Our first ever Polish video contest has closed and we thought you might appreciate a bit more of an in-depth write up on how the process between close and winner announcements works, and an indication of how many entered and were shortlisted.

So for MOFILM Wroclaw 2011 we had two contests open, Chevrolet Route 66 and Chevrolet. Route 66 had around 20 entries, of which about half were shortlisted. Chevrolet had over 50 entries with 40 shortlisted. The standard on both was amazing, especially around the opportunities brief. The Chevrolet client who picked the winners said, ‘it was the hardest contest they’d had to judge!’ So congratulations to all who entered.

We know that one of the most frustrating things for the filmmakers that enter our contest is the wait between the close and the winner announcement, especially for the 2 – 5 place spots. There are lots of reasons why it can take a while but it all boils down to we need to make sure that the content is all clear from a legal and music rights perspective  before we can make it public. We’ve been revamping our processes and have invested in building a team that is dedicated to making it all happen much, much faster. Which is why for this contest, within 60 hours of the contest closing all the winners had been informed, and within 72 hours the winners page is up!

How’s that for speedy service!

We can only move this fast thanks to you all getting your CCA, Talent release and music forms completed properly and back to us in good time, so a huge thank you to everyone who did. We’re working on making the process even faster and will keep you up to date on what we’re up to.

An update on the Peps Films Poland contest will follow later this week and don’t forget Pepsi Films Rio is open, as is MOFILM Lollapalooza, MOFILM Taj Mahal and the Script contest for Chevrolet Super Bowl!

MOFILM is delighted to announce that Jon Landau, producer of the two top-grossing movies of all time, Titanic and Avatar, has taken on the role of Chairman of MOFILM’s advisory board.

Landau will also head the jury who will decide the overall winner at the MOFILM award ceremony at the TriBeCa Film Festival in April. A call for entries has been issued for Cadillac, Chevrolet, AT&T, Pepsi and a mysterious secret brand, whose identify will be revealed at a later date. An overall winner will be decided and announced on that night and will take home the prestigious ‘Moby’ statuette. Landau will also be working on a number of projects with MOFILM filmmakers, including the production of a short video for Chevrolet Europe with Henry Schofield, the overall winner of MOFILM Barcelona 2010.

Landau commented, “I’ve never failed to be impressed with the creativity and the quality of work that MOFILM filmmakers produce. It’s exciting to be involved with a company that supports aspiring filmmakers, giving them the opportunity to produce work for big brands and be well rewarded for it.” He continued, “I’m greatly looking forward to spending time with the winners during their trip to TriBeCa.”

Jeffrey Merrihue, MOFILM CEO, said: “Jon has been a long-time supporter of MOFILM and what we are trying to achieve. He attended two of our award ceremonies in 2010 and our filmmakers really appreciated the time and industry insights that he gave them.”

MOFILM is delighted to announce that TV personality and film enthusiastJonathan Ross will host its Barcelona Film Competition Awards 2011 at the GSMA’s Mobile World Congress, in association with webtrends Mobile Analytics, on Monday 14 February 2011.

Ross, fresh from hosting the Orange British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs), will announce the 12 MOFILM winners live onstage the day before the GSMA’s Global Mobile Awards which he will also host in Barcelona. The MOFILM Awards will give the audience the chance to experience original ads and short films created by emerging filmmakers for famous brands including AT&T, Adobe, Motorola and Pepsi.

Two overall winners will also be announced: one for the MOFILM ‘make an ad’ Mobile World Congress Film Competition, and one for the Pepsi Short Film Competition. The Pepsi winner will be awarded the opportunity to work with Pepsi Spain on a project with a minimum production budget of $20,000.

James Walker, managing director of MOFILM said: “The best bit of any MOFILM competition is experiencing the creativity and originality of the entries, which is why it’s always such a pleasure to show our results to the knowledgeable and enthusiastic Barcelona audience. Many MOFILM filmmakers go on to great things in the film and creative industries, so we’ll be showcasing a lot of creative potential to the Mobile World Congress crowd. It will be doubly exciting for our finalists to share a stage with a personality such as Jonathan, who is known for his passion and knowledge about film.”

About the MOFILM GSMA competitions

Filmmakers were offered a choice of seven ‘make an ad’ briefs for AT&T, Young’s, Chevrolet, Findus, Mountain Dew, American Red Cross and Tropicana. A winner for each brief will be announced, plus an overall winner. Prize fund totals $110,000.

MOFILM Adobe and Motorola Ad and Short Film Contest

Filmmakers were offered ‘make an ad’ and short film briefs for Adobe and Motorola. Prize fund includes Adobe and Motorola products plus $5,000.

MOFILM Pepsi Short Film Contest

Filmmakers were given a choice of three short-film briefs. A winner for each category will be announced, plus an overall winner. Prize fund totals $39,000, plus the overall winner will be awarded the opportunity to work with Pepsi Spain on a project with a minimum budget of $20,000.

About MOFILM

MOFILM is a leading video crowd-sourcing agency that gives emerging filmmakers from around the world the opportunity to create original video content for global brands. MOFILM helps filmmakers find recognition for their talent while providing brands with innovative advertising and video content.

MOFILM runs several major video competitions every year, offering thousands of dollars in prizes to filmmakers plus the chance to travel to renowned festivals across the world. The MOFILM community supports and develops competition winners through MOFILM Pro – a forum for winners to create professional-quality video for brands. Current open competitions are Barcelona Video Contest, Goafest 2011 and New York Video contest.