The Vancouver Asian Film Festival’s annual short film-making competition is back for its 15th year supporting, fostering and showcasing emerging Asian and mixed Asian filmmakers! The Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon (MAMM) offers a platform for filmmakers to showcase their talents to both moviegoers and potential distributors alike.
The competition lasts for 3 weeks wherein contestants use this time to produce their short films.
Free online registration and information for MAMM15 can be found at http://vaff.org/mamm15/ . Registration is open until July 15, 2020. The 3-week film production / post-production runs from July 25 until Aug 15.
What’s New This Year?
In spite of the unprecedented changes and challenges we have to face due to CoVid-19, we did not want to cancel the competition this year, and therefore necessary changes need to be made to ensure the safety, and fun, for all participants.
- This year only, Registration and Pitch Submission is FREE OF CHARGE!
- There will only be a 5 minute Shorts category.
- Top 10 Teams will be selected for competition.
- More awards will be given out for more categories.
- There will be a maximum number of 6 members in each Team on set, to include all cast & crew.
- Film Production must follow WorkSafeBC health & safety protocols strictly, and each Team must come up with their own COVID-19 Safety Plan for their teams with the help of the MAMM Producing team.
- You must incorporate how you respond to the Creative Element – “What’s your 20?” into your video pitch.
- Because we know it will be a lot harder and take longer to make a film with social distancing in place, this year’s competition will not be 10 days. You will have three weeks to make and deliver your film. The production period commences from the start of the MAMMentorship program on July 25 and films must be delivered by the Final Film submission deadline on Aug 15.
- The MAMMentorship program will be held in the form of Webinars.
- MAMM15 is going NATIONWIDE! Any resident of Canada can lead a Team to enter from anywhere in the country.
MAMM 15 Prizes and Promotion
The perks of being selected for one of the top 10 competing teams include exclusive mentorship, marketing opportunities, prizes and special screenings. Specifically:
1. MAMMentorship program:
- one-on-one mentorship with selected teams and industry professionals, with special focus on screenwriting.
- group workshops via Zoom.
2. Digital promotion for the selected teams on social media and PR opportunities.
3. Cash prizes and industry in-kind prizes will be awarded for the following adjudicated categories.
- Best Short Film Award | Best Director Award | Best Performance Award | Best Screenwriting Award
4. In-kind prizes are given to the audience voted People’s Choice Award winners.
- People’s Choice Award: Best Overall Short | People’s’ Choice Award: Best Performance
All the aforementioned winners will be announced and awarded at the MAMM premiere and awards presentation Event on August 29, 2020, and will be showcased at the 24th Annual Vancouver Asian Film Festival, November 5-8, 2020.
Distribution for the winning shorts may be available through VAFF media partners.