Ness Patea 0

Love Hurts

This uncertain couple have relationship problems, calling out for help from Mario the Italian sex - coach. I loved the reaction shots when Mario entered the room. The fruity sensuality scenes got ramped up to splatter sexuality and the room was trashed in the best possible way! The stylistic lighting really added to the mood, my main criticism is I would have liked the lighting to be more consistent throughout. The punchline was gold... I look forward to seeing what this team produce each year!

The Voiceless

A gorey musical about a failure, no hoper, and a suicide at risk kidnapped for their singing talents. Atop some sweet singing this film gets pretty gorey. Some Bladerunner lighting with some split screen thrown in for good measure, this film was pretty dark, but the singing balanced it out.

Pour Moi

This was my fav. from the heat. Yes thought the immobilized aspect was clever and got some good laughs. Some good acting from some familiar faces.

Flush

A chatty cell-mate discloses the existence of a legendary golden toilet located in Wainuiomata and the pair break out of jail to find out if the rumours are true. This film is carried by the dynamic between this unlikely duo in a string of comedic moments. The humour is in the banter between the two and the mistakes they make start to play out like a comedy of errors. There was a few technical issues with the film but was an overall enjoyable watch. I realise the toilet never existed which left me questioning why they ended up at the guards house, that bit was slightly unclear, was it planned all along?

Ripped Off

Family sticker boy and cat sticker Boris peel off a car window out into the big open world and have adventures trying to find their way back to the safety of their car sticker family. This concept lends itself well to animation and I always enjoy a mixture of live action and animation. It is a charming and cute film, I think the audience for this one is younger - the style of dialogue, the voice acting and the simple story. The score and the sound effects help with pacing, but the story was a little simple for me. I will show it to some kids and see how they like it.

Sweet Child Of Time

Ok, I am feeling some pressure here as Dave reviews every Wellington film and he sits next to us in the cinema, so first up - thanks Dave for all your reviewing in Wellington! Harvesting tears from a child to power your time travelling spaceship into warp speed isn't easy unless you have a warped mind and a desire to make the audience laugh, which they did, especially when the robot reversed up the ramp. Some good comedic moments and a real laugh out loud crowd pleaser. Things to improve - some more character in your voice-overs. Great to see you back in competition, I feel like your film embodied your team name.

Jaded

A pumping party that turns into a nightmare situation, when some decisions turn to regret. I enjoyed the realism and frankness that the filmmakers dealt with the theme of drug overdose in this film. I found this film very realistic; the characters, the situation and how fast it all happens. Although the situation was dramatic, the story wasn't over-dramatised or hammed up, the mood switches halfway through the film from fun to shock, The stylistic lighting and music/sound design really bolster this mood change. I felt the genre aspect was fit in around the main story, bookending the main drama, which made it seem like you knew what film you want to make before you got your genre. I might be wrong? This film definitely made an impression on me and it made the Wellington shortlist, it is fantastic to see some serious drama's with a powerful social message coming through the competition. Thanks team!

Glitch

This film caused a bit of controversy this year with it's ULTRA requirements, but this is not the forum to defend our decision in, I am here to review it. I always have high expectations from the teams who typically do well each year and after multiple entries we start to see their strengths and weaknesses as filmmakers. Cinetrance's biggest strength is it's team, as the biggest team in the competition, there is some seriously talented folk who work in independent and international films - this is evident in the production value of all of the Cinetrance films and in the grand final nominations for VFX and the silhouette shot. My issue with this film is in the writing, the story is complex for a short film and there are a lot of characters and 48-hours is not a lot of time to work through story issues, you have to resolve it in the writing and planning stages. There were a few moments after the stunning tunnel shot where I wasn't sure who the characters were, as they hadn't had enough screen time in the set-up shots and I wasn't sure why that one girl wasn't glitching. When you are creating a futuristic world you have to be clear about what the rules are in that world and to be honest, it was confusing. It was enjoyable and it definitely hit the genre mark - a technological thriller - the locations, vfx, lighting and music gave the film an edge which got it into the Wellington Finals, if that story had been a bit clearer it may have got into the Grand Finals too.

Your Lie in June

After previous years entries, I look forward to a special kind of dry humour from Team Green Square. Jonathan is rudely interrupted by gunshots in his attempt to propose to Jasmina. A relationship built on lies is at the heart of the drama in this pacey mistaken identity film. It's charm is in the cheap wig, cross dressing and crude VFX. At the heart of the story is a sweet love story. Highly enjoyable and fun film!

Wish you were here

This young team has tackled the difficult topic of grief and losing parents, a brave subject for a film. Jeanie makes a wish and for some magical moments her parents return. We discover at the end of the film all is not as it seems. This film had some sound issues, and the storyline could have been a bit clearer towards the end, but in general a bold, brave film.

Light Reading

When you have no regard for the rules, the library becomes a sinister place and a law to its own. I enjoyed the build up of suspense with the unseen monster which was suggested by the score and voyeuristic camera work. In general, I would have like the editing to have been tighter for a better pace, it lagged in energy in places. The ending got an audible response from the cinema audience. Very enjoyable film!

Unforgettable Date

Flirty conversations are had through the magical time travel messaging pot. What starts as getting to know each other turns into a steamy exchange, before going awry. This duo team put together an entertaining and memorable film. The art department and the editing is my favourite aspect, there is no fluff and every shot is there to serve the story. The characters are believable as from that era, through the use of clever styling and art department. Technically impressive considering this is a duo effort! The ending was a little predictable but got some hearty laughs at the heats.

Fraternity Milk

An orgasm and a long journey through a dark and surreal landscape sets our characters up for an epic heist that will make them rich beyond the wildest dreams. Sound strange - oh yes, that it is. This is not going to be everyones cup of tea, but I do like being confused and amused at the same time. I think this film was made for the 48hour audience, who will embrace it's unique take on conception. Some audio issues and basic animation, but I did enjoy the world you created in this film. This is a place that I have never seen before. A wild ride from this solo/duo animation team - Swan Ronson!

Fused

A bold effort from our first time, 16-year old, solo filmmaker Illena Shadbolt. From a production point of view this film was a huge achievement: writing, filming, acting, recording sound and editing everything by herself. On top of this production challenge, Illena's performance is engaging, subtle and had the right tone for her tech thriller genre. The futuristic lighting and the great variety of locations, a sci-fi bar, ocean, car, and a science lab all added to the world that the story takes place in. Although this was a solo effort the film had a lot of great support from the wider 48 hour community and picked up some nominations in the Wellington Final - Well done Illena!

Earth 2.0

Flat meetings are always about chores and in this case the astroids outside destroying the earth. Luckily the wealthy and eccentric Prince of Wainui has built a rocket to escape the end of the world. I enjoyed the performance of the quintessentially kiwi flat leader and his dry delivery (reminding me of the Flight of the Concords). None of the characters seems to care who lived or died - it was dog eat dog world and survival of the fittest was at play. There was some great use of stock footage, some sketchy fx and physical jokes which all added to the comedy. I really wanted to see the rocket take off in the last shot!

F.I.O.N.A

F.I.O.N.A - Female, Interactive, Operational, Navigational, Assistant. This film explores some interesting themes about androids and their place in our lives. What happens when you are replaced by an android and is it really that easy to let go of? I thought Kyra did a great job and she was a pretty convincing Android. The hot tip I give all the school teams is that young people should try to create stories about people their own age, instead of an office scene, and a teen with a wife in a coma, it could have been a situation that is more suited to teenagers. I find if the casting isn't right, it can be distracting from the story. This creative film was entertaining and I love the fresh perspectives the school teams bring.

Sims 3 Generation Expansion Pack

After seeing this films at a packed out heat in Wellington with a real audience, it's value was in the humour and the entertainment factor. People were rolling around laughing, it was the biggest laughs of all of the films. I would say these reviews are legit, people really enjoyed it. My favourite kind of humour comes dry and weak and this extremely crudely made film is an absolute riot. It had shoddy dialogue, random dog appearances, choppy editing and an irreverent use of the wind element, all pulled into a story by some great narration. Thanks for this fun film, I won't forget it, looking forward to seeing what you do next year.

The Riverbed

A couple takes a drive into the wilderness, they spot a lone man on the side of the road and pull over. They decide to investigate further, they discover something creepy down by the river. Dylan's unexplained behaviour is strange and the score adds atmosphere. The isolated location in the back of the Hutt Valley suits the story, all of this contributes to the tension in the film - something creepy is going to happen. The creature was a highlight and the physical effects. The ending was open, you know there is another chapter to this story. The creature loses the effect in the plastic bag though looked more like a puppet. Think it would have been better to leave it in the box. An inventive take on a Monster Movie.

Sleepover

Having a sleepover with mates, the boys are sent to bed early (5pm lol) and are unable to sleep so they tell horror stories by torchlight. Things get a bit more serious (and also hilarious), when they discover their mate is missing. I loved that you guys kept the pace up with this film and started the joke train from the first few moments of the film, the dad's deadpan acting and the sleeping bag montage was really fun. You guys committed to the splatter genre, with scenes of a blood splattered bathroom, intestines and lost limbs, somehow amongst all this violence the film remains light-hearted. The waterfall was a bonza location and your cast had good energy, just work on the sound issues (esp. when yelling) - well done team.

Pass the Parcel

An interesting take on a holiday movie, an absent father with a drinking problem wishing he was there for all the holidays he has missed and sending parcels which symbolise his feelings. I found the montage hard to follow without some dialogue to help explain and the soundtrack that went right through, while it was well done, it dominated the film rather than enhanced it. Well done to the actors though, for carrying a film with they showed a real range of emotions without dialogue.

Good Grief

A grandfather and grandson say good bye to their beloved dog in a backyard funeral ceremony and are rudely interrupted by the neighbour and his dog. Beautifully shot with a stunning overhead shot with the brightly coloured umbrella. It's refreshing to see a 48Hour film thats focusing on the emotions of the characters (grief, annoyance, cheekiness) and doesn't resort to violence to create drama. I did feel like the boys actions of stealing the dog weren't justified and I ended up sympathising with the neighbour, so that didn't work for me as a payoff. I love that you made an effort to cast a wide age-range of characters in your film, this felt considered and adds flavour and diversity in the world you have created in the film.

It's A Trap

An armed bank robber and murderer was caught and put on trial for his crimes. He is fighting for his freedom in court blaming the crimes on his mastermind gang-boss, Sione. Firstly in general, I agree with Mark (reviewer), I prefer it with when people play their own age and have circumstances in their film suited to their age. In saying that, it looked like your team had a blast making this film and the 48-hours can be about that too. As an audience member I was certainly amused, the characters were a lot of fun (especially the wife), you guys were straight-faced committed to your roles and there was some great lines that got a giggle. The courtroom was obviously a classroom which was pretty distracting from the story. Maybe look into hooking up some more diverse locations next year!

FashiON ReTREAT

When you are lacking in style or direction, take a fashion retreat with some strong female fashionistas hanging out in the pine forest. There were some technical issues with the sound, but I still enjoyed the cult-like feminist fashion banter between the female characters (especially in the cinema), the transcension into her true self was bold and brave. I was craving some more high fashion with the outfits.

The Robster Goes to High School

First-timers Team Hillbilly landed the high school genre. Picking up girls and intimidating guys, 35 year old Robster is strutting around school. Owning the parties and first 15 Rugby team, Robster is fulfilling his dream of being a high school superstar. Filmed in a documentary style with some dry humour, there was a few technical issues with sound and camera. Overall, my tip for you guys is that I feel like this film could have benefitted with more time on the script writing at the beginning and to use your available resources. You got high school genre and instead of trying to fit your actor into the genre by being a man revisiting his teenage years, it might have been better to make him a parent or teacher of one of the many teens in the film. 48hours is all about flexibility when the challenge is thrown at you. It was a good effort from a first time team and I look forward to seeing what you guys come up with next year.

Mind The Gap

The generation gap is brutal in this film, if you even talk about things not in your generation you simply disappear or 'cross over' to the other side to a world of weather talk, craft beer, artisan chocolate and old people. I like that the generation gap is an event and your title is a perfect fit to your film. This film is dialogue driven and it gleans its humour from teen fads and cliches of what each generation was like. It is great to see teens in teen roles and a tidy story. I liked the bit when she realises she is next, you took a little risk there with the camera work and makes it more dynamic. Next year go for some more stylistic shooting - take more risks and see if it pays off.

Negotiation

Stacey robs a store and barricades herself behind the door to get her boyfriends attention. Whilst there is drama in this situation and it is shot and edited well, the characters created in the film are not likeable - he treated her badly and then in a desperate act to get his attention she risks her own freedom, then he betrays her trust because of his ambitions and arrests her. There should be some redeeming features in the characters or it is hard for the audience to connect or relate to the story.

A Delicate Point

A girl is dumped by her boyfriend, then a unicorn shows up which cheers her up, they laugh, frolic and watch Netflix. Then her boyfriend shows up to make amends and who knew unicorns got jealous! This solo animation team made the Wellington shortlist, and got a great audience reaction in the Wellington heats. I loved the simple style and surprise ending. I am guessing you ran out of time to get the sound design done, the film would have been elevated by some great sound design. Maybe next year get someone on your team to help with that.

E.O.O

For me, this film is what the 48Hours is all about, getting together with your mates and making a film over a weekend. The film started with good intentions about a young man Ash who picks up a flyer that leads him into a forest adventure. Some good locations and well shot and then everything falls apart in the most beautiful 48hour train wreck I've seen on the screen so far. The performance by Jack Blackwell as the Marshall was one of my favourite from the competition, he committed to that character and threw the best facial expressions with a great character voice. I hope he continues to act in other things. I agree with a previous reviewer that the 'irreverent use' of the required elements was hilarious and it got a huge roar of laughter in the cinema, I wish you guys were there to hear it. Thanks for the fun film and for submitting it!

Hairmonal Creatures

A trip to the doctors to diagnose some fairly unique symptoms reveals that werewolves are still a health problem in the modern world. This team always seems to have a lot of fun in the competition and the film is a reflection of that. I enjoyed the ripping shirts and rippling fur backs, also nominated for a gorgeous overhead shot of some wild beasts running through the field. It was all well lit and well shot this year boys so props to taking on the advice from last years review! Things to improve - was the editing style - there was a few too many repeated shots and the sequences could have been cut down shorter for a tighter edit - it was a little indulgent - so economy of shots, only including the shots will get the story beats across. Thats it! I hope to see your team next year, you are improving each year!

The Double Shot

Narrated by the main character, this sweet film is a simple story about Ron who has ambitions to be a good barista.

Embracing the 'coming-of age' genre this film about getting your first job and building your work skills. Using the montage technique to see Ron's multiple failed attempts at making coffee was a good way of passing time, with a good payoff at the end when he finally masters it.

I would like to know more about Ron, why the job is important to him, who is Ron in his daily life. if I had more connection to the character I would be more invested in his employment plight. Congratulations team on completing your film in 48Hours!

Genie in a Goon

A genie appears from the goon sack to grant a wish. This amateur genie is still honing her wish skills, it is her first week at work and her genie job is on the line. This was a good subversion of the wish genre and I thought this team embraced their genre. It was a good set-up and the film moved at a pace, failed wish by failed wish. But the ending left me wondering, what did happen to that baby? Things to improve, it would be good to see you guys bringing in some lighting and also, I wanted the goon sack scenes to be less plain and more otherworldly since she was a genie in a goon sack. Thanks for the fun film Skooterman Pictures!

Add to Story

H34 nails the high school genre with it's irreverence to traditional film making and instead reads like a series of snap chat videos, by filming random moments over a big night out in vertical format. This film had a great reaction in the cinema with it's fun comedic style. Well done boyeeee! Loved this entry from our latest film school graduates, look forward to seeing what you make next!

Apple Smash

Taking your kids to work is not ideal (especially when you are hitman couple) just make sure you bring along some snacks to keep them occupied. This Ultra team made a slick action film using professional stunt men and a great choice of location. Shot from the point of view of the baby and using voice over this film had a nice mix of wholesome parenting moments and hardcore gangster moments. I thought a child voicing over for the baby would have sold the character better but I loved the energy of this film and the stunt work and cinematography was impressive. Well done for making it to the Grand Finals.

Spazz Allens

Our bullied lead is visited by space aliens and is accepted by them as one of them, she is invited to join the purge of human kind. Nominated for best school team in Wellington, this film was truely entertaining, funny with a little interplanetary romance to boot - a hit at the screening. This film landed all of its jokes, using physical comedy, some good dialogue and fun audio, visual and special effects. I love the school teams! I don't have any advice accept keep going, make more films! Tino Pai!

Taylors Escape

We are introduced to Taylor, a young child caught in the cross-fire of his arguing parents, Taylor escapes into the world of his imagination and play. I liked the scenes of the boys play and then it coming to life, particularly the solider scene was well-done. I feel like this film could have done better if the story was simpler, the intro shots of Taylor and the ending shots of the boy receiving the gift confused the overall premise of the film. Another small suggestion - you could also script the parents arguments in the background to make them more realistic and threatening, they seems to be arguing about nothing in particular just raising voices or use an effect to muffle the voices and remember silence is menacing too. For first timers, this film was well shot (thumbs up to the cinematographer!) and imaginative. Also, well-done to Taylor it's not easy to be in every scene and carry the film.

Plastic Splatstick

This film has a political agenda, a noble cause - the banning of plastic bags from Aotearoa (in favour of paper bags). I loved the theme for this film, and I think it is a creative way to approach the competition. I mean its not easy to include all the elements, the genre and make a protest film. This team pulled it off and it made the Wellington shortlist. Belinda Adore, the prime-minister of New Zealand is held captive by 2 masked protesters. Their intention is to put the spotlight on the plastic bag issue in this rip-roaring splatstick comedy. This film was nominated for best use of genre because they really went to town on the splat and the slapstick. Story-wise this film held my attention the whole time and my favourite scene was the rap scene. Strong acting from all the cast and good production values with a well-rounded splat-stick ending involving a paper bag.

Resonance

Profiling an object that has had a long life is a creative way to approach the genre - 'The film that spans more than 10 years'. In this film, we see a guitar being gifted to a daughter from a mother, we are privy to the journey that this musical instrument has been on - sing-a-longs, street busking, gatherings, concerts, powhiri, music class and jams. This was a heartfelt, simple story and I loved the cultural theme throughout the film. I think the sound let your film down as the narration was difficult to hear over the guitar strum. Next time, make sure you plan this audio aspect better. I would have loved to hear some singing too!

Téa Leaves

University is rife with social clubs/classes, this unusual group is made up of a bunch of awkward students and an equally awkward teacher dedicated to hating tea-drinking. Earl gets a crush on his class mate Tēa and is rejected by her and then she leaves the class altogether. Although it was a successful anti rom-com, it was a fairly unsatisfying ending to the film, he gets rejected, then tēa-leaves. Pretty sweet joke though.

Girls Night

A couple of rugged kiwi tradesman knock off work early for a girls night out. This film starts with some cracker energy with it's tight cuts, upbeat soundtrack and it is full of local humour. The audience reaction to the reveal at the heats was fun to experience. It could have been really rough if not treated right, but your team nailed it and it was bursting with the 48Hour type humour that people love. The overhead shot was great! Things to improve - Sound recording in the wind, the very faint soundtrack that ran throughout the whole film - it could have benefitted from some sound design or another soundtrack, rather than dropping the levels right down.

The Curse of the Satanists

Interrupting his game of Pokewoman Stop, Bryan walks in on a Satanist Congregation cursing him in a series of unfortunate events. The first half of this film reads more like a music video, which is great as I really love the beat and tunes and the VFX enhance the music video style. The second half I felt lost some energy and got convoluted, he could have been cursed as an end beat rather than several times, but overall it was an enjoyable ride and I crack up every time Bryan walks into his dad and uncle obviously the same age as him, also nominated for the double take. Great reaction at the heats!

The Wishboners

This documentary style drama is set in the Wishboner's office and they are facing closure due to a lack of wishes. Faye is doing her best to remain optimistic since the wishes have started to dry up. Faye takes their destiny into her own hands and goes out into the world to bring the wishes back. When this film started up, I thought the whole thing was going to look like it was shot on a VHS camera, but it switches gears and it is shot from the P.O.V of the documentary crew. The film crew are filming a business that is lost it's grip on the marketplace, this predicament causes the tension that drives the film, then the documentary crew are faced with the age old wildlife documentary dilemma: do you save your subject or let it die. Positives: set-design, cinematography, costuming and the energetic retro team intro. This film made the Wellington shortlist and it was a little charmer!

The Capillum Affair

This Royal jewel heist is meticulously planned, with maps and surveillance, laser lights, this film had all the tropes of a heist film. This team really embraced their given genre. This cool, collected film built the story with a good pace and it was easy to follow what was going on with no dialogue, as a viewer you were included as part of the plan, you were an accomplice to the crime. All goes as expected until the final scene. The music and layered score did it's part very well ( an appropriate heist soundtrack), but I kind of wanted the stakes to be higher. Who was this man and what what was at stake, what were his motivations? I know it's hard to include so much into a short time frame, but this audience investment into the character may have added to the drama.

Four's A Bunch

A stylised 1970's television soap scene goes from cheese to peas when an actor goes off the rails and fights with his director Dad. I loved the opening scenes of this film, the art direction and characters drew me in and got my attention as something fresh in the competition. It went downhill for me when the camera cut and the actors broke character. I like the concept of the darkness behind the scenes contrasting with the perfect world portrayed in front of the camera but the angriness and aggression needed some restraint to sell these moments better, it ramped up too quickly without taking the audience along with the characters.

A Walk to Dismember

Teams have embraced the Splatstick genre and this team was no exception, using physical effects, this man is falling apart limb by limb. Searching for solutions to his gruesome problem he takes it a few steps too far. There are some good splatter comedy moments as he uses his DIY skills to fix himself. Loved the punk music soundtrack 'body parts' worked well with the title of the film. Heavy, funny and bloody good!

Sharon and Cobie

This wish genre film could easily be mistaken for an Ultra film. The film is about 'Cobie' the feline who starts to talk and he shares his feelings about his owner, Sharon. This films starts out as a sweet-looking animal-lover film, but then switches gears - this cat has a potty mouth and a deeply cynical side. There is no major drama that happens in the film, the scene is pretty domestic, but the contemptuous voice over from the cat provides plenty of entertaining moments and comedy. Tight story, which was shot and edited well.

Dehydra: A Nightmare Musical

What looks like a family team that landed the dreaded - musical plus one other (monster) genre, this team had a real challenge cut out for them. I loved the creative approach they took, they kept it light with some really great music throughout it. I enjoyed the diversity of the music. I thought the first pop track sounded like Grace Vanderwaal. A side note - I wondered if the static was intentional after a closer listen to the lyrics, I think it could have been better to leave static out of a 48-hour film it just comes across as bad sound and we missed some of those great lyrics). The hip-hop scene was my favourite, it was the stylised costumes, movement and editing that was so cool! Then the mood and music shifts into a smooth jazzy surreal night-time scene. The monster is also apparently looking for water? I was not totally clear about that, but I was sure that this monster is inspiring some great original tunes. A pity about the technical issues as the creativity was definitely there!

Laundry Time

Going to the Laundromat brings back memories of a past relationship for our lead, he discovers a time travel machine to go back to redeem his mistakes. This sweet film is about lost-love and regrets set in a realistic world until the time travel which is a fun insert. To be honest that song was familiar but none of us picked up on it, so thanks to the team for pointing it out and self-disqualifying. Next year make sure you get the correct rights to your music as it was a shame to DQ for this reason. Also a tip for your team, it is good to capture field sound and in the edit include some of the audio under the soundtrack, esp. when you can see mouths moving in bus stop scene.

Day None

Reading the terms and conditions has never been so important in this compelling last day on earth tale. Team Yoobee did a great job creating an post-apocalyptic world using unpopulated locations and through creative decisions in costuming, makeup and with the colour grade. Finding unpopulated locations is not always easy when you are filming in a city. I watched the recut version of almost 8 - minutes as requested by the team. Positives - the drone shots were stunning and the extra time meant you had a beautiful grade (I loved it) and the nuanced sound design was great to build tension in the film. Negatives - I'm not sure if the longer cut, did you lots of favours, essentially there are not a lot of story beats in this film to stretch it out to 8 minutes. I think you could have made the edit tighter, there were some editing choices that seemed indulgent to me, the 7 walking shots at the beginning for example and the montage sequence with the song over the top, that took me out of the story. Overall though I enjoyed the film and was great to see you made the climb up Mt Kaukau for the finale shots - massive!

Master

Something lurks outside in the night, is it a friend or a foe or a new master? Shot from the point of view of a charming dog, this film is a solo/duo effort from the Wellington heavyweight 48Hour team, Temple of Nut. This film fulfils the ULTRA brief and took home the national ULTRA prize, there was no doubt this dog was the main character of the film, and it was a dog behaving as a dog, just using reaction shots without a voice over to describe his innermost thoughts, this is a difficult thing to achieve and we saw some of the process behind this in the 'behind the scenes' clip. The editing was tight, the genre was on point and you included all the elements as story points, the puddle of blood was well done not over the top, but quite realistic. You created the illusion of a lot of people in the house, using sound which is a clever way of making your solo/duo team appear bigger. The tension was in things you couldn't see rather than what you could see. Also, you nailed the ending - a satisfying enjoyable story. Winning Wellington, and national prizes for script, ULTRA and editing was a great achievement - Well done guys!

Jumbo

Jumbo is an oversized childlike animated character creating his own amusement in the Wellington harbour. Blending animation with live action was a great stylistic choice which I found refreshing. Although this film was short, I expect this with an animation in 48Hours and I commend the team for their attention to detail - the impressive animation, great sound design, the weight of Jumbo's footsteps emphasised with camera movement also the bendy wind wand, it made it look like a toothpick. This film is all about playing with scale, with a seamless integration of the required elements and the genre. I loved seeing Jumbo's instagram posts, he lives on beyond the film - this is some clever marketing which we don't see much in the comp! Well done for winning best animation in Wellington!

No Refunds

Our three protagonists ask the eccentric necromancer to bring their loved ones back from the dead, after some dark rituals and smoke effects, a strange bogan man appears who is no-one's family member. Our rock god doesn't take long to adapt to the situation and is soon playing pool, drinking pints and imparting his wisdom to the group, and as it works out he does have a connection to the grandmother whom they were trying to bring back. It was difficult to work out the intentions of the 3 protagonists, one guy seemed to want to get his grandmother back for financial gain and the other two seemed superfluous to the story, I think if they weren't there it would be less confusing. That's purely from a story point of view. This film took out the top cinematography prize in Wellington, a huge achievement and it has been nominated for the grand finals prize too. The cinematography and grade was a real stand-out, so well done!

New Eden

Gobbledy Goop soup is the only food source in sunny Zonk. After a meal the group has to venture outside to get more soup and water. Foraging for new and more interesting foods in the hills leads to trouble. It was great to see you using some of the great outdoor locations in Wellington, even venturing up to the ridgeline and to the stream. This film tries to sell the sci fi world of Planet Zonk using invented words and and printed labels. I think the key thing to work on if you guys come back next year, is 'to show, don't tell'. An impressive first time effort from Team Onslow48.

The Last Cuppa

Lighting was the main ingredient to let us know the end is near in this real-time film. I enjoyed the contrast of the mundane reactions to a catastrophic, monumental event - matching pyjamas, running out of popcorn and credit on his phone. I think the film could have benefitted from more art department rather than shooting it against a white wall and to lose the American accent as there is no reason for it. The end scene was confusing as it looked and sounded like it had crashed into the earth then the radio said otherwise. I enjoyed it and I rather than make it longer as someone suggested, I think making every shot and word count with performance and camera work/art department.

The Hitler Effect

To start a romance with a high school crush, our protagonist attempts to grow facial hair with the support of his parents. When he ventures back into the world with his newly sprouted lip fur, he is mistaken for a Nazi, our protagonist devises a plan to jump back in time to reclaim the Hitler moustache. The best thing about this about film is that you showed me what was happening through action rather than explain it using dialogue. There were some funky time travel effects and charming acting from our all teenage cast.

Ruby Smith - A National Treasure

Ruby Smith returns to her hometown of Raumati South as her acting career has taken a dive and she is now only remembered for a single catch phrase. In an attempt to revive her career, Ruby is interviewed about her childhood, her homelands, and her infamous catch phrase. A stellar performance from the two leads in this film, they were both nominated as best performer in the Wellington finals. The interviewer seemed to model himself of John Campbell, I was gunning for him to have excellent pronunciation of Te Reo Maori too! I agree with a previous reviewer, that there was some drawn out dialogue that took me out of the moment. But overall it felt like I was watching a TVNZ news/entertainment piece with high production values and it was very entertaining. Wellington Finalist too, that's huge!

Cut Rate

Flat hunting in Wellington is a drag until you come across the dream flat (with a cable car), everything comes at a price though and the rent is astronomical. This splatastic comedy of errors reads as a health and safety video for flatting as they find ways to reduce the rent. Some shaky sound issues, but I enjoyed the pace of this film and the two main actors were a good comedy duo.

Impasta

A competitive pasta eating competition is a splatter race of spaghetti and sauce by some sock hand puppets. Sock feet are mumbling some incoherent sport style commentary to keep the film moving along. The ending is genuinely surprising when you see who the puppet master is. This team got messy for this film. Mood: creative, surreal and silly. Things to improve: tighter edit and the music was a bit overbearing.

Parallel

An 80's couple go on a date and imagine what a date might look like in the future. This film started slow and the date dialogue while sweet was a little awkward, but it really cracked into it a run once the characters started singing. The 3-part harmonies carried me through this film and I get this brilliant song stuck in my head so it is great to see it recognised with a nomination for best song/score. I got a little confused by the robot girl from the future - whilst the lighting created a futuristic tone, her eyes were the only clue she was a robot and easily missed - I think the future scenes needed more context and it made the story and genre seem like an afterthought to the musical aspirations of the team. I hope you get musical next year, what a talent you all have for it!

life sKills

Don't be late to class, especially on exam day! This level 3 exam asks all the hard and hilarious questions and then the 100 credits question springs up and students resort to violence to get a high mark. This film is sharp-witted and piles on the jokes. The characters are all believable and varied. I love that you are playing your own ages and telling a story about an exam that set in a school with actual school kids, you have used your resources well. It seems simple but I have seen a classroom double as a courtroom. Overall, the film was well shot but the outside scene in the rain was particularly beautifully composed and shot. Really great film team!

Fugue State

Sitting in the HR office in the afterlife on his death day, this hardworking man finds the benefits of his hard work do not cross over into the afterlife. This film drops some HR jokes - ah the paperwork involved in dying! It also uses a lot of dialogue to to explain what is going on, I think it would benefit from more showing instead of telling, because of all of this dialogue the story did get confusing. In terms of production, there is a bit to work on here - the posters and brochures were great to help build the world, but the office was plain and scenes became static. All of these issues can be worked on in the script writing stage. Include more detailed action scene descriptions, refine the dialogue, and keep it simple. 5-mins is not a long time to tell a story.

Its Not a Pirates Life for me

A family of pirates arrive in Wellington City, but there are cracks in the family dynamic. Their son does not want to follow their pirate aspirations but instead wants to work for the land-loving council. Great opening overhead shot that was nominated in Wellington for best overhead shot. Also nominated for best location for shooting on a yacht in the Marina. This family-made movie goes all out on the pirate theme with high energy performances, some amusing local jokes about the bus service and a feel-good ending.

Vitamin Z

Our hungry survivors venture into the misty outdoors to find food, Trying to avoid danger in a world where vegetables can turn you into a zombie. The story is about a young boy trying to avoid eating his vegetables by telling tall tales which was revealed as a twist at the end. I would have liked to see more subtle clues that this is what is happening throughout the story rather than a quick reveal shot at the end. Good camera work and strong concept. This school team was nominated in the best school team award in Wellington.

Compress

After being dumped by his girlfriend, Donnie is struggling to deal with the emotions in the aftermath. This stylised film deals with relatable themes of teen heartbreak and emotions in an original way using dance, music, sharp cinematography, clever editing choices and stylish incorporation of the required elements. A small criticism, some of the dialogue with the parents came off a touch cliche, so a bit of extra work on dialogue could be good next year. 'Compress' was the runner up in Wellington and made it to the Grand Finals, this is an incredible achievement for this team. I have watched this film so many times and I still love it! I hope you enter it into some other film festivals.

Tinder 2.0

Two people getting to know each other on a virtual game date is highjacked. I enjoyed the concept behind this sci-fi film and the clever use of video game tropes - it was a great way to incorporate the compulsory 48hour elements, the bathroom pause was fun and the live chat at the end. I thought to take this film up a notch, the dialogue needed more work - a bit snappier and more personality for both characters. They both seemed a little bored of each other. When the brother highjacked the game there was some good characterisation. The lighting was incredible in this short and the camera work good too - next year focus on great dialogue, developing and directing the characters. Also edit out an unnecessary long pauses or shots that don't serve the story.

Tempus

Our eccentric and charismatic host Kronus, greets the protagonist to Tempus and explains the rules of the time travelling experience. Behind every door is a critical moment in our time travelling tourists past, that she has the choice to change, but she can only choose one door to open. Faced with an opportunity to spend the last moments of her mothers life, she makes her choice. Strong art department and costuming in this film. There was a lot of dialogue explaining things in the film, although I didn't mind it too much as the language was poetic and flourished. This film could have benefitted by some stylistic lighting in the Tempus.

operation resurrection

A girl buries another girl on the beach and then impersonates her, living her life under the control of a sinister person on the other end of the phone. The buried girl is discovered, identified and ends up on the news. The young lead playing Elizabeth was a natural and she had a difficult role. I do think you guys set yourself a difficult film to make, the plot was complex, the characters were all adults and you ran into some technical issues , the result - the story became somewhat confusing. We love the school teams entries - the energy that the school teams bring to the competition is infectious. My suggestion to your team (and all school teams) for next year is would be to pick a story you can tell in 5 mins, keep it simple and do it well. Use your own voice, use the medium to talk about something that affects you and your peers. We find that a lot of the school teams make films that they like to watch, with a pre-conceived notion of what a film should be. Instead, call on your own experience of the world and tell a story that only you can tell, keep it simple and spend time on the script. Also, props to the teachers of Newlands College for running so many teams over the shoot weekend!

Trophy Hunting

An intriguing story about a pair of Trophy Hunters made by an all female team in this Nature run amok film. I got a little lost on the story with this film and felt there could have been more visual clues/dialogue as to what was going on, it was great to see the team making use of some fantastic Wellington locations, esp. considering the weather over the weekend. It definitely had an atmosphere though and was well shot.

Movie 48

This meta-drama is a fresh approach and acknowledges the whole 48Hours filmmaking process. The team brainstorm their ideas for an 'opposite attract' movie and we see them play out on screen. I enjoy a good meta 48 film but it is hard to pull off effectively, you guys did a great job - this film was fun, fresh and kept a great pace but constantly shifting scenes - amazing you achieved this in the time frame! Nothing critical to say, but maybe a few of the idea scenes could have been edited a bit tighter and the brainstorm scenes might benefit from some more stylistic shooting. Great to see you improving in the comp!

Pie Face

Winner of Best School team in Wellington and nominated nationally. Congratulations Onslow College!

Binary Love

The scene is set - 1999 was rocking the techno beats and high pony-tails. Josh is introduced to Sally (a laptop) at a party and a romance blooms. When Sally becomes unwell, Josh questions his feelings for her but it is 'too little too late' for Josh as Y2K strikes to extinguish his binary love. This might not be what you intended but I thought this was an interesting way to comment on people's love for their gadgets and could be a homage to online dating. A highlight of the film for me was Harold's appearance as old school technology with the old modem sound effects. The ending was strong, it felt like another film could continue on from this dramatic moment - what were the implications of Y2K across the city!

The Happy Man

Selling credit door to door is met with mixed reaction, Stuck in a time loop our exceptionally happy man gets a visit in the night, I had many questions, why is this happy man smiling so much, is he a human, how does this time loop work? I think by the end of the film I had more questions that answers and felt like your team tackled a story that was too complicated for a short film on a no budget. Good effort embracing the genre as Time travel is no easy genre, we have had it in the comp many times and it often requires careful storytelling to make sense to the audience. My advice if you do the comp next year - I would say write it much simpler and concentrate on bringing the audience along with you for each story beat.

Subterfuge

Nothing stands in the way of this cop buddy action duo straight from the 70's, playing good cop and bad cop they question the witness about chapstick. Reaching the highest altitude of the competition their friendship is tested in a shoot out on a hill. The sound was a bit ropey and the characters a bit cliche - but enjoyed the confidence and when the filmmakers are having fun, the audience has fun watching it. Highly amusing!

Charlotte's Dead

Oblivious Charlotte is wiped out in a playground mishap and then travels back in time (and body swaps) to save herself - confusing? a little! Luckily the very catchy acoustic song (possibly sung by the whole crew?) helps by narrating all the action. Agreed it could have been tightened up in the edit but props for filming the whole thing outside and loving the beautiful park location!

Girl with Fig

Glen, a hoarder with secrets needs his locks changed, Tai and his girlfriend make a discovery in his boat shed that change their perception of who Glen really is. This secret identity films was done in a realistic and relatable way, the characters were humble and kiwi, refreshing after seeing the many random American-accent characters that appear in 48Hours films. Ken's performance was top notch and nuanced, Tai's performance was sweet, I would have liked to see more tender moments between Tai and Bo, she was a bit too sharp towards him for no good reason. Ken won best performer prize in Wellington, Congratulations - this is a great achievement with so many other talented performers in the Wellington competition! I wanted the painting 'Girl with Fig' to be a better example of an artwork, since the whole film is about the piece. Although I realise with copyright and time constraints you had to come up with something quickly. Also Glen's reason for stealing the art was so it can be seen, and then it is packed up in a boat shed and then hung up in Bo and Tai's house so only they can see it - that line of reasoning didn't stack up for me. Great location, cinematography and casting. You just needed a bit more work on the script/edit to sell the motivations of the characters and the ending was a bit sudden.

The Immortal

What an incredibly beautiful visual world you have built that is set off the coast of historic Timaru. That first shot draws you right into the scene! The production design is strong and I really love the imaginative considered cinematography. I liked the feeling of it until the dialogue scenes started. After that, I felt like the film was getting explained to me. I would have liked it to continue with minimal dialogue (show don't tell). Maybe you can develop it further.
Real cool and sorry to hear about the DQ.

120 hours in OSdom

Funny, and entertaining with cool characters. I enjoyed the costuming and gags throughout.

Beans and Frank.

The tension is building as three guys on the run, stop the car to discover one of them is bleeding and needs to go to hospital, reluctant to take him, everyone's true colours are exposed. I'm not sure why they are all wearing bright Hawaiian shirts, these shirts are loud, the opposite of what you might wear in a heist situation but does make them a gang of some kind? This short film does well to build up the tension but lacks a bit in characterisation, who are these guys and what is at stake?

The Seven Slides

Being a self-proclaimed survivalist obsessed with natural disasters, I enjoyed this film. Eccentric aunty Karen has shut her self into her bunker surrounded by her gadgets and supplies. Seemingly crazy, Karen is predicting the end times following reports of earthquakes, sharknados and superbugs. The tension builds through sound effects and the realisation across everyones faces that aunty Karen may be right - the end is nigh. Strong production design sprinkled with some good humorous moments. My favourite bit - the OHP projector.

Return

In a apocalyptic hunter/gatherer tribal world, a wahine is rescued from a Taniwha cave, a battle ensues and the Taniwha ends up in the Hangi Pit. This is tonally interesting film, it really sets a mood from the outset with a dark limited colour palette, a haunting score pulls you into the story and introduces you to the characters. I loved the style of animation and the mood, I think the film suffered from not enough story beats and also the world you are setting it in needed more clarification, lots of people missed the significance of the last shot and it seemed added just to fit the genre requirements rather than being integral to the story. Amazing what you achieved in 48hours though, looking forward to more!

FRAGILE

A lonely man who is seeking companionship creates his own destiny by carving a beautiful woman out of a block of ice. This silent film has no dialogue and is driven by the music and the action. This is quite a good exercise to see how little dialogue is needed to tell a story and that not every scenario needs to be explained using characters dialogue. I thought the acting was a little over the top but it suited the story and it got some good laughs in the cinema especially the puddle ending.

The Remarkable Day of Doom

A late entry from the Toyhead Collective, they flexed their animation muscles over the 48-hour weekend to create this film. Animation is never easy to achieve in the 48hour timeframe and this team ran out of time and didn't cross the finish line in time. Hatty Hatpin is a sequel to a previous Toyhead collective films about a the devious victorian woman who is running away from some eggs who won't let her join their gang (see bio above). Stylistically this victorian themed animation is beautiful using silhouettes and stop-motion. I liked the different imaginative scenes, modes of transport and the soft textural backgrounds but the downfall of the film was that it was a little slow paced with lots of static moments. I do appreciate all of the work involved in an animation of this kind and overall it was an ambitious creative entry from the Toyhead Collective.

Onesie Breakdown

Dorotha is rejected at her own sleepover, the onesie brings out another side of her personality and the rift elevates into a late night dance battle.

Mercury Bay Area School came to the party with your fun Onesie Breakdown film. When we gave out the Dance genre I was hoping someone would reference the influential Dance platform TikTok which your team did.

I love it when high school teams have characters that match your own age, so kudos for both those things. I thought the edit was really good. It was short, snappy and entertaining. Some great technical elements like lighting, and a stonking dance track! Well done team! It was fantastic to see how the Whitianga community supported your team in the credits too.