Showing posts with label Filmmaking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Filmmaking. Show all posts

Thursday, September 29, 2011

DSLR Video Vs Camcorder Video


The Battle of "DSLR Video vs Camcorder"
For about 3 years now, video amateurs and professionals all over the world have heard about the rising star in the video arena, "DSLR Video." This lightweight contender is a photography based camera that packs a punch in the ring against the older, heavier, and less popular "Camcorder." The Battle of "DSLR Video vs Camcorder," is officially underway. For almost 30 years, since Sony's BetaCam in 1982, tape-based camcorders have ruled the video industry with their compact build, light weight, and most of all, their ease of use. All you had to do was push a red button and point the lens at what you wanted to record. There was no longer a need for film canisters or projectors. Literally anyone could film anything they wanted and watch it instantly.

High Definition?
Over the past several years, many camcorder companies have tried to make it even easier by using digital devices to record video, such as memory cards and hard drives, which you just stick in any computer to watch instantly. With the shift to digital video came the shift to high definition (HD) video. More and more camera companies were coming out with so called HD recording, but most of them did not record full HD at 1,920 x 1,080 pixels (1080p). Also, many camcorders recorded on a format that can't be edited as a raw file, such as AVCHD, which means that there is massive quality loss, diminishing the fact that the video was recorded in HD in the first place. In the Battle of "DSLR Video vs Camcorder," this would mean that "Camcorder" should just throw in the towel.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

How to Find Winning Short Film Ideas

How to find winning short film ideas? The idea that begets all other ideas. In academia they call it cheating. In the professional world, it's called collaboration. I'm referring specifically to the process of venturing beyond one's own resources and borrowing or buying ideas, assistance, and products from others in order to accomplish a goal. In school, you're punished for asking someone across the room for the answers when in the middle of a test. Pride and intelligence are measured by your ability to come up with the answer, solution, or creative result by yourself. Our idol based/pop star culture reinforces the lone ranger notion by presenting success stories as if they were primarily a matter of one person pulling himself up by his bootstraps.

In the professional world, at large, and in the filmmaking community, in particular, it is understood that teams are the entities that get things done; small armies of passionate individuals, each of whom contribute a specialized form of knowledge or skill, united by a common desire to move a project from concept to completion.

Saturday, July 09, 2011

How To Direct A Movie

In this article I will go over what it takes to direct a movie. Directing a movie may seem easy being the boss calling all the shots but it can be very difficult and there is a lot of behind the scenes work that can be time consuming. Some directors prefer to write there own script, but that is more challenging as to searching for a script that has been written for you. Once you have your script you want to break it into sections, go over your script time after time. You want to be able to envision each scene as it would unfold in your film and write out how you want your characters roles and how you want them to express there emotions, share this with your actors. It can help to take some acting classes because you will be directing your actors and it will give you a better understanding as if you were in there shoes.

There are many software programs you can use to help you with drawing out your storyboards which can be very efficient as to saving you valuable time. Make sure you write how you want each set to look and how you will shoot each scene, also any special effects you feel you will be using. Remember to share all these aspects with your film crew you want your entire team onboard with you. They need to know exactly how you want each shot and it's your job to fill them in with your vision of this film. Get your crew together and lay everything on the table, make sure everyone is on the same page.

Thursday, June 30, 2011

Film Making Courses to Start a Career in Filmmaking

Many people dream of a glamorous career in filmmaking and wonder what film making courses will best help them get started. Before you sign up for film school take time to get realistic about what you can expect to accomplish. Although the filmmaking industry employs thousands of people it can still be one of the hardest industries to break into. Besides acting, the two jobs most often pursued are being a film director or a screenplay writer. Because this is what most students request these are the jobs where they offer the most classes. This is where the problem starts.

The demand in Hollywood for new film directors and new screenplay writers is almost non-existent. The current working directors and writers spent many years apprenticing and working their way up through the ranks. The newly graduated student walking up to the hiring department of a film studio or production company will be lucky to be offered a job as receptionist or mail-room clerk. This is the sad reality of the education of future movie makers. Few beginning students are willing to believe that the odds are so strongly stacked against them. They sign up for film making courses which will consist of watching and discussing classic, old movies then making little short films using commonly available video equipment. Students most interested in screenplay writing spend their time writing short scenes and discussing them with fellow classmates.