The Ten Sec Tips

1: The three most important the elements of any Ten Sec are, The Idea, The Idea, The Idea.

Your Ten Sec needs to connect with people. Comedy is generally the easiest route in such a short format, but don't limit yourself. Decide what your message is and what you need to do to get it across to an audience.

2: Make a plan

Organise yourself, create a storyboard if you need one. Look through our legal tips just to make sure you don't waste your time. Shooting you masterpiece with a huge logo on your t-shirt under an 200 foot illuminated billboard with the radio blaring is going to cause some problems.

3: Production.

Assumption is the mother of all f**k ups, so says He Who Knows. What do you need to make your Ten Sec happen ? Cast of thousands or just hours squinting at a screen. Make a list of everything and everyone you need and sort it out beforehand. It's really that simple.

4: Size matters.

Your masterpiece will end up on the small screen and different rules apply. If your film relies on subtle performances chances are these will be lost on a smaller screen. Close ups are good, detail will generally get lost.

5: Camerawork. Steady now!

Fast camera pans, zooming and wobbly camerawork will turn your film into a mess of pixels on a mobile phone. Keep the camera steady, use a tripod or other camera support if you don't feel too restricted by it.

Work in the highest quality you can manage. Just because it's going out in the small screen doesn't mean you should ignore good production practice. DV is an ideal format for filming Ten Secs, try to beg or borrow the best kit you can get your hands on.

6: Sound quality is as important

Sound is as important if not more so than vision. Always listen to the sound being recorded on headphones, try and use a directional microphone and keep background noise to a minimum.

7: Capture and edit

You need to get your Ten Sec from your camera and into an editing program. The options are numerous. If you have a Mac, iMovie and Final Cut Pro are ideal. If you have a PC every computer shop is crammed with options, ranging from a simple lead to a humungously expensive humming silver box of tricks. It comes down to budget and personal preference.

8: Music and sound effects

Do you need music, if so it has to be either royalty free or you need permission to use it. Forget anything from your CD collection, we can't use it. The web is a wash with sites offering rights cleared music or you can create your own with any music sequencing program such as Acid, Sonic Foundry or Apple Soundtrack.

9: Exporting your masterpiece.

This is an important step and involves getting your ten Sec off your computer and into a format you can submit. See submission details for more information.

10: Test your film in front of an audience.

Does it work. Show it to your friends and loved ones to test whether your original concept needs tweaking. just because it worked on you doesn't mean everyone is going to love and understand it..