- Shahnaz Mahmud

NEW YORK Hollywood just got bigger. A new site, Filmaka, launches today, creating a place aspiring filmmakers from all over the world can visit to potentially get their work professionally produced by some of the industry's top players.

The platform was founded by film producer Deepak Nayar (whose credits include Bend It Like Beckham and Buena Vista Social Club) and is led by former Fox Television Entertainment Group chairman Sandy Grushow.

Monthly competitions for material 1 to 3 minutes in length could turn "an individual's 15 minutes into a lifetime career," as Grushow described it. They also spell new opportunities for advertisers angling to get into branded entertainment. Grushow said Filmaka has already green lit 40 such projects. Fx TV network, owned by News Corp., and SABMiller have signed on, asking the site's owners to create original content for TV and online, as well as integrated campaigns.

In order to spread the content as widely as possible, Filmaka has entered into several revenue-sharing agreements with entities such as YouTube.

Filmaka has been in a year-long beta test and has signed on 3,600 members from 95 countries, including Denmark, India, Mexico and the U.K. "It's the power of the Internet," said Nayar, referring to the site's ability to source hidden talent and build the platform by word of mouth.

Filmaka is repped by the William Morris Agency.