Get your cameras rolling! The last day to send in your film for the Geocaching International Film Festival (GIFF) is almost here. The deadline for all film submissions is July 1. Need inspiration? Watch this collection of clips from the films that have been submitted so far.
If your film is selected as a finalist, it will be screened at the GIFF Event (GC5K6WQ) on August 14, the day before Block Party, near Geocaching HQ in Seattle, WA. Speaking of Block Party—don’t forget to book your tickets and register for the last Block Party ever. Come visit Seattle and meet folks from Geocaching HQ as well as other geocachers from around the world. We’ll see you there!
Attention geocaching filmmakers! The deadline for submissions to the 2015 Geocaching International Film Festival is fast approaching (July 1, 2015). As you write, shoot, an edit your films, keep these 5 tips in mind. They’re straight from mouth of a GIFF judge.
1. Make it global
Geocaching is an international game, and so is every GIFF audience. Try to show an element of the geocaching experience that people in different corners of the world can feel connected to. That can range from a tangible moment in the game—FTF hunt, anyone?—to something a little more abstract—like that feeling you get when you find the geocache after hours of searching…in the first spot you looked.
2. Tell a story only you can tell
There’s nothing wrong with your film being about a geocaching love story or a race to the FTF, but it’s exactly because these are such universal geocaching themes that you’ll need to work to make your film stand out from others. We have it on good authority that you are a unique person, so…make it personal! Show the GIFF audiences why this crazy/nerdy/wonderful hobby is your wacky/nerdy/wonderful hobby. Odds are, the things that matter the most about geocaching to you are some of the same things that matter the most to others. The perspective you use to show those things will be the catalyst for surprising and delighting your audience. This finalist from GIFF 2014 is an awesome example of this:
Seriously. Don’t make “Thriller” your main theme song unless you have permission from the King of Pop himself. Though a particular song might suit your geocaching love story perfectly, the GIFF judges will regrettably but firmly have to chuck it back to you. And remember—any geocache featured in your film should follow all basic requirements for hiding a geocache. (Hint: no buried caches, folks!) Review the GIFF 2015 submission guidelines and contact giff@geocaching.com if you have any niggling questions. And check out these free music websites if you’re struggling to find appropriate tunes to use:
A moment from GIFF 2014 finalist, “Spend a Little Time With You”.
4. Make it visual
Show, don’t tell! Film is visual medium—while you might love the sound of your voice, you’ll have your audience hanging on tenterhooks if you keep the voiceover and dialogue to a well-planned minimum. That being said, dialogue can still make or break a film, so be thoughtful about what you do include. This GIFF 2014 finalist film was able to do a lot with no dialogue at all.
5. Quality over quantity
The submission guidelines say it all: “Film length must not exceed 4 minutes (including credits).” That may not seem like a lot of video to write, shoot, and edit, but creating four minutes of absolute video gold is the challenge. So be discerning about what your audience gets to see. Make those four minutes the best four minutes of their week. Month! Year!
Find out “How To Geocache in Thailand” from this GIFF 2014 finalist.
As someone once said, “We are on the edge of our exercise balls over here at HQ”…to see what geocaching filmmakers create for GIFF 2015.
When you go to find your next geocache it’s not uncommon that you’ll step on, over or near a benchmark. There are over 700,000 benchmarks in the United States alone. And you know what? You can log them on Geocaching.com.
Benchmarking, also known as benchmark hunting, is a hobby in which explorers find benchmarks aka survey markers or geodetic control points. Hunting for geodetic markers is a fun and challenging activity just like geocaching. If you haven’t tried benchmarking, now is your chance! The National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) is hosting a contest encouraging geocachers in the United States to take a photo with the official NCEES Trackable at a benchmark and upload it to social media using the hashtag #PSnoboundaries. Photo submissions will be automatically entered to win a trip to the 2015 Geocaching Block Party in Seattle, Washington. Official contest rules can be found here.
Benchmarks can be found at the top of peaks or in a village square, and you’ve probably walked by at least one without even knowing it! The most common survey marks are cast metal disks with a stamped legend on their face, set in rock ledges, sunken into the tops of concrete pillars, or affixed on the tops of pipes that have been sunk into the ground.
Long time geocacher and new benchmark enthusiast Cammy aka “Cammy7” tells her story of hunting for one of her first benchmark finds, KW0802.
“I took the trackable to KW0802, Columbia E. Base located on the Wrightsville Bridge in Columbia, Pa. While photographing this benchmark, a man was walking across the bridge and asked what we were doing. I explained benchmarking and the contest to him. He then told me he had something I needed to see at his bookstore. The bookstore is located within walking distance just off the bridge on the Columbia side of the river. My mom and I followed him to his bookstore where he showed me a spot on the front step where a benchmark was located. He explained how he found the benchmark inside the store when he bought the old building. He called NGS and got information about the disk. It was reported missing in 1956. The bookstore was originally a general store.
KW0802 on the Wrightsville bridge is a triangulation station disk and a reference point is JV4845, Susquehannock. JV4845 is located at the top of the Turkey Hill Nature Preserve Trail along the Susquehannock river. Geocache GC1QAP3 “TAKE A HIKE!~Look-out Turkeys!” is located at the benchmark. The benchmark is a concrete marker with a brass cap used to attach survey equipment. The view of the Susquehanna river is beautiful with the Wrightsville bridge in view.” – Cammy7
Geocachers across the United States are embracing the challenge to hunt down a benchmark and upload a photo to win the ultimate prize, even if that means running away from bears in Alaska!
SCARLY <3Rellimer13 shared her story with us: “Finding benchmarks was new for me. If it weren’t for the contest I might not have even discovered that I could log benchmark finds on the website! Just like before I went geocaching for the first time, I did as much online research online the night before as my eyes could tolerate. The different types of markers/way points, how to look for them.. I was nervous to go out and look without coords, I didn’t want to come up empty handed before releasing the traveler again. Each benchmark on the geocaching website was spot on though, and I had a really successful 24 hours of hunting before handing over the tag to a fellow cacher! It’s cool how old some of those NGS descriptions are, and they are still relevant! Amazing. The first one I found at night because usually I prefer caching in the cover of darkness anyway! But I completely spaced out what time of year it was, and when I found the cache that was near the benchmark I was searching for, it had been chomped on by a very hungry bear that must have just come out of hibernation. I was very spooked (I had no form of protection! I didn’t think they were awake yet..) I got out of the woods ASAP! And continued my benchmark quest the next day, in broad day light 🙂” –SCARLY<3Rellimer13
Whether it’s in the woods, near a monument, or on the sidewalk near your home, there is a benchmark waiting to be found….and potentially a prize to be won!
That’s how many geocachers around the world collected garbage, restored natural areas, and worked on community improvement projects last weekend.
If each person picked up one 5 lb bag of trash, that’s over 40 metric tons of garbage. That’s (approximately) 7.4 elephants, or 7 elephants and two cows. C’mon geocachers–Give yourselves a round of applause!
Each of these geocachers earned the CITO 2015 souvenir, which celebrates the thousands of geocachers who care for the geocaching game board—also known as planet Earth. On International Cache In, Trash Out Weekend geocachers around the world hosted and participated in Cache In, Trash Out events in their area. Events might be focused on litter clean-up, removal of invasive species, revegetation efforts, or building trails. The environmental impact of these efforts is felt tangibly by communities across the globe.
We’ve seen hundreds of photos from CITO events around the world. One attendee from each of the following two events will receive a special prize package from Geocaching HQ, for sharing their “Attended” log with us!
GC5P590 – CITO Hent ar Pennglaouig
GC5MGFB – Buns, Boats and Bin Bags 2015
How do you pronounce the acronym, CITO? Let us know!
Share your CITO Weekend 2015 pictures, stories, and accomplishments!
May 2nd marks the 15th anniversary of when Geocaching began. Get out on May 2 and May 3 to find a geocache—any geocache—or attend a Geocaching event—any event or CITO— you’ll earn a special 15 Years of Geocaching souvenir. Plus, you’ll discover your geocaching mission for the summer.
On the new search page, we’ve put together three new one-click searches to make choosing the geocache you want to find—and earn your souvenir with—easier. Just click the box to find events near you, the oldest geocaches in your area, or nearby geocaches with favorite points.
