Being new in all...

Okay, initially I must have misunderstood. So this would ONLY be for the filmmakers that request this data? That makes more sense. If they really find some benefit in knowing what place they came in, then sure - whatever floats their boat. I wouldn't mind seeing either because I know that I'm not going to cry about what place my movie came in. On the other hand however, if like Mike said I don't happen to place somewhere in the top 10, I'll know for myself that I have some serious work to do and won't need to know my exact placement.

For the individuals that truly want the data, maybe it wouldn't be bad for them to request it and keep it and their opinions of it to themselves.

-Kegan
 
Zak Forsman said:
i don't think any ranking should be shown publicly. that's about satisfying ego for the filmmakers that did well. and will cause problems. i'm talking about giving the filmmakers access to data that could be useful to their development as filmmakers trying to connect with an audience in a meaningful way.



again, getting a "pat on the back" isn't why i'm hoping to have access to the numbers. that would be about satisfying one's ego and ego is dangerous. so that's why i'd prefer that NO RANKING BE PUBLICLY POSTED.... just that the entrants have private access to the data if they have a use for it.
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Well... they have posted more than the top 3 before. As recently as the last Fest.
That didn't seem to ruffle any feathers.

I'm fine with whatever they decide.

They seem to know what they are doing.

Good luck, guys!

Mike
 
DJ Lewis said:
I get where you're coming from Zak, but isn't that what the individual film threads were for.... everyone's comments are far more valuable to me than a ranking
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the personal attention given by everyone who posted a critique is invaluable. there are insights expressed there that a number can't. but my experience working in motion picture marketing has taught me that there is often a very distinct disconnect between what people will publicly say about "what they like" and the decisions they will make.

years ago, i helped run "test screenings" of studio pictures and despite everything that the audience said about what they liked and what they didn't like, the most valuable information was whether they answered yes to "would you definitely recommend this to a friend". for me, it's the most informative and helpful bit of information i could garner from this experience as an aspiring filmmaker.
 
I'd like to see the rankings, even if its top 6 or top 10.

I'm guessing here, but I think most people here wouldn't turn down an offer to direct a $40 million dollar film given the opportunity. Which is to say, most people here want to make films people like and would pay to see. (I'm not talking about sell-outs, just making films that you AND the audience want). Rankings are the best source of money-where-your-mouth is results we've got to go off of.

This is especially true for films that are less conventional. My own silent film, for example, is different from most everything else and the comments are kinda all over the place as to what could've been improved about it. So does that mean the film's good FOR BEING a silent film or that it's just good in general. (Or crappy or worse than death, whatever you thought about it)

The only global perspective I can really get is from knowing how it ranked overall. Ranked in the top 6? People liked the style and made the movie just as enjoyable as movies with sound and color. Ranked 50th out of 50? Maybe people enjoyed it but just didn't think a movie without sound or color was worth recommending.

Either way, I learn something about the audience and what they like.
 
This has always been a touchy subject, mainly because the voting system was never set up to accurately gauge who got 17th vs. who got 25th, but just for a top 3 (I find that it's fairly accurate to around 6-8 places usually).

That being said, I love knowing what place we got, as you can see from my sig, It helped me gauge how quickly we were growing as filmmakers. The threads are a great resource to learn, but I still think there's a big difference between:

A. Comment - Your lighting needs a lot of work. Place - 50th of 50 films

AND

B. Comment - Your lighting needs a lot of work. Place - 25th of 50 films

Cause we are nice and pussyfoot around saying "there's nothing remotely interesting or redeemable about your film".

The same can be said of making it into the "top 10" You can have the same feedback as other films but have NO idea whether you are a horrible filmmaker, or a middle of the road, or approaching the top 10 ...



And in the interest of full disclosure, The sci-fest and horrorfest results were given out in a spreadsheet, i had to pm a mod for my spyfest result, and all hallows was a little easier.
 
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i think that data might be a little more useful for people if we were picking more than THREE films! if we could pick our top 10 to top 20 then you might get some value hearing you came in 23rd.

keeping that in mind, it seems like there are going to be a lot of ties from 15th place out. i don't see how that can be very helpful to people.

the threads are the true value in the fest, not the final ranking.

in the end those running the fests know the full history of what works and what doesn't and will make the best choice for the fest and the site.
 
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I don't mind if the data isn't released, but I really want to know how many people voted. It's a really important information IMO.
 
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