Film Rush Weekend

It's a Weekend of Adrenaline, Fun and Creativity!

Film Rush Weekend - North Country Edition’s first annual event is a test of you and your team's ability to work together and make a movie in a short time frame.  The sense of accomplishment is tremendous - and you will celebrate by watching your film on the big screen at the Strand Center Theatre!

2024 EVENT CANCELLED. STAY TUNED FOR FUTURE EVENT DATES.

How does it work?

  1. Put your team together -- friends, fellow filmmakers, like-minded creatives

  2. Attend the mixer event to connect with other filmmakers. Find more people for your group or find a group that needs you!  

  3. Register your team!

  4. Your assembled team will receive a genre, character, prop and line at the kick off event.

  5. Make a movie and have fun! You have 72 hours to write, shoot and edit a short

  6. Upload (or drop off) your film by the deadline and make plans to attend the screening.

ALL THE DETAILS

Registration

$125 per team, recommended at least 4-5 people per team, welcome to have more! Team Captain will register the team, pay the fee, and name participants.

Judges

Bryan Chemini
Cinematographer, Industry Freelance
Bryan Chemini is known for The Fallen Apprentice: A Star Wars Story (2024), New Beginnings (2023) and Chasing Zombies.
Pittsburgh Technical College

Michael Devine, Ph.D.
A lyricist and performer, co-founder the music collective Famous Letter Writer
Director, Center for Interdisciplinary & Area Studies, SUNY Plattsburgh

Awards

Audience Award (audience vote)

Best Film

Best Directing 

Best Writing 

Best Acting 

Best Cinematography 

Best Editing 

Potential Genre List

(everyone selects a different genre randomly) 

  • Drama

  • Comedy

  • Dark Comedy

  • SciFi

  • Western

  • Fantasy

  • Thriller

  • Coming of Age

  • Film Noir

  • RomCom

  • Musical

  • Historical Drama

  • Apocalyptic

  • Experimental

  • Passes the Bechdel Test*

Required Elements

At the Kickoff Event we will announce a character, a prop and a line of dialogue just a few minutes before the Official Filmmaking Period begins.

Required Line:
The required line of dialogue must be heard or seen - it may be written. It may be in a foreign language; however if it is not clear that this is the required line, it should be translated.

Required Character
The required character does not have to be the star, but we must actually see them on the screen. Name tags, etc. are not necessary so long as the audience can infer who they are.

Required Prop
The required prop must be seen, and it should be used in your film in some way.  You do not need to mention it or have an actor deliberately point it out but it does need to be clearly IN the scene.

Adherence to Assignment
Did you know judges base part of their scores on a film’s adherence to assignment? This refers to the genre and required elements so follow directions!

Elements in Credits Do Not Count
The required elements must appear in the story of your film. Use of the elements only in the end credits will NOT fulfill the requirement.

FAQs

"Do I have to have multiple people on my team? Can I participate solo?"

Oh, the lone wolf! We admire your ambition! Yes, your team can consist of just you!

"Is there an age limit to participate?"

No, but minors under the age of 18 will be required to have written parent/legal guardian permission to participate and the parent/legal guardian will have to be present during the kick-off event and drop-off event.

"Do I have to have prior experience? I'm not a professional filmmaker."

This event is open to everyone! You don't event need a professional camera setup to participate! Use your iPhone! Creativity is what's important.