Don’t Compromise Your Vision

Have you ever had a vision of how your film should be, but then change it drastically because others around you are pressuring for the change? It is not a pretty sight. Now, I am not saying that you shouldn’t take advice and/or suggestions about your film. I think that there can be a healthy balance between your artistic vision and the suggestions made by cast and crew members. What I am saying is this: don’t throw out your idea completely just because someone tells you to. Unless you truly like their ideas better you will come to regret your decision. The best thing you can do is film their idea and your idea and see what works in editing. You could also not take their ideas into consideration at all, but at least make it seem like you considered it.

Sometimes we have to get creative because of circumstances out of our control. It is when a person on set constantly questions your visions that things can get troublesome. It has the potential of creating a toxic environment. Take a deep breath, be polite, and stick to your vision. There must have been a reason you had that specific vision, so don’t compromise it. The more you change your film based on the ideas of others around you (unless you genuinely like those ideas better), the more your film becomes somebody else’s vision. You see this kind of thing all the time in Hollywood when producers and production companies think they know more about film-making and storytelling than directors and writers. Many filmmakers have disowned films they have made because it wasn’t truly their vision. Never find yourself in this situation if you can help it. It can be a brutal experience.

It Was a Dark and Dreary Day (Pt. 2)

The shoot started off on the wrong foot. The location was too noisy when we were going to start, so we couldn’t film right away. I turned this into a positive and had us rehearse and block the scene for an hour or two. When things had quieted down we got to work. It was slow (i.e. line feeding), but we managed for several hours and got the shots we needed. The first real hurdle we had to face was the makeup situation.

I had two people work on makeup for that scene. They were downstairs trying to make fake blood. To this day I am not sure what happened. We followed the directions and everything, but the blood just did not come out right. It was chunky in spots, but mostly had the consistency of water, and a pink color instead of dark red. It just wouldn’t work for what we needed it for. We were able to use some of it for the bullet wound on my actor, but for the squib it just wouldn’t have worked (mostly because the color was way off, we could barely even call it red!).

At the end of the day, however, this was probably a good thing. We never wound up using the blood spray device I made for a couple reasons. First off, we couldn’t stain the walls. This was an actual apartment with an actual landlord who didn’t even know we were filming there. I definitely did not want my director of photography (who lived there) to get in trouble. On top of that, the blood just wasn’t the right color. We also had never used this type of device before and it just wasn’t going to work in the space that we had. I tried everything I could to make it so we could use it. I even tried rewriting the scene. In the end, however, I just used a digital blood splatter effect that I added during the editing phase.

We got through it! We wrapped close to 5:00 p.m. and then all went out to dinner. It was a very long day with a lot of hurdles to overcome. I tried my best to turn each little mistake, each little hurdle into a positive. As a result, spirits were kept up on set and the people there believed in what we were doing every step of the way. The final scene was not nearly what I wanted. I did the best with what we had, but the final scene was less than desirable. If I could go back and do it again, I would have scouted the location way beforehand like I had originally planned to do. It was a great learning experience, however, and a great memory that I will forever cherish.

Remember, even on your most stressful days, to enjoy what you’re doing. There is going to be a lot of back breaking work, a lot of mistakes, and a lot of hurdles you’ll need to jump, but just remember why you’re doing it. I make films to tell a story, to express myself, but I also make films to have fun. If there was no fun in it, why do it at all? There were many moments that could’ve put a real damper in our work, but we turned each of these negatives into positives. Some of the most frustrating elements of that day are now some of my favorite memories. It may have been a dark and dreary day, but we sure had one hell of a blast!

Networking

If there is any industry that uses networking to the Nth degree it would be the film industry. Networking in general is important no matter what field you are in. The more people you know, the better. In film it can be even more important. Theoretically you could conceivably make your first film without doing much networking, but you’d only be making things hard on yourself. The key is to network. Get to know people in your field, and people who will be able, and willing, to work with you on future projects. There are some steps you can do to make this easier.

First, you can join a club or a society. If you’re in college and there is a Film Club of some kind on campus, join it! It will be a wealth of resources. Not only will you probably have access to filmmaking equipment of some kind, but you’ll also be with likeminded people who want to make films too. Help them with their projects so that they help you with yours. It’s a give and take scenario and it works wonders. If you put effort into their project, they will do the same for you. If you’re past college, look to local cities or towns where there may be film societies you can join. There may be a small fee, but you’ll get opportunities to network with people. You’ll get the opportunity to brainstorm ideas you have and learn about what’s going on in your community. Not only that, but they probably have fun film screenings, newsletters, and film themed parties too!

The more people you meet that have a passion for film, the better. You never know who they know. Maybe that filmmaker you met last Friday at the monthly networking dinner knows someone who handles actors. Once you network with that one filmmaker you now essentially have access to his connections. It is LinkedIn in the real world.

Speaking of LinkedIn, you may as well create a profile and try to join filmmaking groups on there as well. You’ll be able to meet people in your field over a greater distance, and open your circle of contacts even more. Although, I would still recommend to network in real life first, nothing can beat the face to face interaction.

All this being said, everything I’ve mentioned here works in any field. If you’re a writer, an engineer, a painter, a teacher, or anything else you can think of; networking can only benefit you, it can never hurt you. A connection doesn’t work out? No big deal, you’re in no worse position than you were before you tried. Take the risk. It’s better than not taking the risk and wondering later on; what if?

Who Shot the Sheriff; Violence in Cinema

Violence has always been present in cinema. All the way back to the 1890s. The short novelty film, “The Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots” (1895) is nothing more than a (fake) beheading on screen. When the production code came about in the 1930s, violence was toned down a bit, although not nearly as much as sexuality which I will discuss at length in a future article. Prior to the production code you could get away with blood. There was never a lot of it, but it was present. During the latter half of the 30s and straight through until the late 60s, you almost never see blood on screen. If you do, it’s very contained and fleeting.

This wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Filmmakers had to think of new ways to tell the same story. The best way to do it? Force the audience to imagine the violence instead of showing it to them. Filmmakers still do it today, although not nearly as much as I think they should.

However, before we get into on-screen vs. off-screen violence, let’s first look at how it is portrayed. In the past, violence was usually played up theatrically or just avoided. Watch a film from before the 1960s and you will see what I am talking about. Someone gets shot and they stumble around holding the wound before falling to their ultimate death in a grand finish. How theatrical. That kind of acting works on stage, not so much on screen. It creates this shield for the audience. In its own way, it masks the reality of real violence. It masks just how horrible it is. The more realistic we depict it the more people will realize how horrible it can be.

Back to the off-screen vs. on-screen violence debate. I will start by saying that I believe you can show violence on screen. I don’t see any issues with it as long as it is done within good taste and within the confines of the story. Obviously a war film is going to have a lot of it, and even a crime film. Some of my favorite films have some pretty graphic on-screen violence. It doesn’t bother me until it gets gratuitous; until it borders on the ridiculous. Is it really necessary to have non-stop violence in a film? Is it really necessary for a horror film to have excessive violence? That’s not scary, it’s just repulsive. Is there a point to lingering on an act of violence for longer than a few seconds? I’ll let one extended scene pass, but multiple in quick succession? I’m not so sure.

I believe there is a way to depict on-screen violence correctly. I believe you can have graphic violence in cinema. However, if you just put graphic violence in a film for no reason, or you just have so much I am left wondering why I’m even watching the film, you probably did something wrong. I want to enjoy a film not be repulsed by it.

Off-screen violence, on the other hand, can be just as effective if done right. Our imaginations conjure up worse images than any filmmaker could possibly put on screen. The filmmaker can make us think we saw something when, in fact, we didn’t. Just because you can show something doesn’t mean you necessarily should.

 

Introduction to Film Analysis/mise-en-scene

Analyzing a film, it can be fun. It can also mean a lot of work. If we have the tools, however, it can go by a lot smoother. Any film worth watching is also worth analyzing. The filmmaker is going to try and use every trick in the book to influence the audience. If you want to make your own films or simply want to understand how filmmakers are influencing you, then analyzing can be useful.

The most important concept of film analysis, in my opinion, is mise-en-scene. With mise-en-scene, we not only are able to analyze scenes and full movies, but we are also able to make films and also get a firm grasp on film theory. It’s very important.

So what is mise-en-scene? It is essentially the study of each individual frame of a film. What makes up the shot? Everything from color values, actor positioning, camera angles, lighting, and props to dominant visual contrasts, film stocks, and how a frame is divided by what’s within it. It is generally considered to have fifteen different points which, when applied to a frame, will give you a grand perspective on the film. To find out more detailed descriptions of the fifteen points, simply google the following: “15 points of mise-en-scene.” It will go into far greater detail than I can here, and will give visual examples so you can follow along.

Now, film analysis differs from film theory slightly. Film theory is about certain aspects of film. I’ll give an example. The Auteur Theory. This is the theory that a film director is the author of a film and that all their films taken as a whole will have similarities. You need the background of the theory in order to apply it. However, you need the film analysis to discover the similarities between the films. The two, theory and analysis, are intertwined and are complimentary to each other.

I will be using both in upcoming posts as I delve into specific examples in film.

It’s Not the Camera You Use…

            It’s not the camera you use, but it’s how you use it. A lot of beginner filmmakers get discouraged if they don’t have the most expensive, most technically complicated camera on the market. They think they need a bunch of expensive equipment if they want to make a great film. They think, “If I get this camera, my film will look amazing and therefore be amazing.” If only that were the case.

I’ve seen films made with top of the line equipment that came out horrible. Likewise, I’ve seen films made with bottom tier equipment that came out excellently. It really comes down to your vision and your ability to use the camera in creative and imaginative ways.

Yes, you do need equipment. This does mean you have to spend money, but getting a top of the line camera does not mean you’re going to make a top of the line film. A great, festival level film can be made on a mid-priced DSLR camera. With the right lighting and the right camera movement, you can make anything down to an HD Mini DV camcorder look great. I will say, however, an HD camera is probably necessary. However, this doesn’t mean you need to shell out thousands of dollars on one. I bought a camera this past spring that only cost $200 and filmed HD1080 and had an option to film in 24p. No one thought I used a cheaper camera on the film I made with it, but I did. I had access to more expensive cameras, but the camera I ended up using had its benefits. The main benefit was that it could film one long continuous take until the SD card filled up. This was important because my film was composed of all long takes.

It wasn’t the camera, however, that made the film. It was how I used it. Even a low end camera can churn out great results if you use a dolly or a slider, or even a tripod. When you’re starting out and don’t have a massive budget, don’t hesitate to get a cheap HD camera. If you have the skill, it’s going to look great. Just watch out for lighting and camera movement, and of course audio. Having a Director of Photography is really helpful in these situations. If not, however, you can definitely do it yourself. Believe in your vision and make your film!

 

Believe in Your Project, No Matter What

I mentioned several articles ago about how all my projects before college fell through. It got me thinking yet again! Why did they fall through? I know one reason was definitely because the people who would be working on the projects did not have a passion for films or for filmmaking. None of them. However, I think there is another reason I never got those projects off the ground, I was never enthusiastic enough. (Although, the final project I tried to do in high school, I may have been over-enthusiastic, it may have driven them away!)

You must believe in your project. Even if you have reservations about it. You also have to find that middle ground. Don’t be over-enthusiastic either. The trick is to make everyone else working on the project just as enthusiastic as you. Make them believers in your vision. If you go into it just doing the bare minimum, as far as getting them to believe in your project, why would they want to work on it? If the creator doesn’t seem to think too highly of his or her own work, why should they?

Get them pumped up! Make them want to commit to the production schedule. Make them want to come to set each day to make your vision a reality. If they believe in a project just as much as you, they are sure to give the best performance they possibly can. This goes for actors and crew members alike. When you believe in something you want to make it work, therefore you give it your all. Have you ever tried doing something you didn’t want to do or something you didn’t see the point in doing? It can be hell.

Talk with them. Create a good communication with them and you will find it does wonders to the ease of production. I learned this the hard way by having early projects fall through. I didn’t have that communication. I developed that later on when I started making short films in college. I started to get more serious about my work and I had to show others I was serious. I had to convey what I was thinking. I could not just assume they’d know what I was thinking, or how I felt. I also had to make it fun. Filmmaking does not have to be this rigid, cold experience. Have fun with it. There will be stressful days, and there will be scenes that need that seriousness on set. You’ll know when you can let loose on set and when you can’t, but through it all make sure to keep the communication open with those who are helping you out.