Working on a movie-script and seeing their film on the big screens is a dream come true for many. To get there, they undergo severe hardship, producing short films, toiling under big names, waiting around the offices of producers and so on.

Moviebuff and Suriya's 2D entertainment recently announced the second season - Oru Kadhai Sollunga -  of First Clap which according to them is the country’s only theatrically showcased talent hunt for aspiring filmmakers. The initiative was aimed at creating a platform to recognise talented storytellers.

The challenge is to create a compelling story in three minutes on any subject.

Knack Studios is a full-service post-production facility, run by filmmakers who render creative ideas into cinematic experiences. For this contest, they have pledged their support by extending free of charge their post-production facilities, for the top five contestants.

The idea is to bring together aspiring filmmakers, production houses, cinema halls and avid audiences under one roof.

The event was attended by directors like Arun Prabhu, Gopi Nainar, Ram and Karthick Naren.

Speaking at the launch of season 2, director Ram said that the initiative was a good move and that it creates a democratic space. “Initiative such as these will take Tamil cinema to the future,” he said.

Arvind Ranganathan, CEO of Qube Cinema Technologies, said that the main challenge when it comes to such initiatives is to get approvals from screening theatres.

“The films are 3 minutes long. Along with advertisements, they come up to five minutes. But luckily, all the theatres we approached were very supportive of the initiative," he said.

The winner gets Rs. 3 lakhs in prize money while the first runner-up receives Rs. 2 lakhs and the second runner-up Rs. 1 lakh.

Last year alone, First Clap had more than 250 entries. Entries for season 2 began on January 20. Participants can register on moviebuff.com | moviebuff.littleshows.com and the contest closes on February 24th.