Edition 2024

Welcome to the 2024 Winter International Film Festival of Antarctica (WIFFA)!

This year, WIFFA will take place on the first weekend of August. The 48 hours will start on Friday, 2 August, at 19:00 and go through Sunday, 4 August, at 19:00. These times are all based on the local time of your station.

Film Categories

As usual, this year, there will be two challenges: The 48 Hour Challenge and The Open Film Section. For these film categories, there will be award recognition!

1. The 48-Hour Challenge

The challenge is to make a short film in 48 hours, including planning, production, and editing. Additionally, the film must meet two additional criteria:

  1. You must keep the entire film to 5 minutes long, including all credits and intros.
  2. Your movie will include 5 elements from the categories below.

Five random stations will choose the 5 elements from the 5 different categories. These 5 elements will be sent out on 2 August by 1800 GMT +13.

The 5 elements will be:

  1. A Sound: previous years’ examples include a wet slap, the sound of popping popcorn, a duck quack.
  2. An Object: prior years’ examples include a large knife, a stretcher, and a dumbbell.
  3. A Famous quote: the previous year’s example was “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”
  4. A Famous Character/Person: with examples from previous years, Bruce Lee, Mickey Mouse, Where’s Waldo?
  5. An Action: examples from previous years, includes having a meal together, tasting red wine, and a piggyback race.

As mentioned, these 5 element categories will receive a choice from 5 random stations. These elements are here to inspire ideas and build a story around them. The elements chosen are not here to create an advantage for one station or require significant effort for props, stunt work, or film sequences. Each of the 5 random stations will receive specific instructions on how to choose the elements.

This year the 5 elements chosen are:

  1. Sound: A Warning Siren. Chosen by NEUMAYER III STATION.
  2. Object: Tin / Can Opener. Chosen by BIRD ISLAND STATION.
  3. Famous quote: “Not all who wander are lost” by JRR Tolkien. Chosen by MACQUARIE ISLAND STATION.
  4. Famous character: A Dinosaur. Chosen by CASEY STATION.
  5. Action: A game of chess being played. Chosen by SANAE IV STATION.

There are some rules/guidelines to cover:

  1. All film material must be your own footage. “Your own” excludes video such as purchased/public stock footage and AI or machine generated video.
  2. You may use previously shot stock footage. However, limit it to only a few shots of scenery or excludes any significant action or acting.
  3. Please limit any audio added to only royalty-free audio.
  4. English Subtitles are recommended, especially if audible dialogue is not in English.
  5. If your film goes past 5 minutes (even by a second), it will move to the Open Category. The film will not be included in the awards for the 48-Hour category.

One last tip, experience shows that Friday night is used for planning and preparation, Saturday for filming, and Sunday for editing and post production.

Lastly, have fun and enjoy the process! You may not remember all the films you watch, but you will make lifetime memories from the filming of your short video.

2. The Open Challenge

This category is super straight forward. Send any footage filmed by anyone on the crew during the station’s austral winter season. This film should also not have been shown anywhere publicly, meaning it should surprise everyone. Below are some guidelines:

  1. Please keep the film length short. Anything past 8 minutes may be skipped when screenings happen and may not receive any votes.
  2. Please limit to only royalty-free audio and footage.
  3. English Subtitles are recommended, especially if the audible dialogue is not in English.

Voting and Awards

A suite of awards will be presented for both categories. The awards will recognize individual areas of filmmaking, including story, artistry, and technical skills.

Voting will be on a per station basis. Each station has two weighted votes per category and cannot vote for their own film, “Eurovision” style. Your station’s method for choosing may be however you want, but we highly recommend making a full day of screening all the movies! There will be more details on voting and viewing once we get to that phase of the Festival.

The Categories:

  • 48-Hour Challenge
    • Best Film
    • Best Use of the 5 Elements
    • Best Acting
    • Best Costumes and Props
    • Best Sound
    • Best Cinematography
    • Best Editing
  • Open Challenge
    • Best Film
    • Best Acting
    • Best Costumes and Props
    • Best Sound Design
    • Best Cinematography
    • Best Editing

Submissions and WIFFA Website

All 2024 WIFFA submissions and festival information will be at www.wiffa.aq. After registration, an additional instruction guide on uploading submissions and managing your stations' videos will be sent. Each station will receive specific log-in information, and if a password needs reset, contact antarcticfilmfest@gmail.com.

The website has two areas:

  • The freely accessible public area where all the festival information and public videos of the various editions of the Festival will be uploaded.
  • The private area section, where each station has a reserved space to receive all communications from the organizers. This section is where each station can upload and manage all its information, including submissions, photos, votes, documents, etc.

Submissions must be uploaded to this website by the end of the 48-hour challenge. If you require extra time to upload due to internet access issues, please let the organizers know at antarcticfilmfest@gmail.com.

Once the station has received its login for the website the station can upload Open Category Films. All films will need to be uploaded with a matching Film Info card.

Important Dates:

  • Sunday, 21 July: Deadline for registering your station to the contest and WIFFA Opening Trailer!
  • Monday, 22 July: Randomly chosen stations for Element choices will be contacted.
  • Thursday, 25 July: Element choices from contacted stations must be submitted.
  • Sunday, 28 July: Open-category films can start being uploaded.
  • Friday, 2 August, 19:00 LT: Start of the 48H Challenge and the 5 Elements will be sent out.
  • Sunday, 4 August, 19:00 LT: Closing date for ALL film entries (48H and Open Categories must be uploaded)
  • Wednesday, 14 August: Voting Forms Sent out, and instructions on accessing films.
  • Monday, 24 August: Voting Forms must be submitted.
  • Saturday, 31 August: Results announced and Awards sent!

Remember

WIFFA is about having fun, seeing what other stations are like in the winter, and making memories that will last a lifetime! Please show off who you are and what makes your station unique!

Happy WIFFA to all!

Christian (Kit) Rahl
Palmer Station (United States)
Email: antarcticfilmfest@gmail.com