What's New!!

8.26.08

Sidewalk Chalk Film Competition

Friday, July 18, 2008 - Friday, September 5, 2008

Deadline: Friday, September 5, 2008

Sidewalk Chalk Film Competition Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival

In order to raise awareness about pediatric cancer, The Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival and Charter Communications have teamed together to sponser the Sidewalk Chalk Film Competition. This is an ongoing film making competition that ends on September 5, 2008. The purpose of this competition is to challenge filmmakers to create a short five minute film of whatever genre or style they choose that they feel best helps raise awareness about pediatric cancer. Finalists will have their films premiere at the Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival (September 26-28) and the winner will recieve a $5,000 cash prize and a Sloss Furnace Iron Trophy.

The Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival and Charter Communications

Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival

2312 1st Avenue North

Birmingham , Alabama USA

Phone: 205-324-0888

The TapeOnline Photo Contest

Thursday, August 14, 2008 - Monday, October 13, 2008

Phone: 615-263-1838

TapeOnline products are used around the world. Show us where!

Where do you use TapeOnline?

We want to know! Submit your photo showing a TapeOnline product in use. We'll post it in the Voting Gallery where others will judge its worthiness. Photos with the most votes will be awarded with fantastic prizes like an iPod Touch or LaCie Rugged Hard Drive.

We're looking for photos that are artistically interesting, offbeat, unique, exotic, subtle, funny, etc. No you don't have to submit Ansel Adams quality photography. But, any photo that distinguishes itself from the crowd whether shot with a cellphone camera or a Nikon D700 has the best chance of winning.

How to Enter

Snap a photo illustrating how you use TapeOnline tape, disc media, Rip-Ties, or any of the wide variety of products we sell. Come back to this page, submit your photo, then tell your friends to vote for you! You may submit as many photos as you like.

Voting and Prizes

Once you've submitted your photos, visitors will be able to view and vote for their favorite images. One person is allowed to vote once for a photo each day and can cast votes for as many photos as they wish. Again, only one vote per person per photo per day. The three photos with the most votes at the end of the contest on October 13th, 2008 will receive a prize.

* 1st Place: Nintendo Wii courtesy of Maxell

* 2nd Place: CyberShot Digital Camera courtesy of Sony

* 3rd Place: LaCie Rugged Portable Hard Drive

TapeOnline Committee of Merit Award

We're saving one prize category for ourselves. We'll vote on our favorite photo based on The TapeOnline Rigid Rules of Photography and other criteria. The producer of this photo will win an Apple iPod Touch.

Contest ends October 13th, 2008

To get started: http://www.tapeonline.com/photo-contest/

TapeOnline.com

Phone: 615-263-1838

http://www.tapeonline.com/photo-contest/

8.18.08

40th Nashville Film Festival

Call for Entries

The Nashville Film Festival is coming up on its 40th Anniversary. The schedule for submiitting entries to the fest has been adjusted this year, so make note of this and future announcements:

April 16-23, 2009

NOW ACCEPTING ENTRIES

Regular Deadline:

10.17.08

Chosen by MovieMaker Magazine as one of "20 Film Festivals Worth The Entry Fee." (Spring 2008 Edition)

All styles, genres and lengths of films are accepted.

Nashville Film Festival (NaFF) proudly announces its 40th annual international competition for narrative features, shorts, documentaries, animation, experimental work, and films by young filmmakers. NaFF features special sections for music films, family films, works by Tennessee filmmakers, gay & lesbian-themed films, workshops, panel discussions, music showcases, and guest appearances by nationally recognized figures in the film and music worlds. Read more about NaFF.

For more information, please visit their site at www.nashvillefilmfestival.org

Flip Side of Nashville Video Competition

$2,500 cash prize, four nights at the Renaissance Nashville Hotel, 2 VIP tickets to the Next Big Nashville Music Festival, an autographed CD from Gabe Dixon and a Music City gift bag. The winning video will be featured on www.visitmusiccity.com along with Music City's You Tube and My Space pages. Accepting entries from July 16 – August 29, 2008. There is no entry fee and the contest is open to amateurs and professionals alike. The first 1,000 entries will get the new Gabe Dixon self-titled CD, and the top 100 You Tube fan favorites will receive a $100 cash prize. The judges' top 10 will receive a top 10 certificate and Music City gift bag in addition to a $100 cash prize.

For more information on the competition, a copy of the rules and regulations or to enter please visit, www.visitmusiccity.com/flipsideofnashville .

5.4.08

FILMMAKERS JUNE 21st IS THE DAY YOU'VE BEEN WAITING FOR!

On Saturday, June 21st, at 8:00am, the 4th Annual Marble City 10 Hour Film Festival will kick off on Market Square in downtown Knoxville.

This premier annual film event is a demanding contest that pits filmmaking teams against one another as they struggle to produce, complete, and screen a short film in only 10 hours time! Its a hectic and fun way to showcase your killer production instincts and cinematic kung fu...and win some cash to fund future projects.

Filmmaking teams must plan and shoot a three-minute film. Teams will then have 10 hours to produce their film, while also integrating three elements into the films narrative in a creative and cohesive manner. These elements—along with the film's genre—will be revealed the morning of the festival.

Special elements? For instance, teams may have to incorporate chopsticks, a lawnmower, and a blue bandana into the film.

Film submissions will be accepted between 6-7pm at the historic Bijou Theatre. Screenings will also be held at the Bijou, beginning at 7:30pm and continuing until all films have been shown.

CASH PRIZES

Cash Prizes and trophies will be awarded in both General and Student categories.

General - 1st $500, 2nd $350, 3rd $200

Student (18 and under) - 1st $200

Visit the website for more information. Just click this banner!

4.29.08

I recently ventured into East TN to check out their event called The East TN TV and Film Trade Show. This event was put together by the East TN Television and Film Commission. They had several vendors on hand to include reps for AVID, Yamaha, Panasonic, Sony and more. They put on several workshops titled: Digital Audio, Camera Lenses, Funding your Idea and In Search Of Other Markets. The workshops were more of a discussion forum than a teaching seminar so there was quite a bit of opportunity for involvement on behalf of the Trade Show Patrons. On top of it all they invited a VP from Scripps Networks to enlighten us on their strategy for online video which seemed to be the hot topic of the entire show. All of this was to highlight and show that East TN is not to be taken lightly. The Film Commission is in it to win and intends on having another show that will surely draw more of a crowd next year. For more information on the East TN Television and Film Commission, visit them here.

PMW-EX1 Review

During my time with the attending vendors, I did get my hand on Sony's camera, the PMW-EX1.

I found it to be strikingly similar to the Panasonic HVX-200. However, with reguard to the hand grip on the side of the camera, I found that it seemed to be awkwardly placed and almost immediately noticed a slight tweak in my wrist. The grip is variably positionable though so it allows for your own camera handling style. The addition of a mechanical focus ring on this camera puts it in another class in my opinion. To know exactly where you are when focusing is a beautiful thing. Is the focus ring alone going to put this camera over the Panasonic HVX-200? Maybe...maybe not. If you're in the market now and will be shooting on a tripod, I say it's worth the investment, but if you've already got an HVX-200, it's probably not got enough features outside what you already have for you to consider. It's funny though. Isn't it interesting that when Sony sends out a representative, it's always a guy who knows more about sales than the camera he's selling. I tried to get him to set up the camera to shoot a variable frame rate so I could see the quality of slow motion playback. He couldn't do it. On another note...Sony calls it slw and Quick motion rather than a variable frame rate. Can't we start to use some universal terms Sony? Overall it's a great camera and they're soon to put another model on the market that is sure to please.

Once again Sony jumps into the fray with a new approach to affordable HD called the PMW-EX1 and under $7,000 MSRP to boot. Based on the article in April's version of Videomaker magazine, I'd say there have been improvements in Focus controls, the flip out viefinder, image quality and editing ability. As far as the not-to-be-mentioned way in which some broadcasters shuned to HDV codec, this should be a step in the right direction for sony and for those independent video producers out there who can take advantage of the new technology.

Indie Sessions just spoke with David Simmons, writer/producer/director of the upcoming movie Prism. Check out the first trailer for the film on our media page and check back soon to see the results of our interview with David Simmons. David has many things to share with the independent community.