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SimplyScripts Screenwriting Discussion Board    Discussion of...     General Chat  ›  Equipment Moderators: bert
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Vlade-B
Posted: July 7th, 2016, 8:36am Report to Moderator
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I just recently began trying to create shortfilms. While doing so, I noticed how much one needs to consider when making movies. And also how long it takes to create the perfect lighting and capture great sound. Or just move a camera, without making it look like the Blair Witch Project (unless that's what you were going for).

While I can make do with some stuff I already have, I'm gonna purchase two things. Within the limits of my budget/wallet.

A microphone and video editing software.

I know we are all mostly a bunch of writers on here, but I assume some folks around here have already done some filming of their own, and I'm sure some hobby directors must be roaming these forum as well.

So I was hoping you guys could help me with my choices.

For software I'm considering one of the following:
VideoDirector 2016 Ultimate
MAGIX Video deluxe 2015 Plus
MAGIX Fastcut 2
Cyberlink PowerDirector 9 Ultra64
Filmora Video Editor WIN

I used to have Sony Vegas back in the day, but that's not an option anymore.

And I'll be working with a DSLR camera and also a videocamera which shoots in .mod-format.

Thank you for any suggestions or advice.


Caleb
You tore up her picture.

Nathan

I'm gonna tear up the fucking dance floor, dude. Check it out.
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DustinBowcot
Posted: July 7th, 2016, 9:29am Report to Moderator
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Although it is admirable trying to do everything yourself, it's far better to reach out and find a team to work with. As you've noted, there's just too much to consider. There will be like-minded people around, that either have already or could easily acquire the skill-sets you need.

Somebody with a good ear for sound (they're not deaf). Somebody keeping an eye on natural light conditions. Use reflectors that are cheap if you can find somebody to hold them, more pricey if you want stands. Video editors are everywhere, it's a hobby for many. Likewise composers.

Filmmaking should be done by a team. Maybe get away with one pagers, etc... but, you're going to have to stick your head above the parapet sometime, might as well be now. Check social network sites local to your area and tune in. That's what I did and it worked. However, I far prefer writing. It's way less of a headache.

Sorry if this comes across as negative, hopefully somebody else will be along soon with more positive ways you can achieve what you want. I know most video editing software needs 16gb of RAM, even more if you can afford it. I remember the name Davinci being thrown around, and I think that's what my son uses. He's pretty good, but he's only 9.
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Demento
Posted: July 7th, 2016, 3:56pm Report to Moderator
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Quoted from DustinBowcot
Sorry if this comes across as negative, hopefully somebody else will be along soon with more positive ways you can achieve what you want. I know most video editing software needs 16gb of RAM, even more if you can afford it. I remember the name Davinci being thrown around, and I think that's what my son uses. He's pretty good, but he's only 9.


Davinci Resolve is a color grading software. It's the best color grading software on the market. You can edit in it as well, but it's not what it's used by the pros for.

If you're shooting with a DSLR, many people say Cannons are the best. Because they capture light in a way that looks cinematic.

When I wasn't even in high school I use to visit this site a lot for software. http://www.videohelp.com/ Site still works, I would guess it's still good. Ask people on the forum if you have any questions and for help. You could search for free software there.

About video editing software, well... you can edit in everything. You don't need 16gb of RAM. If I were to put together a editing machine, I would put in 32 gb of RAM. But for a basic short, that'll be uploaded on youtube, you can make it with 8 gb, even less, it should edit fine. There will be longer rendering time, if you use time remapping effects or any other kind of effects, it will slow down the process. Editing at its core is a simple process, you cut and put together. So if you have the ability to do that, you're likely good. You don't need a ton of options. Most editors can edit movies in 10 different types of software the same way. It'll just take'em longer in one software than the other.

I have to echo Dustin here a bit, if you don't know how to do this stuff in-depth, you're better off finding people to do it. Seeing as you're asking about editing software and equipment, you are not at that level.

You need to understand how to shoot with a camera. Exposure, white balance, what a historgram is, etc. Need to know how to frame a shot, how to set-up pans, tilts, dolly shots, use in-camera effects etc. Already have the edit in mind, when you shoot.

Then you need to know what kind of lighting equipment you need and how to use it. Then how to artfully light a scene. How to use natural light.

You'll need to know how to edit a movie. And not only to edit it but to set some scenes to one frame rate, and know that you need to film others with more action in another, then slow'em down in post. Then how to color grade the movie. Need to understand how color works and how scopes work etc. Maybe you'll need to add a color cast to the movie. There are a lot of technical stuff you have to look out for. If your scene is overexposed you can't fix that in post.

Need to know how to capture sound. All the different types of mics that you can use and why they are different and understand how differently they capture sound. How to re-dub in post. Adjust audio levels, mix, clean up audio. Need to understand how digital audio works. Then you need to understand sound design and how to create it. Which is very important.

There are a ton of things you need to know how to do, and you'll need to know them well.

Look at 90% of the shorts on the internet. They all suck, production-wise. And they are done by a team of people. Most of them don't know how to do their jobs at a high level. So, it's tough, but you have to start somewhere. If you are doing it just to learn and don't plan on showing it to anyone go with what you have then show it to someone who knows what they are talking about.

Realistically you can't know how to do everything to the degree that it's required for your film to look decent. Even if you can, you don't have the time. So, you have to network.
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Vlade-B
Posted: July 7th, 2016, 5:21pm Report to Moderator
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First of all, thank you both for taking the time to give me detailed answers. It's much appreciated

There were a few things I wasn't aware of. I didn't know about color grading, until Demento mentioned it, and I googled the software Dustin mentioned (btw, it's expensive af).

I guess I should clarify first, I'm not trying to do it all by myself. In the beginning stages I thought I could pull it off. I tried writing screenplays with storylines as simple as possible, so I could make kind of a one-man show. But as you both mentioned, shooting film is a teamsport. And I realised that by now.

I'm sure my first shorts won't be as good as I'd want them to be. But that's okay. I basically want to use them as sort of a DIY school, and gain experience so I can then know how to make movies the way I want them to be with the shorts that'll follow.

But as Demento already said, most of the stuff you see on youtube is badly made. And I really don't want to end up making just another bad amateur movie.

After watching Brendan Beachman's short film Intersection I was shocked when I found out that he needed a budget of 35,000 for a 20 min movie. But I watched a lot of youtube tutorials and read a lot about it on the internet. And I know if done properly, you can create great short films with little, if you know how to use what you've got. And hopefully I'll manage to do so.

In my area the network of movie folks isn't as well constructed as it is in say L.A., but I'm slowly building a team and connections. But I'm blessed with great friends and family, who happen to be a bunch of creative folks.

Here's what I've got so far:
- 2 cameras: A Sony DSLR and a JVC HD (.mod-format)

- I ordered a reflector set (4 different surfaces, but no stands though)
My sister will help me with lighting and camera movement. She studied journalism and had to shoot short films for her college. She basically knows how the entire process of making a short works. One friend of mine will help me with holding the reflectors and mics. Also everyone who isn't in the scene will too.

- Regarding sound I have a few different mics, but none really suitable for filmmaking. Therefore I'll buy at least one microphone for the general overhead recording and 2 clip-on mics for scenes that require it. And since sound quality is highly important, I'll probably spend a bit more on the mics, than I'll do on the software.

- I'm in a band with my friends (we still suck), but thankfully two of my bandmates know a lot about sound capturing and that whole technical aspect of it. So there go my sound guys. Also we can create the soundtrack. But I also asked a local band (local meaning from a city about 20 mins away), whom I'm a big fan of, if I could use their songs, and they said it wouldn't be a problem. They just wanna know what kind of scenes I'm using them for.

- As for actors. For the short that is most important to me, I've already got two friends of mine and my sisters in. They all got experience with either acting in school plays, music performances and showmanship in general. I'll be in it as well, supporting actor (I've got no experience though)

- The editing I'm definitely going to do myself. I've done some editing in my day. Not a lot, but I did some sports videos for friends. I'm very interested in it. And I think it's one of the few aspects of filmmaking, where I show at least a decent amount of talent.

It's not a professionell film crew, but it's a good basis to work with for the first short projects.


Caleb
You tore up her picture.

Nathan

I'm gonna tear up the fucking dance floor, dude. Check it out.
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Vlade-B
Posted: July 7th, 2016, 5:28pm Report to Moderator
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Oh and btw, don't worry Dustin. You didn't have any negative effect on me.

I'm looking at this realistically enough to know that it's not gonna be a piece of cake.


Caleb
You tore up her picture.

Nathan

I'm gonna tear up the fucking dance floor, dude. Check it out.
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Demento
Posted: July 7th, 2016, 5:44pm Report to Moderator
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Quoted from Vlade-B
After watching Brendan Beachman's short film Intersection I was shocked when I found out that he needed a budget of 35,000 for a 20 min movie. But I watched a lot of youtube tutorials and read a lot about it on the internet. And I know if done properly, you can create great short films with little, if you know how to use what you've got. And hopefully I'll manage to do so.


That's one of the rare good-looking shorts I've seen on here. It's a good mark to try to hit.

I've seen great shorts made for like 8.000 $. But you have to take into account that they rent equipment, get some for free, get people to work for free, edit them themselves on software that's already bought and so on. So the real value of the movie isn't the budget that is said.

Good luck. I wish the best and hope you come up with something you're proud off.
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brendanb
Posted: July 9th, 2016, 5:54pm Report to Moderator
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It's crazy, but somehow I managed to stumble upon this thread.

Thanks for the nice words about Intersection Demento! Vlade-B I can shed light on Intersection's budget and where money went if that helps you;

We shot out of town in the middle of the Mojave desert, so I had to put up about 15 people in hotels, and feed them 3 times a day for 7 days. That's honestly where a decent chunk of the budget went. I also paid everyone (not a whole lot, but enough to keep them happy in the harsh desert)...I think it was around $100/day if memory serves me correct. These are busy, working people in the film industry who are used to much higher day rates, so it was still a big favor to me. Luckily everyone was as passionate about the story and film as I was and it really felt like a team effort.

I elected to shoot this as a SAG union project, so that adds fees ($100/day per diem for actors for example). Then there's locations, equipment (we rented an Arri Alexa for the week), and production insurance, steadicam rental, truck rental, even that rabbit was 400 bucks alone   That little guy got paid more than anyone haha. Then I had post production costs--editing, sound design, color correction...it adds up fast!

This is not to say that you can't make an incredible short film for nothing or next to nothing. It was just such a long road for me to make this film that I decided that I wanted to invest money into the production aspects necessary to tell the story. The story is really where the success of your short begins and ends. A lot of the unsuccessful shorts I see online are because the filmmaker writes a movie that he or she just doesn't have the budget for. Don't make a mafia film or action film if you don't have the budget. Keep it simple. Maybe find a cool location that you have access to, and build a story around that. Keep the emphasis on story.

I don't geek out too much on equipment, but one thing I will say is invest in good sound. Rent a nice boom mic and recorder, and find a person who knows how to capture clean sound. You can have a good film with bad picture and great sound, but not the other way around.

Let me know if you have any specific questions and I'll do my best to help you out! The important thing is that you're making movies! Don't let gear get into the way of you creating. Keep on doing it!

Brendan
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Vlade-B
Posted: July 13th, 2016, 8:11am Report to Moderator
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@Dustin
I've been checking the social network a bit, and in case I'll still need it, I'll just post an add of what I'm looking for.

@Demento
You're right about this. That's also something I'm working on, trying to find people who also want to do some projects to gain experience and showcase what they are capable of.

@Brendan
It's indeed amazing that you stumbled upon this thread. Thanks for joining the conversation. It's incredible what costs can come up at shootings. A rabbit for 400 bucks That would have never crossed my mind. Reading all this makes the huge budgets of big blockbusters seem a little more justifiable. I actually do have a couple of questions. So without trying to bombard you with them, I'll make a list and get back to you. And of course, great short you made there.


Caleb
You tore up her picture.

Nathan

I'm gonna tear up the fucking dance floor, dude. Check it out.
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