THE GIG HARBOR 72-HOUR FILM COMPETITION, PART TWO >>>

Whether it comes from inside their own heads or other people, filmmakers hear "No!" a lot. It simply comes with the territory; theirs is an art, and business, of constant constraints and near-limitless limitations, never enough money/time/CGI apes ... you fill in the blank. These conditions prompt the more daring to engage in a sort of self-abuse and impose even greater restrictions on their work. So we see screenwriters set entire movies in cramped elevators, and more specifically a director like Hitchcock attempting to film his feature, Rope, in a single take.

You can bet plenty of local masochistic filmmakers will not resist the Gig Harbor 72-Hour Film Competition. Sure, participants have only a weekend (6 p.m. on Sept. 15 through the same time on Sept. 18) to complete a short film. And sure, every work must include the same line of dialogue, prop, action and situation. And sure, the Gig Harbor Film Society, which organizes the contest, has even capped every team's crew to five members. That's five people, four elements, three days, two nights, one movie. But you can't make diamonds without a little pressure, and all these rules may squeeze out a masterpiece.

Emilie Firn, one of the contest directors as well as program director for the upcoming Gig Harbor Film Festival, continues to ponder which elements she will ultimately pick. "I'm trying to choose elements that don't suggest an obvious storyline," she says, which means the competitors have some work ahead of them.

But no one seems to mind. In only its second year, the contest has already lured several of the same filmmakers back for another go at the top prize: the two best shorts as voted on by judges will secure a place in GHFF's Oct. 14-16 lineup.

I can't blame these folks - my friends and I have returned multiple times to The Grand Cinema's version of this competition. It's stressful, sleep-depriving and sometimes a real pain in the ass. But what a rush.

LINK: The details