Film — another technology falling by the wayside. There's growing consensus that Digital Video, or DV for short, is about to make the celluloid stuff obsolete. Even George Lucas, who set the standard for filmmaking throughout the last two decades, is shooting the next two Star Wars movies on Digital Video.

DV has many advantages. The most obvious is that it costs almost nothing to shoot and edit compared to film, affording almost anyone the ability to make a DV feature. But what are the pitfalls to look out for when making a DV feature? Who will want to see it? And will you ever be able to sell it?

Join us on Thursday, February 22, to hear the first-hand experiences of Nick Aquilino, part of the new generation of independent filmmakers (or, shall we say, "digimakers"?) using digital video.

Nick produced his first DV feature, Nutcracker, with a group of fellow film students at the College of Marin. (The project garnered Nick and his team an Honorable Mention Award in the Best of the North Bay 2000 competition.) The story centers on a psychologist who has invented a method of accelerating his patients' cures by using advanced brainwave technology. The technology backfires, causing his life to spiral down into madness and disaster.

The project, written and directed by Glen Grefe, stars several local notables, including David Hess (familiar to horror fans as the unforgettable Krug in Wes Craven's debut feature, The Last House on the Left). Also in the cast are former KSAN DJ Darian O'Toole, KGO-TV news anchor Cheryl Jennings, and former San Francisco Supervisor Michael Yaki.

Nick will discuss how he got the cast to donate their time and expertise, agreements with SAG (Screen Actors' Guild), location arrangements (UC San Francisco's Neuropsychology Lab, Harry Denton's Starlight Room, and San Francisco State's broadcasting studio, among many others), equipment, editing, and Web site creation (www.nutcrackerthrillermovie.com). In addition, he will touch on the most difficult part of the process — distribution.