budget How much to do these?

Hello everyone,

First, the good news - some of my students have passed their bar exams and will be staying on as lawyers in my firm, even as the next group of students take their place. I have at least one more goal in Canada, for which I've got no results despite years of trying, and I've given myself five years to accomplish it - if nothing happens by then, I may retire; if something does happen, I may continue for 10 - 20 years, to finish my journey.

With this in mind, believe it or not, I'm thinking of filming some short scenes, just to get it out of my system. I've been typing about this for over 15 years, so I want to see if I really want to be a filmmaker after I retire from law. If not, I can still talk about it, for the time I'm around, and read and write books.

I'm therefore wondering if the experts can give their thoughts on this. I have the following scenes that have been buzzing around in my head.

Leisure Man

Years ago, I started a thread about people eating while talking to others, which is rude, because the others are not eating with him. Members of this forum hae suggested that is a sign of power, to show that those others have to organize their schedule around the person having his meal. From this, I have taken a character from the William Holden movie, "The Counterfeit Spy" where the British spymaster is eating breakfast and is a bit pompous.

Leisure Man would be a spy master, and there would be three scenes of him eating breakfast, dinner, and at a sauna/spa. In each scene, this pompous ass would be talking to others, and, when all three scenes are viewed, the audience would see he's talking on both sides of his mouth (contradictory statements). This would indicate hgw spooks use deception and falsehood to the outside world, though he is a dedicated professional. A few years ago, when I was at the AFM, I did a scene with someone who worked in the industry, and I found that to be an emotionally-powerful experience, so I would like to go through that again. I'm thinking of casting the proverbial British nobility or a Boston Brahman for Leisure Man.


Creator

This would be a conversation where a ship's captain would meet and talk to a representative of a highly advanced alien species. Again, I discussed this years ago, where he would be transported to a white space - which the alien says is null space - and discuss the nature of creation as well as the nature of God. In a different scene, that captain would have a further encounter with that alien, when they meet at a garden planet, which was paradise.


Enemy General (EG)

I haven't fleshed out this character. There would be at least one scene, where EG would be at the end of the war, sending out orders with his adjutant for their troops to hold the line. A soldier from the other side would then step into the scene, salute and apologize, saying that EG was now a prisoner. EG and the adjutant look around to see that they're surrounded, so they raise their hands. This is taken from a real scene in WW2, when a German general was captured even as he was directing the defensive forces.

In a follow up scene, the EG would realize they've been captured by juniors, so he keeps complaining as to how they're not fully trained. This is taken from an episode in Young Indiana Jones, where Indy and his colleague capture General von Lettow-Vorbeck, who rants and raves at them.



I am willing to pay standard rates for these read throughs. I'm also wondering, since these are just rehearsals, if one actor can play all of them, to be more cost efficient. I've never done this before, so I would welcome ideas and price quotes. Thank you very much.
 
Solution
@directorik, I should apologize, not you, because I'm confusing the two. I'm thinking of short scenes with little or no props - like the improvs at the theatre that would be filmed.

I understand an actor would be $150 - $250 per day. What about a crew to shoot, say, two or three actors rehearsing for one day, and, if it becomes two days, would it be double or less than double.
A day rate is just that. No discounts for more days.

Figure the crew rates at between $100/day to $500/day. It depends (have
I used that before?) on their crew position. And how many you need for a
shoot like this depends on several factors - something I have written about
often. What you want to do could cost $2,500 or $7,500. It could also be...
Some other things.

The scenes with the Creator will involve two captains - one is a ship's captain, and the other is a Marine battalion commander. These characters will be leading distinct lives, which will give me flexibility, and which would ensure no William Shatner can claim all the limelignt. 😆

There are other scenes, but my plan is to write them out as a novelist, then try to adapt them to film. The above scenes are random ones, which are slowly coming together to form coherent stories.
 
Figure $150 to $250 per actor.

A rehearsal space will run you about $200 for four hours here in
Los Angeles. Provide water and some snacks - $25. Maybe do
a coffee run for $50. Might be helpful to pay a production assistant
$100 to help out - setting up table and chairs, cleaning up after...

It seems foolish to use only one actor, but yes, one actor can
play all the characters so you can save money.
 
I apologize, I thought you were asking about a read-through with, maybe,
one actor reading all the parts.
I am willing to pay standard rates for these read throughs. I'm also wondering, since these are just rehearsals, if one actor can play all of them, to be more cost efficient.
But I get you're asking about filming "a few short scenes" and not a
read-through. So (again) I apologize for misunderstanding.

You know I have answered this question many times. And what happens
is I give you a very general rate based on almost no information and then
you give more info so I change the quote to something more specific and
you throw the original rate back at me - as good lawyer does.

I don't know exactly what your plan is so I don't know what crew you will
need to accomplish your goal. I don't want to throw out numbers only to
learn you need more (or less) in the way of crew.
 
@directorik, I should apologize, not you, because I'm confusing the two. I'm thinking of short scenes with little or no props - like the improvs at the theatre that would be filmed.

I understand an actor would be $150 - $250 per day. What about a crew to shoot, say, two or three actors rehearsing for one day, and, if it becomes two days, would it be double or less than double.
 
What you need to do is take initiative and come back here with a video, no matter how poor or good. No really you do. This has become The Boy Who Cried Wolf and we need to see that the wolf in fact exists. As a lawyer you understand proof. 😂
 
I'm seeing something in my crystal ball... something dangerous - yes!!! you are in great danger

Tell Third Eye GIF by Denyse®


Your reputation is at risk. You've lingered too long.
Quick - let me see your palm!!

indonesia palm reading GIF


Oh, fuck. Look here - time has slipped away faster than you realized, the situation has become urgent!!
 
OK, here's what I have in mind for Leisure Man.

First scene.

This is (wait for it) after the First Interstellar War.

He's at a dining table, with a plate of eggs and sausages, and a cup of coffee. A small bowl of fruit is also on the side. A soldier, one of the protagonists, being the Marine Captain, approaches him.

He says, "I can do without lunch, but I must have my breakfast. You are a decorated officer and a man of the faith. I respect your beliefs, because only fools don't realize that a higher power is watching us, guiding our destinies. I understand that your family has some issues, and I can assist. In the meantime, I would like you to keep your eyes and ears out, and notify me of anything that is of interest. I will have you attend a briefing on what to look out for.


Second scene

He's at the same table, only this time there's a plate of pork chops and fries, along with a tall glass of juice. A bowl of leafy salad is at his side. A scruffy individual approaches him.

He says, "I can do without breakfast, but I must have my lunch. You are a Merchant, a class of business people who have no allegiance to any state and move from system to system, trading your goods. I'm, of course, a government employee, so I respect your entrepreneurship. I also respect your beliefs, because you are a believe in Physics, with a capital P, which means you don't believe in God and that everything can be bioled down to the laws of science. I agree with you completely - only superstitious fools believe in religion.

Anyway, you have a record of misdemeanours - nothing serious, but they could add up. I can get rid of them for you, but, in return, I would like you to be my eyes and ears in the badlands, where no lawful authority exists."


Third scene

At a park, the ship's captain is taking a nice stroll, when he comes across Leisure Man, who is holding an ice cream.

Leisure Man says, "I like desert, because it brings out the child in me. So tell me, the navy has a hidden base, where they will retreat to if Earth was ever to fall to an alien invasion. What's the name of that base? Haven?"

The captain says, "I don't know what you're talking about."

As the captain walks away quickly, Leisure Man looks after the departing officer and says, "No worries, I'll find out - I always do."



I did the last one a few years ago, when I was at the AFM, and someone who works below the line did that improv with me. He encouraged me to continue with this, to develop my skills. I also found that improv to be an emotionally powerful experience, bringing out the aspiring mogul in me. @directorik, what's needed for these scenes?

These should not take more than a few minutes, so, as a start, what would be the cost of getting a crew to film those? I also think they may have to be turned to scripts. As you know, I have been writing out scenes and plotlines, so there's more to come.

@indietalk, you see, I'm not talking about people talking AND eating, so there's definite progress. 😁
 
You're sadly mistaken - my reputation is NOT at risk, because I have a reputation of saying I'll do it and then not doing it. If I was to shoot the videos, then my reputation would be tarnished beyond repair.

To clarify - you just said you have no intention of shooting a video, so therefore your reputation is not at risk?

If that's the case, I've gotta ask what are you actually doing here?
Why make threads asking for help over and over again

south park beat a dead horse GIF


In all these years I don't think I've seen you even take a simple photograph of anything
 
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Okay, I'm not a film-making expert, but I know a thing or two about project management and proof-of-concept exercises ... and I'm totally confused.

I'm thinking of filming some short scenes ... to see if I really want to be a filmmaker

Great, good starting point.

Only you describe three different scenarios that - on the face of it - have nothing to do with each other; but you must think they do because you're worried about casting the same actor in three different roles. Then you tell us that you're thinking of hiring a whole crew "to hold the camera, and so on" to shoot a scene with "little or no props" ... :huh:

And apparently this is "a rehearsal" - a rehearsal of what?

Surely if you want to be a filmmaker, this exercise should be about making a film. An actual beginning-middle-end film, complete with taking the time and energy to understand how all the different technical aspects interact - camera angles, lighting on the subject, lighting on the background, set design, colour palette, story arc, etc.

Why wouldn't you pick one of those situations, draft a complete screenplay, get someone to sketch out a suitable set; then shoot it from start to finish as best you can and see what lessons can be learnt?
 
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