Two Hour Filmmaking Challenge Launches April 22

Monday, April 5, 2021
dog with xray eyes

Do you like making movies or have always wanted to? If so, use your creativity and remote team working skills to participate in Scottsdale Community College’s popular Two Hour Film Challenge from 4 to 6 p.m., April 22, 2021.

The Contest is sponsored by the Scottsdale School of Film+Theatre at SCC and is open to students and the general public. Students from Santa Monica College’s Media Studies program will also be competing. No prior film experience is required, and there is no cost to participate.

All participants will work on a team, with faculty members from the prestigious Harold Ramis Film School at The Second City, including Kimmie Companik-Warner, Terrance Brown, Mia Weinberger, Edmund O’Brien, and Jeri Marshall, serving as team captains and professional coaches.

Contest Details

Interested individuals need to register here before April 21 to be assigned to a team. All teams should have one meeting before the challenge to review how they will share footage and to determine each team member’s skills and resources. All participants may write, act, record video and/or edit, knowing that each team member’s contributions will be done remotely.

At the start of the contest, each team will be given a film title via a random drawing and then can determine every other detail of their film including format, topic and genre. Anyone can watch the progress of the event by logging in to the Watch Party starting at 3:30 p.m. on April 22 and view all submissions starting at 6:30 p.m. to vote for their favorite. The winning team will be based on total votes by audience members.

Prizes

Each member of the winning team may choose between five online drop-in Improv classes at or receive a voucher for any online course at The Second City.

Get Started

  • Register for the film challenge
  • Review the info packet (PDF)
  • Register for the Zoom Green Room (both participants and watchers)

For questions and more information, please email [email protected] or [email protected].

Danielle Stallings, a full-time residential faculty member, Head of Foundations, and student film club advisor for the Scottsdale School of Film+Theatre, is the creator and producer of the Two Hour Film Challenge.

“The Two Hour Film Challenge is an exciting opportunity for anyone interested in the craft to work on all aspects of a film while bringing out a fun, can-do team spirit,” said Stallings. “With the significant time constraint, each filmmaker has to get out of their own way and let their creative impulses flow.”

Scottsdale School of Film+Theatre

Widely regarded as one of the best film schools in the Southwest U.S., SCC’s Scottsdale School of Film+Theatre features two-year hands-on programs that are exceptional and unique among the community colleges in Arizona. From the stage to the soundstage and all points in between, students are immersed in virtually every aspect of the film and theatre disciplines. Through both a theoretical and hands-on approach, each student leaves with not only a degree in their chosen field, but with a keen understanding of how their education is applicable in the professional world. For more information, visit SCC’s Scottsdale School of Film+Theatre.