The Unofficial "Suggestions to make DVXuser fests bigger and better" thread.

I think everything Larry's got going now is fine as it...Sure maybe a couple more small tweaks, but I like the way it's going.

a) Easy to vote
b) So what if it takes an hour to download ALL the entries, once downloaded, you have them, you can view them. I think streaming would be a little buggy, but I'm sure it would be tested thoroughly before being official
c) It's nice to see that beside each film, there's a thread that you can click on to go and critique, instead of searching for it in the boards.

Just my opinion.

robbie
 
Film of he year is a great idea. I think everyone was pumped about timefest actually doing a screening - but clearly this cannot happen every 1/4.

I've been to a few fests and I have to say that the quality of movies is not always high. there is always politics, someone knows someone or had conections to the dog's wife's lovechild. But if you took the top 5 films (or whatever from each fest) and had them screened once a year, I think you'd have a really good line-up of films.

whether you'd want to go throught the pain of getting all the sponsorshipand whether it's financially viable, is another thing- but this idea could certainly propel DVX from the 'bubble' it might be in to something more substantial.
 
There seems to be a bit of a difference between what people see the value of the fest is to what people want the fest to become.

If the value of the fest is to provide the push for filmmakers to get off the couch and behind the camera, as well as a place where good, constructive critique is available for filmmakers wanting to improve, then making the fest larger could seriously hurt that. More films, more viewers, no guarantee on their commitment to the character of the community... just a desire for their films to win... you see where I am going... ? I personally feel like the more films part scares me the most. Not the competition side either. I wasn't able to watch and comment on every film. I got close but in the end, I wasn't able to give everyone their fair viewing. With more entries, you can guarantee that I won't be able to see them all. So then it becomes a popular thread thing or a "do I think the name is catchy?" thing. That concerns me.

If the goal of the festival is to turn itself into a larger, more noticed event then great! But I think we need to consider a minimum count of viewings per voter as well as minimum number of posts. This is a way to create a "staff of Peers" per say, that is employed to watch and judge the films. This would avoid the feeling from filmmakers of their films not getting watched or commented on. It would also avoid eventually having to create a cap on entries like other festivals.

If the idea is to grow the festival I think an annual screening is the way to go. One big festival per year. There are a lot of ways to go about promoting/ producing an event like that but it needs to be professional. You only get one chance to "show up on the scene" in Hollywood. That takes budget and good minds devoted only to that task. i.e. a job.

I would like to see one of the 4 festivals get large enough to invite my bosses to. I just really value the grass roots, everyone helping everyone else, vibe we have here. I'm torn but I really feel like we need to protect that vibe first or we risk becoming just another film festival.
 
Ben... all of your suggestions are good and all have been thought of already and are in various phases of planning, implementation.

I'm fully committed to the fests being the engine that drives dvxuser as we move forward.

If you have specifics on how to implement any of the ideas you have posted or any others, I'm all ears. Feel free to email me or whatever and bounce some things back and forth.

later,
Jason
 
Jason Ramsey said:
Ben... all of your suggestions are good and all have been thought of already and are in various phases of planning, implementation.

I'm fully committed to the fests being the engine that drives dvxuser as we move forward.

If you have specifics on how to implement any of the ideas you have posted or any others, I'm all ears. Feel free to email me or whatever and bounce some things back and forth.

later,
Jason
Click to expand...
That right there is what makes this such a great place. :thumbup:
 
Mike Insane said:
If the value of the fest is to provide the push for filmmakers to get off the couch and behind the camera, as well as a place where good, constructive critique is available for filmmakers wanting to improve
Click to expand...

Mike... Rest assured that this will remain priority #1 in my mind as we grow the fests. Growing the fests doesn't have to mean that goes away... It's one thing I was very mindful of when Barry, Larry and I were hashing out a new voting system. I don't want what you are talking about to ever take a back seat as the fests move forward. It's what makes these fests unique and (imo) so valuable...

That said, there is no reason it has to go away just because these fests continue to grow and evolve and eventually become the talk of the indie community :) Knowing what is at the core of the dvxuser fests will help make sure we keep our eyes focused in the right direction.

When you think of the fests growing, don't think so much in terms of participant numbers increasing drastically.... Think more of viewership (audience members) growing drastically. That's one of the goals of growing the fests. The larger audience base we can have, the more beneficial it will be to you guys, b/c you have a broader base of folks that your work is being seen by. And, we will also be able to support more films with a lot more viewers and the current rating system (vs. the former ranking system).

Anyways... to sum up... Just know that your concerns do not go unnoticed and maintaining the core of what makes dvxfest what it is is at the top of the list as we continue to shape and evolve the fests and the site.

Later,
Jason
 
Jason Ramsey said:
Ben... all of your suggestions are good and all have been thought of already and are in various phases of planning, implementation.

I'm fully committed to the fests being the engine that drives dvxuser as we move forward.

If you have specifics on how to implement any of the ideas you have posted or any others, I'm all ears. Feel free to email me or whatever and bounce some things back and forth.

later,
Jason
Click to expand...

Cool Jason, I'll jot my thoughts down.

Anybody for standardizing the file submissions? I'm kind of sick of watching one entry at 720p with awful compression jaggies and then the next at 320x240 letterbox.
 
David j. Dodd said:
I do agree with the top films, but you can not say that the process does not need to be improved.
Click to expand...

The system isn't perfect, and none are as far as I know. But it's damn close. No way to regulate human behavior no matter how hard you try and how good your intentions. It's as fair a system I have seen. The flaws are on the human side, mine included.

Like many, I have a few peeves, but in the long run, can't argure with the overall success, and the growth of the fest, which makes Mark Harris' point all the more urgent - to at least begin to talk about talking about how to handle these film fests going forward. 67 entries is a lot to view and comment on. Yeah, some of us pick faves since there simply isn't time for many of us to view each and every one (I still have a few to go). I have also learned this fest some filmmakers don't always have the time to respond to all comments, as they are busy viewing 67 films.

One option is to break the fest into two parts, one being 6 min films, and the other 10 min films. I know a few filmmakers here would like a longer running time.

or ...

Eventually I'd like to see DVX have levels, where maybe the ten best films are eligible to participate in the next level, and when ther are enough films, the ten best from that group move to the final level, and that level has an IMDB rating. Got to work your way up to it.

At some point this is going to hit one-hundred entries. In that mix there will be top-notch films and some that need a lot of work. If there is a level system, I think there can be more than one motivation to improve the craft - the first being the golden feedback, the second a shot at some prizes, and maybe the third a public screening. But the creme-de-la-creme can be an IMDB listing.

I know that means squat to some, but it sure looks nice one a resume.

One comment in another thread really struck me as yet another reason to find a way to reduce the number of films one watches. Sounds poopy, but if I felt a pang of obligation to watch 100 films, the quality of comments is bound to go down. That's just a fact of life vs. time.

So, levels. Eventually.

All necomers are automatically in level one. Maybe there will be 40 films there, some treasures. The prize for the top X% is to advance to level 2.

Voting for level one ends first, then level two has maybe a few extra days, and level three a few more. I know everyone is anxious to know who gets the bacon, but there is plenty of time to kick back and let this roll an extra week. The world won't end. It might slow to a crawl, but not end

Hey, also for the top level there can be those really cool laurel wreaths for various 'best of', and a DVX official selection.

Judging from comments in other threads, viewing is still going on. Imagine 30 more films. Need another way to encourage more, but temper the viewing time so it stays as golden as it is and has been.

just shooting from the hip.
 
Last edited:
Jason Ramsey said:
When you think of the fests growing, don't think so much in terms of participant numbers increasing drastically.... Think more of viewership (audience members) growing drastically. That's one of the goals of growing the fests. The larger audience base we can have, the more beneficial it will be to you guys
Click to expand...

Heck of a point, and this also benefits all those involved, including the performers who can get great exposure, as well as the writers :), and all the amazing talent behind six minutes of moving images.

Actors
Writers
DP
Music
Sound
Lighting
Costume
Editing
Make up
Storyboards


I missed someone I'm sure.

aw
 
I agree with a lot of things already said but one thing that I think should happen is, as a beginning film maker and i think i can speak for most other beginners out there too. It is not only very difficult but nerve racking to be competing with such high level members that are on this site. And not that it is a huge problem for me anyways because i just do these to learn, not for prizes. But I think it might even out the playing field a bit if we cut the festivals in half... experienced and amateur. Obviously prizes would differ between the two. But i think it might kick up motivation in less experienced film makers as well, to know that they could get a win under their belt or at least have a chance in competing.
 
Another reason for skill levels. I agree it can be a little daunting.

It can also be hard, as a viewer, to move from a really polished film to one that is clearly lacking experience, and shift all gears to comment with relative objectivity.

Some of the films lacking an experienced filmmaker and/or crew can still produce some good films, but its shortcomings are all the more glaring when up against some power hitters.

All's fair of course, it is a competion, but I think skill levels will help spread things out a bit.

a
 
alex whitmer said:
Another reason for skill levels. I agree it can be a little daunting.

It can also be hard, as a viewer, to move from a really polished film to one that is clearly lacking experience, and shift all gears to comment with relative objectivity.

Some of the films lacking an experienced filmmaker and/or crew can still produce some good films, but its shortcomings are all the more glaring when up against some power hitters.

All's fair of course, it is a competion, but I think skill levels will help spread things out a bit.

a
Click to expand...
I think this might be very hard to break down though, and where do you draw the line? Should it stop just at skill level?
And how is that gauged? By how many short films they have made?

You mentioned crew. What about Professional crews and RED cameras? Should they be in a separate level?

See what I'm getting at? I think that would be tough to do, and this is coming from a guy that would probably benefit from this.
No crew on set but myself and shooting with an HV20 camcorder.

I think we have to leave it as is for now unless someone can come up with a clear breakdown of what constitutes skill level.

I'll tell you this. It has helped me tremendously knowing that I have to bust my ass because JDS or Harris might be entering any given Fest.
I could give you a longer list but I think you get the picture.

Having their game to compete with any given Fest has forced me to raise mine in a meager attempt to compete with them. :thumbup:

Personally, I think it's been good for me.

Cheers,

Mike
 
Last edited:
I think the idea of "levels" will work itself out - Spielberg will never enter DVXFests because he's too busy doing more important things. Likewise, when JDS or Horrigan or Fat Monster start doing the real thing (oh wait, FM is) they won't bother with this - DVXFests don't pay the bills. Do you see what I mean? Once I reach a certain skill level and get noticed by studios or get a job as a DP or whatever - then I'm not doing DVXFests anymore. And that's when I make a rather large contribution to DVXuser for helping me launch my career. :)
 
I tend to agree with you Gabriel, for me, these fests are about challenging myself to become better at the craft, in hopes that one day I could make a living doing something I love.

Having the bar set high is essential. I would love to compete with Spieberg. BRING IT ON!
 
Cool thread. I myself would have to agree with most of the posts. Of course I am still thinking that as DVXuser.com there should be a separate competition for DVX cameras only. And then an open category for everyone else. Or maybe a separation of Standard Def and High Def cameras.
Pauly
 
Jack Daniel Stanley said:
It will have to be partnered with someone like Vimeo, or Motion Box, because no way Larry or anyone else here is flash encodiing every entry. We did this once. For Zombie fest. No mas.
Click to expand...

Actually Jack, you wouldn't need to change much from how the system now operates.

As I understand it, entrants currently submit an .mp4 or .mov H.264 file limited to 50MB. Because Flash now supports H.264 playback, all you need to do is swap out the file extension and switch .mp4 or .mov to .flv and you can embed it as is.

No re-encoding is required. :beer:
 
pauly_the_hitman said:
Cool thread. I myself would have to agree with most of the posts. Of course I am still thinking that as DVXuser.com there should be a separate competition for DVX cameras only. And then an open category for everyone else. Or maybe a separation of Standard Def and High Def cameras.
Pauly
Click to expand...
If you're going to separate cameras I suggest using a price range.
A $600.00 camera should not have to compete with a $4000.00 camera, or a RED camera for that matter. Although, I don't agree with separating them at all. Just adding to your suggestion.

Once again, I don't think that's the issue and I like the "open to all cameras" concept.
I've said it before, if someone makes a compelling movie that grabs me and doesn't let go from start to finish.... I don't care if it was shot on a cell phone. :)

The ability to tell a good story should be key.

Cheers,

Mike
 
Last edited:
Clarkage has a neat idea, and I think it would be a lot of fun.

Think about it: Two threads, one intermediate, one beginner, and both can go in each thread and comment, and I think it would just be really interesting..

Might bring on more filmmaker, and it would feel like this community would grow larger, AND it may add more suspense.

Robbie
 
Last edited:
To confusing trying to break this up by groups of anything. It is good now. Like a few other threads said, as people move higher up the ladder they will drop out anyway.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top