directing first feature

[kelly tippett]

I understand ya'lls worries and appreciate them. They make me more aware of the obstacles.

 

An example of how this camera lens frames- it has a viewfinder but if the object is less than three feet away you have to move the camera a certain length to the left to make sure that it is framing the subject correctly. Anything beyond three feet should frame to how it is in the viewfinder.

 

If the tests come out correctly, the only time i have to worry about a frame being out of whack is when the subject is less than three feet away and solving that problem is just moving the camera over an inch or two. (I'll have exact measurements after tests)

 

I worry more about the focus, but with correct measurement and correct lens adjustment that should be fine. I'm making sure the lens focuses correctly during the tests and getting familiar with how the lens frames.

 

Audio may be a little hard, but I'm working on editing a super8mm now. We're going into catfish alley recording studio a block from my apartment in a about two weeks. I've done two shorts already shooting on MOS then dubbing sound. So it is something I'm familiar with. The first short didn't come out all that well, as far as sound and lips matching, but the second did. This third short we're dubbing, (our second super 8mm), is the first we're actually dubbing in a studio so there's a little more riding on it.

[Tomas Koolhaas]

i'm just curious, isnt doing ADR for an entire feature REALLY expensive?? I looked into doing post sound for a short I directed and it was Super expensive, wouldnt the cost of renting a sync camera (seing as you could probably get 2 day week rates somewhere) be offset by what you would have to spend on ADR???

If you have post sound for free for some reason, this question is obviously moot.

I was just wondering.

[Jaan Shenberger]

some little no-budget pointers for shooting when knowing you will be doing ADR...

 

no matter how loud the background/camera, have someone with a shotgun mic on a boom (even if done sloppily), hooked up to a minidv camera, which is shooting the action. have the actors act out the dialogue as if it's being used.

 

in post, synch up your minidv audio to the telecined 35mm footage (assuming you're editing digital/nonlinear).

 

if you can't do your ADR the pro way in a studio with synchronous picture for the actor, you can use my foodstamp version, which is to cut individual clips of each set of lines for an actor and put each on an ipod. have them listen to the line looped with headphones on. they can pretty easily memorize and mimic their speech pattern/breathing/innotations and you can record it on dat/minidv via a shotgun mic in a similar location for the subtle reverb signature that even a shotgun mic picks up. it usually helps if you can first show them the scene so they can mimic their body movements to recreate the breathing pattern.

 

i have been astonished at how well this works, especially considering it's cheap and fairly easy to do. i personally hate most ADR i hear because it sounds like a person standing in a pleasant cushy studio talking into a $5000 mic that's inches from their face, picking up the sound of every saliva bubble in their mouth. also, some actors seem to get distracted when doing ADR to picture.

 

i've shot a longish project on 16mm MOS and have to say that there are some genuine benefits-- the shooting moves faster, and your camera is liberated from ever having to frame or light for the boom (which will inevitably happen in a no-budget situation). a great example is sergio leone's films... many of his shots would've been very difficult to get proper production sound from.

 

hope this helps and best of luck.

Edited November 4, 2006 by Jaan Shenberger

[Bob Hayes]

Yeah Bob, that exactly what I want - a first time director telling me I've fu**ed up....

 

not good advice.

 

 

Let me explain myself with regards to the importance of ?watching the crew for fu**ing up?. Which isn?t the best of English to start with. Often times the director will ask for something to be done. Some times he is very clear and sometimes he is not but often, 50% of the time, the message isn?t clearly passed on. The director my have wanted all the red flowers left on the tables but the set dresser heard remove the red flowers. A director who stays on the set and watches for fu** ups will immediately see the red flowers disappearing and correct it. No harm no foal and no lost time. A director who assumes his request was understood will be more often then not surprised.

 

I see this with myself all the time. Just today I asked for a full grid cloth to be put on a 6x6 frame. I was watching the guys open the bag and when a light grid came out a caught it and told them I wanted a full. Was it their fault? Who knows? I know I asked for a full grid but I was tired. I might have misspoke. But, I caught it and the delay was only about 3 minutes, as opposed to 15.

[Andy_Alderslade]

An example of how this camera lens frames- it has a viewfinder but if the object is less than three feet away you have to move the camera a certain length to the left to make sure that it is framing the subject correctly. Anything beyond three feet should frame to how it is in the viewfinder.

 

Well thats not necessarily all the problems a non-reflex viewfinder may throw up - for instance edges of lights, light reflections or mics may creep into the frame, just enough on filim but not in the paralax viewfinder, not to mention the old issue of lamp posts and trees coming out of the actors head.

 

I suggest you try filming a two minute short with the camera first, (with dialougue) and put yourself through the actual experience before you set yourself shooting an entire feature on it.

 

This is my own non-sync attempt with a Krasnogorsk 3.

http://www.jumpcut.com/view?id=5FD768725A2...EBC2EF149F8C96D

 

You may also find that a local media/filmmaking charity will rent you a decent 16mm camera for cheap - so you may not be forced to shoot on a non-sync, non-reflex camera.

[James Steven Beverly]

Pre-plan EVERYTHING. Storyboard with editing in mind and stick to your plans however, set up contingency plans as well. Anticipate things going wrong and be ready for them. Have a crystal clear vision of what you want and how you want it done and communicate that unmistakably to your cast and crew. Get people on set on time and to work right away. Don't let anyone start screwing around or slowing you down. Organization is the key to keeping you film on time and on budget.

 

Keep you script simple, you cast small and plan on having everyone pitch in to help with grip and lighting duties including yourself and your actors so you can keep a skeleton crew of 5 or 6 people at the most. Think of it as community theatre with a camera. Your DP also shold be the your camera operator. Don't do a lot of takes or a lot of coverage. get what you need and move on. Plan on 18 hour days and 25 setups a day. Use what's availble and if you have a thought about shooting an elaborate, costly scene, let it go!

 

Make sure someone on the shoot has a student ID. Buy short ends and keep lighting setups simple and flexible so you can shot the reverse angle without a major shift of equipment. Plan for a shoot that is 3 to 9 days long at the very most and no more than a 4 to 1 shooting ratio. Shoot during the day and use reflectors as much as possible. Shoot in the here and now, no piriod peices. Give the cast and crew an hour to go out to get their own lunch (A Rodger Corman trick). And read Rogers Corman's, Robert Rodriguez' and Lloyd Kaufman's books. This is lowbudget, guerilla filmaking so treat it like war. Don't ask permission just do it. B)

[kelly tippett]

Well thats not necessarily all the problems a non-reflex viewfinder.... ...not be forced to shoot on a non-sync, non-reflex camera.

 

Thanks a bunch for the sample. I enjoyed it too! I'll take your advice. But what i'll do is shoot the first two minutes of the feature. Just treat it like a short.

 

Thanks to everyone I'm keeping notes!

[Aideen McCarthy]

Keep you script simple, you cast small and plan on having everyone pitch in to help with grip and lighting duties including yourself and your actors so you can keep a skeleton crew of 5 or 6 people at the most. Think of it as community theatre with a camera. Your DP also shold be the your camera operator.

 

:blink: Get everyone to pitch in, comunity theatre group, DP/Operator. I don't think so. What kind of film do you want to make here? Do you want anyone to watch it? Do you want it to be good, of a high standard, the best it can be for the money that you have? If so ignore all advice above. On a low budget feature you need as many people as you can get, they are your one luxury. If you can't afford to feed a cast and crew of 25-30 people for 18 days and pay any excessive travelling expenses then you can't afford to shoot a good feature. (Ideally you should pay a minimal wage to cast and crew too-this is their livelihood afterall!) In order to move fast and efficiently and still get good stuff you need an enthusuastic and experienced cast and crew. What they lack in experience they better make up for in enthusiasm!

Do not get cast to "pitch in" with crew. Do not share job roles. Cast should concentrate on their performances. If they were to get injured lifting a dolly/track, moving a light, missing in action on a coffee run the whole job comes to a standstill. Look after your cast. Crew likewise should each have specific jobs and with those jobs responsibilities. For health and safety reasons, and for the good of the film everyone should stay in their own department. A crew should work with military efficiency and precision. That means there are ranks within a department. Orders are given and followed. Everyone knows what their responsibilities are. They can take initiative to stay ahead of the game because they have a specific job. This helps the film. When there is a full crew several things can be accomplished simultaneously, thereby saving time. While the director is rehearsing with his actors, the DP is lighting with the gaffer, the camera operator is working with the grip about where to lay the track, the loader is loading the mags to shoot the scene, the props guy is getting the necessary props together for the scene, the caterers are cooking the late supper (or the PA has called in for some takeaway pizza), the 1st Ad is talking to his third about the call-sheet for the following day. Everyone works together so that at the end of the day the call-sheet has been shot and some really nice performances have been captured on film (And no-one has been injured). The one thing you may be able to compromise on is the DP/operator. But you better have a good gaffer.

 

Plan on 18 hour days and 25 setups a day.

 

I hope this is a typo! :angry: I really do. Safety first and no kidding. Working a crew (who are apparently already multitasking) 18 hours a day is both unsafe and illegal. Crewmembers who have worked these kind of hours usually end up dead, after having fallen asleep at the wheel on the way home from work. Working on a set is both physically and mentally exhausting, even with a full crew. An 11 hour shooting day is the most you can ask of any professional crew who are working for reduced wages/for free. Any more and work will slow down or stop, people will get sick and not work, morale will suffer => film will suffer. 25-30 set-ups is easily achievable within an 11 hour day if you have a full crew.

 

Plan for a shoot that is 3 to 9 days long at the very most and no more than a 4 to 1 shooting ratio.

 

Give the cast and crew an hour to go out to get their own lunch (A Rodger Corman trick). And read Rogers Corman's, Robert Rodriguez' and Lloyd Kaufman's books. This is lowbudget, guerilla filmaking so treat it like war. Don't ask permission just do it. B)

 

There is no way in hell you are going to shoot a 90 min feature in 3-9days! I've been on 15min shorts that took that long to shoot. 10 to 1 shooting ratio is the prof norm, of course you'll proabably ahve to settle for less. But ultimately you have to get what you need to tell the story. If this means going for another take you need to go for another take. If you have a limited budget shoot on minidv, HDVcam, etc. Don't sacrifice good performances and a well-shot story just because you wanted to shoot on film and therefore could only afford limited coverage/takes.

 

Work for five hours. Have food ready to feed the crew after those five hours. It is your responsibility on a job where the cast/crew are working for less money to at least feed them. By organising the food yourself you can also ensure that they eat on time and therefore return to work on time when the lunch hour is up. By sending them out to find food, they may not be able to get back on time. You will be held up and fall behind in your schedule. The cast/crew will be grumpy because they had to buy their own lunch, wait half an hour for it to be served, then gulp down the food because they had to get back to set. Bad morale will set in. People will leave. =>Film will suffer.

 

Low budget film-making is not war it is low budget filmmaking. You are making a film for less money. Nobody should have to die in the process! Instead you should end up with a film that the cast/crew and you were proud to have worked on. Always ask permission, because you don't have money to pave your way. Manners and professionalism are your best assets when making something on a low budget. You'd be surprised what people are willing to give you in return (including cast and crew). :)

[kelly tippett]

Hello everyone, sorry it's been a while. I got good news and bad. I'm thinking of ditching the 16mm idea for the feature and going hd.

 

I got the bell and howell film0 and it will do 24 fps with the motor for up to 5 minutes. I cna use the 400 foot magazines- and do the things i want with the three lenses. but after shooting a test I sent it to a local production company to transfer it. The processing came out fine. They transfer people took two months and still did not get it done. I gave it to them before the christmas holidays. But after three attempts to getting it done and even pre-paying i went and got the film back.

 

Just looking at the frames they looked fine but i wanted to see it on the mini dv and put it in the computer. Anyway, i still haven't got my refund.

 

I wnated to use local businesses but figure going 16mm i will have to go out of state. during this time messing with the 16mm our legislature passed a bill that will allow production companies in Mississippi to get 20 percent back on any money spent in state when the production is finished. So that and the fact that no place nearby can be trustred (no fault of their own, film is just not the big around here) I may go with hd. I'm looking at a sony fx7 hdr. I ordered it thursday night from dell and have to talk to a dell guy tomorrow to confirm the order. I don't think i'll back out, but I'm still a little bit unsure.

 

The sony fx7 is about all a can afford. And it is hd and can be shot in standard video too. Plus i can control the settings.

 

if you want to read the screenplay you can go to http://lowplains.com/theroman.html a link is at the bottom of the page at right.

Edited April 28, 2007 by kelly tippett

[kelly tippett]

ps - sorry for the typos i tried a quick edit but it didn't post.

[Martin Yernazian]

Kelly follow your instincs, don't listen to ANYBODY more than you listen to yourself, if you believe thatn you can make it happen, just go for it , sometimes when you ask for advice you don't get it, instead you get a lot of people talking but not to you

 

GO ALL IN, BET IT ALL, GO CRAZY AND MAKE THE BEST FILM YOU CAN PRODUCE

 

BEST

[David Bradley]

Kelly, I would seriously advise against an FX7. It consists of three 1/4" CMOS sensors. Expect very long depth of field and poor colour sensinometry.

 

It also uses MPEG-2 intraframe codec which compresses the 4:4:4 RGB signal from 128mbps to 25mbps. thats a 5:1 compression ratio which sucks.

 

I would suggest you at least get an FX1 and shoot SD. HDV will not be accepted as HD for broadcast by a majority of stations (at least thats the case in the UK). Chances are you will exhibit in SD anyway.

 

Hire a camera - spend the cash on talent.

 

Good Luck.