The Long Dark Journey Down the Rabbit Hole
Making a film is like fighting a war. There’s battles you win, and battles you loose, but if you plan strategically and have a well trained army, then your chances of winning are good. Yes, it’s a cliche, but it’s also true. Producer Gareth More and I have just had a pretty big setback. A few of the actors we were courting have all given us a definitive no, so we’re going back to the drawing board. Are we upset? No. But it does worry us, as the whole process... Read The Rest →
Shooting Films on Compressed Schedules: Do’s and Don’ts
Having just spent my entire weekend working on various shoots, I’ve had a few thoughts that occur to me. Filmmakers often make very fundamental mistakes that can result in unpleasant or surprising results when it comes to the edit. If you want to avoid them, here’s a few tips: DO get various options for shots. If you’re laying track and dolly, then get your shots at various speeds. If you’re looking to get creative in the edit, get lots of closeups. Leave yourself options, to maximise your creative palette. DON’T... Read The Rest →
Editing on Final Cut Pro X: Awesome for Small Productions!
A lot of people have been hating on Final Cut Pro X, calling it ‘iMovie Pro’ and abandoning it for alternative platforms, or flat out refusing to upgrade from Final Cut Pro 7. Personally, I’ve seen little reason to upgrade from FCP7 so far, as it’s still working quite nicely for me. I’ve been thinking that I would make a permanent move to Adobe Premiere, as it’s pretty much identical to the old Final Cut Pro, but I have been holding off until CS6 launches. That said, I’ve recently worked... Read The Rest →
The False Economy of Low Budget: Why it always costs more than you think!
Turnpike Glow – ’1986′ (Music Video) from Mazin Power on Vimeo. Last week I finished up work on a music video that I directed, edited and colour graded for Turnpike Glow, a cool little rock band in London. The budget of the video was about £450. But the actual cost was much higher. What do I mean by that? Well, our budget broke down roughly along these lines: Location: £100 Cinematographer: £150 Equipment: £150 Food and Transport: £50 All that was a one-day shoot. Sounds great, right? Yes, BUT… had... Read The Rest →
