It’s always good when my “why doesn’t someone…” whining (as in, “why doesn’t someone do something to encourage people to see mobile phones as low-cost media production tools?”) proves to be redundant…

Siemens and the St Kilda Film Festival announce the 2nd Micro Movie Award.

To be held as part of the St Kilda Film Festival in Melbourne Australia between May 24 ? 29, 2005
Prize AUD$5000

The Siemens Micro Movie Award is an international competition for making short films using a mobile phone.

The Siemens Micro Movie Award was presented for the first time at interfilm Berlin in November 2004 and created enormous interest and excitement amongst filmmakers and audiences alike.

We are now inviting film schools and filmmakers in Asia, Australia and New Zealand to take part in this exciting competition.

Siemens provides the participating filmmakers/ schools with a mobile phone (SX1 model) which has an integrated camcorder. The finished films are to be no longer than 90 seconds and as many films as possible may be produced and entered before the entry deadline. There are no restrictions with regard to cutting and editing. However, the film sequences in the finished piece must obviously be longer than any subsequently integrated animation elements.

After all entries have been received, approximately 10 films will be nominated as finalists for the competition and they will be shown on screens located in cinema foyers during the St Kilda Film Festival. They will also be shown on the large cinema screen.

The audience chooses the winner who will be awarded a prize of AUD$5000.

The 10 finalists will each receive a Siemens Video Phone and participate in a film Workshop with a notable Australian Filmmaker during the St Kilda film Festival.

Call for Expressions of interest

If you are interested in being part of this new era of filmmaking contact us immediately
Send your C.V./Filmography to filmfest@portphillip.vic.gov.au or

St Kilda Film Festival Siemens Micro Movie Award
Private Bag 3,
St Kilda 3182, Australia

Numbers of mobile phones are limited, but we will also have some mobiles available through the St Kilda Film Festival Office and available for free hire at OPENChannel

The finalists of the first MicroMovie AWARD at interfilm Berlin can still be seen at www.micromovie-award.com.
The deadline for submitting films is March 18, 2005, forms etc from the festival website

But amid the hype about the linear progression of cinema to smaller and smaller screens, remember that the small-scale moving image has a rich pre-cinematic (and pre-professional) past.