The deadline for submissions for the 8th Annual Filmed by Bike is February 15, 2010. That means submissions are rolling in and our mailbox is overflowing. It’s nice to think about films that were envisioned, filmed, edited and finalized a while ago, giving the filmmaker ample time to meet the deadline. But the reality is that many filmmakers are still working on the final touches.

So we thought we’d take a moment to cheer you on. If you were in the room with us, we’d bring out our team of cheerleaders on bikes. Best of luck! We can’t wait to see what you’ve got.

Calling all filmmakers!

You’ve got just a little more time to submit your entries to the 2009 festival. Submissions are limited to eight minutes so wrap it up, drop it in the mail and get ‘er on over to us.

Our esteemed jury will select the final program of movies to be screened April 17-23 at the Clinton Street Theater in Portland, Oregon.

The deadline for entries is officially closed and we were quite impressed with the turn out! We received double the number of entries as last year with improved overall quality. So, what to do with all those great movie? SHOW THEM, of course! This year we will have two programs over the course of the weekend. There are eight screenings and the matinees are all ages. More info to come!

March 1st, is that postmarked by or received by? What if it is late? Can I just drop it off at your office? What if it is just over eight minutes? I’m sending it from Sweden, what if it doesn’t arrive in time? We’re transferring from tape and it’s out of our hands, it might be late, will you still take it?

Yes, these are the questions of movie makers freaking out about meeting that call for entries deadline of March 1st. Is that a hard-fast deadline? Yes. What if the submission is late? They jury screening may be over and your movie won’t be watched until 2009. But that’s okay – 2009 needs movies too!

We’ve got tons of submissions already and more on their way. So far the overall quality is excellent, we have more movies from outside the US than ever before and a lot of diverse submissions. 2008 is looking pretty great! I can’t wait for the opening night.

On Feb 10th I was at the Worst Day of the Year Ride in Portland to promote Filmed by Bike and encourage people to submit their movies. This is a fun, 18-mile easy ride around Portland, no matter the weather. I had a blast! I met many fun bike lovers who were not only excited about bike love but about sharing that bike love! Laughing Planet Cafe did a fantastic job of feeding us all. As I am new to the Portland area, it was my first supported ride experience. And what a beautiful experience it was! Fresh chili, chowder and bread filled our tummies and warmed our hearts.

When Ayleen, FBB Director, told me there was a chili overload and asked if I would like to take some home with me, I was more than delighted! Being the angel she is, she delivered it to our home. But this was over a week ago…and I can no longer stomach even the idea of stuff! So here is where I say, NO MAS CHILI! Yes it was delicious, yes it was free, but here’s the down side..I live with six other people who have been no-stop chili eating machines! I have seen endless devoured chili dogs, bowls of chili mac and even chili and eggs! Thank goodness it is gone, until one of my house mates finds the hidden stash in the freezer!

Now, let’s get back to MOVIES and forget about chili!

Unfortunately, safety is on our minds a lot lately here in Portland. Two cyclists were recently killed when struck by a motorist making a right turn. A third was seriously injured. I’m more nervous when riding at night – I feel more vulnerable than ever. But at the same time, there is strength in numbers. Two different major studies have shown that the number of motorist-bike accidents goes down significantly when the number of bikers on the road increases. That means keep riding. Keep riding.

No one wants to be told what to do and safety shit has never been cool. But this is the Modern Age, with beats, technology and innovation at our fingertips.Fads and styles change by the minute. YouTube makes unlikely people worldwide stars (Chocolate Rain, Turtle Boy…). Can safety be sexy? Can you make a kick ass safety movie in under 8 minutes? The jury (TBD) and I look forward to seeing your attempt.

Filmed by Bike headquarters is gearing up for the 2008 festival. First on the agenda: a new logo. Special thanks to Sang Park, a Portland-based illustrator who created our new logo. Keep your eyes peeled, you’ll start to see it all around town.

Ladies and gentlemen, get your cameras ready. It’s time for you filmmakers to start gearing up, too! The submission deadline is March 1. For more information, see the call for entries page. Spread the word!

It just won’t stop raining. Where the hell is summer? Anyway, this is a call out to all those of you making your movies with rain scenes that now’s a great time to be out there shooting. The weather’s warm but the skies are cloudy. You’ve only got until March 1, 2008 – so get right on it before time gets away from you.

We used to say that Filmed by Bike happens “one night, and one night only”, but then it got pretty large and we started doing multiple screenings. Still, Filmed by Bike has remained a film fest that only comes out to play once a year. Until now. (more…)