With entries in the categories of Short Film, Documentary, Commercial, Music Video, Nature & Wildlife, and Student Film, Panasonic’s “Shoot It/Share It” video contest has something for everyone.  At Videomaker we are always eager to share ways for both beginner and expert video producers to get their work acknowledged.

This year’s “Shoot It/Share It” contest invited videographers from around the world to shoot short videos of five minutes or less using the Panasonic AG-AF 100 camera. A panel of Panasonic pro video experts selected three finalists from each of the six categories. Now it’s up to the public to choose the winners in each category.  These first place winners will each receive a Vocas 0255-2000 Matte Box and rail system.  Panasonic will then select the grand prize winning video and that video producer will be awarded a 42” Panasonic TH-42BT300U Pro Plasma reference Monitor, a piece of hardware that any of us would love to employ in our post-production workflow.

The finalist videos are an eclectic bunch.  From short films about a couple preparing for a first date and why old people behave the way they do, to high-production value commercial videos, the work done by these videographers is at times light and whimsical and at other times intense and artistic.

In the Short Film category, the finalists include “Dropping the Question,” “First Date,” and “Old on Purpose.”

The Documentary films include “The Walking Gallery,” “Pizza Shop,” and “Maggies Place.”

Commercials include “Riviera Skateboards – Cody Coyote,” “Drops of Good – The Growhaus Renovation,” and “Artistry.”

The Music Video category features “Little Tybee – Boxcar Fair,” “I Won’t Try To Break Your Heart,” and “This Guy’s in Love with You.”

In Nature and Wildlife the finalists are “Dillon Falls on the Deschutes River” and “Botswana Safari.”

And in the Student Film category the choices are “HOLDUP,” “The Name to Remember,” and “Word.”

Again, all of these videos were shot on the AG-AF 100 and all work to show the camera’s versatility.  Videographers of all skill levels should check these videos out, whether to glean some inspiration, study some interesting techniques of lighting and editing, or simply to vote for your favorites.

The contest remains open for public voting through April 4th.  The highest vote-receivers will be named first place winners at the National Association of Broadcasters show in Las Vegas, NV in mid-April.  Videomaker will, as always, be at NAB to cover this Panasonic event as well as to scope out all the latest innovation the industry has to offer.  In the meantime, check these videos out and help select the winning entries.  It’s one more way for us to celebrate the great work being done in video these days.

Austin Texas is the place to be next week with the South by Southwest Music, Internet and Film Festival. Better known as SXSW, beginning on the 9th, people from all over the world will join together for a fabulously good time with great music and inspiring movies.

Besides the Festival events cinematographers will have the chance to attend several meet-n-greet events and seminars. Nikon is partnering with The Bui Brothers who are going to be running a session on how to shoot a music video. What’s cool is that it will incorporate Nikon’s latest gear – the D800 and D4 – and will feature a live band, a local group from Austin called The Statesboro Revue.

The check out MAXON’s free show. Motion graphics company MAXON along with Austin Motion Graphics Meetup is sponsoring a free event with presentations from motion graphics rockstars Nick Campbell and TRON: Legacy VFX artist, David Lewandowski.

NewTek will be delivering many of the live events through their awesome live production and streaming process at the event and to the web with broadcasts of SXSW itself along with the  John Lennon Educational Tour Bus, Gibson Guitars, GeekBeat Live and TechCrunch.

The festival started in 1987 as a music festival to draw headliners to the eclectic music scene in the middle of Texas. In 1994 they added film and interactive elements and the SXWS has become one of the major film festivals to show, attend see and be seen on the levels of Sundance Film Festival, the Chicago International  Film Festival and Cannes in France.

Many films have their debut screening at SXWS before moving on to other festivals and, for the hopeful, commercial success.

Among this year’s films are 8 documentary films competing from more than 800 submissions, 8 narrative features from more than 900 submissions as well as a showing of festival favorites from other premiere, animated, documentary and narrative shorts, and what looks like a fun event: “Midnighters” – scary, funny or controversial movies playing for a night owl crowd.

To find out more about the many film festivals nationwide and a few throughout the world, check out Videomaker‘s Festivals and Event page: http://www.videomaker.com/community/festival/. If you are having an event, festival or contest, or knw of one not lsited, you can add that yourself – we welcome all entries, our mission is toe spread the word for video producers to find new places to showcase their work. Learn about entering festivals here: www.videomaker.com/article/14945 and find out what the judges are looking for in video contests here: http://www.videomaker.com/article/12760/
The SXSW festival runs March 9th through the 17th and it’s not too late to register , although access to all events will hit you at more than a thousand dollars, you can still get tickets to the Film Festival for $595. (Of course, accommodations might be difficult if you haven’t booked yet!)

“Today, everybody’s a filmmaker.”  That’s the message of director Wim Wenders (“Paris, Texas” and “Wings of Desire” among many other films, as well as music videos for U2 and The Talking Heads) as he introduces a new innovative video competition in partnership with the pen and watchmaker, MontBlanc. Launched in September, the competition, titled “The Beauty of a Second” is designed to celebrate the 190th anniversary of the invention of the Chronograph by Nicolas Rieussec, which was able to record time to an accuracy of one fifth of a second, quite a feat in 1821.

“One of the great things about cinema is how it makes us aware of time.  Each film consists of many brief moments of life that altogether create a unique and new space in time.”  If you’re familiar with the project, or if you’re paying close attention to the tile of the competition, you’ll realize that the emphasis here is definitely on “brief.”

The MontBlanc video competition is for films one second in length.  As Wenders eloquently points out, every video we shoot is a series of one-second moments.  But what if you as a videographer set out specifically to capture the perfect one-second on film?  Would it be a moment in nature?  The start of a smile on a child’s face?  A white shirt hanging to dry on a line?  How do you capture not only a beautiful moment, but perhaps even a compelling story in just one second?  Maybe it’s not possible, but that’s precisely the goal of this competition.  And from the entries so far, it looks like many videographers are capturing great moments in very small cuts (or, more precisely, in very precise edits).

Since the competition opened, the first three submission timeframes, or “rounds,” have been completed.  As of this writing, we’re mid way through round four.  The final round will finish on February 12th.  At the conclusion of the contest, Wim Wenders will select the winning one-second film.  Once you’ve viewed a few dozen of the one-second clips, you’ll likely agree that choosing a winner seems like an impossible task.  Just how good can one second of footage be?

But the hosts of the website, “The Beauty of a Second,” provide an additional incentive for film makers and film buffs alike to join the fun. Even if you haven’t submitted your one second entry, you can assemble your favorite one-second films into a “Playlist,” thus editing together a film of up to sixty seconds, comprising sixty segments.

In our Videomaker blogs and forums we’ve talked frequently about outlets for creative videography and film making.  We’ve even reviewed the history of continuous shot films that can last as long as  eight hours.  This film contest from MontBlanc is clearly at the other extreme.

But MontBlanc is not the only outfit with a focus on the one-second film.

“The 1 Second Film” is a non-profit organization that has already produced what they describe as “the world’s biggest shortest film.”  The concept here is to produce a one-second animated film where each two frames of animation is comprised of a single collaborative painting.  (Actually, the twelve paintings that compose the animated film were produced at a kick-off party years ago.)  The one-second film will then be followed by a one hour credit roll, during which a “making of” documentary will run while all the contributors (the “producers”) to the non-profit will be listed.  The project’s beneficiary is The Global Fund for Women.  Producers, who have contributed everything from a few dollars to tens of thousands, include everyone from celebrities (Kevin Bacon, Steven Colbert, Kiefer Sutherland, and many more) to corporations (Apple, FotoKem, and others).

These two projects have a couple of things in common.  First, participants share a love of visual arts and experimental video.  Second, both projects are profoundly rooted in a sense of collaboration.  Both are worth paying attention to in 2012.

It’s award season. A little while back we wrote about the upcoming Webby Awards, which provide both Web designers and video producers the opportunity to have their online work recognized. Next up is the Telly Awards, which is self-described as “honoring the very best in Film and Video Production, Online Videos, programs and commercials, and local, regional and cable TV commercials, programs and segments.” Those are pretty broad categories and it all adds up to any video that has been seen on television or the internet is a potential winner.

Past Telly winners, including Videomaker last year for our Wedding Videography DVD series, tend to be dominated by professional producers of video and graphics. But there is clearly room for independent film makers and videographers with a short film displaying their best efforts and high-end, but low budget, production values. 

Given that this is the 33^rd year for the Telly Awards, most of you are familiar with the sort of video work that garners recognition. But if you’re looking for inspiration, or simply want to review past winners, take a peek at the YouTube Telly Award channel. You’ll find high-production commercial television winners like this selection from the American Pickers television program, as well as less mainstream work like this award winning short film “My World 1.1” by artist Bruce Gray. 

The early entry deadline for the Telly Awards is December 16^th.

As we’ve all noticed lately, the lines between the gear used in still and video shooting are becoming blurred, some still shooters are embracing video for the first time using DSLRs, and videographers are clicking away creating still images using that same camera they purchased for videography.

Now Canon, the makers of the first HDSLR that was embraced by many shooters on both side of the chasm, is sponsoring a still photo contest that video creators might find interesting. The winner of the contest gets to work with Academy Award winning director, Ron Howard, on a movie short inspired by that still image.

Canon just announced  the “Long Live Imagination” campaign with Ron Howard. People submit photos to www.youtube.com/imagination and winners will be selected to inspire a Hollywood short film directed by Ron Howard shot on a Canon DSLR  There will be eight photos selected form the collection of entries, and they will collectively be the inspiration for the movie short. The Short will be shot using Canon DSLR cameras and accessories, and there will be a Red Carpet premiere in New York where the winners will meet Ron Howard.

Entries for the contest will be accepted from May 22 to June 14th and there are eight movie themes to help you get your imagination and inspiration on: Setting, Time, Character, Mood, Relationship, Goal, Obstacle and the Unknown.

And if you want to be a better video shooter, learn from a still photographer. They have to capture a full story in just one frame – this contest allows you to practice both still and moving imaging skills.

Below is more information form Canon regarding the contest:

“I’m known as a narrative storyteller, so when Canon approached me to partner on the ‘Long Live Imagination’ campaign, I was moved by the opportunity to collaborate with the masses, tapping into consumers’ creativity and using their photos as building blocks to produce a film,” said Howard. “I hope the project stimulates people’s imaginations whether they are an amateur photographer, a world traveler or a proud parent, and I hope what we create is meaningful.”

A visually stunning television commercial that takes place within Ron Howard’s mind’s eye will begin airing May 22nd. The spot will promote the “Project Imagin8ion” contest and online community.

Throughout the promotion, Ron Howard, with the help of Canon experts with Project Imagin8ion and the community, will narrow down the submissions and select eight photos – one from each category. These eight winning photos will become the basis and inspiration for the short.

As part of the overall “Long Live Imagination” campaign, Canon will be curating the most inspiring photography out there, championing the imagination of the masses while demonstrating the infinite possibilities of Canon digital imaging. The customized Long Live Imagination brand channel on YouTube will serve as a meeting place and sharing community for Canon users and photography enthusiasts alike throughout 2011. The Imagination Gallery will be linked to other social media platforms including Flickr, Facebook and Twitter, so that users can easily share their photos, pose questions to the community and participate in real-time discussions. Though the gallery will launch as the home of Canon’s “Project Imagin8ion” initiative, the community page will live-on and continue to grow.

The video contests and festival season starts to heat up as Spring approaches, and we have news of one video contest whose deadline is just a few days away. Do you have what it takes to win?

“The Cutting Room Challenge” video contest, from Unlimited Stock Media, is free to enter, and the 1st prize is an iPad, so you’ve got nothing to lose and a cool new gadget to win. Check out their contest page site for information.

Contestants receive a free collection of HD video clips and use them to create a video on a given topic. You need to download stock footage from Unlimited Stock Media to make your video for this contest, which is cool, since the deadline is just a few days away – no shooting!

Your video has to be 5 minutes or less and can be a short documentary, music video, commercial – it’s up to you – just follow the guidelines in the contest details.  The deadline is March 23, 2011, 12pm PST to upload your video to Unlimited Stock Media’s Vimeo contest page.

This feature challenge is “People in Need.” Are you in need of winning? Check it out!

You might not be able to go to the upcoming South by Southwest Interactive Festival,  known the world over simply as SXSWi, or sometimes just “South by Southwest” or SxS  – but there are other festivals and contests you can attend – and not leave your home.

We have a contest and festival page that’s chock full of fun events to enter,  go to Videomaker‘s  contest and festival page on our website to find out more.

I’ve personally won a number of video contests, and in many cases, it was because of knowing How to enter, not just What to enter.  I wrote a quick tips to entering contests guide for Videomaker, maybe it will help you, too.

Good Luck!