Hi everybody!

G

grungedimi

Hello fellow movie lovers!

My name is Dimitry. You may call me Dimi if you like. I live in Antwerp, Belgium, where we speak Dutch. In fact, most Belgians speak Dutch, not French. =)

Okay, that aside, I'm 27 years old, I have a lot of "home studio" experience (read: ten years of goofing around and still having a blast) with audio/music production and composing. I've also played in a grunge band as singer/guitarist for five years. Yeah, that was fun. Music/audio is awesome.

I have a day job as a sales data analyst at an American aluminum company. I took this "business path" after university to guarantee some level of financial and professional certainty, but choosing the safe path quite often means neglecting your dreams. Lately, that's been making me ... a little sad, actually. Like I'm not doing what I feel I SHOULD be doing. I'm absolutely sure some (or perhaps many) of you can relate to that feeling in some way.

Anyway, a few months ago I decided that I really want to chase an old dream of mine: making movies. Yes, apart from making all kinds of music, movies and moviemaking have always interested me just as much. I simply LOVE them with all my heart. And because I became aware of the fact that this is a great time for aspiring indie filmmakers, I decided to knock out that little devil in my head that goes: "Ooh Dimitry, you better not start making movies. That's for the big boys with looots of money and yeeears of experience and looooads of professional backup from name actors etc. etc. blahblah".

Boy, did I smack him good, right in the kisser! :D

So, I'm just gonna do it. And that's that. Even though the indie movie scene in Belgium is ... errr... "somewhat small" in comparison, I still feel I need to do it, and perhaps close the gap between countries by using the internet!

I'm a real big fan of psychological thrillers (think David Lynch, Jacob's Ladder, The Machinist, Memento, Alfred Hitchcock, ...), film noir (I gotta get me a smoke machine and/or lots of smokes), sci-fi (Blade Runner!) and fantasy (Pan's Labyrinth!), so I guess that's the style you might expect from me. Though I guess one can't be certain of these things beforehand.

I already want to THANK YOU GUYS AND GIRLS for all the information you're providing through this site, and being such a great bunch of helpful people. Thanks to you (and others like you), I already feel like I've learned a lot over the last few years. Now, it's time for me to build up some practical experience. I've already bought a Canon 550D/T2i with two lenses (Canon 50mm f1.8 and Sigma 17-70mm f2.8-4) and a good video-tripod, and I'm absolutely loving them! Practicing photography for starters has been VERY entertaining thus far. When I feel I'm getting good at that, I'll be adding motion and some good sound into the mix. :)

Thanks for reading all of this! See you on the boards!

Dimi
 
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Dimitry, you are somewhat of the perfect "Newbie". Everything you mentioned above, from acting upon impulse, to purchasing the equipment and learning in the correct manner-which i can assume from your choices, you researched- tells me you're going to be a great guy to have around.


Welcome, Sir.
 
Thank you very much! Perfect Newbie... has a nice ring to it. :P A pleasant thought, also!

But yes, I've done a lot of research. I love doing that, actually, if the subject matter interests me a lot. I chose the DSLR way after reading some stuff about it. A free DSLR-guide I got from nofilmschool.com was quite helpful to me. Pretty beginner level, but it's brief and to the point.

Also, I wasn't sure which lenses I was going to need, so I bought one with a wide/normal range for flexibility and standard use (the Sigma) and one specifically for low-light conditions (the cheap but awesome Canon). I absolutely love darkness in movies, both physically and psychologically, so I knew I was going to need at least one lens with a wide aperture.

I already know I'll be getting a Zoom h4n (bad DSLR audio? no prob!), and probably a shotgun mic from Rode. I really like Rode, personally.

Good lighting is definitely going to be more difficult than I can imagine right now. I must admit I'm pretty unsure of what makes for good lighting gear, or what I'm going to need exactly. I figure I'll discover that while practicing / researching the net / maybe a little help when the time comes. I don't know, I just have this feeling three-point-lighting will be harder in practice than in theory.

What bothers me most, though, is time. Will I find enough time to practice enough to make good movies in the near future, while still having my day job? Quitting my day job is not an option, as I'm still a beginner and that would make it kind of foolish. Quitting my filmmaking dream is not an option either.

Conclusion: work till the point of total exhaustion. Feel free to wake me up from time to time. :D

Cheers!
 
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It sounds about right to me.

Although i must stress the importance of "Collaboration", there are many, many talented crew members willing to help, be it for no pay, or the price of gas.

I wouldn't want the stress of attemping to learn the craft of many taint what is such a pleasent, and rewarding endeavor.
 
Good point about the collaboration thing. It just seems like you're kind of alone in your endeavours sometimes.

I wouldn't know what I'd like the least in the entire process. It ALL seems like tons of fun to me :). But yeah, finding people with lighting equipment/exp or field audio recording equipment/exp would be nice.

Another thing that will point itself out over the course of time, I presume.

Can I ask which parts of the filmmaking process you prefer doing?
 
grungedimi said:
Good point about the collaboration thing. It just seems like you're kind of alone in your endeavours sometimes.

I wouldn't know what I'd like the least in the entire process. It ALL seems like tons of fun to me :). But yeah, finding people with lighting equipment/exp or field audio recording equipment/exp would be nice.

Another thing that will point itself out over the course of time, I presume.

Can I ask which parts of the filmmaking process you prefer doing?
Click to expand...

Craigslist, Gumtree, Facebook, Forums, any relatively popular advertising boards are where you would primarily promote vacancies, and work opportunities. Another route which i explored a number of years ago, was using my free-time to get a taste of production, working in any position feasible -There is always a use for an extra pair of hands- on as many projects as possible. All of which where fantastic networking tools.

I've worked with many folks from this very forum.

I'm principally a "Writer", although I've directed few projects, i would cease to extend my title to that of "Writer/Director". I do believe i'm yet to earn the merit.
 
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