Filmmakers from across the province got down to creepy crunch time last weekend.
The Okotoks Film Society’s 24-Hour Film Challenge kicked off Friday, Oct. 14 at 6 p.m. as 15 teams of filmmakers from across the province went head-to-virtual-head creating horror-themed short films due just the next day.
“I feel it went really well, super fun, and the films were out of this world,” said Okotoks Film Society director Katie Fournell.
“Some things they did we can’t imagine doing in only 24 hours.”
At the kickoff, they each get one of three genres.
“We have zombie as our monster, because we always do a monster,” Fournell said. “We also always do a real life type one that could actually happen, and so we’re doing trapped or isolation as the horror.
“Then for the final one we usually go with a more general horror genre, and so this year we have slasher. They still make them scary, but it does add some variation so that not everybody is making a zombie film. “
In keeping with film challenge tradition, all teams got a prop – in this case a candle.
Finally, one more curveball.
“We gave them the challenge of either finding or creating a malaphor (two incorrectly merged metaphors or idioms) and somehow using that in their film,” Fournell said.
Those flicks will be judged by Oct. 17 and available for viewing at watch.okotoksfilmfestival.ca until Oct. 24.
Having done last spring’s 48-Hour challenge, Foothills Composite High School students Wynn Brown and Kiyan Karimaghaei were chomping at the bit to film their zombie flick, using an empty farm structure on a relative’s property.
The two aren’t new to filmmaking, having made short amateur films and are now starting their second year in the school’s award-winning new media program.
“We did a lot of amateur films before,” Wynn said. “I used to do a lot myself, just on webcams, and it just led up to when I met Kiyan and we decided to make a film for social studies.”
Taking it up a notch, Karimaghaei said the added time crunch creates a challenge, but drives his creativity.
“It’s different, because we’re usually not used to working with a timeframe, so having a hard deadline is a little bit stressful,” said Karimaghaei, adding he hopes to keep pursuing the passion.
“Even just like coming out here and like physically making something it's different than anything else.”
Also partaking once again were Laura Fournier and Logan Coutts, who drew the slasher genre.
Having done two 48-hour challenges with Coutts before, Fournier is quickly finding her footing in the craft.
"It's kind of new to me, but I would think I'm a pretty creative person, so this is kind of right up my alley,” said Fournier, who wrote, directed and worked the camera for much of their film. "It's always cool because you get something new every single time.”
For information about the Okotoks Film Society, visit okotoksfilmfestival.ca.
