Making a short film script to render in 72 crazy fun hours! The HHM Film Slam is about fun, challenge, and just “making it work.” Filmmakers come together in teams. They are assigned a random genre, a character, a prop and line of dialogue. All of which MUST appear in the film. Then they race against the clock to write, shoot and edit a short film. These films are uploaded before the deadline. The films are then judged, and the winners receive a cash prize.

The official filmmaking period will commence on Friday, March 20, at 7pm and end on Monday, March 23, 2020 at 7pm.

At the Criteria Kick-off event, teams will receive an assignment consisting of a character, a line of dialogue, a prop, and a randomly generated genre selection, all of which must be present in your film. Then you have exactly 72 hours to make a 3 to 7-minute short film, excluding the end credits.

All entrants must adhere to the official HHM Film Slam Filmmaking Rules.

At the Kickoff Event, entrants will receive an assignment and be given exactly 72 hours to make a film to enter. Entrants must adhere to the official HHM Film Slam Filmmaking Rules.

Registration fees are $50 per team. The registration fee is for the entire team. All fees collected will be used for cash award prizes.

Gather as many team members as you need to complete your film, from story concept to render. 

Teams can be formed before the official time period. You can add team members as you go but all team members must be listed in your final paperwork and listed in your end credits. All teams must select a Team Leader.

And yes, you can go it alone and do all the work yourself.

Yes! Your Team will be eligible to win a cash prize determined by the number of entries we receive. To be eligible for cash prizes films must be on time, meet assignment criteria, and the HHM Judges favor your film.

Judges will base their rating on Meeting the Criteria, Artistic Merit, Technical Presentation. They will also note any special awards of their choosing for exceptional achievements such as Best Director, Best Actor, etc.

To register for the HHM Film Slam:

1. Team Leaders will register their Team and pay the registration fee. Registration is based on a first-come first-serve basis and space is limited to 10 teams. Registration fees are $50 per team.

2. Team Members can sign up whether they have a Team or not. This is a way to provide interest in joining a team and providing your talents and interests. It is free. Follow the directions on the instruction guide found here.

3. Team Leaders will set up their Team/Group and will invite members into this private group.

All teams are required to designate one person as the Team Leader of their group to register their team, agree to the Official Rules, sign the Team Leader’s Agreement and all required paperwork and accept any prize on behalf of the group.

Neither HHM Film Slam nor any of the HHM Collective are liable for any disputes between collaborators arising out of or related to this challenge.

Boo!! Paperwork is just no fun at all!

Sadly, it’s a fact of filmmaking.

Your paperwork can be scanned and uploaded with your film or it can be emailed to Tammie at info@hhmfilmslam.com.

All forms and releases must be turned in within a week of submission of your work. It’s best to complete forms as you go and submit them together with your film. Cast and crew releases must match end credits.

Download forms here.

All costs associated with your production are solely the responsibility of Your Team.

Yes!  However, if under the legal age of 18, your parent or legal guardian must sign all releases on your behalf.

Once we receive all the films, we will process them and review each film. Films that violate the rules will be disqualified. The rest will move on to Final Judging.

No. Film as a medium covers a broad spectrum of styles and ratings. Therefore, so does our contest. However, please use good judgment/taste. If it couldn’t screen at a mainstream local movie theater it may risk being disqualified. No Porn and No Animal Abuse!

Our judges will review the films individually and rate them based on a ratings sheet that we design. Creativity and originality are weighted more heavily than technical skill, but technical skill still counts! Don’t get sloppy!

Tip: Poor sound will kill the mood faster than any other technical faux pas.

Winners will be announced after the 7pm premier screening at the State Theatre on Saturday, March 27, 2020, during the Hell’s Half Mile Film & Music Festival and also be posted online at www.HHMFilmSlam.com.

Get it out there! It’s your film!

HHM Film Slam, Hell’s Half Mile Film & Music Festival, Hell’s Half Mile Events affiliates, officers, directors, agents, co-branders or other partners, and any of their employees or volunteers are referenced below collectively as “HHM Collective.”

By submitting an Entry into this HHM Film Slam, each Entrant warrants and represents that the Entrant owns all rights to the Entry he/she is entering in this HHM Film Slam event, including, without limitation, the video or digital recording, and the performance contained in each Entry, with the exception of any assets provided by the HHM Film Slam for use by Entrants in connection with this HHM Film Slam event. Each Entrant further warrants and represents that the Entrant has obtained permission from each person who appears in the Entry to grant the rights to the HHM Film Slam Parties described in these Official Rules and will submit copies of such permissions to the HHM Film Slam Parties. By submitting an Entry, Entrant agrees to the Official Rules, and further agrees to indemnify and hold the HHM Film Slam, HHM Film Slam Parties and their respective affiliates (noted above), officers, directors, agents, co-branders or other partners, and any of their employees (collectively, the HHM Collective), harmless from any and all claims, damages, expenses, costs (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) and liabilities (including settlements), brought or asserted by any third party against any of the HHM Collective due to or arising out of the Entrant’s Entry materials in this challenge event, or the Entrant’s conduct during and in connection with this HHM Film Slam event, including but not limited to trademark, copyright, or other intellectual property rights, right of publicity, right of privacy or defamation. Entrant agrees to release, indemnify and hold harmless HHM Collective from any and all claims that any advertising, presentation, web content or any other material subsequently produced, presented, and/or prepared by or on behalf of HHM Film Slam or the HHM Film Slam event, infringes on the rights of Entrant’s work as contained in any Entry.

By participating, Entrants agree to these Official Rules which are final and binding in all respects. The HHM Film Slam is governed by the laws of Michigan and all claims must be resolved in the Michigan courts.

No liability or responsibility is assumed by HHM Film Slam, Hell’s Half Mile Film & Music Festival, Hell’s Half Mile Events or HHM Collective resulting from any user’s participation in or attempt to participate in the HHM Film Slam or ability or inability to upload or download any information in connection with participating in the HHM Film Slam Event. No responsibility or liability is assumed by the HHM Film Slam or HHM Collective for technical problems or technical malfunction arising in connection with any of the following occurrences which may affect the operation of the HHM Film Slam Event: hardware or software errors; faulty computer, telephone, cable, satellite, network, electronic, wireless or Internet connectivity or other online communication problems; errors or limitations of any Internet service providers, servers, hosts or providers; garbled, jumbled or faulty data transmissions; failure of any e-mail transmissions to be sent or received; lost, late, delayed or intercepted e-mail transmissions; inaccessibility of the website in whole or in part for any reason; traffic congestion on the Internet or the website; unauthorized human or non-human intervention of the operation of the HHM Film Slam Event, including without limitation, unauthorized tampering, hacking, theft, virus, bugs, worms; or destruction of any aspect of the HHM Film Slam Event, or loss, miscount, misdirection, inaccessibility or unavailability of an email account used in connection with the HHM Film Slam Event. HHM Film Slam and HHM Collective are not responsible for any typographical errors in the announcement of prizes or these Official Rules, or any inaccurate or incorrect data contained on the website or social media sites maintained by the HHM Film Slam and their affiliates. Use of website and the HHM Film Slam’s social media sites is at user’s own risk. HHM Film Slam and the HHM Collective are not responsible for any personal injury or property damage or losses of any kind which may be sustained to user’s or any other person’s computer equipment resulting from participation in the HHM Film Slam event, use of the website or the download of any information from the website. By participating in the HHM Film Slam event, Entrant agrees to release, indemnify and hold HHM Film Slam and HHM Collective harmless from any and all claims, damages or liabilities arising from or relating to such Entrant’s participation in the HHM Film Slam event.