By Simon de Bruyn
In a landmark move that will surely be copied in years to come, the producers of Australian indie film The Jammed have launched a website to allow AFI voters to download a high quality version of the film for free.
After the Australian Film Institute announced earlier this year it had made several changes to its awards criteria for the feature film category, The Jammed was allowed to join the ranks of eligible films in contention for the 2008 awards.
The film’s producer Andrea Buck said the production team at The Picture Tank partnered with virtual studio Mod Films to make The Jammed available to view at the click of a button. To prevent piracy, each copy is watermarked and logged with the AFI membership number of the person who downloads it.
“The moment we were asked by the AFI to provide details of how members could view The Jammed it felt like a no-brainer. We would like members to have the option to see the film where, when and how best suits them,” she said.
The Jammed was the surprise hit of the 2007 IF Awards, winning the best film, best script and best music awards.
To download the film, AFI members can visit: http://thejammed.modfilms.net