As filmmakers you may not think that HTML5 has much to do with you but a quick perusal of Mozilla’s Web Made Movies may convince you otherwise. Web Made Movies is an open video lab, working to produce a new cinema that works like the web. To do this they have developed Popcorn, an HTML5 video framework that allows you to incorporate elements of the web (like Google Maps, Twitter, Wikipedia and Flickr for example) with your videos. Popcorn provides…

I just wrote a post for the brand spanking new Tribeca Film Institute website about how the Semantic Web and HTML5 is changing the possibilities for what video can do online. I talk about exciting new projects like ViewChange, WebMadeMovies and the very awesome Arcade Fire musical experience, The Wilderness Downtown. Check out the full article here.

The Open Video Conference looks like an interesting couple of days for anyone interested in online video and the future of open and participatory culture on the web. From their description: Open Video is more than just open codecs. It’s the growing movement for transparency, interoperability, and further decentralization in online video. These qualities provide more fertile ground for independent producers, bottom-up innovation, and greater protection for free speech online. The conference will showcase awesome cultural works, inspiring talks, and…

Shooters, Excuse the cross-posting with the Festivals blog, but we didn’t wany any of you to miss out on this – Mullighan recently presented a panel at the London Short Film Festival, entitled ‘Luck = Preparedness + Opportunity’. With him were the delightful filmmakers (and Shooters), Ben Slotover and Eva Weber. If you weren’t lucky enough to make it down to the Curzon for the event, no fear! Ben has kindly made his notes from the panel available to you…

Action for Brazil’s Children Trust patron Fernando Meirelles together with writer/actor Don McKellar feature in a newly released Q&A session focused on the making of ‘Blindness’ – watch the web cast here. Meirelles also discusses his involvement with social film projects, notably Cinema Nosso, which is supported by ABC Trust, a UK-based charity. Cinema Nosso was set up by Meirelles in 2002. The project was directly born out of Meirelles’ renowned ‘City of God’. The film, famously shot on location…

This is the second and final part of a 2 part post on non-theatrical distribution by Rachel Gordon, a freelance marketing/distribution consultant specializing in the niche and educational usage of documentary films. Something to be aware of that many filmmakers don’t consciously think about when starting to get their work out is that it will take some time for your film to “hit” a place in the non-theatrical market – often up to a whole year.  You can’t count on…

Another piece from Anne Thompson at Variety about the changing distribution strategies indie producers/distributors are pursuing: [F]ilmmakers with an easily defined niche and some marketing flair can still assemble a distribution plan. After doc “Beautiful Losers” debuted at SXSW in March, the filmmakers considered traditional offers from distribs but decided to release the doc on their own. Sidetrack Films partnered with Nike Sportswear to sponsor art workshops, and a shoe and apparel company helped pay for its Aug. 8 launch…

Moviestorm has launched some free software that allows you to make simple animated films, quickly and easily. This is obviously great for first-timers but perhaps it could also be useful for more experienced filmmakers who want to test out ideas quickly? The basic package is totally free so give it a try and see what you think. Thanks to SXSW News Reel for the info!

The good people at the Center for Social Media have published a Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Online Video. Here’s what they say about it: This document is a code of best practices that helps creators, online providers, copyright holders, and others interested in the making of online video interpret the copyright doctrine of fair use. Fair use is the right to use copyrighted material without permission or payment under some circumstances. This is a guide to…

Finding useful tools for downloading video from the web can be very confusing. Check out Liz Gannes’ article on newteevee.com about the different options, their perks and their pitfalls.