Tue-Fri: 48 Hour Film Project Movies

This follow-up post on the 48 Hour Film Project was submitted by Crack co-founder Shea Van Horn, AKA "Summer Camp."

This past Friday night, my team (I did this with Crack co-founder Chris Farris and Crack contributor Josh Siegel) joined 104 other teams at the Warehouse Theater to randomly draw a genre—we drew "road movie." Each team was also assigned the same required character (Laurie or Larry Gardner, a designer), prop ("sauce"), and line of dialogue ("I’ll be glad when he’s gone.") to include in the short movies.

During the 48 hours that followed, we created a short film titled, "Skip to the End." It’s the story of three budding filmmakers who participate in the 48 Hour Film Project and take a short road trip to get their film turned in on time…How original! It includes a campy film within the film, an outrageous drag queen played by local office drone Alex George, a protesting mob, and tight spandex pants!

When I think back on those two days, I’m amazed we were able to pull it off. We dropped off our tape with three minutes to spare—other teams weren’t so lucky. It was a super collaborative process. The three of us wrote, acted, and directed, but there is no way we could have done it without the help of some really creative and generous friends who played extras, made costumes, built sets, filmed scenes, composed original music, and coordinated the shooting.

All of the films that were submitted on Sunday night will screen this week at the AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring. Our film is screening on Wednesday, May 7, at 9:30 p.m. These films are eligible for the Audience Award, which is determined by audience ballot at the screenings. In addition, a panel of three judges will select the "Best Film of the City." I’m not sure who is judging this year’s films, but in the past, judges have included film critics, producers, actors, and filmmakers.

I don’t know if our film will walk (or skip) away with any awards, but it was an exciting experience that was definitely worth it. It was one of the most intense 48-hour periods I’ve ever experienced, but I would gladly do it again.


Screening Information

Date: Tuesday, May 6 – Friday, May 9, 2008
Time: 7:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m., each night
Place: AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring , 8633 Colesville Road, Silver Spring
Notes: Tickets can be purchased online at www.AFI.com/Silver or at the door. Tickets will sell out, so be sure to get yours early!