"Yer Killin me" a film by Kyle Murphy

[2062ad]

24029

Well, here's the poster, (probably ;)
It's filmed and mostly edited now and currently working on audio and sound effects. I gotta say, this has so far been a very fun procrastination!

[2062ad]

9:00 am oct 9
I believe that with a few tweeks I can call this done and ready to submit. well, ready is relative since I'm still a novice in all practical terms. But I am loving this. And what a great site this is as well, I only just picked up my dvx100a about 2 years ago and immediately found I had the right cam to start off with for me. This site has been instrumental in my quest for knowledge with all things related.

9:05 am oct 9 :)

TIMELINE:

oct 4- * jump on dvxuser for a browse and some research and BANG! there was thrillfest.
*hand on forehead searching for a story
*light bulb goes off and the script spills out of my head faster than I can type<---err, practiced hunt and peck
*go to refrig and get a beer on the way out to the studio
*build the set, build a rig to support a lighting prop, set up camera (on some sort of rig I built in the last couple weeks but as yet have no name for it), and light the scene
*http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_dKfbtdyZTck/TLCtWKTZW7I/AAAAAAAAAaw/Jk7BfGzc8v0/s1600/cieling+rigs+sm.JPG

oct 5- *work on scripting
*Lights, camera, action! we shoot all the dialog then move to an effects shot which went fun as hell but not to a productive end ;)
*load into editing program and do a quick edit to see where I am
*realize that yes I am still a novice and make mental notes on what works, the shortcomings, and continuity issues..."now, (scratches forehead), how can I make all these noob induced deficiencies work for me"

oct 6- *edit edit edit edit edit.......
*shoot pick ups
*get a brainstorm and re-shoot the fx sequence

oct 7- *getting closer on the edit
*re-record some V.O. stuff with both cast members and an additional scene
*feels like I'm cramming for a college exam as I edit 'till 2 in the morning knowing full well the alarm for work
will be sounding in about 2 1/2 hrs

oct 8- * other audio and sound effects. no time to set up the archaic "studio" I have so I dig into my own resources and
freesounds.org in desperate attempt at giving the audio some life. Oh, procrastination you beautiful ugly thing.
lots of blending and warping and that gets close
* more editing, not happy with a major scene. Again "make my deficiencies work for me, hmmm?" dive desperately into
premiere elements 4 <---yes, I know, 8 crashed my comp and can't afford pro right now, all things in good time ;).
That said I honestly think that I've learned more about this program, and editing in general, than I have in any other project
I've done to date. And I guess that's the main reason I'm here anyway.
* 1:20 am export movie and critique for about 6 viewings then sleep

oct 9- in progress ;) currently pondering re-shoot #2 of the fx sequence. It's better than what i expected when i started the journey but....it's not there. i'm probably too worried about that so if it starts spoiling my fun over the project and causing stress then I take an axe to the re-shoot idea.
Ok, but for now I'm heading to studio B (also doubles as the workshop) to experiment with that.

oct 10- haha and duh, I just saw, to my advantage actually that this 10 oct deadline as i saw it is actually the start day of uploading, not the final entry date...sooo. the good news for me is that I can start setting up to incorporate some real audio and sound fx ,stuff I generate instead of old stuff of mine and royalty free. looking fwd to that. so here we go.

oct 12- just waiting on the upload info now.

oct 13-continues to tweek

oct 15- a quandary, noob style. I see that submissions are to be uploaded in H.264 format. Aww d**m, I think that's mp4 but I really don't know, where can I download an ap to produce this? grrr

oct 16-20- MASS learning curve on a number of items as I tweek this thing. And then the inevitable comp crashes and trying to figure out H.264

oct 20- uploaded, whew

21 0ct- 3:48 pm Alaska time. checking the scales I have set up containing on one arm "nervousness" on the other "excitement" . It's maintaining a touchy balance.

22 oct- I'm carving a pumpkin with my daughter <---oh whoops, wrong forum. har har

23 0ct 1:53 Alaska time- continually wiping the sweat of nervous anticipation as the Submission status winds down toward the release for viewing.

[Brandon Rice]

Welcome to the fest!

[Charli]

I say that to my hubby at dinner all the time.

[Belgarath]

The poster is, uh, pretty graphic.

[Belgarath]

But what organ is it?

[Mike Manning]

I was gonna ask the same thing... what am i looking at?

[kurtmo]

The poster certainly seems in keepin' with the title!

[2062ad]

Hey, I just read this and jumped in ;).

"Thrillers are mostly characterized by an atmosphere of menace, violence, crime and murder by showing society as dark, corrupt and dangerous, though they often feature a happy ending in which the villains are killed or arrested. Thrillers heavily promote on literary devices such as plot twists, red herrings and cliffhangers. They also promote on moods, such as a high level of anticipation, adrenaline rush, arousal, ultra-heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety and sometimes even terror. The tones in thrillers are usually gritty, slick and lurid. "

it's about 1:20 am and I think I'm done. except for that--> oh damn and except for that<--ahh, the other thing too!

[Jaime V]

I dunno what that thing on your poster is. Or that contraption you built to hold the fan and camera. But it looks like the s&*^ is gonna hit the fan in this short :)

Good luck man.

[2062ad]

... looks like the s&*^ is gonna hit the fan in this short :)

Good luck man.

haha niiice :)

[2062ad]

...with another NOOB prob. And that would be "H.264 format". Yes I freely admit to being somewhat deficient where it comes to formats. I do everything in AVI because, yes, it's good looking and it's what I know. sooo, I've worked hard on this little short and don't want to miss the op to upload it but I don't know anything about H.264 format other than it's mp4? where can I download a good respectable application to produce this?
thanks in advance,
Kyle

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

QuickTime Pro works great and it's cheap.

[2062ad]

used DivX plus converter. seemed to work nice. It's uploading into the server now so I'm crossing my fingers that all's well. thanks

[2062ad]

whew, uploaded.

[ZazaCast]

Congrats & good luck!

[2062ad]

thank you sir! And now... I await the flogging :)

[Noel Evans]

Glad you got your compression sorted. Look forward to watching.

[Richard J. Johnson]

thank you sir! And now... I await the flogging :)

I don't know what flogging is but I don't anybody flogging me.

[2062ad]

I don't know what flogging is but I don't anybody flogging me.

flog

verb \ˈfläg\
floggedflog·ging
Definition of FLOG

transitive verb
1
a : to beat with or as if with a rod or whip b : to criticize harshly
:)

but in all reality, I've only been doing this a short while so I do expect a bit of constructive criticism. that said I do think I've put together something sorta interesting here and hope that even for whatever faults may be found or perceived that people enjoy it.

[ZazaCast]

Hell, I give you points for living in Alaska...so you're ahead of the game!

[2062ad]

Hell, I give you points for living in Alaska...so you're ahead of the game!

yeah, I got a taste of those "points" a couple nights ago when a bear tried to push it's way into my garage. this after he had a scuffle with a moose in my driveway.
beats head against wall for not having the video cam readily available. But the shotgun sure found my hand pretty quickly just in case. ;)
24747

[ZazaCast]

yeah, I got a taste of those "points" a couple nights ago when a bear tried to push it's way into my garage. this after he had a scuffle with a moose in my driveway.
beats head against wall for not having the video cam readily available. But the shotgun sure found my hand pretty quickly just in case. ;)
24747
THAT'S what I'm talking about! WOW...look at that door...my God.
You should get one of those GoPro cameras and mount it on the end of the shotgun.

[2062ad]

now you're talkin'!

[AJ Brooks]

yeah, I got a taste of those "points" a couple nights ago when a bear tried to push it's way into my garage. this after he had a scuffle with a moose in my driveway.
24747

lol

Sorry about your garage, but that mental image just made my day. :)

[2062ad]

lol

Sorry about your garage, but that mental image just made my day. :)

hey no prob. in all honesty I was laughing as well. All it did was to cause me to move up a project anyway. since I have turned my garage into a "filming studio"---green screen, lights, cam rigs, etc I was contemplating removing the garage door anyway and framing it in with a double french door. The bear merely took it from a next spring project to...well...this weekend :)

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_dKfbtdyZTck/TLCtWKTZW7I/AAAAAAAAAaw/Jk7BfGzc8v0/s1600/cieling+rigs+sm.JPG

That looks amazing! I bet you got some nice footage with that.

MAH

[fieberland]

Especially if it's directed towards your garage door :laugh:
Put more cams up there and you could shoot ..err.. film the next bear matrix-style...

(No, i'm really eager to see what you came up with.)

[2062ad]

That looks amazing! I bet you got some nice footage with that.

MAH

well, it has potential to. it's sorta a "recession filmmaking, salvaged stuff apparatus I made up. I mean literally it didn't cost a single dime other than the elec to plug the tools in too. I see it as a sort of prototype for another finely machined one and/or variations of the same concept. but yeah, I'm pretty happy with the initial run thru with it. I actually built it a couple weeks prior to starting to shoot "yer killin' me" for another project I was working on but there it was just calling to be part of this one. So I let it. :)
the radius overhead cam part of it I mean. the rest, (the part with the fan) I built for the Thrillfest film.

[2062ad]

matrix bear ! yeah!

[2062ad]

For those who have been following and getting a smile about the bear intrusion into my garage/studio, I got the opening framed in today. Helped alleviate some of the nervousness of waiting for the films to go live for a while. And! an added bonus came to me too. The garage door opener, rail etc is going to definitely stay in place. I am going to rig it up to hold my cam to make a motorized "trolley"? (I really need to learn the correct terminology), but you get the idea. there IS a silver lining to this other than the comedic factor! :) The green screen is directly opposite the garage door opening so half, (um...part), of the work is already done. cool huh? ;)
I'm seeing ALL KINDS of rigs for it already.

[Chris_Keaton]

Ok, I kinda got the story. Not sure if the dude was shot by the bartender or what though. But really this could've just been a recorded audio, since the visuals seemed to only be there to make it a film. It did show some creativity, so keep on keepin' on.

[Richard J. Johnson]

I'm up in the air on this one. The story was okay as Keaton stated. This one needs a second vewing. I'm not sure why you had the double image at the top.

[Charli]

Why were the hands boxed in black & white in the beginning? Visually it was different, you had to depend heavily on the tonality and believability of actors you don't see. Faces usually tell us everything we need to know, here we had only hands. It was a good effort. I don't really throw it into the thriller bin because from the get-go you knew how it was going to end. Good "stab" at it, as it were.

[lawriejaffa]

Yep I actually didn't understand the part where the thingies chop of the chaps head (Sarah did!) Then I was like aaah! I liked the concept of this - I think it was definately experimental and an interesting way to visaully conceptualise the meeting of these two characters, and there troubling relationship - and to depict it with hands is brave too. Things like the black and white square, and other visual edit elements could perhaps do with more discipline towards a locked visual style (to match the simplicity and specificity of the story and its consequences that your telling us.

Brave - and i respect that :)

[Rodney V. Smith]

I don;t know what to say to this one. I had no idea what to make of that annoying square on the screen that eventually just faded away with no rhyme of reason and then I was partly amused by the voice acting but then... WTF just happened? This one leaves me with more questions than answers and the wrong questions. I can value experimentation, but I really have no idea what to make of this at all...

[2062ad]

the way I figure it; everything I do at this stage in the game is experimental! :)

the double screen in question= it was an unexpected turn in layering so to speak. Then it grew on me and I sort of saw it as a kind of perpetual self induced double vision of sorts, and it faded as he got closer to taking action on his thoughts. Whether that came thru or not I don't know and the whole thing sort of keeps a question in my head as well. It was interesting to me so it stayed...for now.


The FX segment with the head was rediculously as fun to put together as fast as the whole "vision" fell apart in lack of time, preparation, and knowledge. So I know it takes a couple viewings of that segment to maybe see it. The more I painted the styrofoam the quicker it melted. :p Fake blood was dripping off it as it swang by the cam on a thread. omg the cam hood somehow still has a couple drops on it I just discovered. How? I have no idea. It was always intended to be a shadow sequence but...Anyway, that and other things I'm going to continue to tweek and learn with. I'll probably expand that segment in one fashion or another most likely including a reshoot of the flying head. and a direct shot of the deadly fan.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Thanks for explaining that.

This one seemed pretty experimental and I can see that you were trying something very different here.
After seeing your rig I expected a really cool shot but didn't get it so in that way I was a little disappointed.

Keep at it and jump in the next fest. I would like to see what you do.

MAH

[2062ad]

...Keep at it and jump in the next fest. I would like to see what you do.

MAH

I'm here to learn, I will be looking fwd to the next fest.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Good stuff. So does that rig move around much? Any footage from it? Quite inventive.

BTW, Did you write this? I enjoyed the repetition of the names. The way he delivered that was interesting.

[Noel Evans]

Interesting. Execution issues sure, but all in all some good experimentation going on there.

Actually I think you would have been better of going a slightly more direct root to his death. Its a touch inconceivable that the fan would kill him.

[2062ad]

Good stuff. So does that rig move around much? Any footage from it? Quite inventive.

BTW, Did you write this? I enjoyed the repetition of the names. The way he delivered that was interesting.

the rig does move around. I had built it a couple weeks prior to shooting yer killin me for another short I'm working on. I'll grab a pc of the raw footage to post in the next day or so. I'ts a 180 degree circle.
I wrote the script just moments after deciding to jump into the fest. It sorta flew out as fast as I could type it. I built the fan rig etc that same night and we shot it the following eve.

[2062ad]

Interesting. Execution issues sure, but all in all some good experimentation going on there.

Actually I think you would have been better of going a slightly more direct root to his death. Its a touch inconceivable that the fan would kill him.

a touch inconcievable? ya think! :) my "vision" actually included a somewhat resonable explanation as to why that might happen but it never materialized. And, as serious as the subject matter is I tried however intentionally to maintain a degree of "campiness" about the thing. In reference- the altered background voices, the title segment, and even the unbelievable demise to some extent.
The only promise I'll make is that you can be sure to expect a degree of experimentation in future fests as well. it's sorta what's feeding me at this stage in the game.

and I'll take it! "interesting" I mean. I can go with that ;)

[Darkline]

Hey Kyle,

Very brave to go with the overhead shot for the whole piece and it's really hard to critique something that's done as an experiment. I applaude trying out new things and for sure urge you to continue. I certainly picked up on the campy nature of it, but it didn't really do a lot for me as a complete short. But that's what experimenting is about right? Not everyone will buy it and I guess it doesnt really matter as long as you acomplished what you want to from it.

A friend of mine is making more experimental pieces at the moment and it's just for himself to expand as an artist than it is for people to give him feedback. To me this felt similar in that it was like a little sketchbook for you and you were trying a technique out. Or did I miss i completely?

[elsmama]

Fun to watch! I liked the perspective - never seeing the whole person could be taken as kind of symbolic... Perhaps I am reading too much into it. At any rate, while it was not the most technically polished film in the fest, it was certainly enjoyable - the ending twist in the story was unforeseen and amusing. Thanks for sharing!

[2062ad]

Hey Kyle,

Very brave to go with the overhead shot for the whole piece and it's really hard to critique something that's done as an experiment. I applaude trying out new things and for sure urge you to continue. I certainly picked up on the campy nature of it, but it didn't really do a lot for me as a complete short. But that's what experimenting is about right? Not everyone will buy it and I guess it doesnt really matter as long as you acomplished what you want to from it.

A friend of mine is making more experimental pieces at the moment and it's just for himself to expand as an artist than it is for people to give him feedback. To me this felt similar in that it was like a little sketchbook for you and you were trying a technique out. Or did I miss i completely?

yup, thats what experimental is all about. It was very very fun to make this short. And what I accomplished is getting it all done in procrastination mode. from start to finish. Given that, no matter for any execution issues I'm still very happy with the overall finish of the thing. Hah! execution; an unexpected pun :)

[2062ad]

Fun to watch! I liked the perspective - never seeing the whole person could be taken as kind of symbolic... Perhaps I am reading too much into it. At any rate, while it was not the most technically polished film in the fest, it was certainly enjoyable - the ending twist in the story was unforeseen and amusing. Thanks for sharing!

...and in the end thats all I can ask for, that it was an enjoyable viewing. Thank you.

[Matt Harris]

the most bugnutz entry yet, i love it! i do appreciate you working waaaaay outside the box.
and next fest i'd love to see you come back and shoot something completely comprehensible (while still experimental).
How's Alaska this time of the year?i gotta visit sometime...

[2062ad]

the most bugnutz entry yet, i love it! i do appreciate you working waaaaay outside the box.
and next fest i'd love to see you come back and shoot something completely comprehensible (while still experimental).
How's Alaska this time of the year?i gotta visit sometime...

Mike, Thanks! really. I appreciate that. I know it's not perfect but I'm certainly glad you enjoyed it no doubt! Maybe it's a good thing for me that I don't know what the "box" is yet? :) I just shoot what spills out of my head and have a fun time doing it. And yes, I'm already looking fwd to the next fest.
how's Alaska? Alaska is ALWAYS great. I love this place. It's getting cold and the snow is making it's way down the mountains at an ever increasing pace. Yes absolutelly you should visit Ak. And the film industry is picking up here recently as well. They're actually starting to shoot stuff here instead of making films about it and filming elsewhere.
Again, thanks a lot!
Kyle

[MrKilloran]

Creative and relies heavily on vocal work of your actors. I'm on the fence though. It left me wanting something more visually. Kudos, can't fault you for trying something new.

[filmcritic]

I'm just going to have to take Noel's advice here and go Tine Fey with my review. So the hands definitely looked like hands and even though I couldn't tell what happened at the end there was clear dialogue. The beginning editing effect was a unique mistake. All in all you made a film. I would definitely classify this as experimental. Best of luck with future projects.

[2062ad]

... So the hands definitely looked like hands and even though I couldn't tell what happened at the end there was clear dialogue. All in all you made a film. I would definitely classify this as experimental. Best of luck with future projects.

experimental from the get go, yup ;)
"all in all you made a film" hahahehe
really tho, thanks for watching and I do hope you got some enjoyment from it.

Kyle

[2062ad]

Just to send out a big thank you to those who watched my film. And thanks too for seemingly enjoying it even given some of the things brought up in the comments. Most of which honestly I can probably agree with :)
Anyway, It has been a great experience and am already looking fwd to the next fest !
congrats to all who got a film together for this fest and special congrats to the finalists!!!!