We gave you 3 minutes, you gave us the world

Unfortunately, technical problems prevent us from posting the grand-prize winner, "Communication Deficit Disorder." The Seattle International Film Festival will host a screening of the film at 4:30 p.m. Friday at the Cinerama, before "Shag Carpet Sunset."

The winner:

"Communication Deficit Disorder," by Chris Alpine, 46, Seattle.

Synopsis: An annoying group of diners at a restaurant can't seem to communicate without their cellphones.

Filmmaker's comments: Alpine is a Seattle-based stand-up comedian. He was on tour with the USO in Japan when he heard that he'd won. Created for our contest, "Communication Deficit Disorder" is his first effort at filmmaking. He got the idea in a restaurant in Milan, Italy. "The Italians are insane for cellphones, even worse than the Japanese, which I didn't think was possible. And I swear every person in that damn restaurant was on the cellphone. I saw a waiter get really upset and stomp off and I thought, that's a funny idea." Watch to see what that idea led to.

Judges' comments: This is a quick little comedy that skewers a growing, extremely irritating phenomenon. Short, sweet and punchy, and it presents a situation that has aggravated us all at one time or another.



Honorable mentions (in alphabetical order):

"American Tragedy," by Josh Caldwell, 18, Bellevue.

Synopsis: Set up as a film trailer, it teases a movie about a high-school boy contemplating suicide.

Filmmaker's comments: Caldwell is a senior at Bellevue High School and did a 20-minute short film, "An American Tragedy," for a media class. His entry is a trailer for that film. We'd give him an A+, plus extra credit. "I had gotten this idea about this kid, and it takes place the day the kid decides to commit suicide," he said. "The way it's presented is that you get the idea that things aren't going so well; but not nearly so badly that it would cause him to kill himself, and yet he does it in the end of the film. But it's constructed so that you would notice that within each scene there is a sign of suicide."

Judges' comments: We were blown away by this one. It shows the most sophisticated knowledge of filmmaking technique that we saw. It looked like a genuine Hollywood trailer to us. In fact, it's better than most of them. The fact that Caldwell is still in high school is all the more astonishing. Remember his name, because we're positive he's going to be a big success as a filmmaker.



"Bad Meat," by Drew Christie, 18, Sammamish.

Synopsis: A malicious group of meatballs comes to life with dire consequences.

Filmmaker's comments: Christie is a senior at Skyline High School, who did this film for a school art contest, with the theme "What I Hold in My Hand."

Judges' comments: Great use of the theme from "Psycho," with clever black-and-white filmmaking and a hilarious punch line. Listen for the Christopher Walken impression.



"Call Was Lost," by Chris Walker, 37, Seattle

Synopsis: Another cellphone cautionary tale. This one, however, is a far more serious take, with a tragic ending. Warning: While not graphic, this film contains some disturbing imagery.

Filmmaker's comments: Walker is a theater-sound designer who's been experimenting with home video since 1987. He said the story came to him in the middle of the night. "Most of the stuff that percolates through my head is dark," he said.

Judges' comments: We were moved by the impact of this story, and the sophisticated storytelling devices used to hone its message. It's very effective.



"Extra Credit," by Aaron Bourget, 28, Seattle.

Synopsis: A museum guard is so dedicated that he decides to put his paycheck in the donation box.

Filmmaker's comments: Bourget is actually a museum guard at the Seattle Art Museum, and apparently he has many of the museum staff in on his film projects, which he's been making for about two years. He filmed this at the museum after hours, and used a roommate who is also a museum guard as his star. "It's the greatest place to shoot a film because the whole place is designed to look good," Bourget said.

Judges' comments: Terrific use of technique and humor for a throwaway punch line. Love the way the filmmaker spoofs his own efforts.



"Rosie," by Arnold Gardner, 30, Snohomish.

Synopsis: There's more to a talking Rosie O'Donnell doll than meets the eye.

Filmmaker's comments: Gardner is a graphic designer; he and his wife do short films as a hobby, although she didn't work on "Rosie." "We have a Rosie doll, and my wife is a Rosie fan. She knew that she liked Tom Cruise and all that."

Judges' comments: We loved the malicious sense of fun here.



"Something Fishy," by Steven Dempsey, 37, Sammamish.

Synopsis: A little boy goes fishing and doesn't get any fish, but he does get a fine catch.

Filmmaker's comments: Dempsey is a former rock musician and current graphic designer, who did this for his stepson, Zachary. Dempsey borrowed a camera and used Adobe After Effects to give the film its antique, silent-movie look. "It coincided with his birthday, and he was kind of fascinated by the concept of being a movie star. Where it's filmed is exactly where we live on Pine Lake at Sammamish. We've fished many times but never actually caught a fish."

Judges' comments: A sweet, innocent throwback to the days of silent movie storytelling.



"Victim," by Nicky Loi, 25, Bellingham.

Synopsis: A serial killer gets his just punishment. Warning: This film contains a gunshot and some intense scenes that could be disturbing to some.

Filmmaker's comments: Loi is a former film student who did this to experiment with the horror genre. "I was backing out of the driveway, and I saw my trunk light up, because of the brake light. And I thought, hmmm, it might be interesting to stick someone in there. For a movie, I mean."

Judges' comments: Remarkably assured use of technique, and a surprising, "Twilight Zone"-like ending.



"What If?" by Wes Kim, 34, Seattle.

Synopsis: Silent-movie-style humor spoofing stereotypes of Asian Americans and martial arts.

Filmmaker's comments: Kim is a technical editor at Microsoft and an aspiring filmmaker. He did "What If" as a tongue-in-cheek way to approach martial-arts movies. "I felt in some way, there's a sort of a lot of ambivalence as an Asian American in dealing with martial arts as a genre," he said. "On the one hand you want to be a fan, and on the other hand you don't want people to assume a familiarity with martial arts just because you're Asian."