Trailer for Indie-Feature Film

[DCP]

NOTE: This is NOT footage of the HPX170. This is the HVX200 (my apologizes to everyone; I've asked the Moderators to post this in the HVX200 footage section).

Here is a link for a trailer for my film "Drawing With Chalk". I shot with the HVX200 (720 24pN) and Letus Extreme.

http://drawingchalkpictures.com/previews.html

If anyone has comments or would like to know more about the film and how I shot it, just let me know.

Todd

[Jay Rodriguez]

first off, wrong section. :) awesome looking story... i like the vibe of it. the letus, hmm, not sure if I like it though.

[DCP]

D'Oh. Sorry Moderators, could you put this in the right place.

Todd

[Larry Rutledge]

Story is very intriguing, I definitely want to see the finished film.

Any idea on when/how it will be available?

[DCP]

Thanks Larry.

I just submitted it to Sundance (we are going to try all the big festivals and see what happens) so it's hard to say when it will be 'available'. Of course if the film doesn't 'do anything' during the festival route we will self-distribute.

The film is finished (minus really mixing/mastering all the songs) so now it's a waiting game. I tell you it was tough getting everything ready in time for the Sundance deadline (I pretty much had a little over 1 month for post production and that includes the first cut, cleaning up the audio, foley work, and recording all of the songs in the film). I have to say I was happy with the finished film and I will definitely let everyone know what's going on with it.

All the best.

Todd

[Ksun83]

Yeah man it looks great. Good actors. What mic were you using? Audio is amazing. Also any 35mm adapter? Thanks.

[Ksun83]

I see you used the letus extreme.

[Dillon Novak]

Im really excited to watch this eventually

[hoz]

looks real good! how do we see the film?

[reem12]

I've come to this conclusion that no other camera in this price range gives off a look as filmic as the hvx. I will no longer fight it. Panasonic rules for indi film makers. IMO. At the end of Oct both a1s and hv20 will go on the auction block for $5000 for all three in favor of an hpx 170.

I still love my canon but unless i'm able to get panys color depth by the end of the month to the market place they go.

[appy]

The film looks very professional, good sound, nice trailer. Look forward to it.
Awesome!!!

[DCP]

Yeah man it looks great. Good actors. What mic were you using? Audio is amazing. Also any 35mm adapter? Thanks.

I had purchased Schoeps Mics for the shoot. Knowing that my budget was low and that I had to shoot over a course of 6 months or so (for seasonal changes and mostly financial) I figured it was easier to let the old credit cards speak for me and went with the best I could get. Granted I've been able to sell one of the Schoeps and lost little money so that part of my thinking proved right.

And yes, I used the Letus Extreme. There were a few shots where I used the Brevis but opted for the Letus. I think that the Brevis may have an edge on sharpness but also I had issues with one side being slightly soft. I think the Letus had more of a balanced image (though it may have been a bit softer).

Todd

[weixiang623]

Todd,
Great job on the film, looks good. Loved the camera movement. Was curious if the budget is able to be leaked out, also which lenses were you specifically using?

Thanks,

[DCP]

Hi Willis,

Thanks for the comment. Our budget was approx. $116,000 (SAG ultra-low budget agreement; mostly self-financed with the help of credit cards) but half of that was equipment that I purchased (and of course I'm selling now...).

We used Nikon's:
24mm f2
35mm f2
50mm f1.4
85mm 1.4

We had other lenses too, but these were used the most.

Todd

[DCP]

Sorry folks, the server seems to be down. Please check back again.

Todd :(

[weixiang623]

being SAG Ultra Low Budget Agreement, you guys had to pay actors $100/day?
I'm assuming crews weren't paid?

By the way, hope you get in Sundance man, let me know when released, I'll get it for sure.

[DCP]

We had 7 SAG actors (including myself and my film partner; we play Jay and Matt) so we had to pay ourselves (what a screwed up scenerio) and we did pay the crew. We paid out over $30,000 to the crew (again we pretty much worked with only the DP, 1st AC, one grip/gaffer, and one sound recordist; I think there were only a few days we had a 1st AD and an additional crew member). I did a lot of the grunt work, setting up the crane, dolly, etc. I also shot some footage by myself when necessary. And as far as post production, I did everything so there were no additional expenses (except for recording the drum tracks for the songs; the rest we recorded in my home studio). So I guess you can work with little money but having a good hard working crew who believes in the project really makes the project shine.

I will be updating here letting everyone who's interested know what's going on with the film.

Todd

[JimiK]

Dude that looks great. I just finished a film with HVX200 and that doesnot look or sound anything like yours. What gives?
Who did the color correction and what did you use for that?
Who cleaned the sound and what did you use?
Keep up the good work.

[DCP]

Dude that looks great. I just finished a film with HVX200 and that doesnot look or sound anything like yours. What gives?
Who did the color correction and what did you use for that?
Who cleaned the sound and what did you use?
Keep up the good work.

Hi Jim,

I did all the color correction (actually most of the color was done in camera with a setup my DP, Michael LaVoie, had created). As far as the sound goes, we used a Sound Devices 722 to capture (also routing sound into the HVX200 as a reference track) and then I individually cleaned up the audio with Izotope's RX's plugin (I editied with FCP and fixed the audio with Peak Pro). It was time consuming cleaning up every track because it was cleaned up edit by edit. Since I didn't have time code, I had to place the audio manually to be frame accurate. Pain in the *ss but I'm a perfectionist and I didn't mind the countless hours doing it (my wife did though...).

Todd

[PaPa]

beautiful work man. Very inspiring to see something so professional and so polished on the boards. Congrats. I'm working on my first feature now, and i know it iwll be a while before my work comes anywhere close to the quality of what you've produced.

I have to be completely honest and say that i am not a fan of the grading. Perhaps it is slightly washed from the compression, but the colors are far too mute and that makes the desaturation distracting from the story, and removes some of the films "life" as it were. This is not intended to tel you to do things a different way, just my view on it.

http://img380.imageshack.us/img380/1583/feature01xi4.jpg

[JimiK]

All the best to you brother.
Good luck at the festival.
You are a real inspiration for many of us.
Rock on

[DCP]

Funny thing about the color. I originally was going for a saturated 'lively' look, but soon decided on a less colorful approach. The film focuses around two blue color factory workers struggling to find life in their once hopeful rock band.

I found the desaturated look added to the environment, the mood and the fact that the lives of these characters weren't as vivid or pretty as the could be. Ironically, everyday we shot over the course of 6 months (except for one day when we really needed it for the story) was gray and cloudy.

I've always been a fan of vivid colors (coming off of doing wedding videos), but somehow this film wanted to be a little 'gray'.

I had also shot most of my opening sequence footage with the 'vivid' setting on the HVX200 (I loved what it did for the seasonal footage and the factory shots). I ended up having to bring it down in post to match the feel the rest of the film had.

Todd

[DCP]

All the best to you brother.
Good luck at the festival.
You are a real inspiration for many of us.
Rock on

Thanks JimiK. As I've told my wife:

If I didn't do this film I knew what would happen a year from now, and the year after that... waiting tables and wishing my life was different. By doing this film, I don't know what could happen a year from now.

Todd