Canadian filmmakers are competing for a one million dollar budget and distribution at Cineplex Theatres. It’s a competition. Votes have been cast and teams have been ousted, and only the Top 10 remain. That’s the CineCoup Film Accelerator production model. Incroyable, non?
Out of the Top 10 remaining teams, six are from Vancouver, eclipsing everyone else in the country. The shocking thing, however, is that even though Vancouver is representing in terms of talented filmmaking, the fan support appears limited. And the stakes are high: the top fan– that is, the fan who uses social media to promote their favourite Top 10 contenders– gets to go to the Top 5 event at the Banff World Media Festival. They get an advisory seat on the final selection jury. They, in other words, get the power to help award one team a cool million.
Where do you think the most active CineCoup fans hail from? The answer is not Vancouver. On the leader board at this time, Monday night, the top three fans are from Toronto, Edmonton and Regina. Which is not to say that they aren’t helping to support the awesomeness of the Vancouver contenders– Grade Nine, The Mill and the Mountain, Scam, Alien Abduction, The Fall and Bad–but seriously: where are the Vancouver fans? The Top Ten Leader Board is a wasteland.
It’s not too late! Voting for the Top 5 begins May 30th and ends June 2nd. Together, Vancouver fans can make a difference in this competition. All you have to do is sign up and watch the trailers (there are only ten left! Easy peasy! Plus, they are super entertaining) and you can earn enough votes to help keep Vancouver films in the Top 5.
These teams have worked extremely hard. Last month, prior to the Top 10 reveal, Sad Mag interviewed the incredible Sean Horlor, who is one third of the trio behind The Mill and the Mountain. “We’ve still got a long way to go!” says Horlor, “So far, CineCoup has given us a space to be shiny and showcase our knowledge as filmmakers and entrepreneurs. Now it’s time for us to find the financing and connections to get our films made.”
Jay Rathore, of Grade Nine, recalls “Honestly…I don’t think I really grasped the weight of what I was getting myself into when I first signed up. I knew I was in for a lot of work, but the reality of grinding out the weekly mission video’s, with very little money, and while juggling my regular life, is brutal. Especially considering I’m the kind of person who only really operates at full throttle when it comes to creating content.”
Nevertheless, Rathore says, “as tough as this process was, and continues to be, it has been such an empowering experience. The pressure of the extremely small production time for the weekly missions has forced our team to be resourceful and decisive. Relying on our wits, creativity and production savvy we continue to produce content we are proud of. We have tested our selves on so many levels, in a way that we would have never done if it wasn’t for this accelerator. As Cinecoup winds down I find myself feeling physically exhausted, but mentally and creatively, more charged than I have ever been in my life. What ever happens with Cinecoup, I know now, more than ever, that I will make movies.”
Vancouver! Cast your votes!