Newbie with some Money needs advice

Brenton Lee · May 6, 2016

I figure being a film maker is more like boxing. Some people are born with a knock out punch but don't make it any further than fighting at the local bar. Others spend every day of their life training and focusing on every aspect of the martial arts and they're the ones that make it.

Anyway. I'm in a similar boat man ... still trying to find my place in the world of cinematography with an end goal of producing movies. There's so much involved ... the lighting, the camera work, the direction ... If I could say one thing, it's that shooting on film can be an epic experience and is definitely a worthwhile goal but in this day and age there are so many digital resources you're crazy not to utilise at least some.

I have a heap of ideas in my head around shooting short films on super 16mm, but with processing and telecine (and living in Australia) it's an expensive and hard way to learn. So i spent alot of time shooting 35mm still photos, learning about exposure and light and composition then moved in to filming motion with a BMPCC. I'm basically shooting stuff on the BMPCC that down the track I will be shooting on S16mm on an SR3. It's an amazing way to learn ALOT for not much cash. There's also so many online resources for learning coloring, editing etc.

Aapo Lettinen · May 6, 2016

This post is long, but please bare with me as I need help.

I'm in the early prep stage of my first feature, everyday I'm in awe of how much I still have to learn.

My project will be about only 60min long that consists of quite a few Steadicam shots.

I'm hoping to raise about $60K for my budget.

My strength:

I have a well prepped script and I designed every single shot as precise as it can be.

My weakness:

Everything as of now is till on paper.

I have never shot anything on high end digital (e.g. RAW) nor on film of any kind, 16mm, 35mm.

My debate:

Because my lack of real experience, I initially wanted to go with RED for its flexibility in post production in case I messed up something. But as I learn more and more about digital. 1) it looked "too good" for my story. I barely need a 2k res for my story. 2) the data management is a nightmare. I don't have the connection to hire a DIT on set, and then source a high end computer to process the large files.

So I thought about shooting on film. Seeing from other people's footage it offers the look and color I wanted, the downside of noting being able to playback gives me worries that my lack of experience will underexpose or mess something up big time.

With digita,l I can use the DJI ronin for steadicam shots, and the DJI OSMOS alike for some occasions to shoot in public where it may be very hard to obtain permission and costly for hiring extras. But if I shoot on film, a few camera I looked Arriflex IIC, and Arri SR2, have scarce resources for power sources, e.g. batteries that work. So I don't know how to complete a long steadicam shot with a Super 16mm camer.

Even if I can complete a work steadicam setup with my budget, there is no way I can get away with it shooting in some of the public locations, even if I obtain the permits, every pedestrians will turn their heads and look at the camera. Which means more $$$ to hire extras.

What should I do?????

sorry I had no time to read all the posts but couple of notes:

- you should find a good indie DP who can work out the production's difficulties with you

- you should find someone with previous producing experience to help you out with the project

-it is possible to use multiple cameras to shoot the project. if proper cameras are too distracting for some scenes you can use amateur ones like dslr's, blackmagic pocket, etc. which are not special looking and are very small. depending on the film's style of course. but you can get it working very well with your DP and it is possible to shoot the rest of the project with better cameras if needed. Something from Blackmagic could be ideal for this, like Ursa Mini 4.6k or similar.

-probably no need for RAW and difficult post production, you can use easier formats like prores which simplifies the workflow a lot. is also cheaper, faster and easier to backup and review on set.

-Osmo at least with the X3 does not differ much from go pro in terms of image quality and adjustments. it is small and lightweight of course but that's the only benefit of it. people will probably still stare at it because it is interesting and funny looking gear

-the best way to learn is to surround yourself with people more experienced than you. Planning and trying to do everything by yourself is the hardest way to learn filmmaking and usually also bad for the movie... so you should just find the best people you can to help you with the production, especially because it is your first feature, and maybe with the next one you can use more hats at the same time if you want :)

Edited May 6, 2016 by aapo lettinen

Aapo Lettinen · May 6, 2016

more notes:

-if you mess something up, the RAW will probably not save you. qualified staff will prevent these things from happening from the start. RED material can be made to look very good but it is a pain to work with at times and may need quite much more work than the easier formats where you just throw the LUT in and adjust couple of things.

-if you really want to shoot on real film and have no personal experience with it you should really find a DP who has. film shooting is even more about experience than video stuff and it will make things real slow and difficult if your camera staff is not familiar with it

- if you can't get rights to use some material just leave it out of the movie. change the script if necessary. NO ONE wants to make a movie which can't be distributed or shown anywhere, that is complete waste of time, money and work