Which genre you will prefer?

Which Genre will you prefer if.....!


  • Total voters
    12
  • Poll closed .
just out of interest michael how far did your 8k movie go? can we view it online

Sure. You can view the official trailer here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5yBfouKhXw

I was saying before, we have over 50 locations, 40 speaking roles, tons of makeup and special effects, and two name actors (Debbie Rochon and Lloyd Kaufman).

It's all about how creative your team is. And it helps that practically no one was paid (even Lloyd Kaufman--owner of Troma Pictures--did it as a favor because he likes Richard's films).

And what really makes the film too is the cast...we are so lucky to have such solid indie actors working for free, who can really act! We are all close friends. It also really helps to have a team where no one has an ego, and everyone knows their job (even though many of us work together on duties). I mean, I'm an actor, but I ran boom for the majority of this shoot, and did most of the makeup effects as well.

It also helps to have a director that worked for 15 years in television (he also runs camera). So when you watch him on set, it's amazing how fluid and confident he is with the camera, and his knowledge of needed coverage is amazing. He doesn't write anything down, and he doesn't refer to a 'legitimate' shot list...the script supervisor (if we have one that day) will call out the next bit, and he just shoots. That really helps speed things along. We can run through 10 pages a day if we absolutely need to. I hear other local directors talk about Scorpio Film Releasing's crack team of editors...which is funny, because Richard writes, shoots, and edits all of his own pictures...really there is only 5 of us that are the main crew...and we only shoot on weekends. :)

Another great thing is the majority of our locations were free. Whether it's a strip club or a bar...knowing people helps. It's a shame that far too many places think they can charge indie productions so much for a location because so and so big Hollywood film came to town and gave them 5K a day...pshhh...hommie don't play that. Be creative. Be friendly. Location, location, location.

Plus I love our lighting designer. He really creates some depth and flair--keep in mind, this film is suppose to be shot in the style of '70's action cinema (with a squozen of grindhouse).

I honestly am not bragging here, though it may seem I am. I'm simply proud of what we have, and I think sharing this with some of you may inspire you, and help you understand you don't need 100K to make a film that looks like 100K. The key is finding great talent who wear multiple hats, become good friends, and keep making films. We've managed to kick out 8 features in 5 years--all of which have seen distribution. And be sure you don't skimp on lighting, sound, or acting--a sure fire way to make your film look low budget backyard-indie is horrible lighting, sound, and acting.

Take care, and good luck.


ps. BTW, if you're interested. This whole thing was inspired by a short we shot in two days for the 48hr Film Festival. You can see the original concept here (which we won Best Editing for): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5cdoEqsOWc
 
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You seem quite experienced and I just was curious. BTW, what camera did you use for your NUN OF THAT?

Well thank you. I've been acting for a while now...and the past few years I have been lucky enough to befriend some very talented folks who have taken me under their wing. I've learned a lot about the filmmaking side of things...

The camera we shoot with is the JVC 3-CCD ProHD CAMCORDER w/16:1 FUJINON LENS GY-HD110U



http://pro.jvc.com/prof/attributes/features.jsp?model_id=MDL101642

It produces some nice images, especially if you have a quality lighting designer (duh right...lol). I've been trying to get our fearless leader to buy a new HD camera that can sport adapters and lenses...but he refuses. Says he doesn't need them...lol. Ah well...maybe when they go down in price he'll have no choice. :)

Take it easy.
 
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Comedy or drama (or a dramedy :)

Given a limited budget, I'd rather put my money into some good acting and a solid crew than VFX, props, and/or stunt work.

-CG
 
Comedy or drama (or a dramedy :)

Given a limited budget, I'd rather put my money into some good acting and a solid crew than VFX, props, and/or stunt work.

-CG

If you're shooting non-union, you probably won't be putting money into your cast or crew. The majority of indie productions I've worked for don't pay anybody (regardless their reputation)--which isn't necessarily a bad thing...that's just how it is. If you want to toss a couple hundred to each of your leads and main crew...that's fine, but for the most part indie films don't require a budget that reflects cast or crew. If you can't find quality non-union actors and crew without paying them...you're either in LA, or you're talking to the wrong people.

You will, or should however, factor in catering costs. The least an indie film can do is feed their cast and crew on every shoot.

And of course if the production is SAG...then you will be needing a pretty decent budget that reflects actors and crew.

At least this is in my experience.
 
The CAM pic is great M1chae1.

By the way i felt good that atleast comedy genre got some votes. Otherwise i was thingking everyone is going for action :D
 
The CAM pic is great M1chae1.

By the way i felt good that atleast comedy genre got some votes. Otherwise i was thingking everyone is going for action :D

Thanks.

Ya, comedy is always fun to go with--and you don't need a lot of money either. What you DO need are good actors--as they always say, comedy is the hardest thing to do, and do right.

The director I work with the most loves comedy...he injects it into pretty much every film he does. In fact, he does it so much that on our feature before last (BEYOND THE DUNWICH HORROR), which was a straight up horror film, it became an inside joke on set to say, 'We're not shooting a comedy Richard...'

I think mixing genres is a good thing. There's always comedy in tragedy, and visa-versa. There needs to be a balance...even in Shindler's List, they had elements of comedy. You have to give your audience a breather from time to time.
 
M1chae1comedy is always fun to go with--and you don't need a lot of money either. What you DO need are good actors--as they always say, comedy is the hardest thing to do, and do right.

No doubt actors are the most important thing in comedy. They can even make a normal sentence laughable. I can say this because i always try to do standing comedy with friends and and cath there lines to say something which can make them laugh. And my timing most of the time is good (i dont mean from the acting point of view but i am talking abut my real life experience). So i believe that timing, tone etc make things great.
And i personally believe that flavour of comedy enhance the movie no matter the movie actually is a horror, action, tragedy or any other genre.
 
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