A time lock — that plot device ensuring that a movie's action must occur within a specific span of time — is one of cinema's most time-worn institutions. Adding that kind of restriction to the making of the film itself is a more dramatic proposition.
Since 2001, the 48 Hour Film Project has challenged filmmakers to write, shoot, edit and score a film, all in the scant space of, you guessed it, 48 hours. The odyssey begins when filmmakers are assigned a character, a prop, a line of dialogue and a genre to be addressed in their mini-masterpieces; two days later, the mangled psyches of the creators are vomited up into one stunning mélange of cinematic daring. Last year, more than 50,000 filmmakers on six continents (get with it, Antarctica!) produced nearly 4,000 films to this end. You can see the finished films created during February's Los Angeles challenge, in two groups, each with about a dozen films. A Q&A with the films' producers follows the screenings. Screenings continue Aug. 19-22 and are repeated Aug. 26. Regal Cinemas at L.A. Live, 1000 W. Olympic Blvd., dwntwn.; Mon., Aug. 19, 7 & 9:30 p.m.; $13. (213) 763-6070, 48hourfilm.com.

Mon., Aug. 19, 7 & 9:30 p.m., 2013

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