anamexis

Um, I don't think that's exactly how it works.

That software only runs on PalmOS, so unfortunately, you're out of luck, unless you buy a new PDA.

Sounds like something I could really benefit from, I will have to add that to my list of books to buy. It sounds like it covers both the technical side of ACing, as well as information about how a typical feature is organized and jobs, which is a bit harder to find in my experience. Thanks! Here is an Amazon link.

Nope, these are Edison.

Also, I can probably have access to some very basic lighting equipment to use too. I'm friends with the head of the lighting department of the theater program at my school. I could probably get my hands on some fresnels, par cans, and scoops over a weekend.

Thank you for those telecine resources, Cinesound is looking pretty good. I've been going back and forth between rental and a K3. Another thing I've been considering is getting a student membership to the IFP MSP that you showed me and renting from there. That way I would get both good equipment as well as decent rental rates, which would be especially beneficial if i did more in the future. I do also like the K-3 idea, but I'm just worried that I will get a dud, as that seems to be an issue with that particular camera. It certainly would be very nice to have my own camera that I could familiarize myself and maybe even shoot some short ends with just to get the hang of it, but then there is a chance that it would just bust and I'd be out of $120. As far as MCTC goes, one problem is that it isn't my money, it's state subsidized. Assuming I get accepted into the program (I am expecting to; their academic standards aren't exactly rigorous), I will certainly contact the chair of the media department about getting access to film.

To try and go through things in order, I do have a edit-worthy computer, I have a Dual 1.8GHz Power Mac G5. And Phil, I completely understand that video would be cheaper, and I really do respect it as a medium, and I do recognize it as a viable alternative. However, for this project, I really want to stick to film both as a learning experience and because it would be fun and stylistic. I've been hoping to get some advice on telecine. For a project of this scale, what would people recommend for telecine? I've been looking at cheaper places like MovieLab as well as higher class ones. I've been sticking to MiniDV mostly because I can just borrow a little Canon ZR from a friend and dump it on to my comptuer, where as Digibeta or HDCam wouldn't be so easy. Robert, I already applied to the PSEO program at MCTC! :) PSEO is where high school students as myself are able to take classes at college for free. I applied to the media program. However, I'm betting that if I do get in, they won't let me near film as a pre-freshman.

Thanks everyone, perhaps 16mm is still viable. One thing that everyone is forgetting in the cost estimates is that I do not have any projectors, so I have to transfer to MiniDV to get access to my footage, which obviously factors into the cost estimate.

Thank you, Robert. I think I have been concentrating too much on my artistic vision when what I really need is to work on the basics of filmmaking first. With that in mind, Super8 certainly does look better. I do demand that I stick to film and not video, though.

I have looked into Super 8, amd will continue to do so, but there are a couple reasons I've been leaning towards 16mm. Firstly, the artistic one, is that one of the big reasons I like film over video is the flexibility in depth of field. I'm already losing a lot relative to 35mm by going with 16mm, and Super 8 wouldn't allow me much creativity. Secondly, 16mm is more professional and I believe it would provide me with better applicable experience. I do agree though, that Super 8 generally maintains that film look rather nicely while being extremely economical. I will continuie to consider it as a medium for the project, especially as I more accurately define my budget.

Wow, that IFP MSP site is a great resource. Thanks. Might even be worth it for me to become a member and rent their stuff if I don't hook up with anyone.

Yeah, I pretty much guessed this. I can just have my parents rent it. Besides, by the time I'm planning to do this I'll be 18. I just spoke to my photography teacher and once I said "I want to shoot a 16mm film as an IP" her eyes got real big and she said "Do you know what you're saying?" She pretty much shut me down and said I should do video. But I think I should be able to win her over. Anyways, my plan is to do this second semester of next school year, ideally shooting around a year from now. In the mean time, I would do a whole lotta reading.

More beautiful advice, thank you. I will definitely have to look into the student discount on Fuji stock. Have you shot your film yet, or if not, are you still planning on it? I will look into those books, they sound great. Next hour I'm going to go talk to the photography teacher about getting the IP.

I see your point. I will stick to rental, unless I am lucky enough to come across someone with a 16mm they are willing to lend.

Thanks for the input, I think I'll make 3:00 of edited film my goal, maybe I could get a 400' roll and then an extra 100' roll or 2 to play around with. I'm still not to sure about the rental vs. buy thing for the camera. I could get a K-3 for just marginally more than the cost of renting the Arri for a day. This would allow me to familiarize myself with the camera, maybe even buy some short ends and play around with it a bit. With the K-3 reloading issue, I would just need a bag for that, right?

Thank you both. I was wondering how much to multiply my budget by. Also, given the choice, would people here rent a slightly higher quality camera (such as the Arri SB), or just buy a K-3, given the small budget I have?

Also, go ahead and scratch that paragraph about books being hard to find. I am an idiot.

Do you have any recommendations as to where I could ask about borrowing a camera? Also, if i went with b&w neg, would I have to get it processed and consequently printed, or could I just do the telecine straight from the neg? And finally, what advantages would shooting color neg hold over b&w neg? Again, thank you so much for your help.

Hello, for a long time I have been very interested in cinematography. Right now, I'm 17 and finishing my junior year in high school in Minneapolis. I'm planning on going to film school after I graduate. Now that the background is taken care of: Lately I have been playing with the idea of doing an IP (independent project) most likely with the photography teacher here, consisting of shooting a short (~9 minute) film on B&W 16mm. I have had this concept of a music video of sorts (although I dislike the connotation given to it by pop music.) In very short, its kind of a storytelling, dialogue-free, dance movie set to music. Maybe a bit more on that later. Anyways. I was originally planning on just shooting this on DV this summer with some friends, but the mystery and majesty of film has caught me. Obviously, film is quite a step up from DV, especially of someone with limited knowledge as me. The first thing I looked into was budget. It looks something like this: $95.00 One day rental of one Arri SB (from here) $15.00 400 ft SB mag (1 day rental, same place) $105.00 One 400 ft roll of Eastman Plus-X 7265 Reversal $75.00 Approximate cost of processing $100.00 Transfer to MiniDV That's a $390 budget right there...which is quite something but I think it would be doable with a bit of fundraising. Of course, I'm probably forgetting something, which is where you all come in. I was thinking of just assuming $500 in expenses and forgoing any surprises, what do you think? The second question I have is whether this is possible with my level of expertise in film, which is to say, very little. I am willing to do a lot of reading, but the problem is, there doesn't seem to be many books on the basics of filmmaking itself, rather than cinematography. Basic things like figuring out correct exposure and computing light levels. Of course, there probably are books and I am probably just missing their horribly obvious presence. Anyways, this is basically my abstract for the project, just a little something I've been dreaming of lately. It couldn't look bad on film school apps, either. But my real question is, what do you, the learned and experienced, think of this idea? What am I missing? Is it feasible? Would you recommend it? Thank you so much in advance, I can't express how great a resource this is. Micah Buckley-Farlee

I have been looking into various cinematography programs lately. The three I have mainly been looking at is the School of Visual Arts (NYC), the University of Illinois at Chicago, and the University of California at Santa Cruz. However, I have not heard particularly the two universities ever mentioned on these boards. Is it that these programs are sub-par, have less industry contact and application, or are they just less known?