Got an email this morning from a student filmmaker in Malaysia with a lot of questions, no doubt shared by other budding filmmakers. Usually I’m just too busy with a million other things to answer well emails like this (because I don’t even have time to answer well emails from friends and family). But this inquisitor caught me on a Sunday morning with my cup of coffee in hand and my (perception that I had) free unaccounted for time : )
So I figured I’d share his good (but non-personal and generic) questions and my answers (his questions in italics, my answers in bold):
Dear Mr. Carew,
I’m a student from [xxx] University in Malaysia. I’m majoring in film for my final project in the next semester and I’m currently doing a research on cinematic techniques used by indie filmmakers. I was hoping if you could give your opinions on the following questions which would be a lot of help for my research.
1) Do I need a good story to make a good film?
Yes. Most certainly. Without a good story you are wasting your time: it’s a lot of effort to create a film, so always start with a good story. Even for the shortest of films (because, no matter how short, they’re always a lot of work; and you want viewers to be on the edge of their seats, not yawning or looking at their watches.)
2) Is there any inexpensive ways to minimize camera shake in a moving shot?
Here’s a few ways:
-Use lenses with optical image stabilization on the new DSLRs that take video (e.g., Panasonic GH1 or Canon 7D).
-Use a Glidecam or similar device.
-Use a Kenyon gyroscope (A bit more expensive).
-Practice a lot shooting handheld. Larger shoulder mounted cameras are actually less shaky than small cameras.
3) What are possible ways for setting up a certain mood of a scene using color?
First, make sure the lighting is good. Then, decorate the set through production design and costume the actors with a color strategy/palette in mind. Then learn and use color correction, e.g., using Apple Color.
4) Is lighting/reflectors necessary for an outdoor scene?
Not necessarily. But it’s very handy to have at least a large white piece of cardboard, to bounce a little light onto your actors faces. And it’s best to shoot at the “magic hours” (sunrise and just after + sunset and just after). Or shoot on an overcast day. In any case, try to avoid shooting in direct sunlight around noon–the light is too harsh.
5) What are some tips that you can give to make digital video look more professional?
-Try to shoot progressive, not interlaced. Ideally at 24 frames per second progressive (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/24p)
-Don’t have lots of shaky shots. In fact, try to shoot the whole movie locked off on a tripod.
-Try for a shallower depth of field. Which you can get if your camera has a larger sensor (like the GH1 or 7D) or if you use a 35mm adaptor kit (like the ones from RedRock Micro, etc.)
-Try to rent or borrow a Red One or 16mm or 35mm film camera. Red One will be cheaper, because you don’t have to buy and process the film.
6) What is different and imaginative to the viewers now?
Well, films and expectations of filmmakers have evolved over the years. People expect faster pacing and faster editing cuts. People like it (but at the same time are getting used to) when the camera goes to gritty and “exotic” places (e.g., Babel, Constant Gardener, Slumdog Millionaire, etc.) Expectations are higher now in terms of CG, and a lot of CG is used.
In general I would say:
-Find (or write) a good, authentic story.
-Don’t show things you can’t show well (e.g., fight scenes are very hard, etc.)
-Get good actors (not just friends or fellow students). Actually do auditions.
-The world would love to see a fresh human tale about your town/city in Malaysia–which may seem very mundane and pedestrian to you, but which is probably very real and exciting to the other 6 billion people on the planet. I.e., I would say just take your camera outside onto the streets, rooftops, windows, mountains around you. And find a couple good actors. Remember Jean Luc Godard said all you need to make a movie is “a girl and a gun.”
7) What are some tips you that can give for making a travel related short film?
I’m not sure if you mean a documentary or a narrative feature. Not sure that I have any brilliant ideas here, but a few thoughts:
-For documentaries, it’s a common practice to show the traveller boarding his or her train/plane/bus etc., then to show the vehicle driving/flying away, then to cut to the passenger. This, of course, requires you to either have two (matched) cameras. Or to film it twice (“faking” it).
-”Road movies” (e.g., Thelma and Louise, Motorcycle Diaries, Easy Rider) are a whole genre, about escaping one’s mundane existence by traveling (without good plan and/or destination in mind) and the joy and camaraderie of being “on the road”. Study this genre to make one of these movies: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_movie
-Spend time to get a lot of “B” camera footage of your vehicle traveling through land/cityscape (both from interior and exterior POV, and with passengers).
