The 2011 MIVA Film Festival is over, an we had a great night! MIVA provided pizza & pop, Epic Motion let us use their building as a meeting space, Mandel Video supplied the popcorn, and a few generous members brought some beverages of the adult variety. We saw 14 works by about 10 different studios and in the end three studios walked away with our four prizes. The big winners of the night were Aaron & Shelby Mayberry of the newly rebranded Style & Motion taking away the awards for Best Same Day Edit and Best Concept Reel. Epic Motion took the prize for Best Trailer, and Fifth and Main Films walked out with the trophy for Best Highlight Film (the most heavily entered category). Congratulations to all of the winners! As part of their prize, we will feature the four pieces from now through next November on the sidebar of the website until the 2012 MIVA Film Festival!

Four categories are open for submissions in our annual MIVA Film Festival this year. Only current, paid-to-date MIVA members will be allowed to submit entries. Each MIVA member has the privilege to submit up to, but no more than two entries. These two entries may be in the same category or in any two that he/she wish. Specifics about the different categories are listed below.

All entries must be submitted no later than 5pm on Friday, October 28th, 2011.

When you submit, you must then also e-mail a Paypal payment of $20 per entry (limit, one entry per category) to info@mivaonline.com.

The categories are as follows:

Wedding/Event Highlight Reel

Although it may seem self-explanatory, this entry includes any production which highlights a wedding day or special event. The Wedding/Event Highlight Reel should be 5:00 in length or less.

Wedding/Event Trailer

This category is specifically designed for entries which were produced as a preview to the upcoming film. Trailer entries should be 2:00 in length or less.

Same Day Edit

Same Day Edit is a new category for the 2011 film festival, and as the name implies are created within the constraints of an actual wedding day. This is only relevant to videos that were shot and edited on the same calendar day. Videos that would be considered Next Day Edits or Same Week Edits are NOT applicable, and must be submitted in either the Trailer or Highlight categories (dependent on run-time). Same Day Edits should be no longer than 5:00 in length.

Concept Reel

This category is designed for everything else under the sun, ranging from Love Stories to Trash the Dress, Save the Date and Video Invitations. The Concept Reel should be 5:00 in length or less.

File and Format Specifications:
Please use the same settings you would use for uploading to Vimeo or YouTube. Preferably a Quicktime H.264 file, but windows media is fine too. Please name your videos in the following format:

“StudioName_Category_NameOfFilm.mov”  (i.e. 3rd-Street-Films_Trailer_Ali-and-Alex.mov)

You need to use a FTP client to upload. For example on the mac you can use Fetch. On the PC you could use WS_FTP.

Also, please note that Epic Motion is generously hosting us that night as they have a more reliable internet connection than our normal hosts, so PLEASE register in advance so we know how much pizza & pop to have on hand and how many seats to provide. BYOB this time folks. Epic Motion’s studio is at 628 East Parent Avenue #504, Royal Oak, MI 48067. See you there!

On Thursday, May 6th, join Ann Arbor wedding and event photographer Aruna B and a model couple as she will be leading a hands-on workshop in downtown Royal Oak in the “art of posing”. We will be meeting at 4:30pm at Studio 628 – home of Epic Motion (628 E. Parent Ave., Royal Oak, MI) and then heading downtown shortly thereafter.

The workshop will be tailored toward filmmakers, but anyone who is interested in the concept is welcome.

Space is limited to 12 people. Bring your cameras, sliders, steadicams, etc.. It will be a great opportunity to see some other cameras and stuff in use – and a great opportunity to try some new things out. Email info@mivaonline.com if you need more information.

February 3 – Eliminate Your Backlog w/ Chris Jones from InFocus and Mason Jar Films
March 3: The Art of Evolution w/ Ron Dawson of Dare Dreamer Media
April 7: Why Wedding Coordinators ROCK w/ Lindsey Nartker and Laura Davis
May 5: Photographer Spotlight & The Art of Posing w/ Aruna B.
May 6: The Art of Posing Workshop w/ Real Models w/ Aruna B.
June 2: Re-energizing Your Brand w/ John and Jen Moon of Northernlight Filmworks and POSH
July 7: The Price is Right, or is it? Panel Discussion w/ Don Pham, Lee Thomas & Jamie Honce, hosted by Aaron Mayberry.
August 4: Building Your Corporate Portfolio w/ Mark Salloum from Video Magic Productions
September 1: DSLR Discussion Panel w/Jamie Honce, Aaron Mayberry, Matt Trubac & Andy Owen, hosted by Shelby Downing.
October 6: MIVA Workshop
November 3: MIVA Film Fest
December 1: Christmas Party!!

CeCe and Trevor, 4 of 10 from Chris P. Jones on Vimeo.

Chris Jones hails from Austin, Texas and is owner of Mason Jar Films and one of the co-founders of IN[FOCUS].

Time to get IN[TENSE] and eliminate your backlog – IN[FOCUS] and MIVA present IN[FOCUS] co-founder Chris P. Jones as he shares with you how he has reduced his editing time by half and reduced his deliver time to a matter of a few weeks. With simple habits and techniques, Chris will demonstrate how you, no matter your editing style or video market, can shave off hours of editing per project and spend more time away from your desk.

Join us at Bastone for our monthly association meeting.

CeCe and Trevor, 4 of 10 from Chris P. Jones on Vimeo.

Chris Jones hails from Austin, Texas and is owner of Mason Jar Films and one of the co-founders of IN[FOCUS].

Time to get IN[TENSE] and eliminate your backlog – IN[FOCUS] and MIVA present IN[FOCUS] co-founder Chris P. Jones as he shares with you how he has reduced his editing time by half and reduced his deliver time to a matter of a few weeks. With simple habits and techniques, Chris will demonstrate how you, no matter your editing style or video market, can shave off hours of editing per project and spend more time away from your desk.

Join us at Bastone for our monthly association meeting.

Fifth and Main Productions won the People’s Choice Award and also won the runner up prize for the Producer’s Choice Award. Here is that entry:

April 25, 2009 Milica & Andreas wedding trailer from Fifth and Main Productions on Vimeo.

The winner for the Producer’s Choice Award was Take One Productions with this entry:

Click here to View Don’s winning entry from his blog.

Here is the People’s Choice Runner Up by Two Penny Productions:

“People’s Choice Award” at the 2009 MIVA Wedding Film Festival. from Two Penny on Vimeo.

Here are the links to the companies who entered a video (As listed on the voting forms):
RC DJ and Video Productions
Personal Touch Productions
A1 Video Professionals
Fifth and Main Productions
W. Cardone Productions
Epic Motion
Joseph F Bauer Studios
Lee Thomas Films
Jamie Honce Productions
Two Penny Productions
TruVision Studios
Video Magic Productions
Take One Productions
Days to Remember
Mel’s Video

Please get involved with the MIVA Association and join us for fun and exciting events like this.

The Michigan Independent Video Association is established to promote the growth of independent producers and videographers through advanced education and training, social relationships and networking, along with an advocacy of the values and effectiveness of video for our clients..