One more week to send in 400 word synopsis to Panasonic’s short film competition

THE Panasonic Digital Short Film Competition closes on 6 August. Which means there’s still time to jot down ideas which could land you into making your first short film, plus a four day trip to Japan with hotel and meal vouchers provided.

Organised by Panasonic in collaboration with 42nd Pictures, the contest is the latest in a series of initiatives to unearth new international talents and if you’re a Malaysian filmmaker, this could be your ticket to awesome. Winner gets their film screened at the next Malaysian edition of Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia (SSFFA) tentatively scheduled for December this year.

These guys will even give you the equipment — five finalists will receive a DVX200 camera to complete their project. All you need to do is send in a 400 word synopsis, which could eventually give you opportunities to learn in terms of scripting, storyboarding, production and post production.

Also, here’s a bonus diagram that explains basic storytelling.

If you wrote one of the five chosen synopses (don’t forget to assemble your team too!) then in September you’ll start working on translating your text into a fifteen-minute script. This means free classes by Yasu Tanaka on visual storytelling and mentorship from 42nd Pictures, who will also guide you through the shoot.

All five films will be evaluated by a jury panel — Hassan Muthalib has been confirmed to appear — and the winning entry walks away with the aforementioned prizes.

But that’s barely reason to go through all this trouble. The biggest thing to come out of this would be that short film you’ve just created, which has cleared all copyright and finished in post. Because next, you’re going to submit this to festivals around the globe and potentially kick off the next phase of your life as the filmmaker you were born to be. What are you waiting for?

That’s all we can tell you about the competition for now (check out the website) but all you need to know is this: 400 word synopsis and the application form by next Friday, straight to . Get cracking!

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Featured image via Galaksi Media.