Super 8 Convention?

Post by **Billbot** » Sun May 04, 2003 5:17 am

Ok, Roger... I re-read you first post, and I think you're right about Kansas; after all, It's the only place in the USA that processes k40 s8 film. It's really our super 8 mecca!

But seriously, .. can they really turn around k40 processing that quick if you hand deliver it to them?
...
:?:

Post by **MovieStuff** » Sun May 04, 2003 6:07 am

I talked with Jenny at Dewaynes a while back and I believe anyone there can drop their film off at 10 AM and pick it up by 1 or 2 in the afternoon. Can you imagine how cool it must be to have that kind of turn around for a project? I wonder how many avid super 8 film makers there are in Parson's, Kansas?

Anyway, I do realize that Vegas is super cheap to fly to but the general atmosphere bothers me. Super 8 is such an intimate medium that Vegas doesn't seem like a good fit, at least to me. But there's no denying that it might be the cheapest place to do something like this.

Also, I wonder how organized this really has to be? I mean, what if it was just as simple as saying, "Okay, everyone meet at the Super 8 motel in Parsons (or where ever) on such and such date. We all have a big breakfast and start running films all weekend while some of us have big fights, uh, I mean while we have highly intellectual discussions about film making, etc, etc, etc.

Cal, you're invited too. I don't drink but I'll buy you a beer. Ground rules: No discussion of politics or world events allowed all weekend by anyone! ;)

Roger

PS: Any "guests" from the forum are invited, as well. Just make sure you wear a trench coat and sunglasses so we'll recognize you, er, I mean we won't recognize you...I mean... oh never mind. Just bring some Kodachrome and you're in.

Post by **Roy Brown** » Sun May 04, 2003 5:24 pm

I like the idea of just getting together and shooting the bull, watching super 8mm and maybe buying or selling some equipment. This would be a lot less expense and stress on everyone. It would be great to see the Workprinter in action, and some examples of the results. I also would like to screen a couple of my Super 8 films to fellow enthusiasts.

If we want to shoot some film and have it developed that day we would have to meet during the week. Would this make a difference to of how many people could attend? If it was on a weekend we could have it at a larger city for cheaper flights.

I live in Iowa and if its close enough for driving (2-6 hours) I would be willing to bring my Elmo GS1200 and a Elmo 16CL.

Post by **MovieStuff** » Sun May 04, 2003 6:38 pm

Roy Brown wrote: If we want to shoot some film and have it developed that day we would have to meet during the week.

Maybe not. I could talk to Jenny at Dewaynes and perhaps they might provide some sponsorship by keeping the lab open on a Saturday. If our "mini-convention" started on a Thursday, like most do, people could arrive on Thursday, shoot a bit on Thursday afternnoon and Friday and then have their film processed up on Saturday for showings Sunday night on the close of festivities, such as they might be. Again, shooting super 8 is so informal that keeping this cheap and informal really appeals to me. People show up if they can and can rent a table from the hotel if they have some stuff they want to show off. The banquet halls are super cheap to rent in small towns because they are so seldom used, compared to larger venues. But travel to Parsons might still be an issue for some. I'll check into it a bit and see what sort of horse and buggy service they have in Parsons. ;)

Roger

Post by **Actor** » Mon May 05, 2003 2:52 am

According to my Rand McNally, Parsons is in the SE corner of the state. The closest major city is Tulsa, OK, about 120 miles south. Wichita and Kansas City are both about 140 miles away, to the west and north respectively.

Rather than have everyone fly in to Tulsa and then rent a car for the 120 mile drive to Parsons it might be better to have it in Tulsa and arrange a daily film delivery to/from Parsons. Dewayne's might pick it up at 8:00 a.m. and deliver back to Tulsa at 5:00 p.m. Better yet, pick up at 5:00 p.m. and deliver back to Tulsa at 8:00 a.m. with a special convention night shift. Or both.

Getting sponsors might be tough. The only people I can think of who are in the super8 biz are Kodak, Dewayne's, Pro8mm, Alexander in Russia, a few labs and ... oh, yeah ... MovieStuff.

If this thing takes place in Parsons I'll be there. I have an old pal who lives in Miami, OK and I can crash there. It will have to be in the summer, May-August; tough for me to get away otherwise.

jessh-not logged in · Post by **jessh-not logged in** » Mon May 05, 2003 3:21 am

I love the idea, but the location is going to be a big factor for me.
I personally think Austin, Tx would be a great place for it. We unfortunatly don't have much on the Super8 business side, but we do have a great small format film community. There are also a bunch of local organisations that we could probably convince to co-sponsor it. If it isn't here then my vote would probably be for NY. Lately it has seemed that Kodak has taken some notice of Super8. If we could arrange something with Kodak we might be able to make a good impression on them.

~Jess

Post by **Actor** » Mon May 05, 2003 4:17 am

There's a Super 8 Motel in Parsons, KS. Maybe we could all stay there.

Post by **Actor** » Mon May 05, 2003 4:25 am

If you click on the Super 8 Motel link you will find at the bottom of the page a notice that "super 8" is a registered trademark of Super 8 Motels. How the heck did that happen? Hasn't our film format been around longer than the stupid motel chain? Maybe not. I heard somewhere that Motel 6 got its name because when it first started you could get a room for $6 / night. If Super8 Motels is called that for the same reason they must have been around since Eisenhower was president.

Post by **flatwood** » Mon May 05, 2003 5:34 am

thats interesting. sounds like a perfect tie in to the super 8 conventon. super 8 welcomes super 8. the sunglasses concession alone is worth millions!!! 8)

Post by **MovieStuff** » Mon May 05, 2003 5:42 am

Actor wrote:According to my Rand McNally, Parsons is in the SE corner of the state. The closest major city is Tulsa, OK, about 120 miles south.

Yes, but that doesn't necessarily preclude Parsons from having an airport, I don't think. After all, I know for a fact that Dewaynes sends out Fed-X overnight shipments every afternoon. Considering that the film has to go to Memphis via Fed-X first and then out to cities all over the US, that would indicate to me there must be an airport in Parsons, even if it's not huge, or they'd never make the overnight delivery schedule. I'll check with Dewaynes and see what gives. I just can't imagine that they can do any overnight busiess (I've used them overnight several times) without an airport nearby. I would be surprised if people in Parsons had to drive 120 miles just catch a plane.

Roger

Scot McPhie · Post by **Scot McPhie** » Mon May 05, 2003 6:04 am

Great idea Roger - how to do it is the thing I guess - I'd love to go - but it's a long way from Australia! - It'd be great if Kodak got on board - but then you don't want it to turn into a corporate promotion for them, rather than an enthusiasts meeting - the more organisation the better too I'd say - jsut to get the most out of the time - I'll watch this with great interest from here - hopefully it'll go ahead -- what dates do you have in mind - I think doing one in Europe iat the same time is a good odea too - I think if we did one in Australia it'd be pretty small though but maybe still worth it -- good luck - let's see what happens

Scot
http://www.mango-a-gogo.com

Post by **Billbot** » Mon May 05, 2003 6:10 am

Looks like the closest commercial airport is in Joplin, MO. It looks like its about 25 miles away.

I would love to do something like this, but it would be hard to pull together. What would be some possible dates?

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon May 05, 2003 7:26 am

I like the Austin idea too. Not just because I live here, but because there is such a large and supportive small film format community here: Flicker Austin (where all productions screened must originate on film), the Austin Cinenaker Co-op, also film based/oriented---Super 8, and Cinema Texas which, while screening video originated material, still leans more toward film. And, of course, the University of Texas has a large film student population. It seems that having it in the midst of a large filmmaking population who are likely to check out our convention is going to give it that much more chance of paying for itself, plus giving us opportunities to take in lots of super 8 films from all over the world.

There is a very nice International airport here, tons of hotel/motels, restaurants, etc. and in general, Austin loves it's filmmakers.

The South by Southwest film/music festival (SXSW) held here each spring has a trade show/convention connected with it. This might be a pretty good model---connect the convention with a film festival. Every year in September Cinema Texas hosts an international film and video short festival which has been growing in attendance. Last year the Austin Cinemaker Co-op held it's first International Super 8 Film Festival, running concurrently with the Cinema Texas event. I just think that doing it here during that time period (September) with a built-in filmmaking crowd might give us the opportunity to get off to a good start....A Super 8 trade show/convention connected to the two International film festivals. Even if we choose to not affiliate or associate with the two film festivals, it seems like a natural ready-made situation to step into.

Post by **JIM DUNN** » Mon May 05, 2003 7:30 am

I wrote the message just above...Sorry, thought I was logged in....JIM DUNN

Post by **JIM DUNN** » Mon May 05, 2003 7:39 am

And something else....I helped man the Flicker Film Festival booth for two days at this year's SXSW trade show. I was surprised to see how much attention our little Flicker Film booth got right in the midst of all the high tech video booths. I'm not kidding, we were just running a compilation tape of about 20 films made for Flicker over the last year, and had a few posters, T-shirts, and the whole time people were jamming our booth when the ones around us were more or less deserted. There's a new bunch coming up who are really intrigued by film, and they were full of questions.....

Filmshooting