thought the top 10 were a pretty good bunch overall.

MAH
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True, but as you say this is more than a scriptwriting site. it takes everything into account. That said the Placebo script came third on moviepoet.com script competition.

I think the reason the Red has higher odds is on average a Red will prob have higher production values all round which does contribute to the way a film looks, not the camera itself. If someone has gone to the expense of hiring a red/lenses they probably also have the rest of the kit... lights, mics, and a crew.

This isnt to say production values cant be high on HVX's too (look at Placebo again) but if you're talking purely odds, a Red short prob has more dosh invested. That shows even at 640x480.

I didnt know Mint in Box was shot on Red until now, I just thought it was a perfectly executed short, with a great punchy script - which is why it got my highest mark. It would have done if it was a HVX with an adapter.
 
Kholi said:
I'd like you guys to consider something, though...

The last few times the RED entries won, none of these people actually owned the camera. And, may I be beaten for divulging this info, the rates they're renting them for to shoot their no-budget entries are out of the kindness of people who believe in their talent.

That is to say: the camera is being used by a team that already has talent. You could say "Well, let's see them do it with a D90". Well, they don't have to... because the same people keep proving that they're worthy of the technology.

And it's not to say that others aren't! It's just how I look at it.
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I agree, they are a talented bunch.
But if you can find one where I live.... I'll enter the next Fest. :)

It's tough seeing all the "Capable DP with RED camera" ads.
No such luck around here. :crybaby:
 
Darkline said:
True, but as you say this is more than a scriptwriting site. it takes everything into account. That said the Placebo script came third on moviepoet.com script competition.

I think the reason the Red has higher odds is on average a Red will prob have higher production values all round which does contribute to the way a film looks, not the camera itself. If someone has gone to the expense of hiring a red/lenses they probably also have the rest of the kit... lights, mics, and a crew.

This isnt to say production values cant be high on HVX's too (look at Placebo again) but if you're talking purely odds, a Red short prob has more dosh invested. That shows even at 640x480.

I didnt know Mint in Box was shot on Red until now, I just thought it was a perfectly executed short, with a great punchy script - which is why it got my highest mark. It would have done if it was a HVX with an adapter.
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Well, I know for a fact that Broadcast (which received one of my highest ratings last fest) pulled in a few perfect 10's based on looks alone. Hell, Robbie admitted that himself. :)

I think using a RED on a filmmaking forum gives you a slight advantage. It takes more than that to win though, that's why you did. :beer:
 
It may be a small factor, but I think there's a definite actor psychology going on when they are in front of a one-man-band sony handycam production vs. a 70mm Panavision with capable crew. An extreme example for sure, but they still will take the big setup more seriously and bring out the Big Guns.
 
Michael Anthony Horrigan said:
I agree, they are a talented bunch.
But if you can find one where I live.... I'll enter the next Fest. :)

It's tough seeing all the "Capable DP with RED camera" ads.
No such luck around here. :crybaby:
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You should enter the next fest regardless of which camera you're shooting with. You know? It's about getting to that level and the only real way to get there is to practice.

Placebo was 35mm Adapter + HVX and for what it's worth, it was my number one.
 
yeehaanow said:
It may be a small factor, but I think there's a definite actor psychology going on when they are in front of a one-man-band sony handycam production vs. a 70mm Panavision with capable crew. An extreme example for sure, but they still will take the big setup more seriously and bring out the Big Guns.
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Bingo. I've also received comments from Members here telling me that I should get a real camera. Tell me again that it doesn't matter. :huh:

LOL! :grin:

I'm still making movies though, working one through post now.

MAH
 
Kholi said:
You should enter the next fest regardless of which camera you're shooting with. You know? It's about getting to that level and the only real way to get there is to practice.
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Just finished shooting one, check out my banner for grabs. I don't have to enter a Fest to shoot a short! :beer:

This Forum is great for a variety of reasons.

MAH
 
The fests are anybody's game folks. From looking at the results each fest, it's quite obvious that enough people with vastly different tastes are rating the films...

The spread on a lot of these films is tenths of a point.... There is a reason why we figure the results down to .0000

a few tenths of a point is a solid margin with this system, but it also shows that it's anybody's game.

There was a spread of about .6 from 1st to third. From 4th to 10th was like .64... anybody's game... and there were some wildly contrasting films in the top 10... The field is tight, and it is anybody's game.

Everyone wants to look at 1st place, but what about 2nd and third and the other top films over the last 4 fests?

Heck, Michael has a tiny crew in comparison and shoots all of his entries on an HV20 and has been in the top 10 pretty much every fest he has entered.

Zak's only two directorial entries were 5th and 3rd, and they were shot on an HV20, and D90 in the most minimalist style one could imagine.

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On reviews... my personal opinion is that while there are some people who are your friends, etc, who might not give the most honest representations of their feelings about your film b/c they don't want to hurt your feelings, etc (and sometimes with good reason), that doesn't render the majority of your feedback useless, or innacurate.

Keep in mind also, that a lot of people like to give feedback based on the individual filmmaker. Blaine for example has stated that he likes to do this. If it's Zak, I bet he is going to be a lot more nit-picky with his entry, but if it's a first timer who is learning the ropes, he is going to cater his response to that person in a way that he thinks will help them the most.

The feedback, in my opinion should not be used as an "indicator" of where you will end up in the results, but it is a way to get real verbage on the impression of your film. And, of course 100% of that feedback will not be directly applicable in your opinion, and probably not even the majority. And, keep in mind... for every one person giving feedback on your film, there are 10, 20, 30 people rating it who did not write words in your thread. These are two completely different types of feedback, each with their own merits and pitfalls...

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Also, take Ossian for example... I know shaun seemed confused there, but see my earlier paragraph. I'd also say about Ossian... Well, my personal opinion about that film was that it was a solid entry that didn't have any major flaws in it for me to want to bring out to the front. But, at the same time, it did not really strike a chord with me. I didn't leave it with a strong feeling one way or another. It was beautifully shot (and on a RED One, I might add), but the story didn't stick with me in this case. Now, that's not a knock on shaun or anything. Just my personal impression, that I think can help explain the strong feedback, or more specifically, the lack of negative feedback. It didn't have that much wrong with it, but at the same time, it wasn't a film that (for me) continued to roll around in my head.

I really dug (in no order) Acceptance, Melody for Allyrianne, Model/Photographer.... For me those films stuck with me a lot. There were also several films I really enjoyed watching. Again to Return was another. It didn't resonate with me, but I really enjoyed it and appreciated the unique style.

Falling Up had the potential to be a top 10 piece easily. I'm not real big on caring about the flash and all that, but in this case, the technical elements hurt what was a very solid story, with a unique score for a DVXFest.... Might want to watch out for Puck in the coming fests.... All the pieces are there, with a little polish, man...

And, there were a lot of films in that 10-20'ish range that I enjoyed a lot and were very appreciative of the fact that they were in the fest. They all kinda mostly fell in that range for me. I could ahve seen them in the top 10 as well though.

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I view the fests for a different reason than some folks do apparently. For me. The creme was not as creamy this time, but the films on the whole were better. We had 28 first time entrants, and that is so excellent. And, of those, several people caught my eye, and I'm now very interested to see what they come up with next. I don't care if they were 25th, or 5th. There were some folks here who showed that they had a voice, and with some more practice could really show us something great in one of the fests ahead. That's what I am excited about, and what really gauges the success of the fests in my eyes. b/c that's what they are all about at their core. Getting folks shooting something, and being able to watch people blossom who might otherwise still be doing.... whatever...

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The veterans... I love having folks in the fest who consistently put up good work as it helps to elevate the fests on the whole. but, my concern isn't really whether those folks feel ok about their placement in the fest. (again, just my opinion) Once you start elevating into that realm, I'm much more excited to see those folks grab the fest by the balls and do things like zak did... B/c as much as I enjoyed his film (I'm partial to the simplistic pieces), he added much more to this fest as a member than his film ever will.

anyways... I got kind of on a ramble-roll there, but anyways.

I was real proud of this fest overall. But, I'm speaking on the whole, not just in terms of quality of films or where who placed, etc.... This fest went off very well, the vast majority of folks had great attitudes, and we had folks step up to the plate in big ways, both as contributing filmmakers who I look forward to seeing more of in the future, and as members who helped add a level of respect for the festivals intentions and to the fests as well.

Later,
Jason
 
yeehaanow said:
It may be a small factor, but I think there's a definite actor psychology going on when they are in front of a one-man-band sony handycam production vs. a 70mm Panavision with capable crew. An extreme example for sure, but they still will take the big setup more seriously and bring out the Big Guns.
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Michael Anthony Horrigan said:
Bingo. I've also received comments from Members here telling me that I should get a real camera. Tell me again that it doesn't matter. :huh:

LOL! :grin:

I'm still making movies though, working one through post now.

MAH
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that hasn't been my experience. but I could see actors defaulting to that when there is a lack of trust in the director.
 
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