Got a question for beginners.

H

harmonica44

I have almost started my own indie film to shoot. My own short film to enter into the festivals, to get my foot in the door. The thing is is that other directors and people in the business tell me I'm in over my head and should have had more practice. That is true I have hardly shot any footage before, nor have I done any mixing and editing.

I just all of a sudden realized that being a film director is what I want out of life. And I got two screenplays lined up. One a feature film, and one that was going to be a feature, but I condensed it down to a short for the film festivals, as a beginner. So I thought they are probably right and I should take a step back and practice with shooting and recording first. Practice directing with actors as well.

I am good friends with a DP who has been doing it for five years, and he knows some sound men in the business we can hire. I have two options here. I can hold off on making the film, and practice with actors and crewman who wanna work for free to improve their craft as well. But my DP and another crew member I met, both told me that this wouldn't really do me a lot of good. The reason is because I already got an experienced DP and can hire an experienced sound man.

So if I practice directing for months or a couple of years with other people, I still won't get much knowledge on how to make a short film because I am practicing with people just starting out. Where as if I make it now, I will be working with people who have been doing it for years, and know what to do.

My DP said that he thinks the script is good and he can help with directing, but feels I will do just fine, since he knows me. Don't get me wrong, it is a good idea and I do wanna practice with people just starting out in the mean time as well. But I do have a window of opportunity now to make this short as oppose to waiting later, when who knows if the same people might be available for cheap.

So the question is, will I really improve my craft as a director if I practice with inexperienced people, if I hire different experienced people later, anyway? Cause if not, then I really feel like I should take this window while I have it. The risk being I jumped the gun and made a film I wasn't ready for, I will have wasted my budget. But if I wait, the people could be gone, and the budget may have to grow. What do you people think?
 
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I don't know if I have enough money for a feature. And I doubt if I can make it good enough for my first film, so I feel maybe I should make something short first. I talked to a few directors online and a couple in person and they said making a feature could be a huge mistake if it doesn't get picked up, or well made enough for a first timer, and that making shorts is better, to get funding.

But if getting money through shorts is not the norm, then why do directors submit short films at all then, if making a feature is better? What is the norm?
 
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harmonica44 said:
I don't know if I have enough money for a feature. And I doubt if I can make it good enough for my first film, so I feel maybe I should make something short first. I talked to a few directors online and a couple in person and they said making a feature could be a huge mistake if it doesn't get picked up, or well made enough for a first timer, and that making shorts is better, to get funding.

But if getting money through shorts is not the norm, then why do directors submit short films at all then, if making a feature is better? What is the norm?
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Getting shorts out in part gets you visiblity. No may not make you money, but it's kind of like a resume, or sample of work-I know someone who had a short that caught someone's attention (it wasn't their first short lol) and found themselves working at a smaller production studio. No they aren't directing, but it got their "foot in the door", and they are slowly working their way up.

You never know who is going to show up at a film festival, pro or amateur, big or small ;)
 
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Well perhaps making a feature is the way to go if I can afford it. I will need things like costumes and props such as police and SWAT uniforms, and guns and weapons though. Since I have written a few feature length action films, I won't be able to afford crashing cars, police helicopters, or shooting up cars, in the action scenes. But would it be affordable to use CGI? My friend has some CGI programs she uses for animation and says she thinks, she might be able to create CGI action scenes. And if she can't do it perhaps someone will be willing to create CGI for low money. Is that do-able for a micro budget of say $40,000-$50,000 for the whole movie?
 
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Not if you plan to pay people what they're worth.

I'm not sure how I feel about the term 'practice film' ....by definition, all my films are 'practice films'...I look at work from less than a year ago and cringe at some of my directorial and scripting choices. Don't think you'll ever be finished learning how to make films, because you won't be. I'm certainly not.

In 2008 my wife and I set a goal for ourselves to shoot one short film a month. The result was one of the most intense but motivational periods of filmmaking in my life which only dropped off when we had a child. Making a film, any film, gives you the energy and drive to move onto another one, which is plenty of reason to make a 2 min piece set in a room with a couple of actors.

Speaking of which, if you've never made a movie, why are you choosing an action film with fight/chase scenes and swat teams as your first foray into the field? Are you confident you can pull off something of that scale?

I'd like to give one final shout out for storyboarding ESPECIALLY for an action movie. Pre visualisation of any kind is invaluable, and the simple act of sketching out your shots, even in a very simple form, could lead you to thinking about a scene in a completely different way.
 
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Well I have written a feature length screenplay, that is an action movie, and treatments for several others. I guess when it comes to writing, action is my genre and I can come up with much more different plots compared to a lot of action films. I have done a lot of studying and visualization of how I would film every scene and every take of a most of my action scenes, so I think I can do it as long as I have my DP friend to help.

The feature film script I have written has a lot of action in, so it probably won't be the best for my first try. I have written a treatment that concentrates a lot more on character development and twist and turns though, with not so much action but still a good amount, especially in the climax. A lot of the action is in doors though, which is cheaper to film, as oppose to outdoor public street action scenes. I could film that as my first. It also doesn't have as many characters in, so that's less actors. But it does have quite a few extras that will be needed. Would it be do-able if I use CGI? The short film I was going to do is actually a subplot of this script, so it will be easy to just write it in. Is this better than making shorts, since it's a whole feature film and can be put on the DVD shelves?
 
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Its really impossible to say, because I have no idea of how good you are. You may be some filmmaking genius and get it on the first go, or you may run the risk of taking on too much and getting exhausted, burnt out and turned off filmmaking by your first film, which would be a shame.

Is there some hurry to get this film made? Is there a reason you can't make some no budget shorts first, just to practice the craft?
 
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I will make some no budget shorts first with my DP friend to practice the craft yes. I'm already in the process of starting that. I just wanna save all the money I can to keep that budget for a feature. I will still need to write the script and plan everything down. And I will practice with him and some other actors, wanting to work on their craft. So how exactly do you market your own movie to DVD out of curiousity? Does it get put into distribution by a company, after you send it to various film festivals?
 
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harmonica44 said:
So how exactly do you market your own movie to DVD out of curiousity? Does it get put into distribution by a company, after you send it to various film festivals?
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There are several different paths to getting a feature distributed.
And it's changing quickly. By the time your feature is finished the
paths will be very different than they are today.

Many filmmakers self-distribute these days. Many send screeners
to distributors without ever screening at festivals. Some find distribution
after festival showings. Some hire agents (also called producer reps, sales
agents, sales reps) to represent their finished movies. These days, the
wise filmmaker doesn't even begin production without some interest
from a distributor or two. But since very few filmmakers have any
connections with distributors their only option is to make the movie
and hope.
 
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