at the park - a BROTHERS TUTTLE film

[jeremytuttle]

DOWNLOAD THE MOVIE AND WATCH:

DIRECT LINK (http://www.dvxuser.com/dramafest/loader.php?id=jeremytuttle-JeremyTuttle-atthepark.mov) :: DRAMAFEST DOWNLOAD PAGE (http://www.dvxuser.com/dramafest/)

(Let us know what you thought)


Intro:
All right guys we're new to this place, but you have gotten us all excited to give this fest a try. We've actually have been thinking about this one ever since the early rumors of what the next fest was going to be and we've just been itching to do something for this site ever since HorrorFest.

So without further delay, we present:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/ATP_Poster01_400.jpg
*conceptual poster


Synopsis:
A young single mother takes her daughter to the park so she can meet up with an old flame. She hopes a familiar face from her reckless past will bring some enjoyment to what she thinks is a unexciting life. At first everything seems to start off exactly as planned until certain events cause everything to spiral out of control...

Credits:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Headshots/ATP_SD01.jpg http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Headshots/ATP_SG01.jpg http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Headshots/ATP_LDM01.jpg http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Headshots/ATP_MB01.jpg

Erica, the Mother - Shannon Diana
Abbey, the Daughter - Sydney Geisinger
Jarred, the Flame - Louie Del Monico
The Homeless Man - Mike Burnell
The Jogger - Jeff Sullivan

--

Director, Writer, Producer, Editor, Visual Effects Artist, Sound - The Brothers Tuttle
Story - Cheyne Tuttle and The Bothers Tuttle
Director of Photography, Producer - Seth Phelps
Composer - Herman Witkam
Production Designer - Cheyne Tuttle
Visual Effects Artist, Production Assistant - Kalum Truett
Make Up - John Aviles
Associate Producer - Jeff Sullivan

Equipment:
Camera - HVX-200 (Shot to Mini-DV (Standard Def))
Lights - Mostly reflectors
Other - Dolly, tripod, some filters (Polarizer and Gradient ND)

Locations:
Presidio Park and Allied Gardens Park, San Diego CA


BTS Material:
Conceptual Art on Page 3 (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=76675&page=3)
Location Photos and Story Boards on Page 6 (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=76675&page=6)
BTS Photos - First and Second day of principal photography on Page 8 (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=76675&page=8)
Screen Grabs - From First and Second day of shooting on Page 11 (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=76675&page=11)
BTS Photos - Third and Fourth day of shooting on Page 11 (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=76675&page=11)
BTS VIDEOS!! and Photos - Fifth and Sixth day of shooting on Page 13 (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=76675&page=13)
BTS Photos - Post-Production photos added to Page 18 (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=76675&page=18)
Screen Grabs - From Final Cut, Set 1 on Page 22 (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=76675&page=22)

[Jason Ramsey]

Cool, man. Glad to have you as part of the fest as well.

Animals and kids. They tried to use my wife's cat in "The Diary of Anne Frank" last year that I was in. The cat is cool as hell, but apparently not when he is in a cage. Which he escaped from, ran to the greenroom and pissed on my pants. Which I didn't find out about until after rehearsal, when I am sitting in the house getting notes, and reaking of cat piss.
Just don't put the child in a cage and you should be alright :)

Good luck to you, man. Looking forward to updates as they come.

Nosaj (Jason)

[Mike McNeese]

Hey, I like this man's prioritization...he's gonna put off his 25 minute short to enter in the Drama-Fest. That's the kind of dedication we can all learn from.

[Kyle Stebbins]

i'm beginning to think i should be the official dvxuser spell check...

hey jeremy, on your poster i believe it should read "anything could happen" or "anything could have happened" -- but it seems wrong to me as it is right now. maybe it's part of your film?? i hope it is so that i can look like a jackass! ;)

otherwise i love the poster and am looking forward to the film! you better get your hands on a dvx soon!! -kyle

[jeremytuttle]

i'm beginning to think i should be the official dvxuser spell check...

hey jeremy, on your poster i believe it should read "anything could happen" or "anything could have happened" -- but it seems wrong to me as it is right now. maybe it's part of your film?? i hope it is so that i can look like a jackass! ;)

otherwise i love the poster and am looking forward to the film! you better get your hands on a dvx soon!! -kyle

Dang it, I actually had it at one point saying "anything could have happened" but I changed it at the last minute not fixing the tense on the "happen". I'll get on fixing that. Wait... I mean yes, that's all part of the movie, the main character speaks in broken english:laugh: Okay... maybe I just need an editor.

Thanks for the comments Kyle and we hope on picking a DVX up or getting a camera operator with one to help us out.

EDIT: Poster fixed.


Cool, man. Glad to have you as part of the fest as well.

Animals and kids. They tried to use my wife's cat in "The Diary of Anne Frank" last year that I was in. The cat is cool as hell, but apparently not when he is in a cage. Which he escaped from, ran to the greenroom and pissed on my pants. Which I didn't find out about until after rehearsal, when I am sitting in the house getting notes, and reaking of cat piss.
Just don't put the child in a cage and you should be alright :)

Nosaj (Jason)

Okay, Don't put the kid in a cage... check.


Hey, I like this man's prioritization...he's gonna put off his 25 minute short to enter in the Drama-Fest. That's the kind of dedication we can all learn from.

Ya... until my producers kill me that is:)

[Kyle Stebbins]

Dang it, I actually had it at one point saying "anything could have happened" but I changed it at the last minute not fixing the tense on the "happen". I'll get on fixing that. Wait... I mean yes, that's all part of the movie, the main character speaks in broken english:laugh: Okay... maybe I just need an editor.

Borat comes to mind! Anyone going to see that this weekend? I can't wait!

I'm sure you will find someone with a DVX willing to help in the California area... everyone is a movie mogul out there, right? =)
-kyle s

[jeremytuttle]

"Movie moguls"... not as much in San Diego... but I have hopes. We've wanted to take a leap and jump to HD but it's hard to bite that bullet, especially sense I have all ready spent 5k on my XL-1s and accessories (of course that was a few years back) and then if we buy an HVX, panasonic will come out with the HVX400 or something that will be way better *groan*... okay I'm done venting... wow technology really get's me worked up:)

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 11-01-06

First draft of the script is complete. It's ten pages long with only dialogue and actions. Hmmm... will need to be trimmed, but we wanted to just get our ideas down in a flowing order and then later we can chop and cut anything that doesn't drive the story but retains the character arcs. We have a few actors in mind for the lead roles but nothing is official.

Stay tuned - jeremy

[Kyle Stebbins]

**staying tuned**

i noticed the poster change! nice work!! i should delete my posts so no one will know... =)
-kyle

[Jason Ramsey]

Cool, man. At least you have a first draft. Gives you something to work with.

Best,
Nosaj

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 11-02-06

Okay, we have started to hack away at the script. It's hard for us to try and make some of our ideas condensed (we love back story and character development) but that is the nature of the "short". We should have a shorter draft within a few days. I've started working on some conceptual art work and costume designs for our characters and will hopefully have something to show you guys this weekend. We are shooting a pick-up shot for our other short, Room 232, tonight so we are a little busy with that to get anything posted sooner.

[Jason Ramsey]

Sounds good, man. Glad to see you are moving forward. I just put the first stuff on paper a couple of hours ago, myself. I have less than a page so far:)

Jason

[Beat Takeshi]

Good Luck!

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 11-06-06

Did some location scouting and took some pics. Found a really nice park that I didn't even know existed in San Diego (hey I've only lived here all my life :) )

Also did some art work of what I think one of the main characters should look like. I will post that drawing tonight.

Our current plan is to buy and HVX by the first week of December (I've wanted one of these for a year now) but we are still looking for any DPs/Camera Ops that want some experience or just to have fun and work on a great short. Let us know.

[Tom Marshall]

Or you could always go and rent an HVX for the duration of the shoot...

[jeremytuttle]

Or you could always go and rent an HVX for the duration of the shoot...

We'll we thought of that but if we have to shoot it ourselves we want to be really familiarize with it first which would require at least two extra days of renting just to play with that and we plan on shooting over two weekends so that is a total of six days. If the rental fee is around 250, that is 1500 or maybe two weekly rentals for 700 coming to 1400, either way that is a big chunk of just buying a camera that we have wanted any way and that we will use on another short we have coming up in spring and yet again on a feature we have planned for next year. *gasp for air*, So that is a reason why we are a little hesitant to rent.

[Tom Marshall]

We'll we thought of that but if we have to shoot it ourselves we want to be really familiarize with it first which would require at least two extra days of renting just to play with that and we plan on shooting over two weekends so that is a total of six days. If the rental fee is around 250, that is 1500 or maybe two weekly rentals for 700 coming to 1400, either way that is a big chunk of just buying a camera that we have wanted any way and that we will use on another short we have coming up in spring and yet again on a feature we have planned for next year. *gasp for air*, So that is a reason why we are a little hesitant to rent.
That's understandable. We rented an SDX900 for our Horrorfest entry that never actually made the deadline. We had a DVX available, but chose the better camera. If you can actually afford to purchase the HVX, then by all means, do so. Especially if you have other projects planned out already.

[Ted Arabian]

Hey Jeremy, I wanted to one, congrat you on your entry and two, tell you how much I love your poster and banner. I just love it!

Good luck on your production. Looking forward to following your thread and getting the updates!

Ted

[Jason Ramsey]

Updates are sounding good man. I am very interested to see your artwork.

Hope you get the hvx. woo hoo. I saw you inquiring about tom lowe's there. Hope you get it man. It's definitely an awesome camera (that I don't know how to use).

Jason

[jeremytuttle]

Updates are sounding good man. I am very interested to see your artwork.

Hope you get the hvx. woo hoo. I saw you inquiring about tom lowe's there. Hope you get it man. It's definitely an awesome camera (that I don't know how to use).

Jason

Ya, I gonna have a learning curve also. (start plug) I thinking I'm gonna buy the HVX Bootcamp DVD, On sale now:thumbsup: (end plug)

[Jason Ramsey]

Don't forget the HVX book, first and foremost. Best wishes to ya, man. I am sure you will handle her better than I could hope to :)

Jason

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 11-07-06

Here is some art work I've done up to help us get any idea of one of the characters and to inspire us:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Art/The-Bum_Costume-Concept01_500x500.jpg

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Art/Homelessman-Newsad01_500x631.jpg
I admit this one was inspired by Ted and Mark's newspaper;)

Stay tuned for more art and location photos.

[Jason Ramsey]

That's pretty interesting man

Jason

[VersuS]

cool touch there with the photo in the paper!!!

[jeremytuttle]

That's pretty interesting man

Jason

Yeah, I'm no Da Vinci, but it helps get the thoughts going. I want to do more art work but I'll probably just jump into the story boards after working on a shooting script.


cool touch there with the photo in the paper!!!

Thanks, I want to try and add a custom made newspaper into the movie with the homeless character reading it. Even though I'm not sure where I could get that printed without having to print a few hundred of them.

[jeremytuttle]

Here is a little bit of conceptual art I worked on:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Art/ATP_ConArt_Sitting.jpg
This is what I would love the park to look like... but it's not going to happen. Basically I did this just so we can get an idea of what the end product will/should look like.

[Jason Ramsey]

I understand completely about using the visuals to get the brain going.

Jason

[Kyle Stebbins]

as do i... i created my poster first, and tried to get inspired from there. needless to say, i am keeping the title but reworking the poster. =) the story went elsewhere!

[VersuS]

as do i... i created my poster first, and tried to get inspired from there. needless to say, i am keeping the title but reworking the poster. =) the story went elsewhere!

lol kyle!:)

[jeremytuttle]

as do i... i created my poster first, and tried to get inspired from there. needless to say, i am keeping the title but reworking the poster. =) the story went elsewhere!

Lol. That happens. Your title would work for about anything. Mine I can do anything as long as it's at a park. For example: Aliens crash land and take over human civilization... at the park. Or, ninjas and samurais clash swords... at the park.

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 11-09-06

Synopsis finally added to first page (We can write a script in a few days but summing it up in a short paragraph takes forever). Also added some cast and crew info. We are in talks with a few actors so I'll keep you updated.

Also, I will try and get some location photos up soon - Jeremy

[ERIC]

I like your sketches and your synopsis.
That would be pretty intense.

[jeremytuttle]

I like your sketches and your synopsis.
That would be pretty intense.

Thanks Eric and as I mentioned in your thread I really like your marketing method you have going on. Great Avatar, too.

[Ted Arabian]

Hey Jeremy, enjoying the process here. I agree about the visual aid for inspiration. Keep it coming man!

[jeremytuttle]

Hey Jeremy, enjoying the process here. I agree about the visual aid for inspiration. Keep it coming man!

Hey, thanks Ted, I really enjoy all the craziness over on your thread.

Right now we pounding our heads on trying to get a park location without having to spend $600 a day (that is going rate of a permit in San Diego for country parks) without us ending up as a guerilla unit trying to hide our camera in a baby carriage when a cop comes by, "Well no office, those aren't light reflectors their umbrellas". Oh well, well figure it out.

[concannon]

Have you checked out Sid for music?

[leogardini]

Hey Jeremy, I´m just passing by to say that I´d love to score you movie:beer:!!!

[cinealma]

Jeremy:

I like the setup you have for your film. Good stuff.


John G.

[jeremytuttle]

Have you checked out Sid for music?


Hey Jeremy, I´m just passing by to say that I´d love to score you movie:beer:!!!

Thanks Leo, you are very talented and that means a lot but we have actually gotten Herman Witkam to agree to work with us. Thank you though, any body would be lucky to get you :beer:


Jeremy:

I like the setup you have for your film. Good stuff.


John G.

Thanks John, I appreciate it. These comments help push and inspire us.

I can't wait to see what you come up with - Jeremy

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 11-11-06

As mentioned earlier we gotten the talented Herman Witkam as our composer. We are very excited about this.

We have updated our synopsis on the front page, we felt the earlier one gave too much away.

Also, the script is finalized and we have been sending it to actors and all ready have some of them very interested in the project. Stay tuned for confirmations.

[Darkline]

I like the poster and I want to know what happens at the park!

[leogardini]

Thanks Leo, you are very talented and that means a lot but we have actually gotten Herman Witkam to agree to work with us. Thank you though, any body would be lucky to get you :beer:
You are in good hands:beer:!!!

[Herman Witkam]

You are in good hands:beer:!!!

Thanks Leo!!! :)

[ezexpress]

Jeremy, you mentioned filming permits for the park... I am pretty sure (for NY at least) that if you are not using a tripod or jib you do not need a permit. I am not sure if it is the same for you're area. I have filmed two shorts in a park here in NY, and I have not had a permit for either. Nor did I have to hide the camera at any point. Any way, good luck with that, sounds like a great project. Can't wait to see it.

[jeremytuttle]

Thanks guys.


Jeremy, you mentioned filming permits for the park... I am pretty sure (for NY at least) that if you are not using a tripod or jib you do not need a permit. I am not sure if it is the same for you're area. I have filmed two shorts in a park here in NY, and I have not had a permit for either. Nor did I have to hide the camera at any point. Any way, good luck with that, sounds like a great project. Can't wait to see it.

Thanks, ezexpress, I'll take a look into this. We are discovering County Parks, State Parks, and City Parks all have little differences about them (there is one park we want to shoot at but they do a lot of wedding's there so we may get screwed on that one or at least limited).

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 11-13-06

We have confirmed two actors (see front page) and are in hopes for the talented Mr. Concannon, but he is a busy man this Fest.

Went out and took a hundred or so park photos and will use the good ones to help with the story boarding process. I'll post some story boards as soon as I get them drawn up.

We still would love to have a camera operator or ideally a DP come help us out if any one is interested. I'm not sweating about this yet and have no doubt we could shot it ourselves, it just makes things so much easier.

[Ted Arabian]

Wow! David Concannon has got to be the hardest working man in Southern California!!!

Congrats and good luck on the permit issue.

Ted

[Ted Arabian]

PS - Congrats on shagging Herman as well! Good score! (pun not intended but works!)

[jeremytuttle]

Wow! David Concannon has got to be the hardest working man in Southern California!!!

Congrats and good luck on the permit issue.

Ted

Yeah, David is a popular guy, I'm not sure why, it's not like he's a great actor or anything ;) Hey, if you lived in Southern California people would be begging you to work in all their shorts too, I know I would. Of course they would just be using you for your ladders... the bastards.:grin:

Any way, thanks for the comments, we are really glad to get Herman (and hopefully David). There is just an amazing amount of talented people on this site, it blows me away.

[jeremytuttle]

Ted? Ted? I was just joking, man... You know they want more then your ladders :)

Update :: 11-16-06

Not much to update but we have started to take some pictures I took of the locations and have taped them to some cardboard and started to brain storm of what shots we could incorporate into the short. We then took the ones we liked and would tape them to my kitchen wall (this room has the most light in my whole place) in order. When we needed to fill in shots, we would draw them and place the drawings in the gaps. So far we have the first act done. So basically, when this is done will have a good idea of what shots we need and then I'll draw them out better later. I'll try to get a photo of this up soon.

Also, we are going to try and schedule a read through with a potential actress that has a young daughter, so we can get two actresses in one. Wish us luck.

[jeremytuttle]

Here are some photos of the actress that we are going to do a reading with.
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Headshots/Tiffany01.jpg

Hopefully I don't jinx ourselves by posting this... hmm. Anyway, I'll let you know how the reading goes.

Edit: Damn... jinxed it :( :laugh:

[jeremytuttle]

Wow... it's been awhile. To be honest we weren't even sure if we were going to be able to do this but we have fought through adversity and will finish this entry wether it kills us or not.

Update:: 12-07-06

Well we have finally casted our leading lady and have put up a pic of here on the first page. Unfortunately Mr. David Concannon will be unable to work with us this go around because of schedule conflicts, I hope to work with him later and I congratulate everyone that will be able to work with him.

We have finished the shooting script (a script with a list of shots written within the lines/actions) and all of the story boards (not the best looking storyboards in the world... but they are done).

We have contacted the San Diego Film Commission and have gotten the ball rolling on permits for our six days of shooting in our three different locations. Here are a few photos of one of the parks we are using, Presidio Park:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Locations/ATP_Loc-Pres01.jpg

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Locations/ATP_Loc-Pres02.jpg

Harry Griffin Park:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Locations/ATP_Loc-HG01.jpg

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Locations/ATP_Loc-HG02.jpg

We have purchased a HVX-200 :laugh: :2vrolijk_08::shocked:... but we will not get it until next week which will be just days before we start shooting. *gulp* I mean, yes I've read about this camera for the last year now... but we have never touched one... so this could be a challenge.

Stay tuned for more updates. EDIT: ^ Added some location pics ^

[jeremytuttle]

We need a hair and makeup artist, see below for more information:

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=80589

[Jason Ramsey]

Jeremy. Congrats on the HVX purchase. Get the bootcamp vol. 1 dvd. It will get to you in like 2 days, and it will be well worth the purchase. I promise. I just got mine the other day.

Good luck,
Jason

[Ted Arabian]

Hey Jeremy, congrats on the hvx baby!!!!!!!

Glad to see you back on the boards!

Good luck with your shoot.

-Ted

[jeremytuttle]

Thanks Jason, I'm ordering the Bootcamp DVD as I type. I want the book too, but I think you get it with the P2 rebate, so I guess I'll just wait on that.

Thanks Ted, I'm glad to be back!

Here is a page from our shooting script with shoots written within:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/PreVis/ATP_ScriptShooting_PG01.jpg
The descriptions are kind of cryptic but they are just their to reinforce the Story Boards, The reason we like to do this in the script and not just have a shot list is that as we shoot a scene we can, at a glance, know what shoots we still need within the context of the dialogue and action. Then as we shoot, we check the shots off.

Stay tuned for some storyboards later today... now I need to get back to work :(

[Larry Rutledge]

Well, I don't know how you expect your actors to work if they can't read the dialog . . . :grin:


Seriously though, that's a cool idea, putting the shot info right in the script like that...but be careful who you pick to be in charge of that copy of the script. When I was shooting LEAP OF FAITH, I would review the script, review the shot list, then proceed with a shot or two...then I would realize I didn't know what I did with the script I just had and go looking for another copy. I must have gone through about 15 scripts that day :huh:

[jeremytuttle]

Well, I don't know how you expect your actors to work if they can't read the dialog . . . :grin:


Seriously though, that's a cool idea, putting the shot info right in the script like that...but be careful who you pick to be in charge of that copy of the script. When I was shooting LEAP OF FAITH, I would review the script, review the shot list, then proceed with a shot or two...then I would realize I didn't know what I did with the script I just had and go looking for another copy. I must have gone through about 15 scripts that day :huh:

I'll probably be in charge of the script... not necessarily a good thing :huh:. I know what you mean about losing stuff, that's why I think I'll put my script in a 2" binder so it'll stick out like a sore thumb.

[jeremytuttle]

Update:: 12-08-06

Not so much as an update as more of a BTS in our previs. Anyway, here is basically how we constructed our story boards.

First we went out and took some photos of the locations we wanted to use, then we chose the photos we liked and placed them on some high quality boards:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/PreVis/SB_Boards_400.jpg
Then we used the shots we came up with in the Shooting Script and tried to select which photos would fit where. After that we started to fill in the blanks with hand made drawings (some day we will have FF3D like the cool cats in TTN, but for now we use good old paper and pencil) placing them on my kitchen wall along with the photos:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/PreVis/SB_Wall01_400.jpg
This way we can see the whole story and fix things as we scan through. Here is a closer look of some of our story boards in a carefully blended collage:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/PreVis/SB_Mural_400.jpg
Now once all that is finalized we can throw them in notebook/photo album in order so we can reference them as we shoot. Each page has the shot#s written on top and sometimes a camera layout to the side:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/PreVis/SB_Boards-Book_400.jpg
</IMG></IMG></IMG></IMG>

[Darkline]

now that's what you call preparation! :-)

[jeremytuttle]

now that's what you call preparation! :-)

Yeah, I just wish the other aspect of our production were that prepared.

We are stressing about securing permits, insurance, and getting two police officers (yes, police officers... what could we need those for hmmmmm) by this weekend. Our first day of shooting is the most complex by far and requires the most logistically which is giving us all headaches and even some of asking if this is worth it. Worth the time, the money, and the stress.

I think it is but I'm an artist (which basically means I'm so damn passionate about this stuff my reasoning goes out the door and I will do anything to get my vision on screen... which makes me constantly broke)... argh... well see.

Okay, sorry for the rant:violin: .

[Ted Arabian]

I think it is but I'm an artist (which basically means I'm so damn passionate about this stuff my reasoning goes out the door and I will do anything to get my vision on screen... which makes me constantly broke)...
HAHA! Boy, can I relate!

Wishing you Good luck!!!

-Ted

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 12-15-06

>I Put up a photo of our StoryBook (a notebook of all our storyboards in order) on page 6 of this thread, along with the other storyboard pics.

>We got our HVX the other day, here is a picture of our new beauty straight from the box (yeah... we document almost everything):
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/DTCs_HVX.jpg
But there was just one problem with our order...
The 8GB P2 cards were out of stock at the place I ordered everything from, so we won't see the P2 card for two weeks:crybaby: . So, we decided that we will have to shot to tape. Which basically means no HD but only SD for this go around. It's okay though because we weren't sure how we were going to pull off the HD workflow and that would have added yet another complication to this shoot (especially since this whole movie will be shot outdoors, miles away from any power source).

>All the things I was whining about above was worked out and some day I'll share a more detailed experience of what happened but telling you know might give away too much of the story... uh... not that there is anything crazy to give away, he he he:) What I will tell you is: start your permit processes, paper work, and what not at least three weeks early if not a month or more to avoid any issues.

>We are starting principal photography this weekend (whooo hoooo) and this is the biggest weekend because we will be shooting our end scene on Saturday. It's kinda of stressful to shot out of order but we figured that knowing that the ending works will take a lot of pressure off our shoulders. Sunday we will be shooting scenes 1,5,7 and part of 10. I'll keep you posted and hopefully we will have some BTS photos and some screens for you guys soon.

jeremy

[jeremytuttle]

HAHA! Boy, can I relate!

Wishing you Good luck!!!

-Ted

Thanks Ted. Man everytime I see the pic of you eating that burger I want to run to In-N-Out.

[Ted Arabian]

HAHA! Maybe I should speak to IN-N-OUT about becoming a spokesmodel for them!!!

Great to hear about the HVX. Awesome!

Too bad about the P2 cards. That sucks.

Looking forward to your first footage to share!!!

[Jason Ramsey]

Woo Hoo, on the HVX, man. Feels good doesn't it? You know about the p2 card rebate, right? Make sure you hurry up and file for that thing, so you can get your free one. Offer ends on the 31st!

Looking forward to seeing some of your first hvx footy.

Jason

[jeremytuttle]

HAHA! Maybe I should speak to IN-N-OUT about becoming a spokesmodel for them!!!

Great to hear about the HVX. Awesome!

Too bad about the P2 cards. That sucks.

Looking forward to your first footage to share!!!

Just wait, when you become rich and famous they'll be offering you millions to get your face on a billboard.

You're looking forward to footage? Me too, Ted... me too.


Woo Hoo, on the HVX, man. Feels good doesn't it? You know about the p2 card rebate, right? Make sure you hurry up and file for that thing, so you can get your free one. Offer ends on the 31st!

Looking forward to seeing some of your first hvx footy.

Jason

It does feel good. I've been blown away by all the buttons and settings and the looks you can get with those options.
Yeah, I'll have to get on that rebate, I've been so busy with the short, working, and in my free time watching the HVX Bootcamp DVD (which is great, by the way... at least so far:)).

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 12-16-06

Hey guys, just wanted to say our first day of principal photography went great. It was a little stressful because we only had a short window to shoot at a certain location but we pulled it off with only a few sacrifices and in looking at the footage it doesn't look bad at all. This HVX makes some killer Standard Def images ... sharp... a little too sharp maybe ... and an amazingly deep DoF ... a little too deep maybe (next project we definitely want to get a 35mm adapter but until we sell our kidneys so we can afford one ... we will work with what we have.)

One issue we had was that we had Bescor battery pack (used for a Canon Gl-1 and XL-1s) and ordered an adapter for it that said it worked for the DVX, well we thought it would work for the HVX, but for some reason in Tape mode it turns on and then off right away and repeats this over and over. So since we needed a long lasting battery we decided to go buy a car battery which we hocked up to our Car Battery Invertor and then enclosed all that in a tool box which we cut out a slot for a two gang power box and wired it all up. It worked great... just a little heavy.

Well, anyway this is getting a little long. So stay tuned for some BTS photos and wish us luck with the weather tomorrow (the rain is pouring down right now:huh: ) .

EDIT: Here is a terrible picture of the Custom DTC Battery Box:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-16-06/12-16-06_Battery-Pack01_600x400.jpg
This pic show the outlet we put in. On the first day of shooting we powered the camera and our monitor with this bad boy and only used 25% and then we took it home and charged it up using a car battery charger (if you got the same size battery that is in your car, you could put it in you car an charge it). We are thinking of putting wheels on it so it is a little easier to carry.

[Blaine]

Congrats on starting principle photography, Jeremy. I look forward to seeing what you come up with.:beer: :beer:

[jeremytuttle]

Congrats on starting principle photography, Jeremy. I look forward to seeing what you come up with.:beer: :beer:

Thanks Blaine. This project isn't nearly as big and cool as your guy's TTN project but I hope it will entertain people and get them thinking.

[Ted Arabian]

Don't be fooled... we are acutally shooting all of this with minatures! The set is only the size of a shoe box!!!

Seriously, good luck with your shoot!

[jeremytuttle]

Update:: 12-18-06

Here are some captions and photos from our Saturday shoot:

>So right when we pull up to the park we were shooting at we notice this giant group of people trying to recreate some medieval tournament. So we decided to change our movie a little and have Erica battle King Arthur and Merlin... at the park.
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-16-06/12-16-06_01_600x265.jpg
(This guys in the photo were preparing to battle it out)

>Well we decide we had to continue on despite the medieval court (and the fact we would get an occasional sword *twang* in our audio).
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-16-06/12-16-06_07_600x265.jpg
(Me, Mike Burnell (playing our Homelessman), Jon Tuttle cruising to set like we were the Earps on the way to the OK corral)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-16-06/12-16-06_02_600x265.jpg
(Rob J on the Boom Pole, he is multi-talented, he can smoke and get good audio)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-16-06/12-16-06_03_600x400.jpg
(Me making a quick high quality alteration to the Homlessman's costume... by rubbing brake dust on it)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-16-06/12-16-06_04_600x400.jpg
(Jon contemplating a shot)

I wish I could show you more... we have some great photos of what we shot... but it would give too much away, so you'll have to wait on those.

Jeremy

[jeremytuttle]

Don't be fooled... we are acutally shooting all of this with minatures! The set is only the size of a shoe box!!!

Seriously, good luck with your shoot!

Ha ha ha! Then you guy's must be Hobbits then.

[jeremytuttle]

Update:: 12-18-06

Our Sunday shoot was a pain in the butt because it was raining on us in the morning. What really bugged was that it would rain really hard for twenty minutes, then stop for thirty, and then start again. So we decided to try and pick up the scenes we planned to shot in the morning on later date and then wait till later in the afternoon in hopes that the weather would clear up. Which it did and we were lucky to salvage some of the day.

Here are some pics and captions from Sunday's shoot:

>We spent most of the morning staring out into the rain telling ourselves over and over that this sucks.
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-17-06/12-17-06_02_600x400.jpg
(A reflection of one of us)
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-17-06/12-17-06_01_600x400.jpg
(Seth, our DP, in the Rain. Sorry for the poor quality of these two photos, they were taken on my Cellphone.)

>But luckily later we got down to business and shot some scenes with the Homelessman and Abbey.
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-17-06/12-17-06_04_600x400.jpg
(Here is the crew setting up)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-17-06/12-17-06_03_400x600.jpg
(Here is me and Jon giving our young actress, Sydney, some direction.)

All the BTS photos are taken by Cheyne Tuttle (except the cellphone ones) and she was too busy doing other things to get more or anything better but hopefully we can deliver more the next go around.

Jeremy

[Jason Ramsey]

Thanks for the BTS, man. Wow, you've got a boom and a monitor! I've got a broomstick and my eyeballs :thumbsup:

Looks real good.
so how is the hvx shooting to tape? I haven't tried it yet. I haven't even opened up the tape bay :)

Jason

[jeremytuttle]

Thanks for the BTS, man. Wow, you've got a boom and a monitor! I've got a broomstick and my eyeballs :thumbsup:

Looks real good.
so how is the hvx shooting to tape? I haven't tried it yet. I haven't even opened up the tape bay :)

Jason

Last movie we had a window cleaner as a boom pole and I would carry around my personal TV for a monitor (a heavy pain in the butt). Our monitor right now is a portable DVD player with a AV in jack, it's okay for framing but not so good for colors. Every project we try to buy at least one piece of equipment to build up our collection, this time it was a HVX and a boom pole.

So far the HVX is working good in tape mode but to be honest I've been too busy to try any capturing which I know won't be as nice as the P2 transfer. Luckily we write down the time code of the good takes and we only capture the good footage. I'll let you know how the capturing process goes.

[jeremytuttle]

Here is another photo from Saturday's shoot that Cheyne (if any body is wondering you pronounce her name Shay-Nee) took. It isn't really BTS related but I thought it looked pretty cool:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-16-06/12-16-06_05_600x400.jpg

This does give you an idea of the weather we were dealing with... Sunny, over cast, sunny, over cast etc.
http://www.adtcproduction.com.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-16-06/12-16-06_05_600x400.jpg

[Jason Ramsey]

I like it, man.

Jason

[Brandon Rice]

Awesome BTS pics!

[jeremytuttle]

I like it, man.

Jason


Awesome BTS pics!

Thanks Brandon and Jason. I'll try to keep them coming.

Update:: 12-20-06

Well, we started to capture the footage into Premiere Pro 1.5 and after crapping our pants when some weirdness with jittery footage reared it's ugly head... I think we figured it out... maybe. (I read that we should upgrade to PP 2.0 but I can't afford it right now so hopefully we can make it work.?..?... thoughts from any body that uses Premiere Pro.)

Well, what we captured so far looks pretty good. One problem we are all ready noticing, which we did predict would happen, is matching up the footage that has sun compared to the cloudy footage. If we can I think I might try to push for reshooting at least one shot... maybe two if we have the time.

Expect some screens to come sometime this week.

Jeremy

[hjanssen]

How many shooting days?

[jeremytuttle]

How many shooting days?

Herman,
Six shooting days in total. It was going to be five but one half of the day was rained out so now we need to pick up some shots another day.

[jontuttle]

Hello all. The other Brother Tuttle here. I finally setup my account so I can talk with all you fine fellows. Stopping in to say Hello.

[david jerome]

Hey Jon, welcome. This film looks really interesting. Looking forward to it. Looks like you guys really got things rolling. Do you and your brother specialize in different areas?

david jerome

[jontuttle]

Hey Jon, welcome. This film looks really interesting. Looking forward to it. Looks like you guys really got things rolling. Do you and your brother specialize in different areas?

david jerome

Thanks David. Its good to be here. We both wear all kinds of hats. I would say Jeremy is the more creative brother and I am more the technical brother. We are both creative and technical but on set when it comes to crunch time and one of us has to talk to the actors and one of us has to go build a hovering lighting rig, Jeremy deals with the actors and I find the gaffers tape and a fan and get to work. We both share editing duties. When it comes time to sweeten we split up, I head to the Audio Studio and he starts the color correction. But for the most part we are a team.

[david jerome]

Thanks David. Its good to be here. We both wear all kinds of hats. I would say Jeremy is the more creative brother and I am more the technical brother. We are both creative and technical but on set when it comes to crunch time and one of us has to talk to the actors and one of us has to go build a hovering lighting rig, Jeremy deals with the actors and I find the gaffers tape and a fan and get to work. We both share editing duties. When it comes time to sweeten we split up, I head to the Audio Studio and he starts the color correction. But for the most part we are a team.

That's awesome Jon, I love seeing teams like yours. Hard to find and hard to stop. Keep going strong. Can't wait to see more of your progress. Have you guys done many projects together?

david jerome

[Jason Ramsey]

Jon, welcome!
That is awesome that you guys have that coen bro's kind of collaboration going on. It is rare, and I love seeing that you can function almost as if you are one director.

But, do you ever get into some nasty arguments? :beer:

Jason

[jontuttle]

But, do you ever get into some nasty arguments? :beer:

Jason

:kali::furious3:Oh you better believe it. But they get resolved pretty quick

[jontuttle]

Have you guys done many projects together?

david jerome

Just about everything we have done has been together. We used to make stop motion movies with our Lego's when we were kids.

[jeremytuttle]

Jon, welcome!
That is awesome that you guys have that coen bro's kind of collaboration going on. It is rare, and I love seeing that you can function almost as if you are one director.

But, do you ever get into some nasty arguments? :beer:

Jason

He he heh... well we are brothers:laugh:

[Herman Witkam]

Hello all. The other Brother Tuttle here. I finally setup my account so I can talk with all you fine fellows. Stopping in to say Hello.

Hey Jon,

Great to see you here. Welcome to DVXuser :-)

[jontuttle]

Hey Jon,

Great to see you here. Welcome to DVXuser :-)

Thanks Herman. It's great to be here.

[Herman Witkam]

It's funny, cause I also have a (younger) brother doing something similar to what I do. He's not composing yet, but playing a lot of music. :-)

[jontuttle]

It's funny, cause I also have a (younger) brother doing something similar to what I do. He's not composing yet, but playing a lot of music. :-)

Thats awesome. It is always good to have things in common. My brother and I love music. We are both drummers too. You guys might make a great team some day.

[preston]

Jeremy,

I just caught up on your thread - I read the whole thing.

now I'm jealous! everything you've done so far looks good - from the scout photos, to the storyboard art, to the equipment (including the car battery).

good luck, but something tells me you don't need much more!

Preston

[Beat Takeshi]

Its cool to see the progress of the film. I don't know about the brake dust thing since they still put asbestos in brake pads. I love the greens in your poster, I'm partial to greens as you can see on my site.

[jeremytuttle]

Jeremy,

I just caught up on your thread - I read the whole thing.

now I'm jealous! everything you've done so far looks good - from the scout photos, to the storyboard art, to the equipment (including the car battery).

good luck, but something tells me you don't need much more!

Preston

Preston,
Thanks for the comments. Hopefully all the preplanning pays off and we have something interesting to show you guys. But hey... we always could use some luck. Our biggest hurtles so far have been learning our new camera, trying to light outdoors with the sun changing, clouds moving, and then the wonderful rain (that out of the two times it rains a year in San Diego, it rains when we are shooting) Our other problem is finding extra people to hold reflectors and other odd jobs (we were lucky and had the most crew we have ever had on Saturday and most of that crew on Sunday, it was great, I felt like I was actually working on a small production instead of a tiny microscopic production:) )

I'll try to post some picture of our car battery box because I think it's a great emergency piece of equipment that people could use to power their camera, monitor, and even a light or two.
</IMG>

[jeremytuttle]

Its cool to see the progress of the film. I don't know about the brake dust thing since they still put asbestos in brake pads. I love the greens in your poster, I'm partial to greens as you can see on my site.

Oooh.... crap, I forgot about the Asbestos, all though it is Chrysotile Asbestos and is one of the least harmful of them all. It's even used in theater curtains (helps in fire proofing). But, good point... luckily he only needed to wear that "version" of the costume for one day.

Thanks for the comments on the poster, I'm thinking of updating it soon now that we have some photos and footage to work with... I like green too, as you can see by my avatar.:beer:

[jontuttle]

Oooh.... crap, I forgot about the Asbestos, all though it is Chrysotile Asbestos and is one of the least harmful of them all. It's even used in theater curtains (helps in fire proofing). But, good point... luckily he only needed to wear that "version" of the costume for one day.

Wow! My brother is a dork. Well, so am I.:huh:

[jeremytuttle]

Wow! My brother is a dork. Well, so am I.:huh:

Yes... yes I am.:dankk2:


UPDATE KINDA :: 12-22-06

Well folks, I probably won't have too much time to post anything too substantial until this coming Tuesday so I just wanted to say...
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e101/eccentrism/BW_Tree-Moon_Polo.jpg
...but this site is so addicting I'll probably be back sooner.
Happy Holidays to you all,
Jeremy Tuttle

[Beat Takeshi]

eh, whats a little lung cancer anyways...I shouldn't say things like that. My daughter had cancer when she was 4.

[jontuttle]

eh, whats a little lung cancer anyways...I shouldn't say things like that. My daughter had cancer when she was 4.

I am sorry to here that. I hope all is well now. When you just want to get the shot right sometimes you just don't think straight.

[david jerome]

Hey just stopping by to see how things are going. You might want to check to see if your BTS Material links on the first page are linking to the right pages. You can also link to an individual post in the thread. And by the way, who is this third Tuttle I see in the crew credits?

david jerome

[david jerome]

Hey guys, if you haven't messed with the BTS links then don't worry about it. It's seems right. For some crazy reason It was sending me to a different page last night.

david jerome

[jeremytuttle]

Hey guys, if you haven't messed with the BTS links then don't worry about it. It's seems right. For some crazy reason It was sending me to a different page last night.

david jerome

Thanks for the heads up David, I'm glad it's working now. The third Tuttle is our sister Cheyne (That's pronounced Shay-Nee), she is an interior designer by day and a production designer by night... she also takes a lot of our BTS photos... it's a big family project.

Not much else to update right now. I did grab some "out take" screens from our last weekend shoot but they are at my home computer... tonight I should have time to post them up.

jeremy

[jontuttle]

I did grab some "out take" screens from our last weekend shoot but they are at my home computer... tonight I should have time to post them up.

jeremy

Wow my brother sure is taking his time with those screens. That's ok because we have been busy with other stuff. We went to one of the parks we are shooting at and did a bit of location scouting for this upcoming weekends shots. We did a bit of sequence planning too so we wont have to bother with it on the shooting day. It really puts your mind at ease when you can do that sort of thing ahead of time. It is not always possible but it sure is nice when you can.

[jeremytuttle]

Wow my brother sure is taking his time with those screens.
Okay, okay I get the hint.

Here are two screengrabs from some outtakes/before the take (just so you can get a taste of what is going on, without showing too much) that are uncolor graded:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Screens/ATP_Erica02_600x338.jpg

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Screens/ATP_Sydney01_600x338.jpg

Here is an actual screen grab of a take we will be using. This one we played around with color grading but we are not 100% set on this look yet:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Screens/ATP_Mike-Abbey01_600x338_CG.jpg

[jeremytuttle]

Update:: 01-01-07

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!

We had a heck of a shoot this weekend but before I get to that I'd like to tell you a little about a creation we uh... created.

As we mentioned earlier in this thread, we had to do an emergency retrofit of a tool chest to house a car battery and an inverter to power our gear. Well that was cool and all but it was heavy and not very mobile. The other issues we had from the last shoot was the cheesy monitor we had was kinda just resting on what ever we could find along with an audio DA that would fall over if someone wasn't careful... So we got fed up with that and had an idea the night before our next shoot to build this mobile film unit:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/MFU01_600x400.jpg
Okay, it doesn't look pretty but it worked a lot better then what we had and now we can jam the things we need on a regular basis into one place.

We have all ready discovered a few achilles heels to our frankenstein of a production cart, so hopefully we will have time for a version 2.

[jeremytuttle]

Update:: 01-01-07

Here are some production photos from Saturday's shoot:

>Well first off I'd like to say that Saturday we were very undermanned. One guy had to help his dad move, another had to work for part of the shoot but then his van broke down so he couldn't come at all, and another had food poisoning the night before (he at least showed up with coffee and donuts... and then went home). So it ended up being one heck of a day trying to get every shot.

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_01_600x273.jpg
(Setting up, our actors, Shannon and Louie, in the middle)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_02_600x400.jpg
(Setting up a low angle shot)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_03_600x273.jpg
(Louie and Shannon)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_04_600x273.jpg
(Mike)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_05_600x273.jpg
(Louie... For an actor he sure doesn't like getting his picture taken)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_07_600x400.jpg
(Walking through pillars)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_08_600x400.jpg
(Having fun on set)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_09_600x400.jpg
(Watching)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_10_600x400.jpg
(The tree on the right was an honorary boom operator)

To Be continued...

[jeremytuttle]

...More from Saturday

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_12_600x400.jpg
(Using an extra to hold our reflectors... yes, we were that short handed)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/12-30-06/12-30-06_13_600x400.jpg
(Measuring Focus)

Stay tuned for pictures of Sunday's shoot.

[Ted Arabian]

Hey Jeremy, I like the BTS! Great stuff! Especially your rig!!!!

I hope that you all had a great holiday season!

Now, let's make some movies!!!!

Happy New Year!

-Ted

[Ted Arabian]

Okay, okay I get the hint.

Here are two screengrabs from some outtakes/before the take (just so you can get a taste of what is going on, without showing too much) that are uncolor graded:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Screens/ATP_Erica02_600x338.jpg

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Screens/ATP_Sydney01_600x338.jpg

Here is an actual screen grab of a take we will be using. This one we played around with color grading but we are not 100% set on this look yet:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Screens/ATP_Mike-Abbey01_600x338_CG.jpg
I love this last shot!!!

I also love the lighting in the 2nd photo.

Nice stuff!!!

-Ted

[Brandon Rice]

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Screens/ATP_Sydney01_600x338.jpg


Wow, nice shot there... gorgeous lighting there.

[Ted Arabian]

Tell me about it! Beautiful!!!

[jeremytuttle]

Hey Jeremy, I like the BTS! Great stuff! Especially your rig!!!!

I hope that you all had a great holiday season!

Now, let's make some movies!!!!

Happy New Year!

-Ted

Thanks Ted,
I hope you had a great holiday too. I'm excited man, only one more weekend of shooting to go and then we can get a final edit and send it off to Herman.

Brandon and Ted,
thanks for the comments on the screen grabs (it's good to know people are liking what we are doing so far). We get lucky sometimes with the sun popping out from behind a tree (or sometimes a cloud) and then it hides again. Man, sometimes after every take we had to move the reflectors a few feet just to keep up with the sun... Okay, I'll stop complaining.
:violin:

But I'll tell you what, we are learning a lot about shooting outside which is the whole reason we do these things... to learn.

[jontuttle]

Brandon and Ted,
thanks for the comments on the screen grabs (it's good to know people are liking what we are doing so far). We get lucky sometimes with the sun popping out from behind a tree (or sometimes a cloud) and then it hides again. Man, sometimes after every take we had to move the reflectors a few feet just to keep up with the sun... Okay, I'll stop complaining.


It is amazing how fast the sun moves in the winter time. If you really want to learn how to use reflectors practice in the winter in a wooded area. It is a great crash course. You wont believe the things you have to think of and the positions you have to contort your body into to bounce light from the one little lit area you have to your actors. It sure pays off though when you watch the dailies and you think to yourself, "Hey that looks pretty good."

[Ted Arabian]

Excellent info guys! Keep it up and keep sharing!!!

[Jason Ramsey]

Nice stuff guys. I especially like your little "multi-tool" there. That is real neat.

Those shots are the HVX to mini DV right?

Good stuff,
Jason

[jeremytuttle]

Nice stuff guys. I especially like your little "multi-tool" there. That is real neat.

Those shots are the HVX to mini DV right?

Good stuff,
Jason

Thanks Man, it good to see you back on the threads!

Yeah our "Multi-Tool" was a life saver for mobility. We are still trying to figure out what to call the thing... It's kinda a R2-D2 of Indie Productions... with a bad motivator.

Yep, HVX recorded to good ol' Mini-DV tape (we still haven't received the P2 Card I ordered :furious3:... oh well, tape is fine with me, for now that is)

[Jason Ramsey]

It's good to be back. :thumbsup:

Thanks for the updates. Those are still pretty pictures from the HVX. Even when shooting to tape

Later,
Jason

[jontuttle]

Those are still pretty pictures from the HVX. Even when shooting to tape



Thanks. We were really amazed at the quality of the picture. Leaps and bound better then the old XL-1s.

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 01-05-07

Sorry about not getting Sunday's pics up yet. The ones I had, 7 of 9 (hmmm... reference any one) were corrupted so I'll try get them up at some point.

In other news, we are shooting our last scenes this weekend (and any pick ups we still need) and then it is off to the editing room.

[Herman Witkam]

Sounds great - looking forward to see some visuals!

[Inexistence]

how goes it in here? edit phase fellas?

[jontuttle]

how goes it in here? edit phase fellas?

Yep. It is that time. Whip out the little digital razor blade and hack away. We had two great days of shooting over the weekend to wrap up our last couple of scenes.

More updates and BTS to follow.

[jeremytuttle]

Update:: 01-09-07


WE ARE WRAPPED!!! And now it is time to hide away in our dark cave and pound on the DV tapes until they produce a fine powder that is a movie. But first some BTS info on our last weekend of shooting:


>Saturday we did all the Erica and Jarred scenes, two old flames reminiscing about the good old times and getting distracted as Abbey wanders off out of sight. This day went pretty smooth and it was nice for a change to stay in the same location for most of the day. Then later in the day we did a few shoots of Jarred talking to some bystanders.

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-06-07/01-06-07_01_600x273.jpg
(The crew hanging out telling stories around the FrakenD2)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-06-07/01-06-07_02_600x400.jpg
(Shannon and Sydney playing Erica and Abbey, before a take)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-06-07/01-06-07_03_600x400.jpg
(Light from above?)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-06-07/01-06-07_04_600x400.jpg
("I suddenly remembered my Charlemagne. Let my armies be the rocks and the trees and the birds in the sky...")

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-06-07/01-06-07_05_600x400.jpg
(Reflectors as fills+sun as back light= well lit cast)

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-06-07/01-06-07_06_600x400.jpg
(Seth with the camera. In this photo you can get a better look of our custom sun shade, made from cut out hard plastic and a gate hinge... hey it works, cuts the glare and lens flares a lot)

This is some BTS video of Saturdays shoot.: HERE (http://www.dtcproductions.dvxdata.com/ATP/BTS/ATP_BTS-VID01.mov) (right click and save)
Yes, the quality and resolution is crappy, it's because I used my cell phone camera... and yes it's just a little shot of them setting down a blanket, but its video!! Our first BTS video to be exact!

[jeremytuttle]

Update:: 01-09-07

>Sunday’s was a little more interesting. We had to do a few pickups we missed from earlier of Erica talking to a few bystanders and then we moved on to a scene where she starts to really worry and freak out as she looks back and forth in a large clearing. For this we wanted the shoots to get wider and wider to show the expansion of this park and her isolation within. For this we decided to try and do some dolly shoots that would progressively get further and further away. Well in theory that sounds easy but in this park with its step hills we soon realized we had to have a dolly system that could be quickly leveled out, so Jon broke out the tools and Seth and I helped him to come up with this:

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-07-07/01-07-07_05_600x400.jpg

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-07-07/01-07-07_06_600x400.jpg


Basically its two pieces of unistrut attached to two 4x4s at the ends. The metal pipe, track, sits on top of the unistrut. On each 4x4 Jon drilled two holes for some metal pipes to be used as feet. On the bottom side of the 4x4, placed on the pipe, is a clamp with a multi-disc clutch (the ones that you press down on, slide, let go and then lock into position) that will lock the 4x4 to the desired height. Then for extra safety Jon put some bolts through each 4x4 that would add extra clamping power to each pipe (which in the video below you can see him tighten).

Check out some BTS video of the dolly (again from my cellphone): HERE (http://www.dtcproductions.dvxdata.com/ATP/BTS/ATP_BTS-VID02.mov) (right click and save)

>Okay, now the second story to this more interesting day I debated to talk about because really it didn’t work out how we had hoped, but to go along with the dolly shots that would gradually go further and further out we wanted to do a helicopter shoot (yes we are crazy). Now, normally a helicopter shot would be a pipe dream at best for any production but luckily Seth’s brother-in-law is a helicopter pilot and we were able to use his services for an hour and all we had to do was pay for gas.

Check out another BTS video done with my cellphone that I cut together and added music by Herman Witkam (I did this at work so I didn’t have a NLE system near by so I used Quicktime Pro): HERE (http://www.dtcproductions.dvxdata.com/ATP/BTS/ATP_BTS-Heli_Full_W-Music.mov) (right click and save)

Well, at first we thought this was a great idea. Seth had gone up a few times in the past and had captured some great footage, but this go around the movie gods were not smiling down on us as we encountered some problems.

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-07-07/01-07-07_heli01_600x400.jpg

Problem 1: When we arrived at the airport the wind started to really pick up. Gulp, not good for a helicopter and then our pilot told us it would actually be winder up the higher we got. Well, if we knew what we know now, I would have pulled the plug that second, but I figured we still could pull this off.

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-07-07/01-07-07_heli02_600x400.jpg

Problem 2: We couldn’t get as close to the ground and location as we wanted because of the combination of wind and the fact the location was a public park, we couldn’t go below 500ft nor could we hover.

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-07-07/01-07-07_heli04_600x400.jpg

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-07-07/01-07-07_heli05_600x400.jpg

Problem 3: Because we couldn’t get as close as we hoped we had to zoom in.

Now with the combination of wind (40 mph by this point on average) and then zooming in all the way it produced… well some really freaking bumpy looking footage. We tried multiple passes but we just couldn’t get a good shoot. So we abandoned the idea and headed home with our heads hung low (part disappointment part looking at the ground below us… that and me throwing up in a plastic bag, I was so disappointed I had to vomit… Ok, not really, it was actually the shaking and swooping helicopter and rapid turning combination that got me:zombie_smiley:).
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-07-07/01-07-07_heli08_600x400.jpg

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-07-07/01-07-07_heli07_600x400.jpg

Well, after we landed, we couldn’t stand around too long and feel sorry for ourselves because there were still some shots to get, which we did and they looked great.

>So now I’d like to thank the crew (which lurk here) for all the hard work they have done over the last few weekends. There is no way just one or two people could have made this movie, this was a team effort, and you all kicked some serious a$$. I’ll see most of you Thursday as usual so until then rest as much as you can because there is still work to be had.

I’d also like to thank the actors that all performed amazingly.

Louie you smuck: you did great as usual and its always a pleasure working with you and you know if we start another project all you have to bring is a tooth brush and a cellphone and you're hired.

Shannon: we were so lucky that we stumbled onto your amazing talent, you did a great job and I hope to work with you more.

Mike: you brought a lot to this production with your can do attitude and willingness to help out any way you can, you were a pleasure to work with and I would also love to work with you again.

>OK, now it is time to jump into POST-PRODUCTION!!! Stay tuned.

[MiataFilmSomething]

Looks neat so far! I wish I could get my family into the gig.

[jeremytuttle]

Looks neat so far! I wish I could get my family into the gig.
Thanks man. Yeah its great that my siblings like to work on the same kinda things (even though some time we have a few disagreements) we even had our parents help cater a few days which was a step up from our other productions where we had to stop everything to go and get some food.

[jontuttle]

Wow! My brother rocks. I look down for a minute and when I look up a ton of info appears. Good job Bro.

[Ted Arabian]

Hey Jeremy, excellent info and I enjoyed your phone video clips.

So, you hired a helicopter??? Wow! Sucks about the windy conditions. Are you able to use any of it or are you going with plan B? I hope you get the shot you wanted... that sound so cool! (dvxers are pulling all the stops on this one!!!)

Keep it up Tuttles!

-Ted

[conrad_johnson]

Ask Jack Stanley about his stabilizer software, I saw some amazing stuff from some very shaky footage he did with it. Those shots could be usable yet.

[jontuttle]

Hey Jeremy, excellent info and I enjoyed your phone video clips.

So, you hired a helicopter??? Wow! Sucks about the windy conditions. Are you able to use any of it or are you going with plan B? I hope you get the shot you wanted... that sound so cool! (dvxers are pulling all the stops on this one!!!)
-Ted

We made a plan B when Jeremy and our DP Seth got back from the airport just incase the footage wouldn't work.

Talk about a communication nightmare between ground and air. Cell phone, "oh no! Lost signal". Walkie Talkie, "Crap! They flew behind too many trees". Cell Phone, Walkie Talkie, Cell Phone, Walkie Talkie, Cell Phone, Cell Phone, Arms waving in air, pointing and yelling... Phew! Finally take a breath when it is over.




Keep it up Tuttles!

-Ted

Thanks Ted we sure will. You keep on trucking as well. Your project looks like it will be amazing. Hopefully we can work together one of these days.

[Ted Arabian]

Thanks Ted we sure will. You keep on trucking as well. Your project looks like it will be amazing. Hopefully we can work together one of these days.
That would be awesome!

And your experience with communication between air and ground sounds AWFUL!!! Sorry to hear that!

[jeremytuttle]

Ask Jack Stanley about his stabilizer software, I saw some amazing stuff from some very shaky footage he did with it. Those shots could be usable yet.

Hmmmm, I'll have to ask him. :beer:

We did think about using After Effects and trying to "counter" the motion by zooming in and moving the frame up when the camera moves down and vice versa... would be a pain in the butt, but it might be worth it.

[Ted Arabian]

Let me know if you use a program and how it works for you. I would be interested in learning.

[jeremytuttle]

Hey Jeremy, excellent info and I enjoyed your phone video clips.

So, you hired a helicopter??? Wow! Sucks about the windy conditions. Are you able to use any of it or are you going with plan B? I hope you get the shot you wanted... that sound so cool! (dvxers are pulling all the stops on this one!!!)

Keep it up Tuttles!

-Ted

Thanks Ted, hopefully we'll have better quality next time for the videos. We might be able to use a few seconds of footage... there is some killer really far shots showing just the park that might work, or might even be good for an opening establishing shot. We'll see. A few people have suggested just taking still frames but I'm not sure if that would flow with the rest of the movie.

[david jerome]

You guys are done shooting. Totally awesome. I'm so glad you guys are in this. Is it Frankenstein or R2-D2? That's a pretty broad description for your unique creation. Does it have a brain? If so, I would lean towards Frankenstein. Now if you can only make such a masterful creation out of all that footage. I know you can.

david jerome

[jontuttle]

You guys are done shooting. Totally awesome. I'm so glad you guys are in this. Is it Frankenstein or R2-D2? That's a pretty broad description for your unique creation. Does it have a brain? If so, I would lean towards Frankenstein. Now if you can only make such a masterful creation out of all that footage. I know you can.

david jerome

How about FrankenD-2? Sounds good to me. Thanks for the kind words. A spit shine here and there and we might just have a film.

[jeremytuttle]

Update 01-11-07

>A slew of BTS pictures of last weekends shoot have been added to the page 13 update posts so go check them out now... hurry while supplies last!!

Here is a photo I couldn't fit because of the 9 image limit:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-07-07/01-07-07_heli03_600x400.jpg

>We have started to edit and have four scenes out of thirteen cut together. WE are a little worried since two out of the four scenes are almost a minute long... gulp. That roughly means there is only four minutes left for the other eleven scenes... hmmmm... it's still really early in the game so we are not in a panic yet but expect a longer cut after this contest.

Okay, back to our editing cave,
Jeremy

[Ted Arabian]

WOW! The BTS pix are great! And I love that dolly rig of yours. I was concerned when I saw the video of it... I thought that the pipes would "bow" in the span over the two 2x4 bases. But your use of square tube seems to solve that! Great work. I may be stealing this idea. I just love how you can emply this on a hill side on uneven surface.

WOW!

-Ted

[jontuttle]

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/prod-photos/01-07-07/01-07-07_heli01_600x400.jpg




Alright! Who let Jerry Bruckheimer and Michael Bay onto our shoot?

[jontuttle]

WOW! The BTS pix are great! And I love that dolly rig of yours. I was concerned when I saw the video of it... I thought that the pipes would "bow" in the span over the two 2x4 bases. But your use of square tube seems to solve that! Great work. I may be stealing this idea. I just love how you can emply this on a hill side on uneven surface.

WOW!

-Ted

Thanks Ted. We were glad it worked out. It is amazing what the mind can think of when it has to. I'm sure there are hundreds of people that have already thought of such things but it was new to us.

We try to push ourselves to do things we don't think we can. We toss out a lot of shots due to difficulty but we try to keep as many as we can. It really does make you a better film maker. So they next time you do battle you have more weapons to choose from.

Just remember when someone asks you where you got the idea, make sure and tell them it was some punk kids from San Diego.:grin:

[They Live]

Awesome BTS stuff guys. You're going for HELICOPTER SHOTS! Man, makes my small short feel even smaller (in terms of production, crew size, etc.)

I'm excited for this one.

[jontuttle]

Awesome BTS stuff guys. You're going for HELICOPTER SHOTS! Man, makes my small short feel even smaller (in terms of production, crew size, etc.)

I'm excited for this one.

Thanks Ben. The Heli shots were a bit rough so we will see if they work out. Hopefully we can stabilize them. I'm sure you film will feel big even with the small production size.

We are excited for yours too. Real interested to see it. I love the poster.

[jeremytuttle]

Update:: 01-13-06 - Morning

We have finished editing (well roughly at least) scenes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 12, and 13 so that leaves 7, 10, and 11 and then after that we will polish it up, have a quick screening with the core DTC, make last minute changes (re-polishing it) and then send it off to Herman (visuals are coming, man!!).

[Ted Arabian]

Herman is going to be one busy mo-fo. I better get my film into him before he starts turning away business!!!

[Herman Witkam]

hehe - don't worry about that, Ted. I will lock myself in my studio until the end of the month. ;-)

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 01-15-07

Our first edit is done and it is exactly six minutes!! And I don't think we could have gone any shorter. I just got done sending Herman the video (it's time for the pad locks and barricades on your door man:grin:), I can't wait to hear what he comes up with.

Now it's all about color-correcting, color-grading and fixing the audio which is a little noisy to say the least. The park we shoot at was nestled in between two freeways so if any body knows of a good noise cancelling software for PC, let us.

Stay tuned for screen grabs as I get them color-corrected and color-graded.

Jeremy

[Larry Rutledge]

I haven't checked your thread in a while, so I'm sorry about bringing this info late (considering you locked your edit), but if you still want to try and stabilize some of that helicopter footage (perhaps for the longer cut) you might want to try De-Shaker, the plugin for VirtualDub.

I don't know if you are on Mac or PC and I don't know if there is a Mac version of VirtualDub. But I used this plugin on a PC and smoothed out some pretty shaky footage and it seems to do a very good job....worth checking into anyway. You can find out more here: http://dvformat.digitalmedianet.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=28849

Looking forward to seeing your film.

Peace,
Larry

[Herman Witkam]

Update :: 01-15-07

Our first edit is done and it is exactly six minutes!! And I don't think we could have gone any shorter. I just got done sending Herman the video (it's time for the pad locks and barricades on your door man:grin:), I can't wait to hear what he comes up with.

hehe! One half day of music college tomorrow - but that's it! The rest of the month is for Dramafest. Can barricades and pad locks be counted as expenses? :grin:
Downloading the cut now....

[Edgen]

Jeremy, The film's bTS look great and looks like i came together perfectly.

Herman... anxious to hear your score! :) I also hear ya about this month.. My last two weeks of january are inked all red... <--- D.V.X -----------> :)

good luck!
/j

[Herman Witkam]

Herman... anxious to hear your score! :) I also hear ya about this month.. My last two weeks of january are inked all red... <--- D.V.X -----------> :)

good luck!
/j

Thanks man :-)

What I've heard of your work on SR sounds really good!

Do you still use IM (MSN/AIM etc) these days btw?

[jeremytuttle]

I haven't checked your thread in a while, so I'm sorry about bringing this info late (considering you locked your edit), but if you still want to try and stabilize some of that helicopter footage (perhaps for the longer cut) you might want to try De-Shaker, the plugin for VirtualDub.

Peace,
Larry

Thanks for the info Larry, I will take a look into that. I'm pretty happy with we ended up with, you'll have to check it out, I think it works with what is happening in the scene.


hehe! One half day of music college tomorrow - but that's it! The rest of the month is for Dramafest. Can barricades and pad locks be counted as expenses? :grin:
Downloading the cut now....

:beer: Let me know what you think.


Jeremy, The film's bTS look great and looks like i came together perfectly.

good luck!
/j

Thanks Man, but I wouldn't say perfectly (but does any movie project ever do that:) ), but it did fall together pretty good. I can't wait to hear (and maybe see?) you come up with for this fest, good luck to you too.

[Geoff_R]

Awesome BTS info, Jeremy! That dolly looks really good, very well designed! Even though the conditions were bad, it's pretty neat to be able to go up in a chopper to get footage. Looking forward to your film!

[jontuttle]

We went up to our parents place up in the mountains to record some stuff we needed for sound effects last night. Boy was it cold. 19 degrees. Some of you guys are probably used to that kind of cold but to us SD boys that is freaking freezing.

Any ways with those sounds on tape we are that much closer. Lots of sound editing to do. Wish us luck.

[Kalum_Truett]

So I think the real question that everyone wants to know is: Where does Jeremy get his hats?

[jeremytuttle]

So I think the real question that everyone wants to know is: Where does Jeremy get his hats?

Hey Kalum, good to see you on the boards finally.

Everyone, I introduce to you Kalum, a proficient slate guy, boom operator, visual fx (you'll see a killer 3d logo he came up for us), story board (for our last project) artist guy (just to name a few things).

Kalum, this is everyone.

[Ted Arabian]

Hi Kalum! Welcome to the boards!

[jeremytuttle]

Update:: 01-19-07

Okay, I haven't done an official update in a while so here it is:

As you know editing is wrapped for the six minute version and now I'm feverishly color correcting and grading with only about 20% left to do. Jon is working on fixing some audio issues and we are trying to figure out how much we need to ADR and what we can leave with as the dead line approaches.

We have also started to record some soundfxs as Jon has mentioned with a few more to come.

FInally, we have received the first drafts of Herman's Scores and I've got to say they have been better then we could have possibly expected. (Thank you Herman:thumbsup:) Once we threw them on the timeline with our footage it really started to fell like a movie. Of course we had a few notes (it's funny, I think when you really like something you get really excited and the imagination bursts open of how it could be tweaked to really get it fitting just right) and I can't wait for his next draft.

I haven't had a lot of time to sit down and just pick out some screen shots, but this weekend I hope I can post some (of course after seeing Katrina's beautiful images I don't think anything I post will compare:undecided).

[Robert Eldon]

Jeremy,

I'm really looking forward to this film. Were you able to use any of the 'helicopter' footage in the 6 minutes?

[jeremytuttle]

Jeremy,

I'm really looking forward to this film. Were you able to use any of the 'helicopter' footage in the 6 minutes?

Yeah, we got a few quick shots in there and we actually think the "bumpiness" helps the mood of the scene, so we think it worked out, we'll see what you guys think:smile:.

But as Geoff mentioned, it was still a blast to go up there and just do it (at least on the way there, on the way back I was a little:zombie_smiley: ).

[Ted Arabian]

Hey Jeremy, glad to hear that you are able to use that footage. That is going to be very cool to see! (and besides, after the price you paid it BETTER be in the film!!! :zombie_smiley: )

[Jason Ramsey]

Jeremy. You ever get a name for that "multi-tool", yet :)

Jason

[jeremytuttle]

Jeremy. You ever get a name for that "multi-tool", yet :)

Jason

Yeah, David Jerome kinda helped us come up with a name... we are callig it the:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/FrankenD2.jpg

[jontuttle]

Yeah, David Jerome kinda helped us come up with a name... we are callig it the:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/FrankenD2.jpg

That's awesome. We need some stickers made off this picture and plaster them all of little FrankenD2.

[david jerome]

You guys rock. Sign me up for a Franken D2 when you start mass producing these. I really needed him yesterday. Had to use my camera's lcd for an outdoor scene because I had no power. I was not happy. He will give me enough juice to power a field monitor I hope.

david jerome

[jontuttle]

You guys rock. Sign me up for a Franken D2 when you start mass producing these. I really needed him yesterday. Had to use my camera's lcd for an outdoor scene because I had no power. I was not happy. He will give me enough juice to power a field monitor I hope.

david jerome

Thanks David. You rock too for inspiring the name. This little guy was a total life saver. It powered our camera, little portable DVD player and headphone amp no problem. It should have no problem with a small monitor. I wouldn't suggest using a 60" Widescreen.

[ignatius]

as do i... i created my poster first, and tried to get inspired from there. needless to say, i am keeping the title but reworking the poster. =) the story went elsewhere!

Hey guys, I'm cruising a lot of posts late (I did cruise yours initially when it was just one page) so this is going back a ways, but I wanted to comment on the "poster design first" tactic - I can't work that way. I thought about creating a poster based on the screenplay, but I just couldn't - I had to get some footage to inspire the poster. I like to incorporate images from a project in most, if not all, of the graphic designs I do. I don't know how you guys do it the other way 'round! But that's what makes it cool, to me. I was kinda panicked about not being able to get something up until after I shot the thing and was wishing I could have worked with a different methodology.

IF

[ignatius]

Hi Jeremy,

I didn't know you guys were based out of San Diego, that's cool. The actress in my short, Mary Volpe-Dawson, and my key crew guy, Derek Nickell, both hail from San Diego - I met them both working as a DP on a short down there last summer.

IF

[jontuttle]

Hi Jeremy,

I didn't know you guys were based out of San Diego, that's cool. The actress in my short, Mary Volpe-Dawson, and my key crew guy, Derek Nickell, both hail from San Diego - I met them both working as a DP on a short down there last summer.

IF

Yep! S.D. born and raised. Thats cool about your actress and crew guy. Do they live in San Diego or are they just from here? We are always looking for new people into film in our area.

In regards to the poster, we try to come up with concepts and looks to help inspire us. It is kind of backwards because you will never see and actor on our posters because we haven't found them yet.

[Ted Arabian]

Yeah, David Jerome kinda helped us come up with a name... we are callig it the:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/FrankenD2.jpg
Hey guys, can you direct me to the post that included the spec's on the FrankenD2... I love this thing! I am looking for how much power/runtime you get out of that battery/inverter.

[jontuttle]

Hey guys, can you direct me to the post that included the spec's on the FrankenD2... I love this thing! I am looking for how much power/runtime you get out of that battery/inverter.

Ted we love this thing too. Really made shooting outside at a park with so so terrain a snap. It even had this little slide out parts bin we used to set our storyboard folder on.

If you go to page 11 on this thread there is a bit of info on it.

We would run the HVX, A portable DVD Player for a monitor, and a headphone distribution amp off of it and after an 8 to 10 hour shooting day we would use about 25 to 35 percent of the battery. We would use a cheap car battery charger to re-juice. If you get the same battery that your car takes you can just through it in your ride and charge as you drive home.

Our inverter was rated at 500 watts. We have powered a 500 watt Lowell light with it. No idea how long it would last with a light. We only needed it for a short period. You can get 700 and 1000 watt inverters for even more power capabilities.

We will get some more detailed info up on it as soon as Dramafest is over. Maybe I will make up a how to since we seem to get asked about it a lot.

[ignatius]

Do they live in San Diego or are they just from here?

They do indeed live in San Diego, but I constantly make them drive an hour and a half north to enterain me.

[jontuttle]

They do indeed live in San Diego, but I constantly make them drive an hour and a half north to enterain me.

:Drogar-BigGrin(DBG) Perhaps one day they can drive just a few minutes to entertain me.

[jeremytuttle]

Update :: 01-24-06

It's been awhile since an official update so I'd thought I'd let you guys know what was going on in the wonderful world of Post-Production... "at the park"


Color Correcting and Grading is 99% done. I have a few problem shots that with the help of After Effects I might be able to salvage them into something that is workable.

Kalum is working in After Effects to clean up some shots. One we are adding a little bit of a shadow and fake DOF to it because the original shot looks like we shot the actress on a green screen (weird).
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/Post/Post_04_600x400.jpg

Jon is kicking butt doing sound design in Pro Tools and Sonar. He has mixed in a lot of the soundfxs in and they are sounding pretty sweet, makes the ending we have that much more impacting and emotional with the good sound design.
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/Post/Post_03_600x400.jpg

We have also been doing some ADR. On Sunday we did a few scenes with Shannon (Erica) and yesterday we did some with Mike (The Homeless Man), using our make shift ADR booth in my garage.
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/Post/Post_01_600x400.jpg
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/Post/Post_02_600x400.jpg
So far it seems to work pretty good and seems to be mixing in well with the original audio.

We still have a little bit of ADRing to do with Louie (Jarred) on Thursday and then it's just finishing up the rest this weekend.

http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Prod-Photos/Post/Post_05_600x400.jpg

We've also have Herman's Final score in place and wow! Amazing and unique at the same time and It really pushes the movie along in the right spots. I think you guys are going to like it

Jeremy

[ignatius]

:Drogar-BigGrin(DBG) Perhaps one day they can drive just a few minutes to entertain me.

I'm sure they'd appreciate the difference in gas money!

What mic do you guys use for ADR work?

[Kyle Stebbins]

rockin!!!

[jontuttle]

What mic do you guys use for ADR work?

We are using our shotgun. It's a Audio Technica AT897. It works pretty good outdoors but I would rather have a Shure KSM44 for ADR. It is a cheaper studio mic that has gotten good reviews. When I say cheap I mean in the $700 range compared to the several thousand range the pro ADR studios use.

[jeremytuttle]

rockin!!!

Ohhhh, we be rockin'

[Herman Witkam]

We are using our shotgun. It's a Audio Technica AT897. It works pretty good outdoors but I would rather have a Shure KSM44 for ADR. It is a cheaper studio mic that has gotten good reviews. When I say cheap I mean in the $700 range compared to the several thousand range the pro ADR studios use.
I've used the KSM44 for some recordings for the score, and it's actually my main all-purpose microphone. Great sound on vocals/speech as well!

[jontuttle]

I've used the KSM44 for some recordings for the score, and it's actually my main all-purpose microphone. Great sound on vocals/speech as well!

Thanks Herman. That is great to hear. I will be getting that mic for sure now. It is always good to know a real life person has had good luck with something and recommends it to others.

[Yardsale]

Update:: 12-08-06

Not so much as an update as more of a BTS in our previs. Anyway, here is basically how we constructed our story boards.

First we went out and took some photos of the locations we wanted to use, then we chose the photos we liked and placed them on some high quality boards:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/PreVis/SB_Boards_400.jpg
Then we used the shots we came up with in the Shooting Script and tried to select which photos would fit where. After that we started to fill in the blanks with hand made drawings (some day we will have FF3D like the cool cats in TTN, but for now we use good old paper and pencil) placing them on my kitchen wall along with the photos:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/PreVis/SB_Wall01_400.jpg
This way we can see the whole story and fix things as we scan through. Here is a closer look of some of our story boards in a carefully blended collage:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/PreVis/SB_Mural_400.jpg
Now once all that is finalized we can throw them in notebook/photo album in order so we can reference them as we shoot. Each page has the shot#s written on top and sometimes a camera layout to the side:
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/PreVis/SB_Boards-Book_400.jpg
</IMG></IMG></IMG></IMG>
wow :shocked:

[snodart]

I love it... Mobile film unit, helos, adapted dolly track, the storyboarding process. This has been a great thread to check out! I love to see this sort of motivation and dedication. Can't wait to see it.

[jontuttle]

I love it... Mobile film unit, helos, adapted dolly track, the storyboarding process. This has been a great thread to check out! I love to see this sort of motivation and dedication. Can't wait to see it.

Thanks man. Can't wait to see your film too.

[ignatius]

I just read about your helicopter experience, I think that's awesome you did that. A couple months ago I had to shoot some arial footage for the city of Paramount and they sent me up in a tiny thing, kind of like a suspension rig for seats and lawnmower engine -

http://witnesspictures.com/testbin/helicopter.jpg

- and the pilot had removed the doors for shooting purposes, so my knee was hanging outside - when we first took off, the slipstream almost took the DVX right outta my hand! But, the weirdest thing was that the second I looked away from the LCD screen and paid attention to where I was, I would almost vomit, so I'd go back to shooting and everything went away ... But I know exactly what you're talking about when you're disappointed with the camera shake. There was like no way to NOT pick up shake from the motor, but when the pilot circled a spot, I managed to get a handful of seconds of decent footage here and there. I'm so looking forward to seeing how you use your chopper footage dramatically. I've heard of a guy out here in my area that rents and pilots a remote control camera helicopter and I always thought it'd be cool to utilize that one day.

[jontuttle]

I just read about your helicopter experience, I think that's awesome you did that. A couple months ago I had to shoot some arial footage for the city of Paramount and they sent me up in a tiny thing, kind of like a suspension rig for seats and lawnmower engine -

http://witnesspictures.com/testbin/helicopter.jpg

- and the pilot had removed the doors for shooting purposes, so my knee was hanging outside - when we first took off, the slipstream almost took the DVX right outta my hand! But, the weirdest thing was that the second I looked away from the LCD screen and paid attention to where I was, I would almost vomit, so I'd go back to shooting and everything went away ... But I know exactly what you're talking about when you're disappointed with the camera shake. There was like no way to NOT pick up shake from the motor, but when the pilot circled a spot, I managed to get a handful of seconds of decent footage here and there. I'm so looking forward to seeing how you use your chopper footage dramatically. I've heard of a guy out here in my area that rents and pilots a remote control camera helicopter and I always thought it'd be cool to utilize that one day.

We have looked into the remote control thing but never really followed up on it. I think it is a great idea but i think I would want to rent a camera just in case the thing took a dive.

My brother went up while I was on the ground and he got kinda sick too. But what is really making us sick right now is compression. 40 MB! Arrgh! Talk about a pain. It has been the worst part of this whole process.

[Michael_Petro]

story boards! I don't use no stinking story boards....as you will see

Good Luck

[ignatius]

But what is really making us sick right now is compression. 40 MB! Arrgh! Talk about a pain. It has been the worst part of this whole process.

Yeah, I kinda freaked over the 40MB thing, but then I did a test and changed one setting in Quicktime Pro and I got a beautiful (relatively) compressed file topping out at 33MB! Let me know if you want the settings I tried. I know compression has a lot to do with the differences between frames, so the fact that my short takes place in one location is probably helping out on the compression end.

[jontuttle]

Yeah, I kinda freaked over the 40MB thing, but then I did a test and changed one setting in Quicktime Pro and I got a beautiful (relatively) compressed file topping out at 33MB! Let me know if you want the settings I tried. I know compression has a lot to do with the differences between frames, so the fact that my short takes place in one location is probably helping out on the compression end.

If you wouldn't mind letting me know your method that would be great. I think we got it squared away but having a couple variations to pick from is always a good idea.

[jeremytuttle]

story boards! I don't use no stinking story boards....as you will see

Good Luck

I have to admit the story boarding saved our asses on location. Things went a lot smoother looking at the storyboards an getting an idea of what the next shot was going to be. Our movie is actually edited pretty close to the SBs. If I get time I'd like to scan them in (or maybe shoot them with the HVX) and do a story board version on a few scenes.

Yeah, we spent all day Sunday trying to get the dang compression to do our biding and look the way it should look. We spent a while getting the brightness and contrast to match up after compression to what we had originally. We think we got a pretty good version but it was a few MB over so we still need to do some tweaking... fun fun fun.

[ignatius]

Here's what I used in Quicktime Pro:

http://witnesspictures.com/testbin/qtsettings.jpg

I found found that knocking the bit rate down to 600kbs saves about 1.5 megs per minute and doesn't really impact the final look all that much. Hope it helps.

EDIT: Have you guys figured out a way to output an mpeg2 yet? 'Cause I'm looking for some help on that end, haha.

[jontuttle]

Here's what I used in Quicktime Pro:

http://witnesspictures.com/testbin/qtsettings.jpg

I found found that knocking the bit rate down to 600kbs saves about 1.5 megs per minute and doesn't really impact the final look all that much. Hope it helps.

EDIT: Have you guys figured out a way to output an mpeg2 yet? 'Cause I'm looking for some help on that end, haha.

Thanks for the info. Your settings almost match ours to the T. A few differences but pretty close. I will try those out.

We are taking care of the mpeg2 tonight and I will let you know what we find. We have done it before so it should just be a refresher for us. Hang tight.

[ignatius]

I ended up going with a 700 bitrate because the 800 made a 40.6 meg file.

[jontuttle]

I ended up going with a 700 bitrate because the 800 made a 40.6 meg file.

We ended up using a 700 bit rate too. Ended up with a 39.7 Meg file. Wow! right under. Thanks for your help.

We are still working with the mpeg2 file. We thought we had it then after an hour and a half of waiting found the the aspect was super stretched. Our talent looked like umpa lumpas. When we figure it out we will let you know.

[ignatius]

We are still working with the mpeg2 file. We thought we had it then after an hour and a half of waiting found the the aspect was super stretched. Our talent looked like umpa lumpas. When we figure it out we will let you know.

Thanks guys, I got my entry uploaded an hour ago (took 2.2 hours to complete a 359 meg upload). I compressed out my mpeg2 using Compressor (non-PC) using the following settings:

http://witnesspictures.com/testbin/CompressorSettings3.jpg

For what it's worth.

[Brandon Rice]

I tell ya, I've been uploading rough cuts of a 46 min. flick and I've been doing H264@400 bits, and it looks totally fine.

[Kyle Stebbins]

for horrorfest i had a heck of a time trying to render h.264 through QTpro - it seemed that anything under 50mb was near IMPOSSIBLE to get. However, thanks to Alex Jeffery and all you dvxusers I nailed it with something around 46mb i believe. we'll see how another day treats me! =)

-kyle

[ignatius]

I tell ya, I've been uploading rough cuts of a 46 min. flick and I've been doing H264@400 bits, and it looks totally fine.

Yeah, the difference between 800 and 600 is almost unnoticeable. I think the higher bit rates help a little bit with softening the pixelation of enlarging the clip for full-screen viewing (which I don't normally do myself, but I know lots of people who do, resolution be damned).

[ignatius]

How are you guys doing with the final cut, compression, etc?

[preston]

jeremy / jon, I know you guys are cropping in QTpro - does it look ok to you? for me, it's cropping then stretching vertically. ugly. I'm either doing it wrong, or it just doesn't work.

oh well, live and learn, I guess.

gettin' excited . . . good luck!

[jontuttle]

jeremy / jon, I know you guys are cropping in QTpro - does it look ok to you? for me, it's cropping then stretching vertically. ugly. I'm either doing it wrong, or it just doesn't work.

oh well, live and learn, I guess.

gettin' excited . . . good luck!

Good luck to you as well.

I see you got yours uploaded. Sorry I couldn't respond. I was frantically trying to figure out the whole mpeg2 thing. We figured that out but then realized that it was progressive and was playing screwed up on the DVD. So we had to add lower fields and start the process all over again. I tried to reverse engineer how we did it so I could post so insight but my brain was so fried last night at midnight I couldn't put two and two together.

We are uploaded and can now rest easy.

[They Live]

Looking forward to it guys. Rest easy.

[jeremytuttle]

jeremy / jon, I know you guys are cropping in QTpro - does it look ok to you? for me, it's cropping then stretching vertically. ugly. I'm either doing it wrong, or it just doesn't work.

oh well, live and learn, I guess.

gettin' excited . . . good luck!

Preston,

Actually we did a native 16:9 (in camera) but added black bars to crop to 2.20:1... why... well we wanted a wider look without getting to wide like 2.35:1. But we just left the black bars on it so it's kinda not exactly how we wanted it but it will work. I think Compressor (for mac) has a option were it will cut off the top and bottom without stretching it but I'm not sure...

but yep, live and learn.

[Ted Arabian]

Hey guys, been a long time since I've stopped by your thread. Sorry!

Really looking forward to your film!!!

[ignatius]

But we just left the black bars on it so it's kinda not exactly how we wanted it but it will work. I think Compressor (for mac) has a option were it will cut off the top and bottom without stretching it but I'm not sure...

but yep, live and learn.

Hi Jeremy, check this out. In Quicktime Pro, open the clip you exported and choose Window --> Show Movie Properties. A panel opens, inside of which you select the video track and then click Visual Settings. In that panel, there is a Mask well. If you create a .gif in Photoshop or ImageReady that represents your black bars and save it out in black and white with transparency, you can place it as a mask and Quicktime will remove, instantly, the area of the mask in white. When you save it, there's no render time.

[jontuttle]

Hey guys, been a long time since I've stopped by your thread. Sorry!

Really looking forward to your film!!!

Thanks for stopping by Ted. We can't wait to check out your film too. It has been a crazy couple of weeks but now we can just relax and watch everyones film. Can't wait.

[jontuttle]

Hi Jeremy, check this out. In Quicktime Pro, open the clip you exported and choose Window --> Show Movie Properties. A panel opens, inside of which you select the video track and then click Visual Settings. In that panel, there is a Mask well. If you create a .gif in Photoshop or ImageReady that represents your black bars and save it out in black and white with transparency, you can place it as a mask and Quicktime will remove, instantly, the area of the mask in white. When you save it, there's no render time.

Jeremy is away at a training class for work so let me thank you for the tip. We will give this a test. The suspense is killing me. I want to watch all these films.

[Ted Arabian]

Thanks for stopping by Ted. We can't wait to check out your film too. It has been a crazy couple of weeks but now we can just relax and watch everyones film. Can't wait.
I hear you. This is the fun part!!!

BRING ON THE FUN!!!!!!!!

I can't wait to see all of these films!

[Finnian]

Hi Jeremy, check this out. In Quicktime Pro, open the clip you exported and choose Window --> Show Movie Properties. A panel opens, inside of which you select the video track and then click Visual Settings. In that panel, there is a Mask well. If you create a .gif in Photoshop or ImageReady that represents your black bars and save it out in black and white with transparency, you can place it as a mask and Quicktime will remove, instantly, the area of the mask in white. When you save it, there's no render time.

Awesome tip, this will definitely come in handy in the future. The only thing I wonder about is whether this is as true a crop as encoding it as 16:9, 1.85, 2.35 or whatever. In other words, will it always display this way no matter what?

[ignatius]

Awesome tip, this will definitely come in handy in the future. The only thing I wonder about is whether this is as true a crop as encoding it as 16:9, 1.85, 2.35 or whatever. In other words, will it always display this way no matter what?

When you drop the gif in the well, it basically applies it as an alpha channel, but removes the masked pixels and creates a physically cropped playback window. When moving the file around, it carries the gif with it, so it should always be able to play it in compatible QT players. But if it works "no matter what", I really can't say with any confidence, sorry.

[jeremytuttle]

When you drop the gif in the well, it basically applies it as an alpha channel, but removes the masked pixels and creates a physically cropped playback window. When moving the file around, it carries the gif with it, so it should always be able to play it in compatible QT players. But if it works "no matter what", I really can't say with any confidence, sorry.

Thanks for this info, it sounds pretty cool. As soon as I get back in town I'm gonna try this out... that and download 50 short movies. I'll probably try and make some kinda of tutorial for next Fest so people can have a better time at it then we did and I'll probably use it too just to remember how we did things.

[david jerome]

It's almost here Brothers Tuttle. All our labors of love will soon shower over cyberspace in one massive orgasmic download. And in that moment, I will scream out the words, "FRANKEN-D2 !!!!!"

david jerome

[jeremytuttle]

UPDATE :: 02-03-06

AND SO IT BEGINS - IT IS READY TO DOWNLOAD. So go check it out:

DIRECT LINK (http://www.dvxuser.com/dramafest/loader.php?id=jeremytuttle-JeremyTuttle-atthepark.mov)
DRAMAFEST DOWNLOAD PAGE (http://www.dvxuser.com/dramafest/)

Let us know what you think about our movie, good or bad. I admit I'm a little nervous, pre showing jitters I guess. I have a feeling that our movie is going to have mixed reviews. But I'm eager to hear what you guys think.

I'd like to thank everyone again for all the help in making this movie possible.

Now I'll leave you with a few my grabs I've been lagging on putting up.
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Screens/ATP_Grab-Final01.jpg
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Screens/ATP_Grab-Final02.jpg
http://www.adtcproduction.com/movies/atp/Screens/ATP_Grab-Final03.jpg

WARNING: THE PAGE 22 ON MAY CONTAIN SPOILER INFORMATION (PLOT REVELATIONS, ETC). PLEASE WATCH THE MOVIE BEFORE READING PAST PAGE 22. THANKS.

[hoz]

id like to say that overall i liked your film. it shows a lot of work, every scene popped with color and clarity. i dont know how you pulled off that shot from above the trees but that was cool. i also thought the shot you used to end the film was very well done. the street seemed to rustle with regret, nice work there! just about every shot looked very well thought out, from the soccer ball going into the woods to the mom stopping the jogger. ( nice touch, there too )

the acting was good, the girl was great, and mom was good too, especially when she realized her daughter was now missing. the boyfriend's acting was fine as was the "bum".


the story itself was okay, but to be fair i just saw when silence falls and the two stories are of the same type of theme.

the music was okay, maybe less music in the beginning might be better, maybe let the beginning of the story play out with some natural sounds from the park, to better match the amazing visuals you got, but thats just my taste.

you got a lot in there for six minutes too!

[jeremytuttle]

Thanks for the comments Hoz. We appreciate them. Ya, we just watched Where Silence Falls and my eyes almost popped out of my head. I can't believe the similarities. We might play with the music to soundfx ratio to see what we get. Thanks again.

[Mark Johnson]

I actually found it interesting that there was so much thematic similarities to Where Silence Falls. Really made me think about both films in interesting ways as I compared the storytelling. Great acting here Jeremy. I was a fan of your last film and I like this one even more. One question: there's a two-shot in the park where she holds up the fuscia sweater that reads to me as being green-screened. Can't imagine why you would key that shot and assume I am wrong. Could be the foreground lighting particularly on the male which is clearly separate from the background scene. Any comments? Great job and kudos to your lead actress.

[jeremytuttle]

Mark, ya it blows me away the similarities (great minds think a like maybe), I hope we don't get too over shadowed by Norms excellent movie.

No that wasn't a green screen shot. It's kinda funny, I think the way we lit some of actors with the combination of the DOF that dv gives made a few shots seem "keyed".

I will pass your comments on to our actress. She did a wonderful job and I hope to work with her on another project.

By the way... what last film are you talking about? This is our first Fest Entry.

[Mark Johnson]

Jeremy ... how funny. My notes somehow attributed one of my favorite HorrorFest gems to your team. I won't say which one to avoid further embarassment on my part but it was one of my favorites. Anyway, I appreciate that info regarding the shot. Pretty neat effect, in fact, because the actors really pop out. I'm really looking forward to seeing more stuff from Brothers Tuttle.

[Kholi]

REVIEW: AT THE PARK

Wow, two of the same kinds of rocks in this fest. Though I'd have to say this one weighs a bit more.

It's amazing how Where Silence Falls and At the Park end on the same beat. Almost literally. But how is yours separated from Norms? Easy: You showed me the character that was going to be blamed in the beginning. I was introduced to ALL key players and didn't have one dumped on me at the last moment to bring a story together. I do like your version of the story, it seems as though it's on a slowly inclining path even though the pacing wants to be move quick.

Your lead is pretty much beat over the head with her own assumptions, and it works well. She remains the focus of the short, which is where I seem to get lost in a lot of these here fest shorts.

How on earth did ya do the aerial shot? I totally get what you were going after there, and I think it works to a degree.

I get lost in a bit of the framing. On example would've been when the guy first comes to meet with the mother, and they bend over to speak to the young girl but she's out of frame. On the very first watch I went "Wait where's the girl?" Also, the voices all sounded like they were inside instead of outside. I'm in headphones, so I heard it well.

Overall, I liked this one. It presented the conflict a little late in the game, and I felt like it could have been shortened all around through the writing process, but I think it works for what you're going for.

Don't worry about the fact that yours is similar to another. The presentation is still different.

[gabrielflorit]

hmmm.... i don't buy the little girl approaching a stranger and then, of all things, asking for candy????? wtf??? that just begs to be made fun of, the whole "never approach strangers, don't take candy from strangers...."

the little girl is lit so brightly it makes the background seem green screen.

i don't buy the couple's acting. flat delivery, no credibility.

great backlighting on the couple, makes them really stand out.

the passerby's responses to the couple's questions are more believable than the couple's acting.

"i can't lose her, i can't!" ???? what parent losing a child would say that?

the woman chasing the bum scene looks comical because of illogical music choice.

aaaaaaaaaaah. sad, strong ending. overall good writing, but hampered by poor performances. nice camera work, a little bit too much light on some of those park shots.

[dvpixl]

then again, I coudln't have seen the impact of the ending if it wasn't for the mom's constant rampage dialogue.

overall, beautiful images. looks like you really took care of it.

[Wild Imagination Films]

The lighting detracts from the overall look of the film. Highlights in the soccerball and too much light where there should have been shadow. Also, I thought the little girl asking the bum for candy was a bit too much of a stretch.
I applaud your endeavor though. It shows a scale often not attempted.

[Ted Arabian]

Hey Guys! Loved your film. I really thought that you did a great job here.

I found it a little comical that the girl would ask a bum in the park for some candy. I initially was thinking that this was going to be some reverse-cliche! But, as the film was nearing the end, I know why this scene was introduced and I thought that it really set-up for a great ending.

I loved the energy and tension you built in this film. The pacing was great.

The shots seemed a bit inconsistant in lighting and some scenes just seemed too dark.

As for the ending, what a great job on the accident!!! Wow! I didn't see that coming (and neither did he!). Very nice.

I thought that actors did a nice job. Everyone was natural and believable.

I liked your film. You guys did a great job!

Oh! And Herman's score works great in your film!!!

Big kudos to you all!

[jeremytuttle]

hmmm.... i don't buy the little girl approaching a stranger and then, of all things, asking for candy????? wtf??? that just begs to be made fun of, the whole "never approach strangers, don't take candy from strangers...."

Your right, what mom would have not told their kid to never talk to strangers?... we'll this mom would have not told her. We wanted to kinda of do the complete opposite of how a kid would act if they haven't had a proper up bringing and believe me I've seen it. It's not until the kid gets themselves in trouble when the parent realizes they should have told them what not to do. I think we may have failed showing how bad of a mom she was. Maybe her constantly ignoring her child wasn't enough and we should have worked on her tone and dialogue towards her more not sure.



the little girl is lit so brightly it makes the background seem green screen.

I assume you mean the shot where Jarred (the old flame) comes and says hi to her. Yeah, that ones bugs the crap out of me. I'll work on that.



i don't buy the couple's acting. flat delivery, no credibility.


Ouch, I didn't think they were that bad but maybe they chemistry wasn't all there. Not sure.




Thanks

[quote]
"i can't lose her, i can't!" ???? what parent losing a child would say that?


One that is telling herself that. She finally realizes how crappy of a mother she is and if she loses her she would fail completely as a mother.... but maybe it was little over the top.



the woman chasing the bum scene looks comical because of illogical music choice.

aaaaaaaaaaah. sad, strong ending. overall good writing, but hampered by poor performances. nice camera work, a little bit too much light on some of those park shots.

Thanks for the comments. I appreciate them. We are still very new to this and anything helps us get better. Thanks.

[jeremytuttle]

then again, I coudln't have seen the impact of the ending if it wasn't for the mom's constant rampage dialogue.

overall, beautiful images. looks like you really took care of it.

Thanks dvpixel, we tried.


The lighting detracts from the overall look of the film. Highlights in the soccerball and too much light where there should have been shadow. Also, I thought the little girl asking the bum for candy was a bit too much of a stretch.
I applaud your endeavor though. It shows a scale often not attempted.

Actually the soccerball stuff was natural light:) , but I agree that maybe the mood at the time could have used a little more darkness, we didn't have any scrims or flags. As I said early the lighting was a pain, aargh. Next then we do, hopefully it will be in an controlled environment. I'll hit on the girl asking bum candy idea a little more in Ted's review.

Thanks for the comments.
</IMG>

[jeremytuttle]

Hey Guys! Loved your film. I really thought that you did a great job here.

I found it a little comical that the girl would ask a bum in the park for some candy. I initially was thinking that this was going to be some reverse-cliche! But, as the film was nearing the end, I know why this scene was introduced and I thought that it really set-up for a great ending.

In away it may have been an attempt at a reverse-cliche. We went back and forth on this idea. Would a little girl ask for candy from a complete stranger? Well, back when I worked in a video store I couldn't believe the things kids would do when they were not properly "parented" (if that is a word), The idea really is meant to hit the audience with that fact that Erica is a bad parent and may have never told her child what to do with strangers, it's not until there is a problem where she realizes she should finally act like a parent and then she explodes and tries to compensate for her terrible parenting when she goes missing. I think we didn't convey this message well enough and should have worked on Erica's tone and actions toward Abbey more but we also didn't want it toataly not believable when she freaks out.



I loved the energy and tension you built in this film. The pacing was great.


Thanks, I really appreciate that.



The shots seemed a bit inconsistant in lighting and some scenes just seemed too dark.


I know man, the lighting killed us out there. We would shoot one scene for a maybe two hours and the light would constantly be changing on us. We would try to fake the actors in one direction or the other but it still just didn't work. Note to self, don't shoot an outdoor movie in the winter, we were working with little time and little equipment to make it look right.



As for the ending, what a great job on the accident!!! Wow! I didn't see that coming (and neither did he!). Very nice.

I thought that actors did a nice job. Everyone was natural and believable.

I liked your film. You guys did a great job!

Oh! And Herman's score works great in your film!!!

Big kudos to you all!

Thanks Ted, I really appreciate it. Like I said we are pretty new to this stuff (especially drama) and it's nice to do this and learn and hear what you guys have to say. I really dug your guys' movie, by the way.

[KOVAROVA]

I take my daughter to that park all the time!! :)

you shot it well. good work. best of luck with it.

[jeremytuttle]

REVIEW: AT THE PARK

Wow, two of the same kinds of rocks in this fest. Though I'd have to say this one weighs a bit more.

It's amazing how Where Silence Falls and At the Park end on the same beat. Almost literally. But how is yours separated from Norms? Easy: You showed me the character that was going to be blamed in the beginning. I was introduced to ALL key players and didn't have one dumped on me at the last moment to bring a story together. I do like your version of the story, it seems as though it's on a slowly inclining path even though the pacing wants to be move quick.

Your lead is pretty much beat over the head with her own assumptions, and it works well. She remains the focus of the short, which is where I seem to get lost in a lot of these here fest shorts.

How on earth did ya do the aerial shot? I totally get what you were going after there, and I think it works to a degree.

I get lost in a bit of the framing. On example would've been when the guy first comes to meet with the mother, and they bend over to speak to the young girl but she's out of frame. On the very first watch I went "Wait where's the girl?" Also, the voices all sounded like they were inside instead of outside. I'm in headphones, so I heard it well.

Overall, I liked this one. It presented the conflict a little late in the game, and I felt like it could have been shortened all around through the writing process, but I think it works for what you're going for.

Don't worry about the fact that yours is similar to another. The presentation is still different.

Thanks Kholi, I appreciate the comments. I agree with some of your framing comments and maybe we will take a look at different angles, maybe an over the shoulder would have worked better.

The audio is another issue that bugs us a little. We were surrounded by two freeways so there was a constant thundering noise around us. We tried to EQ it and just ended up as a constant hum. The only audio we ADRed was the final fight sequence with yes was indoors but before and after that it was all live recording.

One thing I would really like to do next time is rehearse more (a lot more) to weed out the lines that maybe don't work etc but due to people's schedules are rehearsals were take 1 and 2 :( .

[iSTy]

i was not impressed with the mother being so 'non-commital' with her daughter, why did she take her daughter to the park in the first place, if she wasn't going to play football with her or whatever?
When she was sitting on the mat and chatting, she didn't even keep an eye on her daughter as she went running off, what kinda mother does that?
I'm sorry, although the ending was good and the shots were pretty kewl, i really didn't 'buy' the beginning.

[jontuttle]

i was not impressed with the mother being so 'non-commital' with her daughter, why did she take her daughter to the park in the first place, if she wasn't going to play football with her or whatever?
When she was sitting on the mat and chatting, she didn't even keep an eye on her daughter as she went running off, what kinda mother does that?
I'm sorry, although the ending was good and the shots were pretty kewl, i really didn't 'buy' the beginning.

Thanks for the comments. Every bit helps us grow.

They were really going to the park so the mother could meet up with an old flame. Our intent was to show how distracted she was by the guy that she paid little attention to her daughter. The point was to make the mother 'non-committal but perhaps we could have been a bit more subtle. Maybe we tried to beat people over the head with it.

We are glad you liked the editing and the shots. We are happy for the feedback.

[david jerome]

I thought it was awesome guys. I can't believe you are new to this. The images were beautiful. I thought the actors were really good actually. I had a feeling about where it was going and I think that is probably because we might think a little bit alike. I have a couple of similar stories in my vault of story ideas. Again, you guys have some serious craft going on and the story was twisty just like it should be. Brothers Tuttle rule.

david jerome

[J.R. Hudson]

Everyfest, there is one film that stands out for me and it is the one that simply captures my attention and brings me into a make believe world and I forget I'm watching a film in the first place

I am not through all of the films just yet, but this is the current leader for me. The talent was perfect, the sound was great, the score had a personality and was alive, the editing and use of light was awesome.

I loved everything about it. The framing and compositions could be more polished but I think that'll come in time. These fests aren't about the cinemaphotography or technical achievements made, but about the art of telling a sotry through film.

So far, this one has my top vote.

Bravo guys !

[Aaron Marshall]

I felt like the homeless man could have been in more of a confused panic around the fight with the boyfirned. He was like some secret agent punching that man in the face. Was the boyfriend really a necessary character? I think not. The way the bum grabbed the jacket made me think, "oh great he's a perv". I would have left him more innocent, maybe even slightly mentally retarded. The ending would have been more tragic, and the running made more sense. Everyone did a pretty good job. These critiques are minor.

The score had some great enhancing moments. I think it pushed the story along well. The sound design with the truck, and just the look of the truck was great.

[jeremytuttle]

I thought it was awesome guys. I can't believe you are new to this. The images were beautiful. I thought the actors were really good actually. I had a feeling about where it was going and I think that is probably because we might think a little bit alike. I have a couple of similar stories in my vault of story ideas. Again, you guys have some serious craft going on and the story was twisty just like it should be. Brothers Tuttle rule.

david jerome

No David, you rule. I watched your movie again and I couldn't believe how funny yet sad it was at the same time. Thanks for the complements though. If it's comedy fest next time I seriously think we need to collaborate on something.

[RebeccaD]

Nice job on this one! It is one of the standouts in my book and has a similar theme to ours in that someone is falsely accused in regards to the loss of a child. Nice twists and well-done acting!!

[jeremytuttle]

Everyfest, there is one film that stands out for me and it is the one that simply captures my attention and brings me into a make believe world and I forget I'm watching a film in the first place

I am not through all of the films just yet, but this is the current leader for me. The talent was perfect, the sound was great, the score had a personality and was alive, the editing and use of light was awesome.

I loved everything about it. The framing and compositions could be more polished but I think that'll come in time. These fests aren't about the cinemaphotography or technical achievements made, but about the art of telling a sotry through film.

So far, this one has my top vote.

Bravo guys !

Wow John, that means a lot coming from you. I agree with your comment on the framing and cinematography and hope to get better at it. Herman's score was very unique and I really liked it. I think it added some character and life (like you said) to it. Thanks again. I need to watch yours again (I've watched it twice all ready) before I could even begin thinking of reviewing it. If your movie meant what I think it meant, I really dig it.

[jeremytuttle]

I felt like the homeless man could have been in more of a confused panic around the fight with the boyfirned. He was like some secret agent punching that man in the face. Was the boyfriend really a necessary character? I think not. The way the bum grabbed the jacket made me think, "oh great he's a perv". I would have left him more innocent, maybe even slightly mentally retarded. The ending would have been more tragic, and the running made more sense. Everyone did a pretty good job. These critiques are minor.

The score had some great enhancing moments. I think it pushed the story along well. The sound design with the truck, and just the look of the truck was great.

You may have a point there with the homlessman and to be honest I think we had that feeling a little more with the original recording but in ADRing it kind of lost that confusing. I'm not sure if mental ill would have helped but I think more, quicker accusations and denials may of made it more believable. Just so you know we made him ex-military so to make the punch a little more believable like he was naturally reacting more then thinking about it. Thanks though Aaron, I appreciate your comments (I really liked your HeroFest entry). By the way I thought your score for Eighteen Seconds was great (I think you did it), it was subtle yet emotional and worked great with the short.


Nice job on this one! It is one of the standouts in my book and has a similar theme to ours in that someone is falsely accused in regards to the loss of a child. Nice twists and well-done acting!!

Rebecca, wow I couldn't believe how similar. Thanks for the comments, I haven't got around to telling you guys what I thought but I'll just say I thought you were amazing... but I'll gush about you on your thread.

[ignatius]

Hi guys, well, let me first start off with the fact that my 10 year old daughter (who has watched all the shorts with me!) has chosen At The Park as her favorite. So there's one vote. I think it's a great attempt. Yes, you have some issues that people are brow-beating you with, but overall, you kept us watching and that's sometimes all that counts. I liked the score and the sound (yes, you can kind of hear the "room" in the ADR work, but it wasn't distracting), I liked the lighting - shooting in natural light like that is a monster bitch, which I know all too well. The acting is fine, I think where you run into trouble is the characters, but that just takes some more practice, some more writing skills, that's all. Because you have responded to critiques, I understand that the mother was intended to come across as more of a "bad mother" - a concept I like and think you should try again, showing a character that just isn't "right". I think to portray this "bad" mothering, it would have been better to show her absent-mindedly dishing out fistfuls of candy to keep the kid quiet! And yes, the bum could have been a bit better drawn, but only if you had more time to tell the story. I think this could be developed into a longer, more intense flick that really deals with the issues you were bringing up. I kinda didn't buy the bum running off without trying to verbally defend himself more. In fact, I wonder if he wouldn't have offered to help look for Abby, based on his character. This'll piss you off, but it bugged me that the actress's hair kept falling in her face. The shot of the bum picking up the sweater is downright creepy and with different music would have been almost unbearable. The profile shot of the mom showing the photo to the guy sitting under the tree is great and the strings at that point are awesome as well. The sequence where the mom is turning in place to look and can't see her daughter could have used, IMO, a reverse POV, something evoking her view and the fact that the girl is nowhere to be seen. And while the helicopter shot itself is cool, I feel it doesn't quite work because of all the trees - we can't really see the park as intended. The finale is great, the actress and bum in the street, they're great, the blood is perfect, it all worked. Anyway, all moot points. Overall, I think this was an excellent exercise and you've already learned the most valuable lessons from it and I would love to see whatever you make in the future.

[RomanJaquez]

This one is on my top list,
I crushed blacks in the picture works very well with the relationship between the characters. The cinematography is just plain beautiful. Great job.

You actors are also good... they put up a good performance. The costume, the set, the props it all made real... well orchestrated.

The area where I recommend improvement is in the dialogues... for instance the mother was narrating how she felt... the writer could have indicated to the actor to show it. There is a popular phrase in screen writing, "show don't tell".

I liked this movie... I would like to see more of your work.

Best regards,

[jontuttle]

Thanks for the feedback.


Hi guys, well, let me first start off with the fact that my 10 year old daughter (who has watched all the shorts with me!) has chosen At The Park as her favorite. So there's one vote. .

You tell your daughter we are very thankful for her vote and that we are glad she liked the short.


I liked the score and the sound (yes, you can kind of hear the "room" in the ADR work, but it wasn't distracting).

Bugged me a bit too. First ADR attempt in the garage with packing blankets. You live you learn. That's what it is about. Next time it should rock.


I liked the lighting - shooting in natural light like that is a monster bitch, which I know all too well.

Thanks. Shooting in the winter in a park covered in trees was a nightmare. Talk about starting to believe in a Sun God. He had it in for us for sure. But I think we got the one up on him.


The acting is fine, I think where you run into trouble is the characters, but that just takes some more practice, some more writing skills, that's all..

From the dialogue in your short we might just have to send our stuff your way so you can polish our turds up. Great stuff. Review coming shortly.


I kinda didn't buy the bum running off without trying to verbally defend himself more. In fact, I wonder if he wouldn't have offered to help look for Abby, based on his character.

I think we brought that up mid shoot but by that time it was too late. We had a bit more 'defense' in there but had to cut for time.


This'll piss you off, but it bugged me that the actress's hair kept falling in her face.

That is my fault. Someone said something and I said, "No way thats real. Thats what would happen. She's freaked out." When we watched the dailies I changed my mind. Oops.


The shot of the bum picking up the sweater is downright creepy and with different music would have been almost unbearable. The profile shot of the mom showing the photo to the guy sitting under the tree is great and the strings at that point are awesome as well.

Thanks. Two of my favorites as well.


The sequence where the mom is turning in place to look and can't see her daughter could have used, IMO, a reverse POV, something evoking her view and the fact that the girl is nowhere to be seen.

Hmmm. Very good point. That would have been great.


The finale is great, the actress and bum in the street, they're great, the blood is perfect, it all worked.

Thanks. I think our actress did a fantastic job. I would work with her again in a heartbeat.

[jontuttle]

This one is on my top list,
I crushed blacks in the picture works very well with the relationship between the characters. The cinematography is just plain beautiful. Great job.

Thank you very much.


You actors are also good... they put up a good performance. The costume, the set, the props it all made real... well orchestrated.

We spent a lot of time on the costumes and props. The Landscaping Truck was my favorite. My dads old Ford. We even had a decal made but it flashes by so fast you can't even see it.


The area where I recommend improvement is in the dialogues... for instance the mother was narrating how she felt... the writer could have indicated to the actor to show it. There is a popular phrase in screen writing, "show don't tell".

This is one of our faults. We are getting better but still a bit to go. Sometimes it seems hard in a short like this to not tell a few things, but you are right.

[quote=RomanJaquez]I liked this movie... I would like to see more of your work.[quote]

Thanks for the comments. I liked your short a lot and still need to stop by and leave a review.

[RomanJaquez]

By the way, how did you shoot the last scene with when he gets hit? I did not read all 25 pages... so I might have missed any info if you discussed it.

I liked it, it was believable

[jeremytuttle]

By the way, how did you shoot the last scene with when he gets hit? I did not read all 25 pages... so I might have missed any info if you discussed it.

I liked it, it was believable

Thanks for the comment. We think it looked pretty good. I have a slew of BTS photos of that day we have been keeping under wraps as not to give it away so I'll dig those up and discuss the shot in detail. Stay tuned.

[RomanJaquez]

Roger that!

[FatBird19]

btw, what park is that? :D

[jeremytuttle]

btw, what park is that? :D

Mostly Presido Park off of I8 (if you know San Diego it's kind of near Old Town). The final shots are at Allied Gardens Park (Mission Valley Area).

[Geoff_R]

Hey Jeremy,

I really liked a lot of the cinematography in this film. The helicopter shots were very cool especially! My favorite shot is the one where it's very silhouetted with the large tree on the left and the mother asking someone about her daughters whereabouts. I loved that shot! In general though, you had strong compositional choices, especially considering you've got multiple characters engaged in conversation/action at some points.

The sound design was really well done as well. That is another thing I was impressed with because I know it's hard to get good sound in exterior environments, especially a park!

Nice job, enjoyed your movie!

[jeremytuttle]

Hey Jeremy,

I really liked a lot of the cinematography in this film. The helicopter shots were very cool especially! My favorite shot is the one where it's very silhouetted with the large tree on the left and the mother asking someone about her daughters whereabouts. I loved that shot! In general though, you had strong compositional choices, especially considering you've got multiple characters engaged in conversation/action at some points.

Thanks Geoff, that means lot coming from you. The cinematography was a group effort. Seth, Jon, and I all would figure out the shoots. I'm a big fan of wide shots with something to one side of the frame. The shot you mentioned is one of my favs also.



The sound design was really well done as well. That is another thing I was impressed with because I know it's hard to get good sound in exterior environments, especially a park!

Nice job, enjoyed your movie!

The sound design is all Jon, he did a great job.

Thanks Geoff, I appreciate the comments very much.

[Jazz Dog]

Wow, this was really good. The wide shot where she shows the pic and the plane in the background was money. The creepy bum was great and the car crash was done well. The opposite of my car crash in my horrorfest entry which was a horror. My favorite part was the audio. I know how hard it is to get good audio outside in a public location and you guys did amazing. It did seem like the part in the beginning where the guy calls the girl was over-dubbed though (am I right?) I felt the tension rise as the film went on and the music seemed to go well. The only part that distracted me was when they just find out and are running as a sort of drums with brushes comes on and I was left thinking "what is that? is someone walking by the camera mic or something?" it took a few to figure out it was the soundtrack.
Amazing job! This is very high on my list at the moment.