In this thankless crazy business, it's inevitable that you'll end up losing faith from time to time, and question whether it's even possible to slog on. Thank God for allies out in Cyberspace, who will open our eyes to fresh new possibilities, then put their money where their mouth is to bring them about.
Thanks to ASF's latest ally- Wannabe Studios of Chennai, India- we are proud to announce our involvement in the indy feature "Onan", coming soon to an electronic screen near you. People from 4 continents and 5 countries came together to shoot this innovative crime thriller last month. You'll find playlists of sneak peeks and behind-the-scenes vlogs on the Videowilliams Channel at YouTube. And already we are talking about a sequel.
As our film's director Shyam Madhavan Sarada is fond of saying: "Free Your Mind."
Does everything on TV and at the movies look the same to you these days? Well, that's because it is. Yet there's a wellspring of fresh talent all around you. Making short films with imagination, not dollars. Saying what they gotta say. Independent films are the rock'n'roll of the new generation.
By tapping into all this energy, Shorts Around Sydney offers something new and dynamic in an evening's entertainment. For filmmakers, a venue to have their work seen and encouraged. For audiences, a festival that's actually a good night out. You go to the pub, enjoy drinks, food, friends, bands, and you get to watch original films too.
For more details, visit the website at Shorts Around Sydney. Screenings will take place at the Clock Hotel in Surry Hills the second Wednesday of each month. Entry deadline is August 31st. Proudly sponsored by Aussie Short Films.
OOH! TV Is On March 6th, 2006
Thanks to a new agreement with OOH! TV in the USA, you can now watch our films at better quality than ever before, and catch plenty of other great independent content besides. Visit the ASF channel on the freshly launched OOH! TV website and see what we're all so excited about.
The Dream Lives On July 1st, 2005
As we approach five years on-line, ASF is taking a break from streaming. That dream lives on, but for the moment commerciality must rule. You can still read our articles, download sample works, and order our films on VHS or DVD. The forum page is new, our links and patrons pages remain, and we hope to return to streaming at a later date. Watch this space…
Press Review: June, 2004
GLOBAL EXPOSURE FOR YOUR SHORT FILM
www.aussieshortfilms.com is a film hosting site streaming award winning shorts and docos. It has now relaunched with a download capability and is available to all short films (not just award winners). In the past the site has been viewed by various international film festivals, so it's worth the fee of $15 per minute of the film per month online (for encoding, storage and hosting services). To celebrate the upgrades, VIP membership is currently available at no charge, so you can view and download the huge range of shorts currently available.
-FILMINK Magazine, "the FILMINK insider" section
Press Review: Saturday, May 8th, 2004
Aussie Short Films
Originally launched in October 2000, this site dedicated to showcasing award-winning Australian short films has been revamped with new movies and features. Winning entries of short film festivals around Australia last year are streamed from the site in RealPlayer and Windows Media formats. The free VIP membership lets you download movies to keep.
- Simon Tsang, ICON section, Sydney Morning Herald
New Features for 2004 Friday, March 5th, 2004
"He conquers who endures." - Persius
In our 4th year on-line, we're enjoying more traffic, and boasting more content to watch, hear and read. There are several new shorts on our drama, comedy and documentary pages, courtesy of last year's St. Kilda Film Festival. If you wonder how we pay the bills, you'll note that we are hosting several fresh new business videos on the corporate page. You'll find more inside information on the art and craft of filmmaking on our writing page. And the technology is coming along as well, with numerous titles now available for download. But none of this is worth a thing without an audience, so hit the nav-bar up above and check it out!
John Seale ACS: Our New Patron Monday, June 23rd, 2003
"These are exciting times for filmmakers. The technology of production has moved ahead in leaps and bounds in recent years, and new, more cost-effective modes of distribution are bound to follow. I see Aussie Short Films as a part of this digital revolution, and applaud its drive to stream Australian stories to the world."
John Seale's C.V. as a cinematographer speaks for itself, reaching from the renaissance of Australian cinema in the 70's up to some of the most acclaimed Hollywood movies of our time, with as many professional awards as the trade has to offer. In spite of his workload, however, he still makes a habit of helping, encouraging, training and mentoring others whenever he can: for example, by being a patron for Aussie Short Films. Good one, John!
St Kilda Film Festival - National Tour starting on Sunday, June 8th, 2003
During coming months, Aussie Short Films will be streaming a selection of winners from this venerable festival, now in its 20th year. Meanwhile, short film fans all round Australia can enjoy the highlights by catching its June-July National Tour. For session times, go to their website (see links).
Press Review: Saturday, March 1st, 2003
http://www.aussieshortfilms.com.au/
We mustn't ignore short films. Many are hosted and video-streamed from this Aussie site and at this stage, it seems that VIP membership is still free. There are images of Sydney fireworks, the eclipse at Lyndhurst as well as short dramas, comedies and mockumentaries.
-Samela Harris, Net Adventures, The Adelaide Advertiser
Stephen Hopkins: Our New Patron Friday, November 15th, 2002
"I wholeheartedly support Aussie Short Films. It's a fantastic site, and the internet is a cheap, effective way for Australian filmmakers to find an international audience, and get the recognition they deserve."
Stephen Hopkins is one of Australia's most successful filmmakers, yet few of us here know his name, since the films and TV shows he makes are in Hollywood (see the listing below). Nevertheless, this director-producer is keen to support local filmmaking, starting with being a patron for Aussie Short Films. Thank you, Stephen!
TELEVISION:
Traffic (2003)
"24" Season 1 (2001-2)
FEATURE FILMS:
The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2003)
Under Suspicion (2000)
Lost In Space (1998)
The Ghost and the Darkness (1996)
Blown Away (1994)
Judgement Night (1993)
Predator 2 (1990)
A Nightmare On Elm Street 5: The Dream Child (1989)
Dangerous Game (1987)
Aussie Short Films: Here you'll find homegrown, award winning drama, comedy, documentaries, and mockumentaries. Download them while they're still free - Aussie Short Films is planning to introduce a pay-per-view system soon. Some of the selections include Wordplay, a 90-minute psychological drama about a school teacher pushed to the brink; Adventures in Freight Forwarding, a short documentary about the capture and transportation of sharks from Manly's Ocean World to Japan's Marine World; and Internetwork News, set in an Australia verging on civil war in the year 2005.
-Maria Nguyen, ICON section, Sydney Morning Herald
Sydney Celebrates an Aussie Short Films Triumph Public Announcement: Friday, July 20th, 2001:
Fireworks pour off the Bridge and the Opera House. Up goes the skyline. The harbour turns gold and the crowd roars as Aussie Short Films takes out Platinum at Worldfest in Houston...
In any case, we think the two are connected. With 4,400 entries from 37 countries to choose from, the world's largest independent film festival has given this website their Platinum Remi: top award in the interactive entertainment category! Good on those Texans for flying the flag for the independent filmmaker, and rewarding their kindred spirits here. Fame is fleeting, like fireworks, but quality endures. Yee-ha!
Happy Birthday to Aussie Short Films! Public Announcement: Wednesday, March 28th, 2001:
It was a year ago precisely when the business name was registered, this enterprise begun. Twelve months on- unlike many dotcoms- we are streaming reliably, showcasing works by new independent filmmakers, hosting our first corporate customers and reaching an audience worldwide… though on some days they're spread a bit thin... But it's upward and onward! Our Club will be opening soon. It will feature new pages for Writing, with short stories, filmmaking articles and kids' stuff, Production, with clips out of works in the making and behind-the-scenes stories, Personalities, letting you know who the heck we all are, and- oh yeah- you will pay to get in. But as Francois Truffaut said:
"A filmmaker must be a businessman in the morning and an artist in the afternoon."
For ASF, the morning has arrived…
Press Review: Saturday November 18th, 2000:
Aussie Short Films. It's raw. It's unpredictable. And it's a lot of fun. The quality of the images is, of course, variable but you do get the feeling you are seeing the beginning of something important. Take a look now while it's free. The people behind the site are intending to charge further down the track.
- Nick Galvin, ICON section, Sydney Morning Herald
Aussie Guerilla Filmmakers Let Loose On The Net Press Release (Open Access) dated 16th October 2000:
From today, award winning short films made by Australian independent filmmakers will be able to seen by the world on the Internet. Independent filmmakers create low cost, high quality, often self funded short films ranging from 5 minutes to commercial half hours and feature length. But in the eyes of the film industry they are a guerilla movement. Most of the short films on this site have never been seen outside of a small festival circuit.
Aussie Short Films offers an insight into Australia and a means for independent filmmakers to expose their product to the world. All short films may be downloaded free of charge for an introductory period. After that, downloads will be paid for individually or through a club membership system. The site features previously unseen drama and comedy shorts, television pilots and feature films as well as educational and corporate videos.
As this site becomes more popular the work of other independent filmmakers will be added. There are many of these dedicated enthusiasts continuing to produce short films with high standards of technical and artistic merit, but unable to find distribution for them in Australia. This site provides the chance for them to be seen and gain revenue. As they are able to recover their production costs they will be able to afford to make new films which will further enhance the site.
Aussie Short Films is a B2C ( business to consumer) venture offering short films downloaded in real time using the latest video streaming technology. Our dedicated server runs direct to a major fibre-optic web link to optimise download time. The faster your modem, the higher the image quality, but the site will deliver decent product down to 56k modems. No longer do you have to wait hours just to view a credit card size image.
After the introductory period, payments by credit card will be processed in Australian Dollars only, but we are working to allow acceptance of foreign currency payments directly from overseas credit cards.
