Long takes in movies (whether they’re real or fake) add a feeling of tension and get us involved. In this educative video essay from Fandor, you’ll learn some of the ways how the artificial long takes are created. For all you aspiring filmmakers, this could be a helpful source of ideas. And all of you who simply enjoy watching movies – this shows the “magic” behind those long-lasting scenes that seem to be filmed in one breath.
“Mad God” is a stop-motion masterpiece made entirely by hand
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When I was a kid, stop-motion was the thing. There were many cartoons made using this technique, and I was enchanted by them. I even tried doing it with my old camera and some toys, but of course, it didn’t look like I imagined. If you’re enchanted by stop-motion like me, you will enjoy this video from Great Big Story. It’s a story about the master of stop-motion animator Phil Tippett and his project “Mad God.” A story of decades dedicated to his passion, and the incredible result he got from it.
Sound may have the biggest impact on how well your film tells its story
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It’s often said that the camera is the least important aspect of shooting video. That people will watch a low quality noisy video without any problem, as long as the sound is flawless. But sound isn’t just about getting a clean quality recording. You do want to get clean audio from your talent. That’s an obvious one. But sound can enhance your story even more than the visuals.
This video from The Royal Ocean Film Society looks at how sound is used in film for storytelling effect. Like camera movements, or shot transitions, story-enhancing sound is often so perfect, you barely even notice it’s there. Sometimes, it’s obvious and in your face. And occasionally, sound isn’t there at all. Either way, playing with sound can produce very dramatic and telling results.
Why you should study bad movies to improve your filmmaking
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Studying works from other artists is an important part of learning and improvement. It makes sense to study those better than yourself, right? But does it make sense to you to study bad art in order to make your own art better? Darious Britt talks about this topic in his video.
Although he aims it mostly at storytelling in filmmaking, some of these points can apply to photography as well. So, let’s see how studying bad art can make you improve.
How To Create Cinematic Film Look On A DSLR
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It’s true that movie makers are using big gear which helps them get great results. But it is also true that a big portion of those results are not only attributed to gear, but also to matriculates planning and careful attention to details.
Filmmaker and youtuber Simon Cade made it a point to shoot with a Canon T3i and is still getting fantastic results? Why? Probably because he is shooting very cinematic footage and applying some very basic rules.
Amazing Mirror’s Edge Fun Film Shows How Far You Can Get On Passion
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Fan films are hard to produce, especially if they are on a high standard and even more so if they are using zero budget. We have seen a cool Game Of Thrones fan movie two years ago, and now the anticipated game Mirror’s Edge gets a fan treatment from Paul Hillier.
Mirror’s Edge is a futuristic game that raised a lot of interest when it was released in 2007 and got a fresh reboot coming on may 2016. The game is about a dystopian society where Runners (or Curriers) deliver messages while avoiding the government. The 2:45 movie focuses around Faith, who is a one such Runner.
Become a Better Filmmaker by Watching Bad Movies
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It has been my experience in life that you learn the most from past mistakes, whether they be of your own doing or from someone else. (Unfortunately, sometimes I have to make the same mistake several times before I finally catch on and move forward.) The same goes in the creative world. Being able to identify the bad can help us be able to more easily identify the good.
Darious Britt advocates just that in a recent video he shared on his YouTube channel. As he says in the 5-minute clip, “If you’re a doctor, how can you get good at diagnosing sick patients if all you’ve ever evaluated are healthy patients?” And he’s right. Analyzing great movies (and I venture to postulate that there are very few that fall into this category) is also a good practice when learning and honing your own skills, but it’s much harder to see what is truly great in it until you can understand what is truly bad.
Tom Cruise, ‘Scared Sh!tless,’ Hangs Outside a Plane During ‘Mission: Impossible’ Filming
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I have never been a fan of Tom Cruise. From mediocre acting to control-freak tendencies, he’s never really left much for met to get excited about. Until now…
In the upcoming installment of the Mission: Impossible franchise, which hits theaters at the end of the month, Tom gave his stunt double the proverbial finger and decided to risk his own life to accurately play his character.
70 Members of Cast and Crew Were Injured While Making the Most Dangerous Movie Ever
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Film sets can be dangerous locations for both man and beast. But, one film takes the cake in terms of hazardous working conditions, with 70 members of the cast and crew being injured during the process.
Roar was shot over the course of 11 years (NOT a typo) and is basically a reality movie with director/producer/actor Noel Marshall (The Exorcist) and his family (including stepdaughter Melanie Griffith) living with 150 untamed and untrained wild animals. As one can imagine, living with a collection of dangerous animals, including lions, tigers, and jaguars, can lead to a little bloodshed. As HitFlix describes it, “It’s Like Walt Diney went insane and shot a snuff version of Swiss Family Robinson.”
Tutorial: How To Create Film Sets From Scratch
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If you are just starting out your film making career, you must have notice the issue of locations by now. The big players get to pick a location and rent it, or to rebuild it in a studio. If you only have limited budget, your second best option may be to build a set.
While a lot of times a set may look like the real thing, it is basically a collection of stand-up pieces of wood. A collection of flats standing next to each other to builds a corner of a room or (as the video demonstrates) an elevator. They are also the same panels used in theater. A fancy wall on one side, simple looking construction on the other – movie magic.
Flats are pretty much standardized and usually come in 8’x4′ which, I guess, takes the least amount of cutting to make.
Matt Brown takes you through the process of building a flat, and balancing it so it can freely stand. Now, of course once you’ve built a flat you still need to dress it up to make it look like the set you want, but this is another topic completely.
[Let’s Build Some Flats! | Matt Brown via filmmakeriq]
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