EVERYTHING I've EVER wanted in a movie!

[NatalieOshea]

Okay so what I've done was this:

I sat down, got out a few pieces of paper, and wrote out EVERYTHING i want in a movie, the kinds of shots, characters, who i want to be in the film (no big name stars since this is indie), the lines i want spoken, where i want the movie to be shot, what i want my characters to look like, the kinds of guns i want, scene locations, i mean EVERYTHING!

But then when it comes to writing and even rewriting the script, i csn't get every little thing in one movie! It's so frustrating having to leave a few things out whereas if i try to put in everything it feels forced and it don't come out right and i end up having to do the whole dam script over again! has anybody else had this issue? Shall i just go ahead and split my "dream movie list into 2 movies?

Natalie

 

[Yodaman]

I've had the same problem with a few of my ideas.

One idea in particular had so many different parts to the story, it would've taken 20 minutes of finished footage to tell just the first part of it...

After a while, you learn to whittle it down, keeping the essential elements in and ditching the not-so-crucial parts. And sometimes, even if you really like a particular scene you've written, you realize that it just doesn't flow as well with the rest of the story, and as you said, it feels forced.

You could definitely do a two-part film, or two separate movies that tie together in some way. Quentin Tarantino has all of his movies set in the same universe, even though they're all different stories. You could do something similar!

 

[NatalieOshea]

Oh, okay. That sounds like a nice idea. Thanks, Yoda!

 

[rayw]

Shall i just go ahead and split my "dream movie list into 2 movies?

Or more.


I like ketchup.
I like ice cream.
I like watermelon.

But I don't want all three together, or even two of them together.

Sharks with lazers is stupid.
Flying sharks with lazers is even worse. Not better.
Flying zombie sharks with lazers is just effing retarded.
You're making a flying zombie sharks with lazers movie.

http://www.terrariaonline.com/attachments/flying-20zombie-20laser-20shark-jpg.23476/


Lay out your story.
Put your "Ideal Elements" in a list.
Select elements that naturally fit the story, (as opposed to shoe-horning them in.)
Save the remainders for another story.


I second Yodaman: consider the elements for the sequel and the prequel then you can eventually sell the complete set.

 

[jmoschner]

As others have said, look at breaking your ideas into several movies.

Alternativly, you might want to consider that a film is the wrong medium for your ideas. Perhaps your idea is better suited for a mini-series, tv show, novel, comic, etc. It might be better told in a longer format.

 

[ChimpPhobiaFilms]

Yes. With every film I've made.

Make your film with as little locations, actors, props, VFX, weather conditions, and nighttime scenes as possible. Cut out all unnecessary scenes that could be incredibly difficult to film. As Kevin Smith and Robert Rodriguez say kill your babies. What are they talking about? They are saying that you should cut out everything that interrupts the pacing, continuity, and logic in the film. Also, it means abandoning scenes that could make production and post-production difficult.

Use ideas and scenes you were not able to put in your previous film in the next film you make.

One of the greatest skills of a filmmaking is being open to change. Have a Plan A, B, C, D, E, F... all the way to Z. Be ready for a location to not be available to you, an actor quitting, your PC crashing, a prop gun with an orange tip, broken bulbs, a forgotten prime, not being able to find actors and props, etc. Murphy's Law is unavoidable, but you can do your best to try to avoid it and prepare for.

One mistake of making one of my first films was not preparing for something to go wrong or something I liked in the script not available to be. I should have had a back-up script and plan.

 

[CraigL]

As Kevin Smith and Robert Rodriguez say kill your babies. What are they talking about? They are saying that you should cut out everything that interrupts the pacing, continuity, and logic in the film. Also, it means abandoning scenes that could make production and post-production difficult.

Actually, it was William Faulkner I believe who first said that; well, he said "kill your darlings". And it specifically referred to looking extra critically at the shots, scenes or sequences that are your favourite, and ensuring they do, as you indicate, contribute to the story.

This is a sentiment that you will find repeated over and over, and some go so far as to say you should cut your favourite regardless!

However, it is very important to ensure that everything does exactly that, contribute to the story. No matter how cute or cool or visually impressive it might be, if it's not giving the audience something directly related to the story, then it shouldn't be there.

All your ideas might be wonderful, but you need to look at it very objectively and decide if it is there because you're particularly enamoured with it, or because it should be.

And, as mentioned, perhaps look to making a longer format, a webseries. It will be far, far more manageable for you to create a series of episodes one at a time than a whole feature. And, creating a webseries first in no way precludes doing a feature of it later, and you'll have the added advantage of not only experience, but also to be able to review what worked and what didn't.

CraigL

 

[Alcove Audio]

you need to look at it very objectively...

This is one of the hardest lessons to learn for an artist of any kind.

 

[NatalieOshea]

Or more.


I like ketchup.
I like ice cream.
I like watermelon.

But I don't want all three together, or even two of them together.

Have them at different times then but in one sitting, just not all three of them at once... ... ... oops, I just answered my own question, didn't I?

Sharks with lazers is stupid.
Flying sharks with lazers is even worse. Not better.
Flying zombie sharks with lazers is just effing retarded.
You're making a flying zombie sharks with lazers movie.

http://www.terrariaonline.com/attachments/flying-20zombie-20laser-20shark-jpg.23476/

[/QUOTE]

OMG! You almost had me laughing myself dead! You kill me with that!

Lay out your story.
Put your "Ideal Elements" in a list.
Select elements that naturally fit the story, (as opposed to shoe-horning them in.)
Save the remainders for another story.

Got it.

As others have said, look at breaking your ideas into several movies.

Alternativly, you might want to consider that a film is the wrong medium for your ideas. Perhaps your idea is better suited for a mini-series, tv show, novel, comic, etc. It might be better told in a longer format.

I'll do just that but not in sequel form, especially since I've had two different ways I'd like to end a movie with a climax. I'd do one movie and then another with completely different actors, a new plot, new characters and actors but with all the things I wanted that couldn't be in the last movie. Follow?

Yes. With every film I've made.

Make your film with as little locations, actors, props, VFX, weather conditions, and nighttime scenes as possible. Cut out all unnecessary scenes that could be incredibly difficult to film. As Kevin Smith and Robert Rodriguez say kill your babies. What are they talking about? They are saying that you should cut out everything that interrupts the pacing, continuity, and logic in the film. Also, it means abandoning scenes that could make production and post-production difficult.

Use ideas and scenes you were not able to put in your previous film in the next film you make.

One of the greatest skills of a filmmaking is being open to change. Have a Plan A, B, C, D, E, F... all the way to Z. Be ready for a location to not be available to you, an actor quitting, your PC crashing, a prop gun with an orange tip, broken bulbs, a forgotten prime, not being able to find actors and props, etc. Murphy's Law is unavoidable, but you can do your best to try to avoid it and prepare for.

One mistake of making one of my first films was not preparing for something to go wrong or something I liked in the script not available to be. I should have had a back-up script and plan.

Is there anything difficult with shooting during the nighttime as apposed to shooting in the daytime? I don't wanna say "most" but about a good half of my film (according to the way the script looks now) is set during the night.

 

[CraigL]

Is there anything difficult with shooting during the nighttime as apposed to shooting in the daytime? I don't wanna say "most" but about a good half of my film (according to the way the script looks now) is set during the night.

Depending on your equipment, and the desired effect, it can be very challenging shooting at night. Unless you have a great camera, and a decent set of lights, you're probably going to be disappointed.

The best thing you can do is run some tests first, see what worked what didn't, rinse and repeat.

I generally don't write night time stuff any more, it's just too hard to get it looking like I want, and we have a reasonable number of lights and gear.

CraigL

 

[rayw]

Lighting at night is a PITA for many prosumer (and "less than") cameras.

Shoot day for night and edit in post (one of the few things that's actually relatively simple in post).
Or think of a way to make the story contain fewer night shots.

 

[directorik]

It's so frustrating having to leave a few things out whereas if i try to put in everything it feels forced and it don't come out right and i end up having to do the whole dam script over again!

Is there a reason you can’t write two scripts?

Why compromise? The only thing keeping you from getting everything
you want is you. Write the script exactly as you see the movie in your
head. Exactly. If you need two scripts, you need two scripts. If you
need need three, you need to write three.

That solves the screenwriting part of your concern.

Your other concern is the making of the film, right?

So make the first film exactly as you see it. It’s going to be astonishingly
difficult to do. If you aren’t up to that challenge then the issue here isn’t
the script. Do not compromise on the script.

Is there anything difficult with shooting during the nighttime as apposed to shooting in the daytime?

Of course there will be difficulties, lots of difficulties, lots of challenges, lots
of problems, lots of frustration. The less money you have the more difficult
the production will be. It will be your job as producer to overcome those
issues and get the movie made.

You didn’t think making movies was going to be easy.

My advice is to write the script EXACTLY as you see it. Then think about
the challenges of making a movie or movies. For now - write your script.

 

[Cracker Funk]

This seems weird to me, on two levels.

First, how are you able to fit EVERYTHING you'd ever want from a movie, into ONE list? What? I want all sorts of stuff from movies, there's no way I could list them. Perhaps, most of all, I want to be surprised. So, you can't really list surprises. Also, like Ray mentioned, many of the things I want in a movie often won't fit together in the same movie.

Secondly, and more importantly, in my opinion, I think you might be working your story backwards. Maybe I'm misunderstanding your process, but it sounds to me like you're trying to write a story that serves no purpose other than to move us from one cool scene to the next. If that's the case, I can't help but think that the overall story will suffer, greatly.

The story comes first, and everything else exists to serve that, not the other way around. Find ways to fit cool scenes into your story, not the other way around.

 

[mlesemann]

What CrackerFunk said.

 

[sfoster]

You can start out with a list of cool ideas, that is okay. but the film needs to develop organically and you must be willing to drop the parts that don't fit