For the first time in history, all 16 geocaching films from the 2014 Geocaching International Film Festival are available to watch at the click of a button. If you have just 59 minutes to spare (and not a minute more) make those minutes worth your while.
Watch the full films and decide which should receive the Global GIFF Audience Award here: http://bit.ly/1vFapUU.
Here today for your reading pleasure are exclusive interviews with some of the featured filmmakers. Go behind-the-scenes and hear what the producers have to say about geocaching, movies, and life.
GeoDouble
A film by Owen15 | Canada
“Have you ever found yourself itching to go out for a ‘First to Find’ but know you really shouldn’t? If so, GeoDouble is perfect for you!”
Who or what inspired this film?
I was inspired by Saturday Night Live’s comedic ads for fictitious products and wanted to make one myself… geocaching style!
How did you assemble the team (directors, actors, crew, etc.)?
That for me was the easiest part since I was the whole team! I had some free time on my own at the beginning of the summer and thought this would be a fun project, and it was!
Did you have any funny/interesting/challenging behind-the-scenes moments?
The most challenging scenes to film were the ‘clone’ scenes where I had to fit two of me into the same picture. I had limited software so it took many tries to produce a satisfying result. Also, for certain scenes I had to leave the house and embarrass myself in public. I would wait until all muggles had cleared and then quickly set up, film, pack up and bike away, within a few minutes.
If you could condense this film down to a basic message to all geocachers, what would it be?
Never miss an opportunity to go geocaching!
What recommendations do you have for new geocaching filmmakers?
I would recommend capturing an element of geocaching that you particularly enjoy and portray it in a creative way.
What are you excited about for GIFF 2015?
I really look forward to seeing another round of creative films and hopefully submitting one myself!
Geocaching With Sasquatch
A film by Frisky Biscuits | USA
“A very clever Sasquatch figures out how to order up some snacks by publishing a geocache to attract people to his part of the forest.”
Who or what inspired this film?
Our daughter Elizabeth was so inspired by the 2013 GIFF, she very much wanted to participate this year. Our family talked around several different ideas and we thought this one was the funniest.
How did you assemble the team (directors, actors, crew, etc.)?
This was truly a family project. We each had multiple jobs: gathering supplies/costumes, acting, filming and editing.
Did you have any funny/interesting/challenging behind-the-scenes moments?
We had several issues including overcast weather and dwindling camera batteries, but the kids were so motivated to make this happen that we just kept persevering.
If you could condense this film down to a basic message to all geocachers, what would it be?
Geocaching is a fun (and funny) adventure. Get out there and explore some new places and have a great time doing it!
What recommendations do you have for new geocaching filmmakers?
Give it a try! Even if you have never done anything like this before, you CAN make a movie. We are excited to see what you come up with and we will be sitting in the audience to cheer you on next year.
What are you excited about for GIFF 2015?
Watching the creativity of the Geocaching community is amazing! The GIFF is one of the most enjoyable nights of the summer!
The Deadliest Cache
A film by TheHuntingYoshi | Norway
“A geocacher is going on an FTF-hunt. Turns out, he might have made it more difficult than he needed to.”
Who or what inspired this film?
We asked around for ideas and a fellow geocacher (Lordwadar) came up with the idea about the FTF-hunter. I really liked it because every geocacher that has been on an exciting geocache hunt would see her or himself in that situation, and not just the FTF-hunters.
How did you assemble the team (directors, actors, crew, etc.)?
Laffa and me are very good friends and we’d made some other films together. The hardest part was to come up a script that only had two actors. Because there were only the two of us doing all the work. I wrote it, shot it and directed it with Laffas help.
Did you have any funny/interesting/challenging behind-the-scenes moments?
Every bit was both funny and challenging. But while I was behind the camera shooting, Laffa had to really do the hard work in this film. We had to shoot some of the scenes multiple times. The more tired he got, the funnier the scene seemed to become. In the final scene he jumps in the water fully clothed. I was afraid the water would be cold but he actually said the water was refreshing after rolling around in the woods all day long.
If you could condense this film down to a basic message to all geocachers, what would it be?
There is usually a trail going to the geocache. Look at the terrain difficulty to get a sense of how much bushing you need to do.
What recommendations do you have for new geocaching filmmakers?
Learn good camera handling. Make it short. Make cuts often.
What are you excited about for GIFF 2015?
Watching the creativity of the Geocaching community is amazing! The GIFF is one of the most enjoyable nights of the summer!
Cacheheart
A film by MudMen_GER | Germany
“The cache king is dead and a new one has to be found. To climb the throne, we have to find the holy and royal FTF.”
Who or what inspired this film?
The inspiration for our film came, because we were planing a geocaching tour to Scotland in Summer 2014. A wonderful country which we would like to visit since ages. So the story took place in a Scottish-like environment, but we never left Germany for shooting. The “Highlands” you can see in our film, is an old dump in the Ruhr district of Germany.
How did you assemble the team (directors, actors, crew, etc.)?
The story of “Cacheheart” was created together with our workmate and geocaching partner Hövel. We all have the same sense of humor, which is importatn when you work on a project like this. To get all the background actors to the set we made a geocaching event. Because of the guidelines of Geocaching.com, we did an “After-Shooting-Event”. First working on our set and then relaxing at a fine little geocaching event. One actor, McMario, traveled 300 miles from Hamburg to be a part of our film.
Did you have any funny/interesting/challenging behind-the-scenes moments?
One of the funnist moments were as Hövel slipped into the costume of the Marshmallow Man. It was not planned, but it looks so wired that we decided to let the costume in the final film. Challenging were the weather conditions on the day of shooting. It was raining and one or two background actors slipped on theirs butts down hill.
If you could condense this film down to a basic message to all geocachers, what would it be?
Have fun, be creative and don’t care if you are the first , second or tenth finder of a geocache.
What recommendations do you have for new geocaching filmmakers?
Don’t wait until tomorrow, start now. It makes so much fun to see how your GIFF film is growing. And if your film will be shown on the big screen in Seattle, it makes you proud.
What are you excited about for GIFF 2015?
We already have plans for a participation on GIFF2015. The script is finished and we will start shooting in the next one or two month. We don’t want to betray too much, but the story is about the magic of geocaching.
First to Find — The Woodland Hunt
A film by CarboKnightLuke | United Kingdom
“Two geocachers, Alan and Steve are on a mission to get the first to find, but unfortunately they are after the same cache. This can only mean trouble!”
Who or what inspired this film?
Having found out about the competition we wanted to give our own take on what Geocaching means to us. Since we live in Cornwall, a beautiful part of the UK, we wanted to show off a bit of the greenery and make a video that is both entertaining and would inspire people to make their own films.
How did you assemble the team (directors, actors, crew, etc.)?
We were a crew of 3. Myself and Michael Bray were the creative force who put the whole thing together. We were also assisted by Ben Grocock, Michael’s friend who acted as Runner and Prop guy, as he provided the ammo crate for us!
Did you have any funny/interesting/challenging behind-the-scenes moments?
We shot on a very hot day and poor old Michael had to wear that thick yellow hoodie for the whole shoot. He didn’t complain once and didn’t even take the thing off! We were limited to time when it came to Ben’s involvement as we could only shoot an hour with him so had to fit all his bits in first before he departed, but you wouldn’t have noticed it was shot completely out of order!
If you could condense this film down to a basic message to all geocachers, what would it be?
Getting the first to find is a great goal for any geocacher, but don’t let it ruin the experience and fun of the game. Some geocachers take the FTF too seriously and it ruins the fun of it! Just enjoy the experience whether or not you get there first!
What recommendations do you have for new geocaching filmmakers?
Try and be creative! Have fun in making your film and make it to the best of your ability. It should reflect what you enjoy and should be a joy to watch. We expressed our interest through comedy sketch, but your film has to be something that you would enjoy watching if you were the audience. If you don’t enjoy watching your film then why should anyone else?
What are you excited about for GIFF 2015?
I am looking forward to perhaps giving it another crack. Being one of the 16 nominee’s was an honour and was really fun to travel the distance to attend. Fingers crossed for this year!
That’s it for now, folks. Stay tuned for our next round of interviews with geocaching filmmakers on February 20th, 2015, where we’ll get a look at arguably the funniest geocaching videos around.
Think your geocaching film has what it takes to have geocaching audiences cheering in approval? Visit the GIFF 2015 homepage and find out how to enter!
