This team is one of many from the Treasure Valley's film community. They've nearly finished their most recent challenge, put on by i48 — a film competition and festival where local teams and filmmakers typically have 48 hours to write, produce, cast, shoot and edit a short film.

But this competition lasted longer than 48 hours. 

The collaboration project

The whole process began in November 2023, when screenwriters from all over Idaho submitted 10-page original short film screenplays. The film screenplays vary in genre, but are all PG-13 or below. Around that same time, the i48 team recruited 10 director/producer teams, assigning each team a screenplay to produce. In January, i48 casted 40 actors and actresses to work with the various production teams. Filming began in February, with each short film featuring at least four speaking roles. Filmmakers had 16 days to film their movies and one month to edit the films before final submissions on March 31. There will be a public screening of the films on April 6 at The Flicks.

This competition provided teams with the unique opportunity to produce a film without necessarily having the screenwriter directly involved in the process, leaving some creative freedom to directors, actors and the production team. 

According to the i48 website, the goals of the Collaboration Project are: to provide the opportunity for screenwriters who might not otherwise have access to a production team to see their work realized on the big screen; to push director/producing teams to make a film not of their own idea or creation: and to encourage directors and producers to work with new actors and vice versa. "Overall, the goal is encourage collaboration between new voices and new faces within the Boise filmmaking community."

Awards will be given for Best Screenplay ($100 cash prize and trophy), Best Film (trophy), 2nd Best Film (trophy), Best Actor (trophy), Best Actress (trophy) and Best Cinematography (trophy).

Actors takes one and two

Actor Abe Alford, who plays Liam Ford in one short film by Ice Cream Entertainment, said the production team was "one of the best skeleton crews" in which he's ever been involved.  

"Everyone was there purely for the love of the craft," said Alford in an email. "Working for free and working their asses off … . That’s the type of artists and industry people I want to, and plan on, building something with."

The scope of the film was one of the biggest Alford has ever done. That challenge is exactly why he participates in local film projects like this one, he said. During the filming process, Alford spent hours talking with Garcia and other crew members about the creative process of it all: the acting, writing, filmmaking — everything. 

"It was a pleasure," Alford said. "i48 gives a good outlet for artists to jumpstart their inspiration and give them a little push to get out there and make something. It’s a good way to create a community and pool of talent."

That sentiment was shared by many crew members who worked with Garcia, including actor Sean Small. 

"This is as dream-teamy as you can get," Small said via email. 

Collaborating and networking

In this project alone, Garcia, who has been doing this work professionally for 17 years, said he has met four new people in the local film community. Making new connections, practicing the craft and creating something new is exactly what keeps bringing him back to sets, back to cameras — back to i48. 

"Nothing about filmmaking is perfect and that's kind of the beauty of it," Garcia said on set, camera in hand. "Everybody comes together. It's a collaborative art form — and something new that you didn't exactly picture emerges." 

"One of the things that I really like about what Andrew (Ellis) and Josie (Pusl, the co-directors of i48) do for this film community is, they encourage collaboration," Garcia said. "A lot of filmmaking teams can be like islands unto themselves. I'm guilty of that myself. And so I think at the heart of this event, is this idea of getting us to work with other people that we haven't before."

Next week, the public will get a chance to see what Garcia and other local crews have been working on since February. A public screening of each i48 short film will be on April 6 at The Flicks, located on 646 Fulton Street in Boise. Tickets are $12 and can be purchased online at theflicksboise.com.