Web 2.0: The Age of User-generated Content has well and truly arrived, with sites like YouTube and PutFile allowing anyone and everyone to upload videos of themselves lip synching, dancing, and generally acting silly, sultry or soppy.
The fact that the masses can now show off their vids to the world for nix may appear to pose a threat to would-be professional filmmakers, whose work is likely to get lost in the mire of Numa Numa dances, Chinese Backstreet Boys and Star Wars re-enactments that represent the bulk of content on YouTube.
Well fear not, creative film types. Recognising the need to cater to aspiring Tropfest entrants and underappreciated artistes, a local Web site, Nice Shorts has sprung up with the aim of showcasing short films to the industry and the average arts punter.
Launched in May, the site has since amassed almost a hundred films, ranging from hard-hitting dramas to a spoof of the "Where the bloody hell are you?" tourism ad. A recently announced partnership with ninemsn will see five films from Nice Shorts being featured on ninemsn's Movies sub-site per month -- great exposure for those with fantasies of being the next Tarantino.
Anyone can submit a film to Nice Shorts, provided the work is original and not subject to copyright restrictions. Watching and uploading videos is free.
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