It only took $300…

And Fede Alvarez landed himself a Hollywood movie deal, a viral video, and $30 million. Talk about inspiration, nothing can be more inspiring than Fede’s road to success. A commercial director from Uruguay, Alvarez caught the eye of esteemed film maker Sam Raimi. Raimi’s Ghost House Pictures has agreed to develop and direct Alvarez’s original science fiction style project. Drawing comparisons to District 9, Alvarez’s movie entitled “Ataque de Panico!” (Panic Attack) has created a buzz amongst the YouTube crowd already reaching over 1.5 million views. After becoming viral in such a short span of time Alvarez claims his email was full from directors and Hollywood types trying to nab his film. The video itself uses the heart pulsing soundtrack from 28 Days Later to build up its anticipation of the large invasion brewing and is a nice combination of influences. This just goes to show you, sometimes it just boils down to talent! Now watch the video for yourself, and be sure to tell us what you think!

OK, folks… listen up! Here’s a challenge to VIDEO producers from a STILL camera manufacturer.  As you’ve been reading in our magazine and on our site, the lines are merging between still and video shooting, and many still camera makers are making the cameras able to shoot good quality video, too. But, most people still think of STILL cameras as only being able to take – what we VIDEO shooters call – “Freeze Frames”.

Well, that’s no longer the case. And Nikon wants you to know about it by offering a contest with a prize of $100,000 for a great video… and it can be shot from any type of cam: video, still, or any brand.

Read the rest of this entry »

A British taxi dispatcher  got a lot of attention at the international Cannes Festival in France this year with his amazingly low-budget movie about zombies, of all subjects. How low budget? Try $70.

Director Marc Price begged and borrowed most of the gear to make his movie, Colin. He pleaded with friends to appear for free, and taught himself special effect editing in his spare time while working nights at a taxi company. Read the rest of this entry »

A British taxi dispatcher is getting a lot of attention at the international Cannes Festival in France this week with his amazingly low-budget movie about zombies, of all subjects. How low budget? Try $70. Director Marc Price begged and borrowed most of the gear to make his movie, “Colin”. He pleaded with friends to appear for free, and taught himself special effect editing in his spare time while working nights at the taxi company. So don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t make it with low-budget equipment… if a story engages an audience, it doesn’t matter how it was made or how much it cost. Take THAT over-paid Hollywood moguls! The people have spoken.

As for the rest of you, maybe this story will inspire you to use this three-day Memorial Weekend for something creative… who knows, maybe next year we’ll see YOU at Cannes.

Videomaker has partnered with vidopp.com to bring you up to date information on the newest and most lucrative video contests on the web. You can find the information about all the latest video contests here on our contest page.
So sharpen up those video skills and get moving, there’s never been more money out there up for grabs!