Documentary Filmmaking Tutorials from ‘FourDocs’

FourDocs is the online documentary channel from Britain’s - Channel 4. Fourdocs also offers a unique opportunity for filmmakers to get exposure making short docs for their “3Minute Wonder.” - which is “the only site that selects online films and puts them directly in a primetime terrestrial broadcast slot,” says Kate Vogel of 3MW. Because of this, they have a top notch documentary filmmaking tutorial guides on their site. It covers everything you need to know from start to finish:

+ Pre-Production - “Get Planning”

+ Production – “Get Shooting”

+ Post Production – “Get Editing”

And everything in between. Check ‘em all out here.

Special thanks to Make Better Media where I found this info.

DETAILS Mag & NEHST Studios Want Your Film Pitch

NEHST Studios and Details Magazine are collaborating on a project to produce a film with you. Yes you! NEHST, whose founder produced Sling Blade [imdb] and Details, a men’s lifestyle and fashion magazine want your film pitch.

Here’s the gist:

The DETAILS/NEHST Movie Project is a unique initiative that enables aspiring filmmakers the access to get their film made. Anyone who has a movie idea can “pitch” their idea via this website. DETAILS and NEHST will then review the submissions and if they find the right project, they’ll greenlight the idea. The DETAILS/NEHST collaboration allows those wanting to break into film—or those just toying with a movie idea—to bypass the red tape of Hollywood and have their ideas reviewed by real producers.” [from the official DETAILS/NEHST Movie Project site]

If you have a script, treatment or just an idea for a film – they are interested in hearing from you. Go to their official “how-to pitch page” and submit your idea. There’s a $10 submission/administration fee – but that will also get you a one year subscription to Details Magazine.

Celtx (Free Pre-Production Software) Releases 1.0 Version

Celtx just released the 1.0 version of their pre-production software. I personally have not used Celtx since their 0.9.7 version and I was only utilizing the Screenwriting feature. This new release has so many new features that I think is worth checking out - and it’s still free! You can download it here.

Some of their new features include Storyboarding, and upgraded Project Scheduling tool that integrates with the script breakdown, and an iPhone tool that allows you to view your Celtx projects on your iPhone. There’s a lot more too. Every independent filmmaker on a budget would be wise to try this open platform tool that is - did I mention this - FREE!

Continue reading Celtx (Free Pre-Production Software) Releases 1.0 Version…

Funding Your Film Through the Fan Based Social Marketplace

In a previous post, “Let the Public Finance Your Film,” I looked at several examples of filmmakers utilizing the social landscape of the internet for funding their film. Their approach was to reach out and create a fan base that would lend financial support for their project. Kevin Kelly [bio] recently commented on the financial power of a fan base in his article titled, “1,000 True Fans.” Kelly states that “anyone producing works of art - needs to acquire only 1,000 True Fans to make a living.” The expansion of that idea has created other websites that provide a platform for project funding and promotion.

The latest example is IndieGoGo. This is the hottest endeavor to utilize the social market place in helping filmmakers find funding for their projects. It was just launched in January ‘08 and Filmmaker Magazine reported that the site announced its first film to reach its funding goal (The Lilliput by filmmaker Minna Zielonka-Packer raised $10,000 through the site). IndieGoGo allows filmmakers to incorporate what they call a “DIWO - Do It With Others” approach. Here’s how they describe it:

IndieGoGo enables this “filmocracy” by providing filmmakers an open platform to pitch their projects to the world, and giving the fans a vehicle to experience and influence the once inaccessible world of filmmaking. Filmmakers get new resources to build and engage a loyal fan base to assist in making their projects happen. Filmmakers can raise money and awareness, find cast and crew, and gain credibility through the help of their number one resource: their fans.” [excerpt from IndieGoGo-About Us]

Continue reading Funding Your Film Through the Fan Based Social Marketplace…

New MPAA Report Gives Filmmakers Good Stats for Business Plans

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has just released its 2007 U.S. Theatrical Market Statistics Report. It looks like the U.S. domestic box office receipts for 2007 hit a record $9.63 billion, up 5.4% above 2006. Internationally, the worldwide box office rose to an all-time high - $26.7 billion.

So why would an indie filmmaker care about this report? Well, beyond having a positive financial result from the medium that you work in - you can use those stats for your business plan. When pitching your project to potential financiers, it is always good to present a positive outlook in the industry that seeks investment. It’s arguably more difficult to convince someone to invest in your low budget film if the overall marketplace is on a decline.

Here’s the summary from the MPAA report (you can also view and download the PDF file here:

Continue reading New MPAA Report Gives Filmmakers Good Stats for Business Plans…

Robert De Niro’s Tribeca Film Institute Merges with Renew Media

Robert De Niro and his producing partner, Jane Rosenthal have merged their nonprofit organization - Tribeca Film Institute (affiliated with the Tribeca Film Festival) with Renew Media. Renew Media (formerly known as National Video Resources) was founded by The Rockefeller Foundation in 1990 as a funding source for media artists. The Tribeca Film Institute was created after September 11th 2001 as an effort to stimulate the economic revitalization of New York City through arts based initiatives and to “educate, entertain, and inspire filmmakers and film lovers alike.”

The merger will take the name Tribeca Film Institute and will continue to expand its home in lower Manhattan as a cultural institution providing artists with funding, exhibition and work space.

We have been pursuing complementary avenues with respect to filmmakers and media artists for many years now,” said Jane Rosenthal. “By putting these two institutions together under one roof our impact is going to be greater than anything we could have achieved separately and we look forward to building an unprecedented arts organization.”

“This new organization enables us to carry out our mission and support artists and filmmakers throughout all stages of their careers,” said Robert De Niro. [excerpt from official announcement]

Together, the two organizations will combine their resources, staffs and programs that according to indieWIRE, will “rival established entities as the Sundance Institute, Film Independent, and the Independent Feature Project (IFP).”

Zhura: A New Online Collaborative Screenwriting Application

I just ran across a new online screenwriting application called Zhura. It offers free membership and is similar to the collaborative concept behind Celtx. Although Zhura doesn’t have all the pre-production features that Celtx provides, it simplifies the user experience by being an online application doesn’t require any software downloads and upgrades (also check out Plotbot and ScriptBuddy). Zhura’s editing tool allows you to format your script into an “industry standard” layout and if you need a hard copy or want to save it to your computer, you can convert it to a PDF or text (.txt) file. I definitely appreciate the way it maintains a complete history of your changes/revisions.

If you’re working with collaborators on your screenplay or just want to share your work for public feedback - this can be a very useful tool. Their motto is “Make it together.” It’s worth checking out.

The Doorpost Film Project

The Doorpost Film Project is a new filmmaking contest which will also serve as an ongoing project that aims to “change the world.” It’s another positive social filmmaking endeavor in the light of Pangea Day which I blogged about before. Along with the project’s optimistic goals, they’re giving filmmakers some serious cash!

Here’s the gist of the contest:

Submitted films (accepted from February 1 to May 1, 2008) need to be 5 minutes or less in length - themed in one of seven universal concepts: ENERGY, LOVE, PAIN, GREED, REDEMPTION, FORGIVENESS, and FREEDOM.

Entries are to be uploaded to thedoorpost.com where it will be streamed and judged by “industry experts” and online viewers.

15 finalists will win $10,000 each to make another short film (8-15 minutes in length). From there, three winners will be selected - 3rd prize = $20,000, 2nd prize = $30,000 and 1st prize = $100,000. Not bad.

Here’s what they say about their organization:

This is more than a contest, this is an ongoing project. We ask you, this century’s revolutionaries, to join us in creating a new way to understand the core of our humanity and a new way to change the world.” [from thedoorpost.com 'about us']

DIY Filmmaking: Make Your Own Props & Special FX – Part 2 “GUTS” (metaphorically speaking)

In Part 1 (DIY Filmmaking: Make Your Own Props & Special FX - “BLOOD”), I listed several great resources for making your own “blood” related props and special effects. Now in Part 2 - the “Guts” covers several more great links. I used “guts” as a metaphor to describe all the internal building blocks that go into making movie props and special effects.

To be honest, the word “guts” just works well for a two part series: “Blood” & “Guts.”

We’ll start with a good segue to the “blood” post:

FAKE DEAD GUYS

A mixture of links from Halloween enthusiasts and filmmakers are comprised in this list.

- MicroFilmmaker.com - “Build a Dead Guy for Horror Films”

- StickTowhatYouKnow.com - “Making A Dead Guy 101″

- HalloweenOnlineMagazine.com - “Making A Corpse”

- I MakeProjects.com - “Charred Corpse”

And one of the signature DIY sites has its own contributions:

- Instructables.com - “Making a Dead Guy 101,” “BFX: How to Make a Fake Brain,” “How to Make Fake Heads,” “How to Make a Fake Hand”

DIY COSTUMES

- Costume.org - “How To’s”

- Studio Creations.com - “…tips and tricks that go into making professional style costumes and props that are used in the Hollywood Movies”

- DIY Life.com - “Costumes”

- Milieux.com - “Costume Resource Links”

- Costumepage.org - “The Costume Page (a lot of links)”

- Clara.net - “The Dyeing Guide,” “The Arming Coat,” “Dress Making Guide”

Continue reading DIY Filmmaking: Make Your Own Props & Special FX – Part 2 “GUTS” (metaphorically speaking)…

DIY Filmmaking: Make Your Own Props & Special FX – Part 1 “BLOOD”

In a previous “DIY Filmmaking” post, I highlighted several great websites like Indy Mogul and Instructables.com. Both provide very useful tutorials for “diy” filmmaking equipment projects. I’ve included several more links from them in this post. They are a great resource for making your own props and special effects. I’ve also discovered several others that cover this topic. In fact, I found so many that I had to split this post into two parts.

For Part 1, my list of sites with DIY Props & Special Effects will cover “Blood” and all the filmmaking special effects that relates to it.

BLOOD

Almost every film uses some kind of blood effect. Be it a simple abrasion or nosebleed; an action flick with shoot ‘em up gun-shot scenes or a full on horror slasher film. They all have to produce blood FX in some degree.

Gun Shot FX:

- Indy Mogul has a good ‘diy’ gun-shot squib tutorial titled, “How To Make A Blood Shooter.” There is also a video demonstration which was their pilot episode (“Blood-squirting gunshot effect for just $15″) for their series, Backyard FX. Curbly.com has both parts combined.

- Instructables.com - “Hollywood Gunshot Blood Effect!”

- Exposure.co.uk - “Blood & Bullets for No-Budget movies” (How to make compressed gas bullet hits)

- eHow.com - “How to Make Fake Blood Squibs for Film, Television and Stage Productions”

- MicroFilmmaker - “Create a Hollywood Style Gunshot Wound” and “Creating Bullet Hits with Paintball Shots”

Continue reading DIY Filmmaking: Make Your Own Props & Special FX – Part 1 “BLOOD”…