Smaisch

In a bind and I was hoping for some practical advice. We are shooting an outdoor scene for our low budget feature, with two guys on the green of a golf course. We spoke with the course and they are allowing us to film as long as we do not impede other players, so we will be shooting between rounds, so we will need to keep the equipment to a minimum so we can get off the course quickly if need be. We will have: Camera Tripod Steadycam Boom mic and pole Reflector Anything else (lighting rigs, dolly system, etc) would be impossible to pick up and move on the fly. Any suggestions with using natural lighting to try to get a professional look? The time of day will be morning to afternoon. Thanks

This is a 1 min trailer for our short comedy titled "Q for Quad Runner" which we just sent out to a bunch of film fests in a hope at getting a nod or two. Let me know what you all think. This was shot on a Canon GL2 with the WD wide angle adapter lens. http://www.stevemaisch.com/Q4QRUNNER

This is a short film we shot this past year on my Canon Gl2. I am looking for some constructive criticism. I sent this in to 4 different festivals, and they all said the same thing. Good story, visually pleasing, but the pacing was waaaay to slow. So I edited it down from 15 min to 11 min and I think it paces much better. Any suggestions would rock. We want our next project to be one step better. Baby steps each time. This is our second attempt at a short film. http://vmix.com/video/1560091/ Steve

We are shooting a short (3 page) fan film in a few weeks. We are in pre-production currently, getting together storyboards, lighting etc. Its a no budget short we are doing for experience and fun. I own a Canon GL2, but a local amateur cinematographer wants to help us, and use his JVC gz-hd7 camera. I know nothing about that camera except that it costs only about $1000 and is a HD 3 CCD camera. We want this to look as filmatic as possible, and I have had some success with the GL2 in cinemode (30P). Can anyone tell me which camera would be better to use? Is it good to go with the JVC simply because its HD? We could use both, but would mixing footage be bad? Any help to this newbie would be greatly appreciated. Steve

Thanks fella's! The trailer should be up this week. Steve

Have a ton of new production stills for our Independent horror short "Dead of Night". In the coming week we will also have two trailers available to check out. Let me know what you all think. Thanks. Steve [url=http://www.911inc.net/DeadOfNight/media.html]http://www.911inc.net/DeadOfNight/media.html

Thanks Graham, thanks Dory. Dory, there was CC in post and a soft contrast lens used during the shoot. FYI, the doctors web cam journal vol. 1 is up. We will do 4 volumes before the short to fill in the back story. Have a look and let me know what you think. http://www.911inc.net/DeadofNight/Doc.html Steve

Hello all, wanted to stop by and let you know about our next short. It is a Vampire Action short titled "Dead of Night". You can see early screens, concept art, synopsis and more at http://www.911inc.net/deadofnight Let us know what you think. We will have the Doctors video Journals up soon, as well as some shots of the locations we are using. We are shooting with two Canon GL2's. Steve Maisch www.stevemaisch.com

Hello all! As some of you know, my main focus is on writing, but some friends and I have been dabbling lately in film making. So we put a production website together and have just finished our second project. You can see it at www.gettheswordstudios.com under the "ready to view" section. It is a teaser movie for my screenplay GOD'S CHOSEN, which was just recently optioned by LCA Films. Take a look at it and give me some feedback. We filmed it with my GL2. While we arent up to the stuff of some members of the board, I am pleased with our efforts for this only being our second attempt. Practice and advice make perfect, that is why I am turning to you all. One thing I do know is that the Bartenders voice is too low in the beginning. Other than that, I would greatly appreciate some critiques of our work. Steve

Hello, we are a small Indie production company who have made 2 short films currently hitting the festival circuit. We recently lost our DP because of a move. We are looking to make contacts in the Northern Kentucky/Cincinnati area with a talent DP looking for a break. Currently we do all low to no budget films, but there is the possibility of larger projects in the future. If interested please contact me at www.stevemaisch.com Thank you for your time.

Thanks guys, great advice. I will post my results in a few months.

Can you buy Chinese paper lanterns at local stores? What if I bought lower watting bulbs for the shop lights?

Chris, thanks for the reply, but I think you are talking slightly over my head, let me review. What I think you mean about making snoots our of blackwrap is to buy blackwrap (no problem) and wrap it around the outside edge of the worklights individually so as to focus the light ahead like a spotlight, instead of it just bathing the room. Two questions. Will the blackwrap hold up to the heat of the lights, and should I add colored filters or diffusion filters to them for this scene? Also, the shop lights each have two seperate 500w bulbs that can be switched on and off. Should I use both bulbs on each light, or just one on each light? Now when you say use it as a highlight instead of a key light, I assume that means place the lights to the far right and left of the subjects? The whole explanation of the hotel scene eludes me. The 4x4 bounce camera stuff is terminology I am unfamiliar with. Is that focusing a light on the floor and using reflectors to light the subject? Excuse me of my ignorance, I am trying to learn. Ok, I read up on black wrap and it is used specifically because it is heat resistant. Understood. Silly question though. Why cant you spray paint on side of aluminum foil with cheap black spray paint, and apply that to the lights? Seems like it would be much cheaper than $25 a roll.

I am about to shoot two scenes with my new GL2 from a short I wrote. One is a man and a woman in a bar late at night. She is the bartender, he is a patron. I want a warm cozy feel to it, a bit dark around the edges and the people and bar to stand out. The other is just the main character, sitting in a dark hotel room alone. This scene is very emotional and dark. I want severe dark areas and lots of shadows. One of my biggest weaknesses is lighting effectively. Any hints or tips that can help me? Below is my equipment list I have now, but I have a miniscule budget. Any help would be great. Equipment: Canon GL2 Soft FX3 filter and ND filter for camera Fluid head tripod Headphones Shotgun mic 2 - Shop lights with dual 500W bulbs each (each bulb can be on or off) 1 - Bescor VS-65 AC/DC On-Camera Light with Twin Vertical Barndoors 1 - Pack of various colored Gels Oh and the use of a bar

Hello all. I am new here so forgive me is this is in the wrong forum or a break of etiquette. I am a professional screenwriter with 1 sold theatrical release screenplay and 2 optioned. Recently I have been craving to get some experience behind the camera and direct a short film I am currently writing. It is intentionally unambitious and could be used for local actors and crew demo reels. This will be a not for profit shoot and hopefull only take 3-5 days. What I am seeking is a DP or someone with enough experience behind a camera to want to try the DP position. What I will have- An inexperienced crew, some local actors, a decent script, some cash for the project, and a lot of creativity and enthusiasm. What I need - Someone with some experience behind the camera, preferably digital. I would love it if they had the camera itself, but there will be room in the budget for the equipment rental (but the more we bring the lower the budget and the more movie we can make). Someone that is local, has a great sense of humor, and is looking to pad their reel or just get some extra exposure. If there is anyone you know that fits the bill please feel free to have them contact me at smaisch@insightbb.com