At the Auckland Finals this vibed with the audience so well. The audience just "got" everything. And for all I care, the reversed shot at the end should've been intentional - it was that cool to watch.

I'm with steelpotato in that the editing is amazing - every shot is on screen for the perfect amount of frames; that sequence of opening the pizza box is like a master class on editing. The Vimeo account that uploaded this video I see has other godlike editing and concepts, which I think are so cool.

The sound is also very cool. I'm amazed at how the volume of "come up stairs Pizza boy" (or something along those lines) was perfectly audible but still came across as a whisper - as well as how this line was repeated, just in case anyone in the audience wanted to check they heard right; the theatre that was laughing could hear it, and even with several people talking over it at home. So cool.

"HELP.. MEE", "PEPER-RON-II?". Is a quote that's been in my head for the entire week.

As with any story, it's always "what would make a better story" and that's not necessarily to give the character who clearly needs help a happy ending. Personally, I thought it was a perfect way to end the story.

Also, it was cool to see that, being an audience member, I'm completely fine with it not being explained why he can't just untie himself, or how he is able to get up at the end, or how the pizza boy is able to avoid all the obvious signs that he needs help. It's realism versus what the audience can agree with for that movie's universe, for fun (is there a word for that?) - which is really fun to think about; and you guys' nailed it, a master class there.

hey just letting people know who missed it
the link used to be a rickroll before the comp finished ._.
and I don't know how to express the respect I have for this team now

For me, the idea of a buddy film being sold where one of the parties involved happens to be inanimate is a very hard sell, but Snack to the Future came very close to pulling off a masterpiece. If anyone could pull off a blow up sex doll causing a rift in a seemingly happy relationship, it was going to be them.

What I particularly enjoyed was how the team elevated the idea of the domestic, suburban mundane nature of life and turned it on its head. Where an anniversary should be an occassion to be celebrated, coming in at just the wrong moment gets some deep rooted issues to come up.

I really think the team were onto something here, in that whilst our lady pumped full of air and designed for private use is ridiculous as a story driver, it seemed they were exploring the concept that everyone should be allowed their kinks and as long as you communicate then that is the key for a happy marriage, which is a really healthy refreshing approach to see! But I felt that was kind of surface level, and instead we got introspection and realisation that self gratification was what was missing for our leading lady, leading to a classic case of shoe being on the other foot and a complete rift in the dynamic.

Snack to the Future again showed a really steady hand behind the camera here, allowing the film to breath both figuratively and literally, as our curiousity immediately was piqued due to breathing sounds whilst lounge music played before they went for the strange grandular doll reveal.

Technically, it's a really strong film, with really strong performanes and an engaging plot. But I personally think that whilst it was so close to nailing the buddy genre it just missed the mark, for me, too much in my book. To me the key for genre subversion is a question of would I think of the genre as the way to describe the film? And honestly, no I wouldn't. But I get that a lot of judges saw it differently.

Story: 3.5/5
Technical: 4.5/5
Elements: 2.5/5
Overall: 3.5/5

Slick slick slick pool party driven by a tremendous original synth score, with the thumping electronic reverb creating a feeling of mystery and dare only to find out the film actually had a heart. Honestly team I loved this film and am so pleased it made its way to the national final as I feel that films with such a positive idea often get overlooked in this comp.

In terms of what I liked about this film, colour me extremely impressed at how great this was all pieced together. Beautiful people, beautiful locations and a back and forth approach between our protagonist being drilled in an interview versus the heist being put into action. For me I particularly liked that you didn't just go for the setup and then play it out, but cut to and fro creating a labyrinth of intrigue for me as a viewer. The question of not knowing what the ultimate heist was going to be until the finale left me on the edge of my seat throughout.

I've had more than one person talk to me about whether the film would be as good without the sensational location and beautiful people and yeah, maybe the overall plot is a bit generic, and I would have liked to have seen a little bit more depth to the characters, which I think could have pushed this to top 3 overall.
But here's the thing, the team did have access and equipment and made the most of it, they played to their strengths and there is no way I can judge them on a 'what if they didn't have models and shot the same film on their cellphone'. I can only judge them on making a stellar, beautiful, positive message heist film that played with the genre and audience expectations whilst ticking the element boxes really well. Editing and sound was also sublime. Loved it.

Story: 3.5/5
Technical: 5/5
Elements: 4/5
Overall: 4.5/5

Because these reviews will (hopefully) last in the years to come, I'm going to note how absolutely insane it was that Tim Hamilton's team entered not just once on the first weekend in Wellington, but again on the second weekend where all teams who entered were placed in the Tamaki Makaurau region of the competition.
So yes this says they qualified for the Grand Final from the 09 region, but they very much shot using the same skeletal set down in the 04 that they had spent weeks on prior to making "We built and destroyed a full sized cardboard u-boat specifically and only for this competition. also known as “DAS BANANA-BOOT”. Even more incredibly, that film and this film are directly connected, taking place effectively during the same war. Just a staggering achievement, production wise.

For me, I honestly felt the film played as chaotic, for lack of a better word, on first watch. But I've come to realise that was an extremely harsh way to describe the film, because it is more a case of so much going on that a lot of it went over my head and I picked up a lot of the nuances on repeat viewings.

And also, chaotic kind of fits, in a good way, because war is chaos, and this film is about dealing with a plane being under attack from enemy fire and how the team rises to the occassion. Not just being under attack, but given it is a first flight for the crew the element of uncertainty about to what to do is presented very well. Perhaps a bit casually, but what that did was create a heightened sense of comedy as planes blew up and heads were exploded.

On that note this film had some of the best sound design I've ever come across in this competition. From the incredible folley used to genuinely sell the idea that the team were up in the air in a B17 bomber, through to the guns and splats everything just sounded right. I loved the last minute of musical score used in the film, letting things wrap up with a melancholy feeling, but also thought it was the right move letting everything play out using just the sounds of the battle for the first 3 and a half minutes, as it stressed the real time real urgency of the situation.

I must say I do still have some thoughts about the buddy film genre. Yes I got a big smile from the winks and nods to 4th wall breaking - "it's a genre thing", and we had two clear leads who developed a sense of camaraderie as the film progressed. But was that enough to have really nailed it? I personally am unsure. But still a staggering achievement.

Story: 3/5
Technical: 5/5
Elements: 3.5/5
Overall: 3.5/5

You have got to love a team who loves Edgar Wright smash cuts as much as I sometimes do, with a fragile package picked up by a delivery driver from a scientist in full hazmat suit, who then lets somebody know that he will be at the required location in 30 minutes. Of course as the clock keeps ticking the ultimate evil of Auckland traffic delays rears its ugly head. But what would a 48 Hours film be without desperation to deliver the package in a race against time whilst throwing in a super mullet bloke for comedic relief.

I really enjoyed the take the piss attitude of this team, and whilst I am no fan of WILD HOGS I do like how it was used for humour. The ramblings of the westie were highly entertaining, and I liked the team using such dramatic music throughout contrasting with such a lo-fi slice of life plot.

The performances were good and overall an entertaining film, I think perhaps to elevate it more a sense of understanding as to why the delivery within half an hour was so important would have been good to see. Only understanding this when we discover what the package is did work as a comedic payoff, I appreciate, but consequences of missing the deadline were the one main thing missing for me.

Story: 2.5/5
Technical: 3/5
Elements: 3.5/5
Overall: 3/5

Beautiful meta film! Normally I groan at meta films but this one was beyond engaging as it transcended the usual trappings of a Meta commentary. Beyond that the animation is out of this world.
I cant wait to see the next projects from this creator!

So many moments in here that make this a memorable film. Love the breeder. Total romp!
The fact that you would have had to have made it essentially backwards while shaving to create the different characters adds so much to this. Great planning and great execution.

These guys are way cool