straight 8’s top 8

the top eight straight 8 2025 winners answer 8 quickfire questions

The annual Straight 8 competition requires filmmakers to make a 3-minute film on just one roll of super 8mm, with no re-takes, no editing, no colour grading – no post-production at all.

All visual effects have to be made with the camera itself, and you don’t get to see your film before it’s developed. When you send it off to the competition, you attach a soundtrack and the Straight 8 team compiles the two together.

If selected, the screening will be the first time you ever see your film.

With hundreds of entries every year, the top 8 films are selected to screen at Cannes Film Festival.

In collaboration between Short Stuff and Straight8, we asked the 2025 top 8 winners 8 quickfire questions.

i have something to tell you

by Naomi Christie

  1. Describe your film in one sentence.

    Unrequited love takes an unexpected turn as a man stalks a girl through a city street.

  2. Did it turn out anywhere close to how you expected?

    Yes! Thankfully.

  3. What was your favourite shot?

    It was a oner so the whole thing!

  4. What was the hardest moment in the shoot?

    Nailing the timing and pacing in a one take!

  5. Would you shoot on Super8 again?

    YES!

  6. What would you do differently next time?

    Shoot in multiple locations.

  7. What’s your top tip for anyone shooting on Super 8?

    Be deliberate.

  8. What are you working on next?

    Next year’s straight 8 entry!

there will be another

by Ben Slotover

  1. Describe your film in one sentence.

    A woman fails to catch a series of buses for increasingly ridiculous reasons.

  2. Did it turn out anywhere close to how you expected?

    I expected it to end up looking different, but it turned out just as I’d planned it.

  3. What was your favourite shot?

    A slo-mo shot at 80 frames per second of my actress running after a double decker bus, reflected in a mirrored window.

  4. What was the hardest moment in the shoot?

    Timing the reflection of the bus in a window exactly with only one chance to get it right.

  5. Would you shoot on Super8 again?

    I would and I have!

  6. What would you do differently next time?

    Shoot in summer.

  7. What’s your top tip for anyone shooting on Super 8?

    Test your kit out before shooting anything important. 

  8. What are you working on next?

    A film entirely in slo-mo.

finding home

by James Trosh

  1. Describe your film in one sentence.

    The unbelievable true story of Monica Macias, a West African woman who has travelled the world in order to find her true identity.

  2. Did it turn out anywhere close to how you expected?

    Thankfully, yes – luckily the footage turned out great, and the pictures and voiceover stayed mostly in sync. 

  3. What was your favourite shot?

    I especially love the extreme close-ups of the slides changing in the projector, and the close-up profile shots of Monica.

  4. What was the hardest moment in the shoot?

    Trying to keep the shoot to time and not running out of film before the last shot. 

  5. Would you shoot on Super8 again?

    Definitely.

  6. What would you do differently next time?

    I'd be really interested in exploring some more experimental ways of using a Super 8 camera, whether that is trying new ways of mounting for some interesting camera angles, or attempting some in-camera 'visual effects'.

  7. What’s your top tip for anyone shooting on Super 8?

    Keep all crew well away from the edge of the frame.  Otherwise you might see them creep into shot, even if you can't see them in the viewfinder!

  8. What are you working on next?

    I'm currently working with Monica on new ways to tell her story and hopefully bringing this film to a couple of interesting film festivals.

Immodest

by Robyn and Charly Faye

  1. Describe your film in one sentence.

    ‘Immodest’ is a queer story with female strength at its centre; it’s based off real diary entries from the 17th century and follows two nuns who fall in love.

  2. Did it turn out anywhere close to how you expected?

    Yes and no: I think we were worried it would feel too fast so it was great to hear at the screening that the story translated - I thank our amazing actors for that!

  3. What was your favourite shot?

    The Last Supper recreation.

  4. What was the hardest moment in the shoot?

    We did a movement sequence with 15 actors, beautifully choreographed by Ken Nakajima, the pressure of “one take” definitely felt like it was at an all time high for that scene, but it was exhilarating!  

  5. Would you shoot on Super8 again?

    We’re obsessed! I’ve loved Straight 8 so much I’ve invested in my own camera and can’t wait to make more films. 

  6. What would you do differently next time?

    As cheesy as it sounds - Nothing. Everything, even the scary moments or the bits that went “wrong” made it an incredible experience - that’s the joy of Straight 8. 

  7. What’s your top tip for anyone shooting on Super 8?

    Breathe, and lean into it. Let the adrenaline drive you. 

  8. What are you working on next?

    We want to keep expanding ‘Immodest, and we’ve also just shot another short on Super 8 called ‘Magic 8’ so we’re currently deep in the edit for that! 

just thinking of you

by Tom van Scoyoc (USA)

  1. Describe your film in one sentence.

    A young adult struggles to grapple with the state of the world; an elderly friend gives them the tools to liberate the mind.

  2. Did it turn out anywhere close to how you expected?

    Yes and no: Yes and no. There were a few last minute compromises in production, and a mechanical camera issue that was out of my control, but the themes and takeaways still made their way to the audience, so overall I am happy with the film.

  3. What was your favourite shot?

    I have a lot of favourites, but the currency rates chart was a happy accident.

  4. What was the hardest moment in the shoot?

    We lost our lead actor the night before the first day of shooting, though we managed to find a replacement just in time!

  5. Would you shoot on Super8 again?

    Absolutely!

  6. What would you do differently next time?

    I wouldn’t change much in our film – nothing ever quite comes out exactly the way you plan, but I think it serves its purpose and I am proud of our work!

  7. What’s your top tip for anyone shooting on Super 8?

    Make it small, make it cheap, let the story be what makes it big and have value.

  8. What are you working on next?

    I’m currently writing a feature length film.

the storm, the calm, the madness, the magic

by Nihar Palwe (India)

  1. Describe your film in one sentence.

    At his lowest, with nothing left, a glimpse of her earrings sparks a fire within: A purpose? Or just another illusion?

  2. Did it turn out anywhere close to how you expected?

    Not at all, and that’s what made it beautiful. The uncertainty became part of the storytelling.

  3. What was your favourite shot?
    Two shots: 1. The protagonist, bloodied, at the end, holding both earrings in his palm, silent, still, and strangely whole. 2. Close up of the female protagonist walking in the frame at the end. Her eyes in that shot, uff!

  4. What was the hardest moment in the shoot?

    Shooting the opening fight sequence in peak Mumbai heat with no retakes, no monitor, and just raw instinct.

  5. Would you shoot on Super8 again?

    In a heartbeat. It forces you to trust your gut and give up control. I hope I find a story to tell which deserves to be told on Super 8!

  6. What would you do differently next time?

    Trust the chaos a little more, and maybe rehearse a bit less.

  7. What’s your top tip for anyone shooting on Super 8?

    Forget perfection. Super 8 rewards intuition, not precision.

  8. What are you working on next?

    A couple of feature scripts that I've been cooking for a while now.

Hors Saison

by Riwa Philipps (Lebanon)

  1. Describe your film in one sentence.

    What if the tide kept coming up?

  2. Did it turn out anywhere close to how you expected?

    Close to what I had planned but far from what I imagined

  3. What was your favourite shot?

    Favorite sequence, definitely the climax.

  4. What was the hardest moment in the shoot?

    Toward the end of the day, I had to give up on keeping track of what had been shot and take some risks with the last few shots.

  5. Would you shoot on Super8 again?

    Definitely!

  6. What would you do differently next time?

    N/A

  7. What’s your top tip for anyone shooting on Super 8?

    Plan well then let go.

  8. What are you working on next?

    An artistic research titled Archiving Dreams and Dreaming Archives, at the Netherlands Film Academy.

the return of the screw

by Cosmo Fletcher and Wolf Newton

  1. Describe your film in one sentence.

    A dedicated young priest confronts historical cruelty and his own fears when a spectral figure rises from the sea and reveals secrets of persecution hidden within his church.

  2. Did it turn out anywhere close to how you expected?

    We expected Nosferatu, we got Hammer House of Horror

  3. What was your favourite shot?

    The priest, on seeing the ghoul’s shadow appearing, turns to face it with an expression of abject terror.

  4. What was the hardest moment in the shoot?

    Having to destroy the full size coffin we made because it was too big to take home.

  5. Would you shoot on Super8 again?

    Only if you paid us.

  6. What would you do differently next time?

    There won't be a next time! But hypothetically - allow more time to shoot and get more crew.

  7. What’s your top tip for anyone shooting on Super 8?

    Remember to not only attach a go pro on top of the camera but also switch it on before shooting.

  8. What are you working on next?

    We are working on a 15 minute comedy-horror-romance-sci-fi which is being shot on digital.