It’s one of the crown jewels of the Edmonton International Film Festival: the annual 24/1 film competition. This year, 40 teams of amateur filmmakers took the challenge. 24 hours to write, shoot and edit a 6 minute short film. We tagged along with one of the teams, Mike Tyson Connection, as they shot for top spot at the EIFF.

Click on the video below to check out Mike Tyson Connection’s highs, lows and everything in between. Call it our mini-doc on the making of a short film. You can check out the top ten 24/1 entries Friday night at the Empire City Center cinemas. You’ll find all the details at www.edmontonfilmfest.com.

Below the video of our feature, you’ll find Mike Tyson Connection’s finished product…the 6 minute version, anyway. They’ve promised to upload a Director’s Cut to their YouTube channel after Friday night’s event. www.youtube.com/8mmlenz

Action!

rpj.

Are you my Mother?

Can’t you just hear Mother Goose chiding her little gosling?    “Hurry Up – don’t lag behind!”    Chris had perfect timing when catching this adorable kodak moment.    This little guy still has his yellow and gray feathers and dark bill so that tells me he is about 8 weeks old.

DID YOU KNOW?    Goslings can swim right out of their shell – but they can’t fly until they are about 9 weeks.    Five weeks after her goslings hatch, Mother Goose begins moulting.    Father Goose begins moulting right after mating.    During this time, they are unable to fly until they regrow their flight feathers – and that is at about the same time as the goslings are able to learn – at nine weeks old.

Q: Why didn’t the baby goose believe anything his father said?
A: He thought it was all papagander

SEND ME A CORNY JOKE  - SEND ME A RIDDLE, BUT DON’T FORGET TO SEND ME A PHOTO.    MOTHER NATURE AND HER CREATURES ARE OUT THERE WAITING AND SO ARE WE.

Wow ... wowee

The most talented wordsmith is able to describe the perfect sunrise, but there is nothing like seeing it captured on camera.    We are grateful this dawn’s early light caught Paul’s eye:  “Beautiful sunrise on the morning of Friday, September 23rd!”.    Agreed Paul!    On that particular morning, fall (Autumnal Equinox) began at 3 minutes after 4am.    This photo was taken between 6:30 and 7:30am.

DID YOU KNOW?    The name ‘equinox’ comes from the Latin aequus (equal) and nox (night).    Our change in seasons are caused by Earth’s tilt on its axis and its orbit around the sun.    Our northern and southern hemispheres trade places in receiving the sun’s light and warmth most directly.    Twice a year in the spring and fall:  the tilt of the Earth’s axis and Earth’s orbit around the sun combine so that the axis is inclined neither away from nor toward the sun.  Earth’s two hemispheres receive the sun’s rays equally – so the hours of night and day are almost the same.

WE’LL GIVE YOU A LOT OF LATITUDE .. AND LONGITUDE!    SO GET OUT THERE MORNING NOON OR NIGHT AND SHOOT.    UPLOAD YOUR PHOTO TODAY, SEE IT ON BT TOMORROW!

Where Eagle's soar ... and nest!

You could say this is a bird’s eye view .. The Bald Eagle might be looking down at Ian while he looks up at one huge nest.    Bald Eagles can see three or four times farther than people – better for hunting & survival.    “On a perfectly warm fall day – I took this photo near Whitecourt and the mighty Athabasca River.   Check out the Bald Eagle’s nest!”

DID YOU KNOW?    The Bald Eagle is Canada’s largest bird of prey and its nest is the largest of any bird in North America.    On average it is 1 to 2 metres across and about 1 metre high.    Up high is where they like to build their nests:  in old growth forests, on cliffs, and as you can see above - they will even nest in conifers, especially pines.    Momma lays her eggs in April/May and about 16 weeks later – first flight!

LOOK UP – LOOK DOWN – FRESH AIR PHOTOS ARE ALL AROUND.    AMAZE AND IMPRESS YOUR FRIENDS , BT VIEWERS AND READERS OF THIS BLOG.    UPLOAD YOUR PHOTO TODAY SEE IT ON BT TOMORROW!

Up close and personal

George gives us a creative close-up!    “Young bison taken at Elk Island National Park on the Bison Loop Road.   I thought it made for an interesting shot to crop it”.    George points out that there are two types of bison at Elk Island – the Wood Bison and the Plains Bison.    He even provides a website link so we can see the differences/similarities:  http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/ab/elkisland/natcul/natcul1/b/iii.aspx

DID YOU KNOW?    Two hundred years ago our First Nations People relied on the thriving and massive herds of bison for food, clothing, and shelter.    During the late 1800s commercial hide hunters, settlers, and thrill seekers shot millions of bison.    The destruction of bison herds brought them to the verge of extinction.     Since about 1900, the population of bison in North America has increased thanks to:  legal protection from hunting, and ranchers’ raising bison as livestock.

BE PART OF BT AND BLOG HISTORY BY SENDING US YOUR MOMENT IN TIME.    ON OUR MAIN WEBPAGE CLICK ON ‘CONNECT WITH BT’ – THEN UPLOAD YOUR PHOTO.    OPERATORS ARE STANDING BY AND SO ARE WE!

Ahoy!

Rick takes us to the Arctic Ocean north of Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories.    “This is 30 miles north of Tuk.   You can see the offshore drill rig and a supply ship that houses part of the crew and helps with some crew changes for the kulluk (drill rig).   My job is to keep the ships and rig full of fuel – Fun at sea when in rough weather!”

DID YOU KNOW?    Tuktoyaktuk is on Kugmallit Bay, near the Mackenzie River Delta.    Tuktoyaktuk is the anglicized form of the native Inuvialuit place-name, meaning “resembling a caribou.”    According to legend, a woman looked on as some caribou waded into the water and turned into stone/became petrified.    Today, reefs resembling these petrified caribou are said to be visible at low tide along the shore of the town.

CAMERA CAPTURE A KODAK MOMENT AND SEND IT TO US.    FAME WE CAN PROVIDE – THE FORTUNE PART IS UP TO YOU.    DON’T DELAY, JOIN THE FRESH AIR PHOTO NATION TODAY!

High hopes at Marmot!

 Brian can’t wait for the snow!    This is the view from his office at Marmot Basin in Jasper National Park.    They open November 11th.    And as soon as the snow starts to pile up, Marmot is going to fire up 2 NEW SKI LIFTS:  ”We are ready for another season of record-breaking snowfall!   Last season we opened on November 13th – and the year before was our earliest opening “ever” on November 11th”.   We also have a new store in town – making it easier for people to buy lift tickets and reserve rentals“.

DID YOU KNOW?    A new high speed quad chair named Paradise will replace the existing Paradise Triple Chair in the upper area of the mountain.    The Paradise Triple Chair will be re-located to the lower portion of the mountain where it will replace the School House T-Bar.

The Paradise high speed quad chair will carry skiers up 1,450 m (4,757 ft) in only 4.6 minutes.
The Triple chair it replaces had a ride time of approximately 8 minutes and a 307 m vertical rise.

Marmot Basin is one of the most progressive ski areas in Canada and the only of the four Canadian national park ski areas to have completed its Vision Statement and Site Guidelines as required by Parks Canada.    http://www.skimarmot.com/

OPERATORS IN MARMOT WILL BE STANDING BY — AND SO WILL WE.    UPLOAD YOUR FRESH AIR PHOTO TODAY – SEE IT ON BT AND THIS BLOG TOMORROW!