DV Challenge 5 JUDGING. You are the judges!

Mike Teutsch · May 9th, 2006, 10:42 AM

Personally, I would like to see a permanent or semi-permanent panel of judges rather than the entrants getting one vote each. It would make for more consistent judging.

As far as not posting names, you could not even post film titles, just a number 1 through......whatever, perhaps by the date and time received. After all, once you get to see the film you will have the title and all. It will not keep them anonymous though, because they can be ID'ed by the website, style, and maybe those who appear in them.

Having a judging panel would also allow the movies to be seen by those who need to, before the bandwidth is exceeded. I never did see two of the movies in this contest, because each time I tried their bandwidth had been used up. With a judging panel this would probably not happen until the judging had been completed.

One last suggestion, if at all possible, entrants should try to get their own webhosts or websites to post their movies on. There are some good bargains out there that do not cost that much. Bought by the year, some run about $50/year. Not that much of an investment for the ease and convince they would give you. You can of course put other things on them, like your own personalized website, and you know you all want one!!!!!!!! The hoops that we have to jump through to see some of the films make it very tough. If possible also, post them so that they can be downloaded, instead of having to view it directly from the host. The judges especially need to download them for further viewing, as the judging progresses.

I like the contest and the way it is run, so keep it going, Dylan is the MAN! Remember that for the next vote Dylan! :)

Mike

William Gardner · May 9th, 2006, 02:41 PM

Here are my 2 cents. As some have noted, this was my first DVC entry and I certainly don't consider myself an "old-timer" here.

I like having a large number of people judge. If you have 2 or 3 judges, then each individual judge's preferences carry a lot of weight. If you can find 7 or 9 independent judges, then great, but having only a couple judges would be too few in my humble opinion. I'd rather have the 30 entrants judge than have only 2-3 independent people judge.

I would very much like to get independent, anonymous, constructive feedback, and to be able to give similar feedback without any concern that it would possibly affect the judging. I did feel like the feedback in the threads was very positive (even to the point of being overly so, sometimes) for the huge majority of the films. While everybody should be commended for entering, constructive feedback can be very valuable. Each and every film had areas of strength and areas where improvements could be made, and being able to give and receive that feedback could be helpful to folks improving their films in the future.

If people were interested, I would be happy to anonymously collect feedback from entrants for the next DVC, edit them appropriately (to remove any "this sucked" feedback or "you're a god" feedback), and provide the feedback privately only to each film's creator so that folks would feel comfortable providing honest, specific feedback without worrying about whether or not that might influence the judging. If folks are concerned about me personally doing this, I'd be happy to remove myself from possible judging. Or perhaps somebody else with the inclination and interest who is not specifically involved could be found.

I'd love to see the whole viewing and judging thing take less time. Maybe all the films get released in 3-4 days and then the judges have to provide feedback in 3-5 days?

Finally, I'd prefer to see the films released in some random order, though this may be a lot to ask of Dylan. I was concerned that my film might have been unfairly negatively affected by being the very first entry, though given the outcome, perhaps my film was unfairly positively affected by being the very first entry... :)

As with the others, these are just my thoughts and you can take em or leave em. I think overall it is a great contest and I'd hate to see anything fundamentally affect the character of the contest.

Bill

Kris Holodak · May 10th, 2006, 11:19 AM

It never occured to me that how people voted for me could be affected by how I critiqued their film. Perhaps because we're all so much in this for the fun and experience that just didn't enter my mind.

I did noticed that a few films I voted for didn't make the finalists list and my first thought was that different people must have had different criteria for voting. Though I suppose it's possible that they had the same criteria just different opinions. As long as we're all just in it for the fun then it doesn't really matter. We do run the risk though that the cooler the prizes get the more people will be actually trying to win. And if that's your goal you would want to know what you're being judged on before you started shooting. Fortunately for me my goal was to practice with new gear, but being a naturally competitive person even with stupid things like co-ed rec softball, I do see the point.

Certainly a good story, well acted and well produced ought to end up the winner (as it did this time), but given a limited amount of time and resources will a great story moderately executed do better than a mediocre story well executed? If I'm giving myself a $100 budget do I spend it on some home depot lights, or a plug in for my editing system? If I'm recruiting a writer should I aim for my funny friend or my dramatic friend. Etc, etc. I'm not expecting an answer to these questions, just pointing out that someone with a goal toward winning should be asking themselves who is my audience and what do they want?

For me I'll be signing up for 6 with an eye toward editing. I'm in a class all this week learning all sorts of complicated stuff that I don't really need for talking head videos of conservatory students. Look out!

Dick Mays · May 12th, 2006, 02:16 AM

It's the best Film challenge on the Internet!

I've looked at ALL of them.

I was MORTIFIED to watch the top two finalist for the Amazon/Tribeca Short Competition bash each other for weeks to try to win $50K.

It ain't about winning, it's about helping each other become better film makers.

The vast majority of us try to give each other constructive criticism, pointing out the many things we LIKE about the films, and throwing in one or two remarks about what might be ADDED to make the next entry better. I've learned a lot by reading the critiques and watching these entries. Much better stuff than the majority of the festivals.

In most contests, you don't get the constructive feedback, which is what I love the most about this contest. Here was my entry in the Amazon competition. It was the first short I ever made and I could have used some advice. www.theatre4film.com/Daytona.wmv

I had lighting mistakes, some audio issues, and could have used better shot composition.

Okay, maybe that stuff about "it an't about the winnng is a little off. I plan to get me a Mike Teutsch dolly, throw in some tracking shots, cut my dialog heavy shorts into more action moving stories, and WIN the next one!

I love "The DV Challenge" just the way it is.

Hugh DiMauro · May 12th, 2006, 07:41 AM

<<It ain't about winning, it's about helping each other become better film makers.>>

Dick, so help me, you're a wise man. You've summed it up. Succinctly. Perfectly.

Dick Mays · May 14th, 2006, 05:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hugh DiMauro

Dick, so help me, you're a wise man. You've summed it up. Succinctly. Perfectly.

Thanks Hugh! I've never been called a "wise man" before. :)

May 9th, 2006, 10:42 AM	#31
Mike Teutsch Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Port St. Lucie, Florida Posts: 2,614	Personally, I would like to see a permanent or semi-permanent panel of judges rather than the entrants getting one vote each. It would make for more consistent judging. As far as not posting names, you could not even post film titles, just a number 1 through......whatever, perhaps by the date and time received. After all, once you get to see the film you will have the title and all. It will not keep them anonymous though, because they can be ID'ed by the website, style, and maybe those who appear in them. Having a judging panel would also allow the movies to be seen by those who need to, before the bandwidth is exceeded. I never did see two of the movies in this contest, because each time I tried their bandwidth had been used up. With a judging panel this would probably not happen until the judging had been completed. One last suggestion, if at all possible, entrants should try to get their own webhosts or websites to post their movies on. There are some good bargains out there that do not cost that much. Bought by the year, some run about $50/year. Not that much of an investment for the ease and convince they would give you. You can of course put other things on them, like your own personalized website, and you know you all want one!!!!!!!! The hoops that we have to jump through to see some of the films make it very tough. If possible also, post them so that they can be downloaded, instead of having to view it directly from the host. The judges especially need to download them for further viewing, as the judging progresses. I like the contest and the way it is run, so keep it going, Dylan is the MAN! Remember that for the next vote Dylan! :) Mike __________________ Chapter one, line one. The BH.

May 9th, 2006, 02:41 PM	#32
William Gardner Major Player Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 216	Here are my 2 cents. As some have noted, this was my first DVC entry and I certainly don't consider myself an "old-timer" here. I like having a large number of people judge. If you have 2 or 3 judges, then each individual judge's preferences carry a lot of weight. If you can find 7 or 9 independent judges, then great, but having only a couple judges would be too few in my humble opinion. I'd rather have the 30 entrants judge than have only 2-3 independent people judge. I would very much like to get independent, anonymous, constructive feedback, and to be able to give similar feedback without any concern that it would possibly affect the judging. I did feel like the feedback in the threads was very positive (even to the point of being overly so, sometimes) for the huge majority of the films. While everybody should be commended for entering, constructive feedback can be very valuable. Each and every film had areas of strength and areas where improvements could be made, and being able to give and receive that feedback could be helpful to folks improving their films in the future. If people were interested, I would be happy to anonymously collect feedback from entrants for the next DVC, edit them appropriately (to remove any "this sucked" feedback or "you're a god" feedback), and provide the feedback privately only to each film's creator so that folks would feel comfortable providing honest, specific feedback without worrying about whether or not that might influence the judging. If folks are concerned about me personally doing this, I'd be happy to remove myself from possible judging. Or perhaps somebody else with the inclination and interest who is not specifically involved could be found. I'd love to see the whole viewing and judging thing take less time. Maybe all the films get released in 3-4 days and then the judges have to provide feedback in 3-5 days? Finally, I'd prefer to see the films released in some random order, though this may be a lot to ask of Dylan. I was concerned that my film might have been unfairly negatively affected by being the very first entry, though given the outcome, perhaps my film was unfairly positively affected by being the very first entry... :) As with the others, these are just my thoughts and you can take em or leave em. I think overall it is a great contest and I'd hate to see anything fundamentally affect the character of the contest. Bill Last edited by William Gardner; May 10th, 2006 at 01:29 PM.

May 12th, 2006, 02:16 AM	#34
Dick Mays Major Player Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 690	Don't Fix what ain't broke! It's the best Film challenge on the Internet! I've looked at ALL of them. I was MORTIFIED to watch the top two finalist for the Amazon/Tribeca Short Competition bash each other for weeks to try to win $50K. It ain't about winning, it's about helping each other become better film makers. The vast majority of us try to give each other constructive criticism, pointing out the many things we LIKE about the films, and throwing in one or two remarks about what might be ADDED to make the next entry better. I've learned a lot by reading the critiques and watching these entries. Much better stuff than the majority of the festivals. In most contests, you don't get the constructive feedback, which is what I love the most about this contest. Here was my entry in the Amazon competition. It was the first short I ever made and I could have used some advice. www.theatre4film.com/Daytona.wmv I had lighting mistakes, some audio issues, and could have used better shot composition. Okay, maybe that stuff about "it an't about the winnng is a little off. I plan to get me a Mike Teutsch dolly, throw in some tracking shots, cut my dialog heavy shorts into more action moving stories, and WIN the next one! I love "The DV Challenge" just the way it is.

May 12th, 2006, 07:41 AM	#35
Hugh DiMauro Trustee Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Central Florida Posts: 1,205	<<It ain't about winning, it's about helping each other become better film makers.>> Dick, so help me, you're a wise man. You've summed it up. Succinctly. Perfectly. __________________ Interesting, if true. And interesting anyway.

May 10th, 2006, 11:19 AM	#33
Kris Holodak Major Player Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Washington, DC Posts: 302	It never occured to me that how people voted for me could be affected by how I critiqued their film. Perhaps because we're all so much in this for the fun and experience that just didn't enter my mind. I did noticed that a few films I voted for didn't make the finalists list and my first thought was that different people must have had different criteria for voting. Though I suppose it's possible that they had the same criteria just different opinions. As long as we're all just in it for the fun then it doesn't really matter. We do run the risk though that the cooler the prizes get the more people will be actually trying to win. And if that's your goal you would want to know what you're being judged on before you started shooting. Fortunately for me my goal was to practice with new gear, but being a naturally competitive person even with stupid things like co-ed rec softball, I do see the point. Certainly a good story, well acted and well produced ought to end up the winner (as it did this time), but given a limited amount of time and resources will a great story moderately executed do better than a mediocre story well executed? If I'm giving myself a $100 budget do I spend it on some home depot lights, or a plug in for my editing system? If I'm recruiting a writer should I aim for my funny friend or my dramatic friend. Etc, etc. I'm not expecting an answer to these questions, just pointing out that someone with a goal toward winning should be asking themselves who is my audience and what do they want? For me I'll be signing up for 6 with an eye toward editing. I'm in a class all this week learning all sorts of complicated stuff that I don't really need for talking head videos of conservatory students. Look out!