Schedule

Friday

9am Creative Connections Meet-Up In Aspen room. Adobe Creative Cloud – If you are an Adobe User, you might know what it’s like to buy the latest version of software, only to find out that Adobe is releasing it’s next version already. It’s getting harder to keep up with the latest software upgrades…until now.

9am StarFest Fan Film Festival film making workshop

3pm Write Naked Writing Workshop WRITE NAKED! Want time to create? Join Anne Randolph, founder of Kitchen Table Writing, for her hands-on writing workshop. Explore a fresh way to create character, conflict, story, and scene? Stretch your imagination by actually writing. Create core to your characters. Find tension that grips your reader. Bring paper and pen and your imagination. Come write, be inspired. Write Naked! (but do wear clothes!).

5pm iPhone apps for Geeks Use your favorite iOS device to get the most out of your favorite genre. Movie apps! Games! Digital things! Come find out about some of the coolest apps and share some 
of your favorites!

5pm DIY all the things! Join us for 3d printing, a robot that draws, papercraft doodling, and things that light up, glow, and fizzle… er maybe not fizzle. Flex your creative muscles and learn a bit about electronics and engineering in the process. It’s easier than you might think.

6pm Denver Film-Makers Showcase 1 Join us we screen serious and campy sci-fi short films by some of Denver’s most unique independent filmmakers.  Movies include a faithful adaptation of the Frank Herbert short story “Cease Fire,” a movie inspired by an episode from the Twilight Zone, several movies about time travel, aliens, alternate realities, and future dystopias. Hosted by Patrick Sheridan, Executive Director of the Emerging Filmmakers Project, Denver’s longest running, locals only-independent film showcase (www.efpdenver.wordpress.com).

 6pm Digital Steampunk Fairy Tales Learn about the process of creating and animating steampunk versions of fairy tale classics. Peter Wack has been publishing short stories since 1993, game story-lines since 2002, and novels since 2008. His first novel, Second Paradigm, landed him several speaking engagements on the topic of how to write time travel and true nonlinear stories. He is currently playing in the steampunk sandbox as head of a creative studio at www.FairyPunkStories.com where he pairs writers and artists to create illustrated teampunk fairy tales.

7pm Local Animators Film Reel  ASIFA-Colorado recently produced a reel showing the work of many local animators. This presentation contains the work of students, local professionals and hobbyists.  ASIFA-Colorado is a local chapter of the International Animated Film Society (ASIFA), a 50-year-old organization dedicated to the art of animation.  This presentation is sponsored by ASIFA-Colorado, a community-minded non-profit animated film society with an international reach.

7pm Video Game art program at the DEAD Academy The Denver Entertainment Art & Design Academy is looking to expand its Video Game Art program in 2013 and beyond.  We are in talks with new teachers at local companies who know what it takes to get those coveted video game jobs and who look for new employees regularly.  Come by and see what we have in store this year!

8pm Local Animators Film Reel continued

8pm Introducing the Adobe Cloud Everything you need to create anything. Join Mandi Pralle from Visual Persuasion to learn more about subscription plans, new programs in CS6, and what this means for the future of sharing and delivering creative work. Q & A to follow.

9PM DigiFest Kick Off party in main events A Big party with Music and Video and 5 bands.

10.30pm DigiFest kickoff in Atrium The Party Continues

Midnight Animation Uncensored Animated shorts in the style of a travelling, twisted animation show with material ranging over 30 years

 

Saturday

10am Free Love Author Pig Pile A free-form discussion of writing and the publishing industry. It’s your chance to pick the professionals’ brains about the craft and the industry of writing. How does that look?

10am Sci-Fi Animated shorts Start your day off right with a  custom program of rarely seen, high octane, high craft animated Sci-Fi shorts

11am Has Reality Destroyed Science Fiction? Join author Warren Hammond and his all-star panel as they examine the impact of our increased rate of technological growth for science fiction

11am Hot Lead Hard Fury: A film-making case study 1970’s Cult Genre-Fest in One Film? Yes!
If you were to combine the 1970’s film genres euro-crime, kung-fu, police action and blaxploitation in one film, what would you get? The answer: ‘Hot Lead Hard Fury’! Join the creative team of M. Van Michaels and Jesse Frazier and some of the cast and crew as they discuss everything related to this exciting Denver-based, micro-budget project soon to enter production on Super 8mm film this summer! From the influential films of the seventies that helped conceive this project to the nuts and bolts of finally filming it, Van Michaels, Frazier and their team discuss their journey. The “low-to no” budget nature of this Super 8mm project has given Van Michaels and Frazier a unique- and up-front- perspective of the rough and ready, do-it-or-die, under the radar spirit of filmmaking that produced those cult celluloid gems back in the seventies.

12pm The First Ever Fan-Directed, Touchscreen Graphic Novel Get an exclusive look inside the creation of the first-of-its-kind fan-directed, touchscreen, graphic novel entitled “The Way (of Yahweh)!!!” Think X-Men, meets Mission Impossible, meets The Book of Eli exploding from your tablet or smart phone device each month in an expansive saga that lets YOU DECIDE THE OUTCOME!!! Alliances, betrayals, plot twists, along with the fate of each character within the story will all be in YOUR HANDS! Join us for this exclusive preview! Find out more at: {www.theway-saga.com. SPECIAL NOTE: FREE iPad beta samples of “The Way (of Yahweh)” will be provided to all attendees!

12pm Electronic Publishing and Print on Demand with Tattered Cover Press Whether it’s a memoir, a travelog, a collection of your kid’s essays and poems, a cookbook of your own recipes,  or a family history, you can print your work on demand, in store at Tattered Cover Press. Learn about all the options for getting your ideas out into the wild with the help of your leading local bookstore. 

1pm eBook Conversion:  The Easy Way Whether it’s a memoir, a travelog, a collection of your kid’s essays and poems, a cookbook of your own recipes,  or a family history, you can print your work on demand, in store at Tattered Cover Press. Learn about all the options for getting your ideas out into the wild with the help of your leading local bookstore. 

1pm Character/Creature Design for Video Games Every video game on the market today requires artists who design the characters, creatures, items, and look of the environments.  People get paid good money for creating the iconic visions of today’s games.  Where do they get their education?  Most go to expensive schools in Los Angeles and elsewhere.  Denver never had a school like that.  Until now.  Come on down and find out about the DEAD Academy!

2pm Video Game Jobs How do people get jobs working in the video game industry?  It can be a tricky process, but if you have the skills, a strong portfolio and the right connections, it may be easier than you think.  The DEAD Academy is making contacts among the local video game companies, big and small, and developing a curriculum designed to help Colorado creative talent find jobs in the entertainment fields, including video games, movies, monster makeup, and comic books.  Come see what we have to say! 

2pm Adobe After Effects Adobe After Effects is the industry standard software for animation and compositing. Join Chuck Ulibarri, from Visual Persuasion, to find out what’s new in After Effects CS6. Q & A to follow.

3pm Crowdfunding: Raising Funds for Your Creative Idea Neil Gaiman’s doing it. OUYA’s doing it…and so are thousands of videographers, musicians, designers, writers, and artists.  Crowdfunding is “the” method for creative minds to raise capital for their businesses, projects, and ideas. Anyone can crowdfund for anything. And, the public ultimately decides which projects are funded, not the corporations, VCs, or the banks. In this workshop, Leigh Lepore, Founder of Crowdfunding Strategy & Information, will walk through the evolution of crowdfunding, it’s impact on creativity today, and the steps for getting your ideas funded.  Whether you need $1,000 or $100,000, crowdfunding is an option

3pm Adobe Premiere Pro Adobe Premiere Pro is the ultimate toolset for video pros. Join Chuck Ulibarri, from Visual Persuasion, to find out what’s new in Premiere CS6. Q & A to follow.
Presenter Bio—Chuck UlibarriChuck has over 25 years of experience in the video and multimedia industry. His skills include all aspects of the video production industry including; shooting, editing, writing and producing. Chuck has won over 30 national and international awards for his work in TV advertising and television programming on a local and regional basis. He’s been recognized by the United Way and The Children’s Miracle Network for producing telethons on a local level.

4pm You Can Write a Sci Fi Script! So you have an idea for a great sci-fi short movie or feature-length film? Now what? This seminar and workshop will help you identify a few of the essential elements in story development so you can begin the journey of turning that great idea into a produceable script. Taught by local filmmaker and screenwriter Patrick Sheridan of Paddy Wagon Films

4pm Is There a Book in You? How to Create Your Platform  with Dr. Judith Briles The single biggest mistakes new authors and wannabe authors do is rush to publish. Publishing Predators lurked at every corner—more interested in the author-to-be’s credit card than the author or the book; most authors sell less than 100 copies of their books; and most authors are clueless about the dollars and sense of publishing. In this indepth workshop, you will learn: Judith’s presentation is full of supporting statistics, scenarios and strategies on what to do now! If there is a book in you, and you want to be successful, you need to attend.

 5pm Briles Continued

5pm LearnToChip – What is Chiptune? What is Chiptune? Simply put, it is music created with (or emulating) a sound chip, such as the ones found in old-school video game consoles like the NES, Commodore 64 and GameBoy. LTC is a panel of discovery on the mysteries of creating authentic Chiptune music from the ground up, either with your PC or using actual video game hardware. Learn a little about its beginnings, its relevance in today’s culture, and get introduced to some of the vast number of currently available programs for music creation.

6pm Becoming a Digital DJ Learn the basics of beatmatching, beatgridding, and transitions for Digital DJs. Learn the lingo and understand the vocabulary you’ll face while growing your library and looking up song/mix information. Find DJ-friendly music sources and understand the differences between songs and mix singles.

6pm Mobile Musicmaking  Your favorite phone and tablet are able to create some of the coolest sounds. Use the iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad to make and mix music. No prior musical ability is required. 
Warning! You may become addicted to making music on your iPhone and lose contact 
with your favorite humans, animals and forget the color of the sky.

7pm Local Band Speed Date Try and stump our panel of experts in finding the local equivalent of your favorite bands and styles. We will also discuss the local scenes, styles, and different venues.  This panel will give people who haven’t been out to a show in a long time all they need to start enjoy the vibrant local scene. 

7pm The Acting Dead Seems everyone is making a zombie, vampire, post-apocalypse, alien invasion, or low-budget horror movie. Sure, the script is probably gonna suck, but your acting doesn’t have to! Learn the secret of walking dead, being dead, rising from the dead, being in a coma, waking from a coma, being an alien, and tripping while running away from a slow moving creature! Taught by local filmmaker Patrick Sheridan. Patrick runs the Film Acting Academy of Denver (www.denverfilmacting.com).

8pm GrindHouse Night 4 Our fourth annual Grindhouse Night features DJ Death Fez with cast and crew of the upcoming feature ” Hot Lead Hard Fury” introducing our traditonal combination of shorts, vintage trailers and classic exploitation fare. The Films are Black Samurai, Turkey Shoot, and The Last Days of Man on Earth

8pm Galaxy Quest

 

Sunday

9am Denver Film-Makers Showcase 2

10am Preserving Memories Digitally The makers of digital imaging devices – still and video cameras, scanners, and the like – try to make the experience of capturing and digitizing your analog world as effortless as possible. The “auto” settings that they offer do a pretty good job in most circumstances. But like everything, there’s an easy way to do things, and a right way. Ed Campbell, photo restoration professional from A Page Is Turned, will show you how to get the best image possible when scanning your precious originals. Along the way, he’ll be offering some tips and shortcuts that can help you become a scanning expert.

10am Film-Maker showcase 2 continued

11am Adobe Illustrator Adobe Illustrator is the industry’s premier vector drawing application. Join Mandi Pralle from Visual Persuasion to learn more about Illustrator’s drawing tools and techniques. Q & A to follow.

11am Flash Quick-Starter Adobe’s Flash software started as a way to create simple animations on the web.  It has evolved significantly over the past 20 years and is now used for everything from TV shows, Hollywood blockbusters, and forensic animations to animations and games shown on iPads and Android phones.  Evert Brown, long time animator and veteran of cartoons such as The Peanuts and Cathy, takes us through the process of creating a frame-by-frame animation using Adobe Flash.  This presentation is sponsored by ASIFA-Colorado, a community-minded non-profit animated film society with an international reach.

12pm Mobile Moviemaking  The iPhone is capable of taking breathtaking moving images. This workshop will show you some of the best apps to take footage, apply special effects and utilize post-color 
grading techniques like a pro. You will also learn about extra add-ons so that you can use lavaliere microphones and wide angle lenses. Finally, you will learn about iMovie and editing on the go.

12pm Photo Restoration and Enhancement Adobe Photoshop is truly the “Swiss Army Knife” of imaging software in the 21st century. One of the more intriguing functions for which this tool can be used is photo manipulation – both for restoration of damaged images and to enhance the original for creative intent. In this discussion, we’ll be looking at some of the means by which both of these objectives can be obtained. We’ll show some examples and give away some trade secrets that can show you how to get the best from your aging images.

1pm Film Festivals: The Other Side Listen to our panel as they entrance you with horror and hero stories from being on the receiving end of innumerable festival submissions. Learn what makes a submission stand out from the crowd. See what it takes behind the scenes to put a festival together.

1pm Getting Found in Web Searches Have you heard the people talk about SEO? This stands for Search Engine Optimization. This powerful methodology is helping people and businesses be found on the Internet every day. This is not magic.. Join us for a breakdown of SEO fundamentals, and see real world examples of how this can benefit you, your service or your product in todays market place!

2pm Final Cut Pro X Apple’s flagship editing software has taken a radical turn. Attend this workshop to learn about how Final Cut Pro X can help you become a faster editor. Utilize the strengths of 
non-linear editing to the fullest potential!

2pm The Pony Panel You’re either down for this or you’re not, so let’s not beat around the haybale: a panel of fans discuss the pros and — gasp –  cons of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. Audience participation in this will be welcome but by no means required as we take on the wit and wonder of Equestria with all its songs and sagas, its pageantry and its ponies. Also, the resident grimdark fantasy author on the panel will appreciate it if nobody refers to him as a “brony” — his academic respect for the vim and vigor of Pinkie Pie is well-documented, but he’s not big on bros in general.