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THE UCSC 48-HOUR FILM COMPETITION
✦ Wednesday, April 30, 7:00pm: Screening + Awards Night,
The UCSC Department of Film and Digital Media is excited to announce Slug 48, our second annual 48-Hour Film competition! Slug 48 was founded in 2024 thanks to the support and enthusiasm of UCSC alumnus Kevin Nolting, former editor at Pixar Animation Studios, where he edited the Academy Award-winning films Up!, Inside Out and Soul.
With the second annual Slug 48 competition in 2025, the event now benefits from the generous support of Harry Chotiner, whose gift sponsors the Ron Yerxa Award for Best Film, in honor of his friend and fellow Banana Slug Ron Yerxa. Harry Chotiner’s support will also ensure the future success of the competition.
Read more about the founder and supporters.
What is a 48-Hour Film?
A 48-hour film is one that is written, shot, edited, and all music composed for within a 48-hour time period. Teams and strategies for filming may be formed ahead of time, but nothing can be written and no footage for the film can be shot until the clock is ticking. We will be handing out parameters on Friday April 25 at 5 pm with certain details (a theme, a prop, a line of dialogue) that must be in the film to ensure nothing was shot ahead of time. You will then have until Sunday April 27 at 5 pm to submit your finished film. Your finished film should be 4min or less in running time!
Competition and Awards
All those who complete their films within 48 hours and upload them to the competition portal are automatically considered for our awards. Our Slug 48 Awards Ceremony will be held on Wednesday April 30 at 7:00pm in Kresge 3105. Bring your friends! Films will be judged by a panel of celebrity judges chaired by our founder, Kevin Nolting.
This year’s award ceremony features a special on-stage conversation between sponsors Ron Yerxa and Harry Chotiner, who’ll discuss their long friendship since their time at UCSC, and their work in the film industry. After the screening, Kevin, Ron, and Harry will present the awards, culminating in the Ron Yerxa Award for Best Film.
Prizes and certificates signed by the celebrity judges will be awarded in different categories:
Ron Yerxa Award for Best Film $500
Kevin Nolting Award for Best Editing $350
Best use of Required Dialogue $250
Most Fun to Watch
Audience Award
After the Awards ceremony, come downstairs for a reception in Kresge 1202. Don’t miss our Awards Night!
✦Important Dates
Monday, April 7: Applications open
Friday, April 25: 5pm: Film theme details are released: gather at 4.30pm at COMMUNICATIONS BUILDING, ROOM 139 or Zoom (write to ask-slug-48-group@ucsc.edu for the link)
Friday, April 25 - Sunday, April 27: Filming takes place. Deadline for upload 5pm on April 27
Wednesday, April 30, 7:00pm: Screening + Awards Night at Kresge 3105
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