How long should I commit to someone's feature film before moving on?

harmonica44 said:
I have suggested doing the close ups of me
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Holy cow! You thought up of a great idea.

Get someone to shoot CS of you saying all the lines of your part in the film and hand the footage over to your director. Then tell her good bye.

There's nothing wrong with dragging a movie out over a period of years, but a savvy director will be able to get all the footage she needs from any given actor in a few months' time. In the editing suite she can work magic and create the illusion needed for an entertaining film.
 
Yeah thanks. But she didn't go along with it. She wants OTS shots, mastershots of me, etc. Not just close ups. Plus I have to finish a fight scene shoot in the summer outdoors to match what shot before, and I can't do that in just close up now. But I will urge her again.
 
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harmonica44 said:
Yeah thanks. But she didn't go along with it. She wants OTS shots, mastershots of me, etc. Not just close ups. Plus I have to finish a fight scene shoot in the summer outdoors to match what shot before, and I can't do that in just close up now. But I will urge her again.
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Do it anyway and without her knowing. Then hand over the footage before getting on the bus.

Do this and I'll issue you a guilt-free release.
 
harmonica44 said:
What do you mean, do it anyway? You mean shoot myself in front of a green screen with a different camera, hoping it will match up later?
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Don't do it anyway. If she doesn't want to do this then it's her prerogative, but that doesn't change your move date. As soon as you know, let her know. If she wants to shoot before you leave then great, if not, it's her decision and not yours.
 
harmonica44 said:
What do you mean, do it anyway? You mean shoot myself in front of a green screen with a different camera, hoping it will match up later?
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No green screen needed, just an out of focus neutral background (we're talking extreme close up). This way she has the entire dialoge (ADR) to work with and she can choose whether or not to use any of the CS's.

The 'hoping it matches up' part is not your concern. You'll just know you didn't fatally kill the project when you leave.
 
Okay thanks. I could do that but then the movie would just get a lot of criticism for it. The short film I posted on here before, I had to shoot the actors at different times, and people told me that it I had too many close ups, so it's a bad idea if it reflects poorly on the movie and the impression of the director.

But I might do it anyway, and it's not a bad idea, if nothing else at all can be done I suppose. It will only work with still shots though, and will not work in scenes when my character has to move around at all for the plot.

Thanks.
 
I have a question for you harmonica44:

When there's scenes involving your character in motion, have you been instructed to enter and exit frame with each new camera set up if the angle has been changed?

The reason I ask is because a) it makes things seem more seamless to the eye between different shots covering the one motion of movement, and b) if you do film some CU shots of your character yourself, as suggested on this forum, you would make it even easier for the editor to incorporate these separate shots of yours, especially if your character is moving along in a scene but is being covered in that one motion by multiple shots.

Hopefully I've worded that in a way that is understandable.
 
harmonica44 said:
so it's a bad idea if it reflects poorly on the movie and the impression of the director.
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This is not your concern. You're looking for a way to exit a nightmare production.

Time for some truth . . . if this director is leaving you in limbo, she is likely doing it for everyone else as well -- there's very little chance this film gets completed as intended whether you stay or not. Most films don't get completed anyway.

Hop on the bus Gus, make a new plan, Stan, and get yourself free.

:)
 
any time you delay that long you are risking the whole film.
what if someone gains 15 lbs?? or wants to grow their hair out or cut it short for another role. Is no one allowed to act in the interim?

your director needs a reality check
 
Exactly. I look like my face has gotten fatter, or at least to me a little on camera.

PhantomScreenwriter said:
I have a question for you harmonica44:

When there's scenes involving your character in motion, have you been instructed to enter and exit frame with each new camera set up if the angle has been changed?

The reason I ask is because a) it makes things seem more seamless to the eye between different shots covering the one motion of movement, and b) if you do film some CU shots of your character yourself, as suggested on this forum, you would make it even easier for the editor to incorporate these separate shots of yours, especially if your character is moving along in a scene but is being covered in that one motion by multiple shots.

Hopefully I've worded that in a way that is understandable.
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I suppose I was instructed that way while shooting scenes from shot to shot. What do close ups have to do with the though? I would think that for scenes that are already shot, I should not shoot my own close ups for them, because they are already shot and will match better without anything new added in probably. We are talking about scenes that have been shot, or not been shot yet?
 
Okay thanks. Well it would not help for me to shoot close ups of all my lines, because I am interacting with other people, have no idea how the locations are shaped, or how the scenes will be lit.

For future reference though, how do you get actors to shoot a movie all within a 30 day shoot though, so everyone looks the same and you get it all done in time? I was offered to a place to stay for free, to director a movie in a bigger city, but I was told I would have to get it done in 30 days, no more. I declined, cause no actors could work 30 days straight, cause of their other jobs.

So I don't think it's my director who needs a reality check, cause she is always making the dates, and the actors are constantly saying they can't cause of their other jobs, and here we are a year later, and still not finished. So how does one get a movie shot in 30 days or something like that?
 
With professional actors (or emerging/wannabe professional actors with no day job or an easy to get out of one).

Or dedicated actors who love the script and don't mind ditching work for a month
 
harmonica44 said:
For future reference though, how do you get actors to shoot a movie all within a 30 day shoot though, so everyone looks the same and you get it all done in time? I was offered to a place to stay for free, to director a movie in a bigger city, but I was told I would have to get it done in 30 days, no more. I declined, cause no actors could work 30 days straight, cause of their other jobs.
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Wow, so facepalm.

There are films that have been shot in 30 days. There have been films shot in 12 days, 8 days and so on. There's a TV show called Project Greenlight. Don't ask me which season, but a quick google search shows me that one of them was shot in 22 days, down from a 24 day schedule. If you're wondering how it's done, go take a look and read some First AD books.

Why facepalm? Someone wanted you to direct a film and turned it down because they were being reasonable and you were clueless to that fact. Just wow.

harmonica44 said:
So I don't think it's my director who needs a reality check, cause she is always making the dates, and the actors are constantly saying they can't cause of their other jobs, and here we are a year later, and still not finished. So how does one get a movie shot in 30 days or something like that?
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You simply do it. It's as simple as that. You have a certain amount of time, you just do it within that time. On the first project I was brought in to organize was an 8 part webseries (10 or so minutes each episode, so about the same footage as a movie). We went over our original 13 day schedule to about 20 or 21, mostly due to not being able to complete any day and a lack of work done in pre-production. It was painful and I learned a lot about what not to do ever again. There were a lot of scheduling conflicts that needed to be ironed out and solved, a lot of restrictions to work around, we even had to coordinate one of the actors to fly in internationally. There are issues that will be out of your control (like the weather) that will cause the schedule to go over, but you really need a strong producer, First AD and PM and a great system to communicate with all the moving parts.
 
What about locations? How do schedule it, so all the locations will miraculously, coincidently, all be available one day after another, without having to wait a different amount of weeks for each?
 
harmonica44 said:
What about locations? How do schedule it, so all the locations will miraculously, coincidently, all be available one day after another, without having to wait a different amount of weeks for each?
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Locations are just a pieces of the puzzle.

The brain works mysteriously. If you chant, "There's no way to make this work" the brain will find a way to make sure it won't work. If you're creative, a good problem solver and learn to ask the right questions, most of the time you will find a solution.

It's all part of producing your production within your means. If you only have access to one location, don't write it for another location. If your story requires a multi-million dollar special effects scene and you only have fifty bucks to spend on it, you've chosen wrong. It's just the same with locations. If you have no budget, then you need to write for locations you know you can secure for nothing. Plain and simple. Especially you. To do otherwise is just plain and simply stupid. It's similar to writing a character in your movie that only Samuel L Jackson can pull off. You're just asking for a let down.

If common sense isn't in your DNA, you need to find a willing partner to team up with that has that beneficial part of the gene pool.
 
Sweetie said:
Locations are just a pieces of the puzzle.

The brain works mysteriously. If you chant, "There's no way to make this work" the brain will find a way to make sure it won't work. If you're creative, a good problem solver and learn to ask the right questions, most of the time you will find a solution.

It's all part of producing your production within your means. If you only have access to one location, don't write it for another location. If your story requires a multi-million dollar special effects scene and you only have fifty bucks to spend on it, you've chosen wrong. It's just the same with locations. If you have no budget, then you need to write for locations you know you can secure for nothing. Plain and simple. Especially you. To do otherwise is just plain and simply stupid. It's similar to writing a character in your movie that only Samuel L Jackson can pull off. You're just asking for a let down.

If common sense isn't in your DNA, you need to find a willing partner to team up with that has that beneficial part of the gene pool.
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This is the biggest lesson you need to learn.

Having to adapt to changing situations is part of the creative process. You will never have everything 100% perfect from day one.

The small film I am working on..a week before we started shooting at our primary spot, we got a call that we couldn't use it anymore. And this was after doing light testing, painting, and walk thrus with the actors already. I adapted, used what locations we had and proceeded.

I was to play a role in the film. We had two people to run the camera, myself and our pastor. I ended up breaking my ankle the weekend before we started my scenes. Adapted, made some calls got someone to fill in. Tweaked the script and off we went. We also incorporated the wheel chair for some camera movement even.

In one scene my wife filmed her whole scene without wearing her glasses. Three weeks later she filmed the rest of her scenes with glasses. Whoops... quick thinking,we shot a pick up shot with her taking her glasses off and placing them on the ground... and now no continuity issue.

I can't remember one single day of shooting that everything went 100% as planned. We even filmed footage just in case something went wrong. We have a three part opening sequence that had to be filmed on three separate days in three separate locations. Weeks apart. We shot the 1st part and as we were wrapping up, we imagined how to end the sequence using that location just in case we couldn't film the next two parts. We liked what we filmed so much that it was hard to leave it on the cutting room floor, so we threw it into the trailer lol.

Learn to adapt, think on your toes. That's something that can not be taught to you. You just have to jump in and go for it.

Good luck :)

Justin
 
Okay thanks.

Here's a good example. I want to do a script that has a few courtroom scenes. All the scenes are in a row, just at different times of the trial, cross examining different people on the stand. The footage should last about five minutes, once edited. I got an actor in his 50s that was interested, and he said he could get a couple of other friends who are also actors into it. I thought great, 3 guys in their 50s! That's better than having to use friends in their 20s, to play lawyers and a judge.

However, I don't have access to a courtroom. My friend told me I should build a set. At first I was not for the idea at all, thinking it just wouldn't pass, plus I have no place to put the set. I don't think anyone would say yes to having a set, assembled or disassembled on their property but I can ask around.

I also have a scene where when the defendant leaves, the courthouse, he is swarmed by reporters on the way out. I don't have the budget to get a bunch of reporters, but perhaps if all the shots were extreme close ups of him, with the sound of reporters making noise, and clicking cameras, it would be pass? I want to have an open mind, but at the same time, the feature I helped make, had too many close ups of just one character, and you couldn't see the other characters talking, and it was criticized for it, as well as that short film I did before was criticized for the same thing.

So I want to keep an open mind and say I can, but at the same time, want to be realistic enough to convince the audience as well. Does this sound like a good idea, and build a set, and only show close ups of the actors you can get for the budget, and just rely on sound for extras?
 
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