MANILA, Philippines - The Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) is launching the 180 Global Microcinema Festival, an Internet-based short filmmaking contest.

In an exclusive interview, FDCP chair Rolando S. Atienza said that the online festival?s name refers to the length of each entry, 180 seconds or three minutes. ?It can also mean 180 degrees, as in complete turnaround. This festival hopes to discover filmmakers with innovative ideas that go beyond the traditional.?

Categories
The contest covers three categories: Narrative, Experimental and Documentary, Atienza explained.

Entries in the Narrative section should ?effectively communicate a story via an inventive fusion of form and content?; in the Experimental category, entries should ?demonstrate unconventional, progressive approaches to cinema as an evolving art form?; and in the Documentary slot, entries should be ?factually accurate in depicting people, places and events.?

Filmmakers, both professional and amateur, can submit one entry per category to the fest, which will be launched later this month through the FDCP website.

Phone cams okay
Vinci Roxas, project manager, said participants will not be limited in their choice of equipment. ?They can even use cellphone cameras,? he said, adding that digital technology has democratized the filmmaking process.

Atienza said that, apart from discovering fresh talent, the 180 fest also aims to build an audience online. ?The 180 festival is interactive,? Atienza noted.

Since entries can be viewed on the FDCP website, ?viewers can post comments and also vote in the four rounds of competition, as well as in the semi-finals and finals,? Atienza said.

The site also wants to foster a dynamic dialogue on cinema among Netizens.

The contest, open to Filipino filmmakers who are at least 18 years old, will also have a jury prize, alongside the audience choice award.

Among the prizes is a chance to pitch a project to Roselle Monteverde-Teo of Regal Films which is launching its own digital arm this year.

?The Internet is the future of cinema,? Atienza pointed out.

In a related development, the FDCP has also formally awarded the P100,000 cash prize to the 10 finalists of last year?s Cinemalaya.

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