archived-videos Fight Scene Test (Short)

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firefox

It's pretty hard to achieve something great quickly as a beginner, I think most of us can agree on this. I shot this with some friends, it's suppose to be an action film, but I didn't get that feeling. My friends are untrained, normal people with average fighting skills. I tried to follow the eastern style, but I mixed it up with the hollywood style. Well, I don't even know what style I copied honesty.

I only wanted to post this video here, hoping someone would leave me very helpful feedback.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyJMz0eURPw

You can recommend books, DVDs anything to help me understand more about fight scenes.

I heard long lens are good for fighting scenes, but my camera doesn't support different lens, so in the editing process, I stretched the video hoping for the distance to look closer.
 
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For your first attempt at action, i thought you did very, very well.

There's an art in not only directing/choreographing action, but choosing, primarily, the content of what it is we see, that best orchestrates the scene. Meaning, it is not always necessary that we see the punch that breaks the nose, but for example, the wild, frantic expression etched across the face of the attacker as the strike lands, or the worried grimace of a passing pedestrian. Sound is key, never forget the importance of Sound design, it's forever the partner of clever, neat cinematography.

I would reccomend, if you haven't already been engulfed in two of the greatest series of television to ever grace the screen. "Boardwalk Empire" and "The Sorpanos". What both of these will give you, is the sense of "Realism" that is injected into every last scene. They are faithful to the era, the characters, and their action. Pick any scene of either of the two, and pay close attention to the versatile, yet effortless shot choices. See how many times you actually see a punch land. You'll begin to get a taste for the variety that a fight scene consists of.

For choreography, i reccommend anything from Bruce Lee. The choreography is flawless. (Perhaps not "Big Boss", but it's still a great watch)

What i mentioned earlier, of clever, neat cinematography, is evident in any of Park Chan-wooks works.

Oldboy
Sympathy for Mr.Vengeance
Sympathy for Lady Vengeance
Thirst

There's also a scene in "I'm a Cyborg, but that's okay" that you should track down on Youtube. It's the shoot-out scene in the hospital.

Gritty, often gruesome, and heavily stylized. It's a tough watch for some. But for craftsmanship, and appreciation of context, PCW takes some beating.

The action is few and far between, but when it arrives, it's oustanding work. Every shot is finely put together, and intertwined. Choice is key, alike earlier, great decision making.

There's also an adaptation of the classic "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly", called "The Good, The Bad, and The Weird".

Fantastic, high speed fight scenes, with thousands of intricate pieces.

Like I said, there's alot of potential in your work. The best of luck!
 
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Papertwinproductions said:
:lol: It's this darn sensitive mouse-pad.
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I think I have seen almost every Chinese movie from 2007 till now with Eng subtitles. I just love the realism in their movies, they always grab my emotions quickly than any western style. Hollywood style is more like faking the scene, that's why I don't get too emotional. Even the theme is weak compared to Chinese movies.

I will try to watch as much as I can this weekend from the movies you suggested.

About my film, when I stretched it a little, was that annoying? Some of the comments on Youtube thought it was a bad idea, I thought It would help shorten the distance between the actors.

I think I need a book about shooting fight scenes, any recommendations?

When I shoot a fight scene, should I go further back and zoom in to get a closer look? I need to know as many tricks as possible to get better results.

By the way where can I get professional sound effects, I hate those free lame kicks- punch effects.

For someone like me beginner, what advice do you give when shooting a fight scene?

Thanks!
 
The stretch would be ok if it were done on both the X and Y, but it distorted the actors which I found myself watching more than the action, like a fun house mirror a bit.

The action and choreography was better than much that I've seen from filmmakers in your same situation. It shows a care for the craft (even if you're just starting out) - not just "I wanna make a fight scene" but a recognition of the different cinematic traditions of that craft. This makes the scene much more engaging than a single wide shot of a badly choreographed one-take fight scene.

The sound FX were a little Kung Fu Theatre for me, over the top cheesy. I think you can subdue them a little to give them more impact and make them more convincing. Some of it is also that we recognize those specific sound FX from so many films that it conveys their "je ne c'est quoi" rather than the particular flavor of your scene.

For me (Activate Hat: Sound Designer)... I'd have keyed off the whole playground feel, squeaking swings, some playing kid voices in the background, maybe a little traffic and dogs - to find a Timbre/ soundscape to make the fight sounds fit. This will lend a reality to them as they won't necessarily stand out from the background noise sonically, but will allow for variations in volume and pitch that can come off as striking.

Perhaps moments of impact, you can even dip the EQ range of the hit in all the ambient noises for a breath after the hit to really make the feeling of it linger a bit, as if the impact had hit so hard that everything else in that frequency was briefly silenced.
 
Yep, for me the main problem was the sound effects and the syncing.

The fight itself was pretty good- I think the choreography would've worked if it had been paired with better sounds. I'm assuming you got those sounds out of some fight scene sound effects pack? I would recommend trying to re-do the sound on this with a bit of foley, rather than stock sounds.

But, as I say, the fight itself was not bad it's just that the sound effects made it seem like something from Kung Pow...
 
The sound effects aren't very good, and there's one kick in the early stages, where the foot isn't anywhere near the chest and you have the sound. Besides that, really good work.
 
Very beautiful feedback from all of you guys, knightly you have a great vision, your right about adding more sound effects in the playground to make it more believable. I will try different sound effects, stretch both axises next time and I hope for better results.

I appreciated those feedback guys, :cool:
 
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