Hurry up and get your shorts off … to the Taos Shortz Film Festival, that is. (Heh, heh. Who doesn’t love a lame pun?) The third annual Taos Shortz Film Fest promises to showcase the hottest short films in the Southwest. This coming Sunday, Nov. 1, is the early bird deadline. Get your short film submission in by this weekend and you’ll only have to fork over a $17 entry fee. If you can’t get your work together by then, you have until Dec. 1. Programmers are looking for films between 3 and 28 minutes in the following categories: Comedy, Drama, Documentary, Animation and Experimental. For a complete list of rules, regulations and submission forms, log on to www.taosshortz.com. The festival is scheduled to take place Feb. 5 to 7, 2010.
Reel World: Make Mine Marvel Make Mine Marvel
It looks like the next Hollywood film to shoot in our fair state might just be a big one. Rumors have been circulating for a few months that the next Marvel Comics superhero to hit the big screen, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s immortal thunder god Thor, may be doing some New Mexico location shooting. Details on the film, which is being directed by Shakespeare lover Kenneth Branagh, are still very much under wraps. But casting call sheets that were leaked on the Internet earlier this month described one of the main characters in a “small New Mexico town.” I think we’ve got that location covered. The film is scheduled to start shooting in January, with a proposed release date of May 2011. Among the cast—most of whom are still just rumored—are Jude Law, Stellan Skarsgård, Robert De Niro and Natalie Portman. Chris Hemsworth, who played Kirk’s doomed dad in the recent Star Trek film, is signed up to take on the title role. So if you see a few hammer-wielding Norse gods wandering around New Mexico in the next few months, don’t be shocked.
Reel World: Assist The Fest Assist The Fest
The Santa Fe Film Festival will celebrate its 10 th anniversary this Dec. 2 through 6. Organizers are searching for volunteers to be part of the team. They’re on the lookout for everything from projectionists to drivers to graphic designers to guest wranglers. If you wanna get credit toward free film passes, panel discussions, workshops and other fabulous stuff, all you need is a four-hour minimum shift commitment. Of course, the more you volunteer, the more you get. For more information on volunteer opportunities, contact the festival’s operations director, Karen RedHawk Dallett, at operations@santafefilmfestival.com with the word “volunteer” in the e-mail subject line.
