Starting trouble - Put me in the right Path

You may consider working with a DP that owns a camera.

Steve Wargo
Tempe, Arizona
It's a dry heat!

Sony HDCAM F-900 & HDW-2000/1 deck
5 Final Cut (not quite PRO) systems
Sony HVR-M25 HDV deck
2-Sony EX-1 HD .

Hi Steve

Thanks for the reply. The reason i thought about practising is, even though i will be hiring professionals for camera, sound and light as per your advice, i thought i should be knowing how the final product will transform into. So i thought of going through the process with Sound and Camera and catching up with editing so as to get a feel of things.

I completely agree with you that filmmaking is not only about running the Camera.

Can you please give me some advice as to how to learn or catch up with editing. I felt it may help me in making decisions about direction when I make a full length documentary with the help of hired professionals.

My concern is, To what extent should I be aware of all the aspects about filmmaking other then having a Script when i try to work with Camera and Sound Professionals.

Thanks for ur time,
Adi

Hi Steve

Thanks for the reply. The reason i thought about practising is, even though i will be hiring professionals for camera, sound and light as per your advice, i thought i should be knowing how the final product will transform into. So i thought of going through the process with Sound and Camera and catching up with editing so as to get a feel of things.

I completely agree with you that filmmaking is not only about running the Camera.

Can you please give me some advice as to how to learn or catch up with editing. I felt it may help me in making decisions about direction when I make a full length documentary with the help of hired professionals.

My concern is, To what extent should I be aware of all the aspects about filmmaking other then having a Script when i try to work with Camera and Sound Professionals.

Thanks for ur time,
Adi

There are no short cuts, not really. But you can start inexpensively. Read all you can, for free online as well as used books bought cheaply on the net and things in your local library. Rent good examples of movies and TV shows and watch them with the sound off, making notes about the choices of shot composition and framing and the kinds of edits made. Watch with the director's comments turned on, look for hints.
Visit tutorials like DJTV at digital juice.come and see all their short web videos, both seasons. Some folks like the humorous tutorials at Acceptable. Another site is videouniversity. And I have not yet decided if this is for real or a joke, but there is a site by Dov S.S. Simmons that advertises a five-minute film school. Some of his tips are practical, others seem bizarre.

As far as buying a camera, for someone at your level, I would not bother with a thousand dollar camcorder yet. You can practice with something in the $200-$500 range (perhaps used) with a firewire port so you can import the footage into your computer and practice editing it... and learn all the basics, just be sure the camcorder comes with external audio inputs as an option so you can plug in better microphones. The on-camera built-in mics are only good for recording someone at arm's length from you.

Spend some more money on a good tripod, and build up a good light kit over time, and don't fret about how fancy the camera is so much. Do your early explorations either outdoors or in well-lit rooms to start with. I recommend doing simple interview recordings of people telling things from their lives. Learn how to compose a shot and to move the camera around a scene without using the zoom at all, EVER. Learn the basic types of shot, learn about the line of action, matching action, the rule of thirds, and three-point lighting. Learn what cut-aways and B-roll are. Practice continuity. Every night, watch an Emmy or Oscar-winning pro example from the movies or TV, looking each time for just one specific element: the camera directing, the editing, the sound, the lighting, etc. You will begin to get a feel for these things, an appreciation, and your self-teaching will accellerate as you gain skills and understanding.

Or, do like Harry did... Get a job working for a guy that is, year in and year out, the local PBS station's most prolific producer of programming.

David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los Angeles

POST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY ™


A forum host of Creative COW's Business & Marketing, and Indie Film & Documentary forums.

In that case, get something that is 16x9 and has a large pop out screen.

Steve Wargo
Tempe, Arizona
It's a dry heat!

Sony HDCAM F-900 & HDW-2000/1 deck
5 Final Cut (not quite PRO) systems
Sony HVR-M25 HDV deck
2-Sony EX-1 HD .

You'll also need an editor. Preferably one who can help to guide you through the entire post production process.

Arnie

Now in post: Peristroika, a film by Slava Tsukerman

http://www.arniepix.com/blog

Yep Arnie. And I am sure the post production work will make a big difference to the final outcome of whatever film i may make. Thanks for the guidance.

Regards
Adi

That is probably the easiest way - cheaper too as you do not need an extra audio rec device.

Thanks,
Harry.

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