Furious Filmmaking with Filmhead

Ant Timpson describes how the 48 hour furious filmmaking competition grew from filming ‘crazy shorts’ in the weekend with his brother as a child, to ‘a bit of a lark’ as part of the Incredibly Strange Film Festival, before becoming the ‘huge machine’ it is today.

“There is nothing more rewarding than creating something and seeing your work with an audience. I honestly think it’s as simple as that.

"The V48 provides you with the impetus to create something quickly but even better to have a large audience waiting for it in a few days. It takes the drag and lethargy out of the filmmaking experience.”

In this skype chat with The Big Idea Editor Cathy Aronson, Timpson (known as Filmhead) talks about his obsession with film, how the competition entices new and established filmmakers, having Peter Jackson on board as a wildcard judge, standing out from the noise and wider industry issues including the NZ Film Commission review and his moot for a NZ Film Month.

Registrations for V48 Hours 2010 close on 9 April at 6.00pm and the shoot weekend is 16–18 April.

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Cathy Aronson: How’s it going?

Ant Timpson: Very well thank you. Things are starting to pick up speed regarding V48HOURS this year and so blood pressure rising - the usual.

Cathy: What's involved in the prep for v48hours?

Ant Timpson: A lot. It all starts around September when I go begging to sponsors to support us again. Luckily our naming rights sponsor has signed on for 3yrs, without V we'd be finding it tough to continue to expand. We have 7 managers around the country who have to set up their own regions and an operations manager who liaises between them all and the promotions people. We also have a TV series component which adds some complexities as well.

Cathy: Wow - that's quite a large operation - not all fun and games eh!

Ant Timpson: Oh fun is always present. The minute this becomes all work and no play, then this John will move on. I still get a huge kick out of the V48. I love seeing the next generation gearing up to take over.

Cathy: Is that why you started v48hours? Tell us more about its beginnings?

Ant Timpson: Well it was never meant to be this huge machine that it is now. I'm stoked that it is as I think it really is an important part of the NZ film landscape.. but originally it was simply a festival slot inside the Incredibly Strange Film Festival. A bit of a lark that took off and really was a forerunner to the whole user generated content that is so pervasive now.

Cathy: Why do you think it has grown to be such a 'huge machine'?

Ant Timpson: There is nothing more rewarding than creating something and seeing your work with an audience. I honestly think it’s as simple as that. The V48 provides you with the impetus to create something quickly but even better to have a large audience waiting for it in a few days. It takes the drag and lethargy out of the filmmaking experience.

Cathy: In what ways has it changed in the past eight years?

Ant Timpson: It really hasn't changed that much at all. It has just grown in size and stature. There have been some minor refinements along the way and the addition of new mediums (TV series) to view the finished films. If it aint broke so to speak. It's a delicate thing to get the balance right and I am always cautious about introducing any changes. That said, I do like surprises and throwing the odd spanner into the works now and then. There are some interesting possibilities for the event in the future now that technology is changing so fast.

Cathy: Hmm, what might some of those possibilities be?

Ant Timpson: Oh some of our new partners might allow us to try new things... innovations like augmented reality being part of the event  ... but I don't want to give everything away at this stage. The primary goal of V48HOURS for me is to support certain teams to the next level ie feature films. Some have already gone out and are making independent features as I type and that’s brilliant.

Cathy: What are some of the 'success' stories from v48hours - people who have used it as a springboard for a filmmaking career?

Ant Timpson: Well we always like to throw Taika Waititi out there as our poster child after he won the Wellington comp in its inaugural year (2004) but many of the success stories definitely were making their own way and as much as I'd like the V48 to claim them as "Our Own" I really can't. I think the ones we can claim to have given a major boost (in services & cash & profile) are teams like Crash Zoom, whose director Gerard Johnstone who has gone on to do Jacquie Brown Diaries and the producer Luke Sharpe who runs Bunker Media and is super successful multi-media production company. The team that may align itself more with V48 than any other is probably the Down Low Concept who won the competition in 2006 and really came out of nowhere. Their background was in radio and this showed everyone that they were talented visual artists. Since then they have made shorts, developed pilots and are behind the hit show 7 Days. They exemplify the events success.

Cathy: And I hear you have a 15 year old competing this year - who has been doing it since he was 10? Seems some New Zealanders are growing up with it!

Ant Timpson: Mr Calvin Sang is some sort of child prodigy. I think he was actually  11 when he made his first film under his team name Pickle Thugs. It was an epic war with vegetables and fruit in a kitchen. Just brilliantly executed and conceived. We originally thought his Dad had made it but no this kid is just crazy good.

There's also Levi Beamish whose work I found on youtube and then begged him to enter. He was based in Keri Keri and literally had no clue about the film world. He lived on youtube and had around 30,000 subscribers to his channel. He made an impressive 48 short that ended up being a youtube hit with 300,000+ views in 2 days. He is going to be a major talent and if I was an agent I would have signed him up years ago. I heard he may have something at Cannes this year too.

Cathy: Wow! You've also introduced the v48seconds, why did you introduce this and are you getting more entries from kids via this warm-up comp?

Ant Timpson: The V48SECONDS has been going for 3 years now. To be brutally frank I conceived this to give our major sponsor some extra leverage in the overall relationship. Sponsors need to be happy with partnerships, the days of static branding are over. The V48SECONDS is a brilliant way for people to have some fun, shoot on anything, do it in less than a minute, win huge prizes but most of all - test their equipment before the big event happens. I'm not a big fan of sponsors shoe horning their product into events where it looks ungainly and forced, that’s why this is a win win. And yes kids find it an easy route before stepping up to the big 48.

Cathy: You obviously get entries from experienced filmmakers too - how do you think you attract that range (of beginners to experienced)?

Ant Timpson: Experienced filmmakers enter because they're usually not working on their own personal projects. 90% of the time to be a working filmmaker in NZ, you're doing other work to keep going. The V48 allows them to cut loose and create something they want without limitations (well aside from time and no budget!) I have had very experienced people come up and say it was the best weekend filming they have ever had, that it totally reminded them of why they wanted to make films/tv in the first place. That is a high compliment. Then again, others have said they nearly died and never want to do it again. But they do....

Cathy: Do you see short films as an introduction to feature filmmaking?

Ant Timpson: I see any filmmaking as an introduction to feature filmmaking. If you don't keep creating, shooting something all the time, you never grow, you never mature as a filmmaker. You cannot expect to step into a feature film unless you're confident and know what the hell you're doing. Do I think V48 people should go straight into a zero budget feature straight away. Of course. It'll probably be terrible but you'll learn so much more than you could from anything else. That’s why we always keep hammering home about 'Just Shoot it"   - apologies to Nike.

Cathy: What ignited your early passion for films and film making? What was your first film or short?

Ant Timpson: I've been obsessed (and yes it is an obsession) with film since I was very young. All my memories are based around films which is kind of sad but is the truth. I remember my first film but have no clue about my first kiss. Actually it was when I was 7 after doing whirly gigs on our back lawn.. Roaseanne or Regan. But what I can tell you vividly was my first film experience was Scrooge with Albert Finney and it was in a theatre somewhere in K'Road.  Having access to a video camera early on was the real key to this whole 48 thing. My brother and I made crazy shorts every weekend for a few years, then showed them to family and friends. We loved the attention.

Ant Timpson: Actually I have some clips of those home movies if you want to use them. They're hilarious.

Cathy: Gosh yes! Do you wish there was 48hrs comp then for you? Did that help spark the idea?

Ant Timpson: Oh you have no idea. I missed the boat when I was young. There was nothing like media studies when I was at school. There was only the spot on film comp and Peter Jackson won those. And yes those weekends were a huge influence.

Cathy: You are also especially supportive of NZ films and audiences for NZ films. Why is this important?

Ant Timpson: Well it’s a no brainer. If NZ audiences don't support NZ films then it’s unlikely we'll be seeing many on the big screens in the future. You have to market NZ films though and this is where we struggle... BOY will be a big hit but they also did a killer job marketing and positioning that film here. Many NZ films have terrible campaigns by people who should not be allowed near them. We spend way too much on development and not enough on thinking about audiences and how to market the film to them in the first place.

Cathy: You mooted a NZ Film Month last year - why, and how has this progressed?

Ant Timpson: I think the idea has merit and so do many others (even Peter Jackson). The idea of celebrating NZ FILM as a whole and keeping awareness of what’s happening to the public I think is crucial, we just can't rely on a BOY to come along and prop up audiences for a bit and then sink away for a few years. We need to keep the engine burning, we need mad energy out there. Screens blazing with films..

It’s an idea that needs some money behind it and lots of volunteers. It’s achievable but it needs a focus and high energy behind it. It needs the NZFC to say, here's $100k - go do it. It sure beats spending in some other areas that I won't mention.

Cathy: Good luck!

Ant Timpson: I'll get in line with the 10,000 people. If I get angry enough I'll just do it... it’s usually the best way.

Cathy: Talking about PJ, when and how did he become involved in 48hours, what keeps him involved? Do you think his wildcard is a draw card?

Ant Timpson: I was just trying to think of when he came onboard as Wildcard Judge. It’s probably 5 years ago now. I knew him from years back when I interviewed him for Bad Taste for a German Magazine, and then became friendly via Phillippa Boyens who was really the bridge in all of this. He loves the idea of grass roots filmmaking and thinks the 48 is important. He makes time in his SUPER busy schedule to do a lot for the competition. Can you imagine James Cameron watching 48 hour shorts every year? And giving prize monies?  His wildcard is a big part definitely. The idea that he can watch your film and put you in his memory banks is a big draw for sure. And I know after meeting him recently, he remembers his fave shorts and teams. He wants to know what they're up to and so on. He also watches the grand final and offers advice on how to improve it.

Cathy: What do you think about Peter Jackson leading the review of the NZ Film Commission? Did you make a submission and what do you hope comes out of the review?

Ant Timpson: Leanne Saunders and I made a submission via our Headstrong company. I think the new Escalator takes some of these initiatives and is attempting to beat the review to the punch. The review is long overdue, there is a lot that is right with the NZFC now but there needs to be some major changes with culture and some unnecessary expenditure in the wrong areas. I think everyone hopes for the following to come out of the review, more transparency, the end to them versus us and a new era of the NZFC being completely supportive of true talent, the end of drip-fed development to hundreds of projects that we know will never be made and finally some more funding from Government (doubtful).

Ant Timpson: I think PJ will bring some common sense to the big picture and will hopefully be able to translate his ideas to parliament that will see long term benefits to the NZ film scene. He's  a pragmatic thinker so personally I don't think anything radical will come out of it. I think it will contain solid well thought out ideas that have a specific reason for their implementation.

Cathy: What in your view are some of the other challenges and opportunities in the ‘industry’ at the mo?

Ant Timpson: I think the challenges are actually the opportunities from the past. If that makes sense. When Francis Ford Coppola announced after the arrival of the handycam, ":that some kid in Ohio will make a film that will get into Cannes" he was totally right. However he also forgot that along with that one kid  there were 1,000,000 other horrible features made. So the biggest hurdle for all filmmakers is to be heard or seen above the rest of the mass. Too many times do I see lacklustre voices trying to heard. No one wants to see your by the numbers piece of poop. You want to succeed, you better have major talent or a distinct point of view, cos the days of coasting on just making something are loooooooooooooooong gone.

Cathy: How does v48hours, in whatever form, help with this?

Ant Timpson: Well the few detractors will say its just adding to the noise and you know they'd be correct in that. But in defense of 48, what it does do is play the numbers game. We get more people learning their craft early on, we won't have to put up with as much junk when it gets to the finish line. Hopefully the true talent can be spotted and supported early on, lifting them away from the great mass of mediocrity. And that is not a bash on green filmmakers. The odds of being a true talent are a 1000 to one. So let’s not kid ourselves, we can have heaps of fun within 48 but let’s keep it real as well. Anyone I see that I think shows signs of true talent I am all over them like white on rice.

Cathy: Lastly, do you have any tips for competitors in this year's 48hours?

Ant Timpson: Thrill me