Pawky.Com: A Chicago-based Short Film Distrubutor Starting to Make Waves

It's confession time. Ready? Here goes: I write about Chicago, I am not a Chicagoan.

I was neither born in Chicago nor bred in Chicago. In fact, even referring to me as an American may be a stretch. Don't get me wrong, I carry a blue passport, I'm as legal as the next guy. But, owing to my parents surreal occupations [Father = U.S Dept of State Intelligence Officer / Mother = UN Post Conflict Chemical-Biological Contamination Surveyor] I've never really spent all that much time stateside - which goes double for the Midwestern heartland I'm calling home these days.

Now, you're probably wondering what any of that has to do with this latest shorts circuit profile of mine. Well, it goes like this... First, I tend to think of Chicago as a kind of outer Mongolian wilderness damned off from the river of cosmopolitanism that flowed through my former home-New York, and to be honest I feel trapped here. But, I'm determined to make the best of it by endeavoring to make it better for my fellow filmmakers

Second, because today I get to bask in the pleasure of introducing you to Chicago-Land's first, for profit, web-based short film Distribution Company …And, they aren't exactly standard issue Americans either. Evanston newcomer Pawky dot com boasts a staff that would do a United Colors of Benetton ad proud. A President purportedly from Zhezqazghan, Kazakhstan (literally outer Mongolia), a Vice President who reportedly hails from Nsoc, Equatorial Guniea, a content manager who claims to be from Gammel Sukkertoppen in Greenland, a head of business development who lists her birthplace as Ana Kakenga, Easter Island, Chile and a mysterious tech-guy from Chicago.

In other words: If you're a short-filmmaker and you get the joke, you're in luck. Founder Biographies aside, Pawky is as real as short film markets come and looks to be in a position to stay for around a while. Founded less than a year ago, Pawky is the brainchild of Alexander Oleynikov and Paul Birman.

Their business model essentially splits the difference between competitors MotionFlix and YouTube by showcasing both hand-picked, often award-winning short films not readily available through any other online venue while allowing members to upload video, blog and take part in an online community that brings filmmakers their audience together.

"We're like an ongoing film festival where the audience can interact with the filmmakers on their own terms," said Oleynikov, their co-founder and President. "Pawky's a perpetual question and answer session. It does more than simply entertain you for a minute. These are carefully crafted films intended to make people question the world and think about issues differently, as well as entertain."

"The U.S. audience is undergoing a shift in the way that it consumes video," added content manager Elina Miller. "A lot of us at Pawky are from The Former Soviet Union and have a very European sensibility.People [here in the US] who have traditionally obtained video through the standard television are now accepting the internet-based on the go video. So, we think that not only could this growing trend ignite an appreciation for short film in the U.S. that is equal to its popularity overseas but it can even surpass the European appreciation for it. Once the hype surrounding viral video dies down, people will want to see something of substance, perhaps something that will stay with them long after they see it."

The Bottom Line

Pawky's films are ad-supported and therefore free for everyone, members and non-members alike. Their featured content is aimed at outlets as airlines, hand-held devices - cell phones, Blackberries, PDA's, gaming consoles plus on-demand TV and even DVD compilations. Or, as Miller said . . .

"We don't know the meaning of personal space. We try to work as closely as possible with our filmmakers. We get to deal with up and coming, talented individuals who have a fresh and new take on the industry. We are inspired by their immense talent and feed off of their love of film."

Which translates into the fact that Pawky is very selective about the films they acquire, valuing quality over quantity. That said; they accept submissions in all genres, to fit people's varying tastes, but recommend that if you're interested in submitting, your film should be somewhere around twenty minutes or less to suit average download speeds as well as shortening attention spans. They also offered this bit of advice to aspirants:

"Take risks and you are your own boss. Don't think about how marketable it will be. If you focus on what the mainstream wants, you are not staying true to yourself. Just do it and then see where it takes you. That's the beauty of the short. You don't have to make gargantuan investments of time and money, and that allows you to take risks. Embrace this opportunity."

Complete details on how and in what form to submit are available at: www.pawky.com.