THE 48 HOUR FILM PROJECT’S 2009 WORLD TOUR HITS HONG KONG ON OCTOBER 30 – NOVEMBER 1, 2009

 HONG KONG (October 12, 2009) — The 48 Hour Film Project, the world’s largest timed filmmaking competition, today announced that its 2009 tour will tear through Hong Kong on October 30-November 1, challenging Hong Kong filmmakers to complete the entire filmmaking process – from writing and casting to shooting and editing – in a mere 48 hours.  Hong Kong is one of a record 80 cities worldwide to be included in the 48 Hour Film Project’s expanded 2009 tour, which will include the first-ever local contests in such far-flung cities as Beijing, Lisbon, and Mumbai. Hong Kong filmmakers will join a record 2,500 filmmaking teams worldwide—totaling 35,000 people—expected to take part in the competition, relying on inspiration, adrenaline, and gallons of coffee to complete short films of up to seven minutes in only two sleepless days.  Participating teams will be given a genre, a character, a prop, and a line of dialogue that they must work into their piece. They will be responsible for putting together a cast and crew, and getting equipment and anything else needed to make a film/video. Films submitted even one minute late will be disqualified. Films will be screened for the public on November 6, 2009 at the Agnes b Cinema in the Hong Kong Arts Centre, where the audience will select Hong Kong’s best film. The winners will then be in the running for top honors at Filmapalooza, the 48 Hour Film Project’s annual awards event honoring the year’s top films, which will take place at the 2010 National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show in Las Vegas. Films will also compete to be among 14 films to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival’s Short Film Corner in 2010. This is the 48HF Project’s 1st year in Hong Kong! The launch is being supported by cutting-edge media partners AliveNotDead.com – creators of Asia’s first and largest network of artists and entertainers, and Clockenflap – one of the region’s most innovative and successful music and visual arts festivals.   Since its 2001 launch in Washington, D.C. by filmmakers Mark Ruppert and Liz Langston, the project has become a global cultural phenomenon, with a total of more than 130,000 participants producing nearly 9,000 short films. An archive of past films can be found at www.48.tv. “The fact that we continue to expand to new cities every year confirms that the project has truly struck a nerve with filmmakers and audiences around the world,” said Langston, co-executive director of The 48 Hour Film Project. “We’re thrilled to be returning to some of our old stops, as well as introducing the tour to new cities in 2009.”  For more information on how to participate in Hong Kong’s competition or to attend Hong Kong’s screening, please visit: www.48hourfilm.com/hongkong.  About the 48 Hour Film ProjectThe 48 Hour Film Project is the oldest and largest timed film competition in the world.  The 48 Hour Film Project’s mission is to advance filmmaking and promote filmmakers. The tight 48-hour deadline puts the focus squarely on the filmmakers, emphasizing creativity and teamwork and “doing” instead of “talking.” The emphasis is also on building communities of local creative people - facilitating making new connections, showcasing skills, and celebrating what creativity and teamwork can accomplish in just one weekend.  In 2008, more than 30,000 filmmakers in 70 cities participated in the festival.  About the OrganizersIvy Lam is the business development manager for in Asia.  While working with the business side of the industry, Ivy also pursues content creation on the side, including script evaluation for various production companies.  This interest in the script-to-screen process has culminated in bringing the 48 Hour Film Project to Hong Kong, to encourage local and aspiring filmmakers to hit the ground running with their talent, resources and creativity.   Spencer Douglass is an independent producer who is about to bring Hong Kong’s first home-grown international comic book title (“Devashard”) to the Big Screen, conquering Hollywood in the process.  As an artists’ advocate, Spencer represents local production crews CB Fresh and Code 3 Productions in their various multimedia and web-based ventures.  Part of his plan for Total World Domination includes building a network and base for discovering and developing the most exciting and raw talent Hong Kong has to offer.