archived-videos Trailer/Website for my short film

Well what is there to say? Your website needs a TON of work. It looks like something I would have made when I was ten years old using freewebs. It even says "Untitled Document" in the browser! That will turn off a lot of people right there. That being said...I decided to continue on for some strange reason (probably the Red name, sadly).

This proves, though, that Red does not equal quality. What matters is what you can do with the camera. From what I saw of this footage, it could have easily been shot on a DSLR and you could have saved yourself a lot of money in rentals. The trailer felt very, VERY low tier indie. The footage (what there was of it) in the trailer actually wasn't that bad, but the editing, text, music, sound effects and overall sound design really detract from it. The muzzle flashes were incredibly fake and the title cards felt very wannabe-indie.

If you're going to shoot Red and use that as your selling point then there's a problem going on here. Please note that I don't consider myself some all-knowing or fantastic film maker. These are just observations I'm making from what I've seen so far. For all I know the final film could be tremendous, but based on what I've seen here I probably won't check it out. :(
 
Last edited:
I'm not "knifing him" and moreover his camera choice has no affect on my overall review of his website and film making. I DO feel like if you're going to list yourself as a Red shooter you should have the skills to back it up. However, that is neither here nor there right now because rather or not this was shot on a DSLR or a Red, it still needs a lot of work (in my opinion). It's as simple as that.
 
Antonio,

I hope it's a good story. I'm sure you spent some money on it, so let's try to make it as good as possible.

Show it around to as many people as possible and ask them how you should improve the trailer. Get a buddy who is some sort of compositor to make things "look" better and to add color to it.

check out this tutorial
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T4cNVxPfJo&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL


Muzzle flashes don't look real. But that is a solvable problem. If you can't do it yourself, pay somebody or pull a favor. It will go a long way towards making an audience appreciate your movie, and towards salvaging all the money, effort, sweat and tears already expended :)

Good luck my man.
Aveek
 
tommygdawg said:
I'm not "knifing him" and moreover his camera choice has no affect on my overall review of his website and film making. I DO feel like if you're going to list yourself as a Red shooter you should have the skills to back it up.
Click to expand...

I'm on the record as a RED hater. But I'm not sure this camera or that camera has some prerequirement for the operator's skill level. Having said that, I didn't see anything glaring in terms of camera work that'd cause me to bring out the long knives. It's some soldiers walking around the mountains. Maybe the OP is rich? Maybe he borrowed a RED, who knows and who cares. It just seems his mention of the camera brought on some heat he might not otherwise have received.

If I could afford a RED I'd get one, and I'm not exactly the reincarnation of Conrad Hall.
 
The trailer and the synopsis are very different from each other. The synopsis makes it sound like a movie that is very personal and dramatic. The trailer makes it look like a cheap thriller, without much of a story. So, which is it? Personally, I'd like to see the one that is personal and dramatic, so in my opinion, you should maybe re-cut the trailer to match the synopsis.

P.S. Depending on the length of your movie, I might re-cut it for you, if you're interested.
 
Thanks for the feedback everybody.... I'll try to address all the comments......First I'll say that the RED was donated which is why it was used. This is a short film (17 minutes) and the trailer is a first draft teaser trailer. The story was written to show both the personal dramatic side of family left behind and a "cheap thrill" action movie..... Total budget was 6k....The muzzle flashes are also temporary and will be replaced during editing....The website was done by me in one day as a platform to get feedback on the project and post the trailer.....It will be updated before marketing begins(that includes the untitled doc in the address bar).....Once again everything was posted as just a way to get some early feedback in order to make my first project as good as possible...Thanks for all the constructive criticism.....
 
All I was saying about needing the skills to back it up is that Red is known for being a professional digital cinema camera used on profession film. So, if you're going to make that as a selling point of your film then hopefully the film is professional. I can't paint worth a darn, it'd be like me saying "hey everybody, I got the most expensive paints, canvas, and brushes I could find, so will you check out my painting?" Note that I'm not comparing my painting skills to Aleonard's film making skills.

Aleonard, I don't know how you did it but I WISH I could get a Red donated to my projects! GRRR!! That said, my criticisms are based on the short short things I've seen, not on your camera. Perhaps next time, try to create something a little more professional looking instead of rushing things out the door to get instant feedback. I know what it's like to be so excited about a film and/or a website that you just want to show it off! But, if you wait 'til you have something that's really fantastic, you'll find you'll get a lot more excited people :)
 
I will say the few shots I did see looked good. With some color correction and new muzzle flashes + light falloff onto there faces and clothing that could look sweet! Good luck.
 
tommygdawg said:
Perhaps next time, try to create something a little more professional looking instead of rushing things out the door to get instant feedback.
Click to expand...

That's god advice generally. And it does sound, at least the way the OP describes it, that this was put out there before it was as good as it can be. I see that a lot here and other places -- especially with scripts. I sent out my first spec feature script to people -- actually people with REAL writing credits, with just 40 pages written! I was convinced that just those 40 pages would show my transcendent genius. Well it didn't and I'm still terribly embarrassed that I did that. I think we tend to see our own work in the most favorable possible light.
 
brianluce said:
That's god advice generally. And it does sound, at least the way the OP describes it, that this was put out there before it was as good as it can be. I see that a lot here and other places -- especially with scripts. I sent out my first spec feature script to people -- actually people with REAL writing credits, with just 40 pages written! I was convinced that just those 40 pages would show my transcendent genius. Well it didn't and I'm still terribly embarrassed that I did that. I think we tend to see our own work in the most favorable possible light.
Click to expand...

Hah, I've nearly done things like that myself. It's all part of the learning process and becoming better at what we do :)
 
aleonard said:
Thanks for the feedback everybody.... I'll try to address all the comments......First I'll say that the RED was donated which is why it was used. This is a short film (17 minutes) and the trailer is a first draft teaser trailer. The story was written to show both the personal dramatic side of family left behind and a "cheap thrill" action movie..... Total budget was 6k....The muzzle flashes are also temporary and will be replaced during editing....The website was done by me in one day as a platform to get feedback on the project and post the trailer.....It will be updated before marketing begins(that includes the untitled doc in the address bar).....Once again everything was posted as just a way to get some early feedback in order to make my first project as good as possible...Thanks for all the constructive criticism.....
Click to expand...

I don't know how I came off, but I promise I was only trying to be constructive. I think all other criticism is a waste of time and energy.

Dude, you got people in military suits with guns in the middle of Nowhere, Afghanistan. THAT is more production value than a lot of people can manage. The trick now would be to make the best of it. So don't take anything personally. Just love your film to death and use every criticism in your favor. If the problem is solvable, solve it. If it is not, worry about things that are. Make a friend who's a color corrector and another who is some sort of sound designer. This is not expert advice by any means. This is just what I would do.

A little story: I made a little music piece for my first film. I was so proud of it. Then my cousin, whose opinion I value a lot told me it was a little too "bassy." He is a lot older than I am, and was also my employer at the time and so I couldn't scream at his face. In my head I was thinking "Really? Why don't you go and make your own f*kn music?" When I calmed down, I thought, "yeah, he's right, it is a little bassy."

And I've calmed down since then. I don't take any criticism personally any more. I'm only amused by it. And I take it seriously if I can use it to make something better.

Good luck!!! Make us something gritty and bloody!!
Aveek
 
The footage looked flat, and dull, just the way its supposed to look before grading. I would LOVE to grade footage with that much latitude..

Yeah your sound mix on the trailer was bad, like trueinde said, LOVE IT.. keep on loving the trailer, rework it, make it the BEST you can.
 
Thanks again for all the feedback... I didn't take a single comment personally (although the one comparing my website to the work of a 10 year old did get a laugh out of me....) I didn't go to school for film making (Criminal Justice degree and 6 years in the Army) So I wanted to put the trailer out early to get feedback that I could take back to my Director and editor to try and make the best film possible. I'd much rather hear the things that are wrong now verses getting a unexplained rejection letter from a film festival.... So keep an eye out, I plan to put up more footage as the film develops and I hope I get the same no BS feedback.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top