The GAF Video and Filmmaking Thread

Ash Sparrow said:
I thought that was great. I personally would get rid of that shot of closing the door. I didn't think that angle worked, felt oddly a bit disorienting. The acting is pretty good so far.
Click to expand...

Thanks, man! Any feedback, even bad, is much appreciated. I have a couple of wide shots to shoot around, so I'll definitely try them out. It hadn't ever bothered me before.

Raxel said:
I started learning After Effects during the summer in my spare time. I finished my "studio" logo recently by combining 2-3 video copilot tutorials:

Studio Logo

There's a couple of old tests up there too.

Edit - After seeing some of the image quality some of you guys are posting in this thread and the other film-making one, I'm set on selling the HV20+35mm rig to get a 5D. I'm looking forward to low light shooting and having something more mobile.
Click to expand...

I'm telling you, those little things are my savior right now for sure. I shot on the T2i (550d) and it performed exceedingly well. Shooting in 1080p (what, roughly 80 lines away from 2k which is what most smaller theaters project?) at the magical 24 frames, with a sensor that is bigger than the Red's? And on the 5dMK2 it's full frame! It's golden if you know what to work around.

As long as you have stabilization+IS or VC lens (for Jello) and take care of keeping the pesky AA lines out, you can pull some really gorgeous stuff out of the DLSR's for pretty cheap.

I'm done pushing them. I just love my camera is all.
 
So fuckin mad. Sorry but i need to vent.

Been working on this short film the entire year, filmed half ot it at a location last weekend, and today we were supposed to shoot in a building's elevator. Suddenly out of fuckin nowhere the building owner doesnt want us to shoot there anymore, even though he said it was perfectly fine last month, and again last week. What the flying fuck. He tells me TODAY, one hour before i got there.

Fuck

FUUFUFUCUUUFUCK

Probably gonna have to change the script, since i cant seem to find a fuckin elevator anywhere :(

(needs to be a modern one without mirrors on the walls of course)
 
SalsaShark said:
So fuckin mad. Sorry but i need to vent.

Been working on this short film the entire year, filmed half ot it at a location last weekend, and today we were supposed to shoot in a building's elevator. Suddenly out of fuckin nowhere the building owner doesnt want us to shoot there anymore, even though he said it was perfectly fine last week, what the flying fuck, he tells me TODAY, one hour before i got there.

Fuck

FUUFUFUCUUUFUCK

Probably gonna have to change the script, since i cant seem to find a fuckin elevator anywhere :(

(needs to be a modern one without mirrors on the walls of course)
Click to expand...

Say hello to Mr. Murphy. I can't tell you how many actors, locations, friends, and crew signed up for Scoundrels and didn't come through. One of the main actors dropped out two days before shooting!

Sucks man. :(

But us men make it happen, right? You got it!
 
Fidelis Hodie said:
Say hello to Mr. Murphy. I can't tell you how many actors, locations, friends, and crew signed up for Scoundrels and didn't come through. One of the main actors dropped out two days before shooting!

Sucks man. :(

But us men make it happen, right? You got it!
Click to expand...

Had people drop on me, hell last year we almost didnt shoot anything because half of the crew didnt made it to any rehearsal, location search, you name it.

Crew is one thing, but its really hard to find an elevator like the one i described above around here, so im pretty much fucked :/ the whole short revolved around it.

I have about a week to find one before everyone drops the whole thing, motivations are down.

Wish me luck.
 
Does anyone (particularly other noobs like me) every watch short films from other people and just get discouraged by the terrible writing, editing, footage, etc., from people who genuinely believe they're onto something good? I'm not saying it in a judging way and no one is going to pump out gold immediately/all the time, but it's almost discouraging, hearing about how much effort was put into a turd. And then you wonder if you're going to be like one of THOSE directors...like an M. Night.
 
Mr. Snrub said:
Does anyone (particularly other noobs like me) every watch short films from other people and just get discouraged by the terrible writing, editing, footage, etc., from people who genuinely believe they're onto something good? I'm not saying it in a judging way and no one is going to pump out gold immediately/all the time, but it's almost discouraging, hearing about how much effort was put into a turd. And then you wonder if you're going to be like one of THOSE directors...like an M. Night.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. I'm hoping you're not directing that towards me per say, but I know the feeling. It's what drives most people, the knowing of, "Hey . . uh, I can do that better. Much, much better."
 
$14 Steadicam video test I made.

http://vimeo.com/15518690

The steadicam itself is from: http://littlegreatideas.com/stabilizer/diy/

It took me about two weeks and $50 to build, because some of the steps didn't do what he said they would (e.g. lock washers didn't actually lock the machine bolts in place and prevent them from spinning). All in all, I'm pretty happy with the outcome, though. It was my first real big DIY. Now I just need to be a little big smoother (and not trip over anything).
 
Fidelis Hodie said:
Absolutely. I'm hoping you're not directing that towards me per say, but I know the feeling. It's what drives most people, the knowing of, "Hey . . uh, I can do that better. Much, much better."
Click to expand...

No no no, not at yours, which I actually liked. Pretty good acting, I liked the shots (especially the "bum" (Sam?) framed through the door window), and for some reason, I liked that the one guy was drinking a gallon of water :lol That little detail adds a lot of character. Maybe for your conversation shots, I'd be a bit more careful with the over-the-shoulder frame, as Sam's friend (with glasses) overpowered a lot of the shots of Sam talking. And audio isn't my thing, but everything sounded good and was edited well.

If this is going to be a series, it would be nice to establish the character names sooner. Nothing mechanical like, "Oh Sam, it's you" "Yes, Adam, it is me" of course.

EDIT: Oh, just read it's part of a feature. NM!

But I watch a few short films a week and it's scary. Again, not from a judgmental perspective, but just thinking, "These directors had the time and money and wholeheartedly put this together, and it turned out...not great". Scary thought.

While we're talking about DIY, don't know if the Frugal Filmmaker was mentioned. Seems like a cool guy and he made a decent jib for under $30: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2_Ye6dP5Lw&feature=sub
 
Fidelis Hodie said:
Allright, so this really isn't much but I figured I'd get some feedback. This is barely the first minute of the rough cut of the feature I shot over July.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_jAq86Wl-M

Would love some feedback.
Click to expand...

I thought it was funny but it was a little hard to understand the guy who answered the door. I also agree that the long shot of the door needs to be redone or removed.

Prehaps like this, show the door start to close in close up and only see the slam from far away. Quick cut.
 
That kind of thing happens in a lot of creative fields. It's a combination of different art forms being so subjective when determining what is "good" and a lack of honest and forthcoming criticism people receive on their work because they show it to friends and family who would rather be nice than say it's pretty bad (unless you're lucky and have friends that can give really great constructive criticism). It's one of the reasons I really like the internet as a means for gathering criticism and opinions since it's pretty anonymous.
 
XMonkey said:
It's one of the reasons I really like the internet as a means for gathering criticism and opinions since it's pretty anonymous.
Click to expand...
Yea but what I see more often is people spending far to much time telling people what is wrong with their work without any encouragement. I think most (a good deal anyway) film makers already know what's wrong. The absolute best thing to do is to just keep making films.

Still the brutality of the real world can help. For example I found out I am a crossfade whore. I was overusing crossfades and didn't even notice. The Internet noticed though. :)
 
Mr. Snrub said:
Does anyone (particularly other noobs like me) every watch short films from other people and just get discouraged by the terrible writing, editing, footage, etc., from people who genuinely believe they're onto something good? I'm not saying it in a judging way and no one is going to pump out gold immediately/all the time, but it's almost discouraging, hearing about how much effort was put into a turd. And then you wonder if you're going to be like one of THOSE directors...like an M. Night.
Click to expand...

Well, this is what makes art and creativity so great -- if you believe you can do better, than you push yourself harder. And a lot of it just comes with practice and figuring things out. All of the greats had to make 100 shit films to get to where they are now. That's just the nature of the beast. I don't get discouraged, I just figure out what I can do to make something better.
 
MetalAlien said:
Still the brutality of the real world can help. For example I found out I am a crossfade whore. I was overusing crossfades and didn't even notice. The Internet noticed though. :)
Click to expand...

Distance helps a lot, too.

I sometimes approach my own stuff by looking at something I'm trying to "emulate" and figuring out how they did it. Sometimes, it's as simple as an alpha transition that I need to go find the files for, and other times, it's something really complex that I have to figure out through basic tutorials leading up to the more complex stuff. It's a lot of fun, though.
 
MetalAlien said:
Yea but what I see more often is people spending far to much time telling people what is wrong with their work without any encouragement. I think most (a good deal anyway) film makers already know what's wrong. The absolute best thing to do is to just keep making films.
Click to expand...
Good point. Just getting out there and working on stuff is half the battle.
 
I'm so happy. I've been racking at my brains for the last couple of days trying to come up with an idea for a short film about 2-5 minutes long. I needed to have it done by October 31st in order to enter it into the contest. But this morning, I was finally hit with an idea for a simple script.

It's gonna be a chase film. Someone gets their cellphone stolen and the chase is on! It should be fun to shoot. I'll post it here in a week or so for some feedback before I submit it.
 
a friend put together a pretty decent budget to make a zombie movie and asked if i would help out. i don't know how i keep getting roped in on "horror" movies, but this one should be fun. it's called Opening Night of the Living Dead.....

we're shooting with modified 7D's. principle photography begins in january, but we're getting a couple cemetary shots done this weekend. we have danny trejo making a cameo on saturday night's shoot. looking forward to it!

here's the facebook page for the film, and here's the official website, if anyone's interested..
 
And now a little more of a tease . . .

Chapter 3 - First three minutes!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4SGs0H1xQE

This is chapter 3 now, almost the half way point of the movie. There's a pretty big spoiler in there for the Chris character, not that you would know or care about it not knowing what it's about at all. Maybe that one guy who noticed the water jug will get it!

Anyway, all comments and hate are greatly appreciated for sure. Thanks!


brerwolfe said:
a friend put together a pretty decent budget to make a zombie movie and asked if i would help out. i don't know how i keep getting roped in on "horror" movies, but this one should be fun. it's called Opening Night of the Living Dead.....

we're shooting with modified 7D's. principle photography begins in january, but we're getting a couple cemetary shots done this weekend. we have danny trejo making a cameo on saturday night's shoot. looking forward to it!

here's the facebook page for the film, and here's the official website, if anyone's interested..
Click to expand...

. . .

holy shit.

I used to date that chick from the september 27th post. no joke. no, seriously, no joke.

and I'm still pining.
 
Alfarif said:
A trailer for my short (7 minute) film, Duality.

Duality Trailer
Click to expand...

I think a 1:45 trailer for a 7 minute movie is pretty pointless.

The trailer really drags on and should be cut down to no more than 45 seconds.

Personally, I don't think shorts need trailers...unless it's a 45-minute piece.
 
Raxel said:
I started learning After Effects during the summer in my spare time. I finished my "studio" logo recently by combining 2-3 video copilot tutorials:

Studio Logo

There's a couple of old tests up there too.
Click to expand...
Yes!
I love it. And I'm not easily impressed.

It's clean and simple, just the way it should be.
 
oh well, if you gaffers are curious here's a short (18') 'documentary' on the Palio di Siena.
You know, the horse race held in Gran Turismo 5 go kart track "Piazza del Campo" :D

there were issues with the encoding (audio and video skipping, awful audio quality in general and video isn't great either...i need suggestions btw) and a few basic editing mistakes, but i was on a tight deadline.

http://www.vimeo.com/15424174

oh, yes, some of the tracks i used are from videogames, i always do that :)
 
just woke up after being on set all night. we shot from 8pm to 730am, 2 nights in a row. pretty exhausting, but a lot of fun.

we had Danny Trejo on set for a cameo, dude's just great, really professional. his delivery was perfect.

37136_446964363258_844168258_5095037_4558953_n.jpg


here's a shot of our hero getting ready for a zombie horde attack:

36066_446964098258_844168258_5095028_7868171_n.jpg


shot everything on modified 7D's using arri lenses. it was pretty great.
 
oatmeal said:
What are you doing on that set?
Click to expand...

i was running B-camera mostly. i'm good friends with the director and producer, they asked if i would come out and help.

i was originally going to put together their press kits and behind-the-scenes features, but it's a time commitment that i just can't stick to. the B-camera stuff was probably slightly more valuable given the shortage of time on set. i was able to run simultaneously on certain setups and get a bunch of detail shots they didn't have time to set up for.

fidelis, which boyfriend are you? did i shoot with you ever? do you know the director?
 
brerwolfe said:
i was running B-camera mostly. i'm good friends with the director and producer, they asked if i would come out and help.

i was originally going to put together their press kits and behind-the-scenes features, but it's a time commitment that i just can't stick to. the B-camera stuff was probably slightly more valuable given the shortage of time on set. i was able to run simultaneously on certain setups and get a bunch of detail shots they didn't have time to set up for.

fidelis, which boyfriend are you? did i shoot with you ever? do you know the director?
Click to expand...

I'm assuming that you're in New York. I know Jensen from when we dated in college (I went to Full Sail in Orlando).

I've been in LA for the past two years though, so I really doubt we know each other. She just texted me a pic last night of the set! My worlds are colliding.
 
Mr. Snrub said:
Does anyone (particularly other noobs like me) every watch short films from other people and just get discouraged by the terrible writing, editing, footage, etc., from people who genuinely believe they're onto something good? I'm not saying it in a judging way and no one is going to pump out gold immediately/all the time, but it's almost discouraging, hearing about how much effort was put into a turd. And then you wonder if you're going to be like one of THOSE directors...like an M. Night.
Click to expand...

This is the worst thing for me. In fact it's killed my hope to make something of it. What it is, is everybody looks at other projects and believes, wow I can do better than this. What happens is you stop and wonder... maybe everybody else thinks the same thing about my project.
 
msdstc said:
This is the worst thing for me. In fact it's killed my hope to make something of it. What it is, is everybody looks at other projects and believes, wow I can do better than this. What happens is you stop and wonder... maybe everybody else thinks the same thing about my project.
Click to expand...

Maybe they do, but does it matter? What do you think? In every art form, more than enough people are going to hate what you do, all you need is that one specific person to like it . . the man who will pay you.

At least, to make a living of some sort you do. Which is great in theory, horrible in practice for most cases.
 
Fidelis Hodie said:
I'm assuming that you're in New York. I know Jensen from when we dated in college (I went to Full Sail in Orlando).

I've been in LA for the past two years though, so I really doubt we know each other. She just texted me a pic last night of the set! My worlds are colliding.
Click to expand...

no, i'm in orlando. she was dating a guy from full sail a couple years ago when i met her. he and her helped me shoot a wedding for a friend, the friend that wrote and directed this movie...

also, i graduated from full sail in feb. 2003.
 
brerwolfe said:
no, i'm in orlando. she was dating a guy from full sail a couple years ago when i met her. he and her helped me shoot a wedding for a friend, the friend that wrote and directed this movie...

also, i graduated from full sail in feb. 2003.
Click to expand...


. . that might have been me. We dated late '07 to '08. Nice to meet you . . ish.
 
Fidelis Hodie said:
Nope. I have no idea who that is. :)

If you watch any of my clips, I'm the Sam character.

Thank god it's not me! That's a bit too freaky.
Click to expand...

nice, apparently she just made the rounds at full sail. whatever works! (that pic was in March 2007, she was standing on the left side of the frame!)

also, good that it wasn't you, because that guy's footage of the wedding sucked. i don't think i used any of it. i'll assume your footage would have been fantastic.
 
brerwolfe said:
nice, apparently she just made the rounds at full sail. whatever works! (that pic was in March 2007, she was standing on the left side of the frame!)

also, good that it wasn't you, because that guy's footage of the wedding sucked. i don't think i used any of it. i'll assume your footage would have been fantastic.
Click to expand...

:lol Thanks. Are you working out of Orlando, I assume? I had to get out of there. Full Sail's 2 years were more than enough for me.

edit:

and to stay on track, here's a behind the scenes pic!

58280_466003084178_500064178_6407174_624583_n.jpg
 
i went to high school in orlando, went to play division 1 volleyball in illinois, came back home to orlando and decided to try out full sail. got a job shooting sports from the blimp around the country 2 weeks before graduation.

now i have a fulltime job shooting/editing video for a golf magazine's website, and i freelance like crazy outside of that. but yeah, i still live in orlando, but i travel all over the country.

i don't have a whole lot on my vimeo page at the moment, but here it is:

http://vimeo.com/user1157137/videos
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Nicolas Winding Refn returning to filmmaking with Tokyo-set movie
29
2K
Giallo Corsa replied
The Drunk GAF Containment Thread
Social Community  9 10 11 12 13
607
24K
Blank Space Invader replied
Into The Shadows - 1995 video game (before Quake) - Triton
4
337
Nocty replied
The first-ever YouTube video was uploaded 20 years ago today
11
18
The Lunch Legend replied
  • Poll
Are modern filmmakers depressed?
2
55
3K
John Bilbo replied
Top Bottom