From: Joel S. Bachar (email suppressed)
Date: Wed Sep 03 2008 - 09:46:19 PDT
Metacafe and Microcinema International Launch MetaFest 2008
Juried Online-Offline Film Festival Presenting the Best in International
Creative and Contemporary Short-Form Video Entertainment
<outbind://791/www.metacafe.com/metafest> www.metacafe.com/metafest for
call for entries and information
DEADLINE IS SEPTEMBER 10th
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PRIZES
Grand Jury Prize - US$5,000 cash and more
Short-Short Award for outstanding work in a video of 3 minutes or
less:$2,000 cash and more
Online Audience-Choice Award, as selected by Metacafe.com viewers:$1,000
cash and more Offline Audience-Choice Award, as selected by attendees of the
San Francisco theatrical screening: .$1,000 cash and more
Honorarium Pool: .The creator of each film selected for the MetaFest offline
program will receive a cash honorarium of $50 presented by Microcinema
International.
Producer RewardsR Earnings:
All filmmakers whose MetaFest submissions meet the eligibility criteria for
the Metacafe Producer RewardsR program are invited to submit their work to
the program. Those accepted will be paid for their work at the rate of
$5/1,000 views, receiving the first payment after the video is viewed 20,000
times.
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Palo Alto, CA - July 12, 2008 - MetacafeR whose nearly 30 million unique
viewers each month make it one of the world's largest video entertainment
sites, and Microcinema International a leading international rights manager,
exhibitor and specialty markets distributor of the "moving image arts," are
teaming to create and curate MetaFest 2008. MetaFest is a juried online and
offline film festival presenting the best in international creative and
contemporary short-form video entertainment.
The MetaFest call for entries, which opens today, invites short video, film
and digital media submissions of 10 minutes or less that are narrative,
humorous, artistic, dramatic, animated, documentary, mockumentary, music,
experimental, alternative or avant-garde in any genre, format or style.
Films that demonstrate engaging storytelling, innovative presentation,
creative expression, and bridge the worlds of online and offline
entertainment in a unique and compelling way are preferred. Additional
details are available at <outbind://791/www.metacafe.com/metafest>
www.metacafe.com/metafest, where films can be uploaded for consideration
through September 10th, 2008.
The MetaFest jury includes Hillman Curtis, a filmmaker, designer and author
whose books include "Creating Short Films for the Web," and Glenn R.
Phillips, who is senior project specialist and consulting curator of
contemporary programs for the Getty Research Institute and recently curated
the "California Video" exhibition.
"Short-form video is a rapidly emerging entertainment genre, and content
creators - independent filmmakers to boutique production firms and major
media companies - are beginning to make highly entertaining, innovative
works well-suited to the online medium," said Mark Poggi, senior manager of
content marketing for Metacafe. "We expect MetaFest to showcase some truly
original short films that tell great stories, feature quality production
values and use technology creatively."
MetaFest combines the best of the interactive online video-viewing
experience with the best of the live-audience offline film festival
experience. Selected films will have a theatrical premiere in San Francisco
in October 2008, will be showcased on Metacafe.com for six months, and be
screened at dozens of "microcinema" events across the U.S. and around the
world through the first half of 2009.
"This is an exciting time to be a filmmaker, as the Internet has opened up a
much greater distribution opportunity for short films and helped foster a
large and growing audience seeking out and enjoying this content," said
Patrick Kwiatkowski, co-founder and CEO of Microcinema International.
"MetaFest is designed to help talented creators gain additional exposure and
build their fanbase worldwide by combining the best of both the online and
offline worlds."
The jury will select a grand prize winner who will be awarded $5,000 cash
and a "short-short" award winner for outstanding work in a video of three
minutes or less who will receive $2,000 cash. Two audience-choice award
winners - one selected at the theatrical premiere and one selected by
Metacafe viewers - will receive $1,000 each as well as DVD selections worth
$250 from the Microcinema DVD catalog. All award winners will be prominently
featured on the Metacafe home page for 10 days and receive additional
exposure through marketing and publicity efforts. Additionally, the creator
of each film selected for the MetaFest offline program will receive a cash
honorarium of $50. Creators of MetaFest entries that meet the program
requirements for the Metacafe Producer RewardsR program are eligible to be
paid for their work at the rate of $5 per 1,000 views.
MetaFest sponsorships are currently being developed with leading brands
interested in leveraging short-form video and social media to build
awareness and engagement with a targeted audience of filmmakers and
entertainment enthusiasts.
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About Metacafe Producer RewardsR
The Metacafe Producer RewardsR program celebrates the creativity of our
community of video creators and supports the art of making short videos
well-suited to the web. Videos submitted to the program should entertain,
amaze and inspire viewers by bringing an original idea to life and telling a
story that captures viewers' attention and engages the imagination.
The Producer RewardsR program has paid over $1 million to video producers
for creating and submitting exceptional and entertaining original works. We
pay $5 per 1,000 views - you receive your first payment for $100 after
crossing the 20,000 views mark and being accepted into the program. Any
creator of an original video that meets the program requirements may submit
it for consideration.
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About MetacafeR
With nearly 30 million unique viewers each month, MetacafeR is one of the
world's largest video entertainment sites. We specialize in short-form
original content - from new, emerging talents and established Hollywood
heavyweights alike. Metacafe delivers an exceptional entertainment
experience by engaging and empowering our audience every step of the way.
Our VideoRankT technology helps expose the most entertaining content, and
our Producer RewardsR program rewards video creators for their best work -
all as determined by viewer response. The privately held company is
headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif., and has offices in Tel Aviv, New York
City and Los Angeles. For more information - and hundreds of thousands of
entertaining videos - visit <outbind://791/www.metacafe.com>
www.metacafe.com.
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About Microcinema International
Founded in 1996, Microcinema International is a leading international rights
manager, exhibitor, and specialty markets distributor of the "moving image
arts." Microcinema International specializes in the acquisition, exhibition,
and distribution of independently produced works of an artistic and
socially-relevant nature. Our mission is to seek out, curate, exhibit,
promote, and distribute compelling works to a broad audience via existing
and emerging mediums. This mission is realized through exhibition-based
events, web-based platforms, educational outreach, modern marketing
techniques, and digital and physical distribution. More information is
available at <outbind://791/www.microcinema.com> www.microcinema.com.
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Media Contacts:
For Metacafe
Shev Rush: email suppressed>
mailto:email suppressed] / 760-567-4321
Shelley Boose: email suppressed>
mailto:email suppressed] / 408-398-6987
For Microcinema International
Joel Bachar: email suppressed>
mailto:email suppressed] / 415 -447-9750
__________________________________________________________________
For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.