MANILA, Philippines – THE PAST several years have seen the rise of independent filmmaking in the country, with many of them leaving mainstream flicks eating dust during awards season, and some of them even raking in big bucks at the box office.
Intel Microelectronics Philippines Inc. wants to further encourage independent filmmaking in the country by launching a digital short film competition on the country’s most ubiquitous social networking site, Facebook.
With Filipinos ranking among the top Facebook users in the world, Intel Philippines saw the site as a good vehicle for the contest.
The digital shorts competition also aimed to promote the use of personal computers.
“We want to showcase the Filipino creativity and skill across the region, and channel it through the usage of a PC,” Intel Philippines marketing manager Randy Kanapi said.
To participate, budding filmmakers will have to make a short video—ranging in length from 30 seconds to 70 seconds—about how the PC affects their lives.
Videos may be shot in any format, but will have to be converted into FLV format. Its size must not be larger than 10MB.
To post video entries, filmmakers will first have to “like” Intel’s Facebook page. There is no limit to the number of entries that individual participants may post, but nobody can win more than once. Videos should be posted not later than July 22 to qualify.
A panel of Intel-appointed judges will narrow the field down to several entries. The finalists’ videos will then be posted on Intel’s Facebook fan page, with the winners to be judged by other Intel Facebook fans.
Voting will run for two weeks, after which the three highest vote-getters will be declared winners. These filmmakers will bring home notebooks powered by second-generation Intel Core i3, i5, or i7 processors.
As a bonus, local filmmakers RA Rivera and Quark Henares will be providing filmmaking advice to budding directors, also on the Intel Facebook fan page.
Meanwhile, Intel Corp. is giving a chance to PC or processor set buyers from India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam to win a month-long escape on a private island in Indonesia.
Consumers who buy a PC powered by a second generation Intel Core i5 or i7 processor, or a boxed second generation Core i5 or i7 from June 15 to Aug. 31 will be eligible to join.
These qualified participants need only send a text message to designated Intel numbers, 0916-3111566 for the Philippines, in this format: island (space) email address.
There will be only one winner for the month-long get-away in Joyo Island, but runners-up will be chosen from each of the countries for a seven-day vacation in the same location.
Vendors who sell Core i5 or i7 PCs or boxed processors will also be eligible to win a three-night vacation on Pom Pom Island, another private island in Indonesia.