Planning my next feature. Help?

[Sweeney Jet]

Hello. My name is Jet. Not Jet Li. Just Jet. Here is what I’m going through. All my life, like many of you, film has been my passion for reasons I cannot decipher or convey. Fame and fortunate had always been a sparkling lure, but it was not the inferno for this enigmatic love for film and filmmaking.

Recently, I’ve written something that I must film professionally. I’ve filmed plenty of my other scripts, but those were only worthy of no-budgets. What I’ve written recently, I need to do it professionally – but I am the type who doesn’t admit much to needing help. However, with this, I do.

It is a boxing film. Nothing astounding or new there, I know. While not just a boxing film, but it’s also something different to American cinema – Cambodian American gangsters. I’ve gone through many revisions, but I think I’ve written the right one now. Others have read it and they liked it. This post here at IndieTalk is me asking for feedback on my plan to film this. Although I love filmmaking, I do not claim to know how make film look professional. Sure, what I have done so far impresses my friends and family – but they’re not industry people.

I’ve been reading many books and they’ve all been helpful. School was okay. But now, I’d like help from actual people who knows filmmaking.

Here’s what I have equipment-wise:

1) Canon HV20.
2) RODE VideoMic.
3) Mac mini.
4) Final Cut Pro.
5) Soundtrack Pro.
6) 200 GB Hard drive.
7) Cheap tripod.
Cheap boom.
9) Cheap headphones.

Here’s what I want:

1) Canon XH-A1 or Sony PMW-EX1
2) A better mic that sounds like in the actual movies (little work needs to be done post-wise…if that’s even possible).
3) Double Handle Shoulder Support for handheld shooting.
4) A cheap, but good monitor.
5) A 35mm adapter for my HV20.
6) A smoke machine.
7) A cheap dolly.
Lighting.

About lighting. I was thinking of lighting my boxing film with three softbox lights, as it seems like that’s all I really need. I like diffused lighting (or whatever I think is diffused lighting [Collateral?]). Is this bad a move? I’ve no idea about cinematography. I just light by eye with lamps at home… and they turn out okay, to an untrained eye. Like mine.

Funding.

From the books I’ve read, many of them tell the readers to get investors. Go after Doctors or Dentists. I have no idea how to be a smooth salesman. Just burrowing 5 bucks from a friend makes me feel culpable. I don’t like taking people’s money. So, I don’t think I can do this.

Here’s what I want to do. Get grant money for films. Any good grant programs out there you guys know of? I think my budget should be below 20k. Do you think that’s doable?

Or get a producer who can handle the business side? I’ve tried this too. For months, I’ve been sending query letters to several production companies. Ah, piles of rejection letters. I’ve even tried contacting local Asian American director/producers – they don’t want to help out a newbie. Perhaps I’m not trying hard enough.

Location.

1) A gym.
2) Boxing ring.
3) Strip club or bar.
4) Streets of San Francisco or Oakland.
5) Houses (my friends, cousins, and mine).
6) A super market.

What I’m asking is: if I shoot this guerilla style, can it get distributed? Possibly not? There’s E and O insurance that needs permission from a lot of things. And what’s the going rate to shoot in places like a gym or market or strip club?

I know my story is good if done right. I know my actors can do their jobs and I know I’ll hire more actors. I know I can direct a movie (mostly on the creative side). I know can edit a movie (picture edit, not sound edit).

I was watching these shorts on YouTube the other day and it LOOKED GREAT, especially with the night scenes. Sounded great. Acted well. It shouldn’t have cost them much to film it, yet it looks like a very professional thing. Here’s what I saw:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaU-8BmXtpM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qR1HZCgJirE

And here’s what I do on no-budgets: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RT2vYQ2zoiE

I just want my boxing film to be done right when I do it. I’m currently in a dilemma as I start nursing school mid next year to pay some bills later in life, ya know? Just wanna be prepared when I do make it. Thank you!

 

[Alcove Audio]

Don't buy, hire - or at the least work with - people who already have the gear.

A better mic that sounds like in the actual movies

"Hollywood" sound kits cost $10k and up - and I mean up! A single mic can cost $2,000. That's why I recommend finding folks who already have at least quality production sound basics. And, more than the gear there is the technique and experience of the people who run the gear.

Here's a look at a few sound bags and sound carts.

 

[Alcove Audio]

A better mic that sounds like in the actual movies (little work needs to be done post-wise…if that’s even possible)

The essence of great movie sound is doing as much as possible in audio post. At the "Hollywood" level the dialog is all that is used of the production sound (everything between lines of dialog is stripped out), and every last tiny little sonic detail is recreated by a dedicated team of audio post specialists. Pick any major budget film and you will see credits for Sound Designer, Supervising Sound Editor, dialog editors, ADR mixers, ADR editors, sound editors, Foley artists, Foley mixers, sound FX editors, plus sound assistants and technicians. Then all of their work is mixed with the score and source music by rerecording mixers.

As a "one-man-band" I do all of the above by myself; I average about 6 hours of work per linear minute of film, so for a 100 minute film I will put in 600 hours of work. I've done as much as 11 hours per linear minute. At the "Hollywood" level it can be as much as 50 (or many more) man-hours per linear minute.

Nothing is as simple as it seems.


Now, what you need to do is go through the first round of preproduction - the first draft of the shooting script. From there you can work out your budget. With a preliminary budget - and don't forget the costs of post such as sound design, editing, CGI, color correction, graphics/credits, etc. plus after-the-film things like festival costs, marketing/promotion, posters and the like - you can start looking for investors and grants. And real investors go in knowing that they may not recoup their investment. Your job is to convince potential investors that your project has the best chance of making a profit.

There are several threads here on IndieTalk that put all of this together in detail, along with some extremely ways to save money, get folks let you use locations for little or no money, and on and on, etc., etc.