The Bitfilm Festival for Digital Film recently began its festivities in Bangalore to mark the beginning of its global online voting for the Bitfilm Awards in 3D animation, 2D animation, hybrid digital and Machinima films. The awards will be presented at the closing event in Hamburg, Germany in April.
For the first time since its inception in 2000, Bitfilm will begin using Bitcoin, a new digital currency in its voting process and as prize money. Each of the 59 nominated films has their own Bitcoin account and fans may transfer money anonymously without any transfer costs. The film with the highest number of donated Bitcoins and votes per category will receive the award. The donated money will be divided among the three best-ranked films per category.
Bitcoin is an open-source currency without the use of a central bank, and as such, knows no inflation. It is a global payment system that allows for quick and cheap fund transfers around the world. In Bangalore, Bitfilm will present a selection of 12 nominated films from a vast variety of genres and styles. A talk about an Indo-German co-production by Aaron Koenig and Vijayaraj D. from Bangalore, who have been working on a number of short animated films together, including a popular one about Bitcoins, will also be presented.
