Some Men Speak Of War

GlimmerGhost

GlimmerGhost

Well-known member
When i first recieved my DVX about 4 months ago I had no idea what i was doing, some of the members here were suggesting I shoot in the backyard and get a feel for my camera. This was before I purchased Barry's book.
But patience is not my strong suit and I decieded to shoot a short, which with every scene by scene I could try to get better and better, the short was completely improvised and I never finished it because of all the scenes I overexposed and oversaturated.
Still, at the Indie Gathering Film Festival this weekend my wife showed the unfinished short (without my permission:furious3: ) to many directors and LA producers, including the director of ARC and Vanishing Acres, and they were very appreciative.

This is the trailer that shows us the glimpse into the life of a young man who is torn between being a true American, and the love of his father. A father who wishes for him to do something for the cause of his people.

All criticism is accepted, Suggestions are welcomed.
Enjoy,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWkzTgLqnzE
 
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excellent teaser, glimmerghost. these are my suggestions:

dont be afraid to take that camera off the tripod once in awhile, im picturing some close-ups of his "torn-between-the-two" facial expressions. perhaps you should darken the picture up a little bit, color correct it a little more (at least so each shot looks consistant).

i'll say it again... i absolutely love the idea behind this, truly fantastic. with this, some absolutely mesmerizing imagery is capable. it is a huge topic in the world, right now, and you could really have quite the impact on your audience. -- bring us into the actor's mind, make us see as he sees... dark, scared, confused. see where im getting at? props, however, i like it!
 
[SIZE=+0]Without your description in your post I don't think I would ever have thought this was a man torn between his country and his father's wishes. Either a voiceover or other images that convey that message is what I'd recommend. Also, the lighting needed some work I thought.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=+0]Just my $.02[/SIZE]
 
I commend you on choosing to further yourself with each shot.

I like how you choose various camera angles rather than a straight on shot all the time. I totally agree with thekyleman, mix up the hand held and tripod. Don't be afraid to move that camera. Remember, a camera move should be motivated. Use it as a tool, another character, etc.

Try watching movies you like and re-creating the look of the scene. You can even pick up some lights from Lowes, Home Depot etc..
 
Hey guys, Thank you so much for posting your suggestions, comments and compliments! I've been hoping for some honest critique and I am honored that it was by people who know how to be constructive without being damaging.
So, just to converse alittle on your comments:

KyleMan- thanks again for your suggestions, I definetly wanted to go handheld with alot of this stuff, but the actor in the teaser is me! LoL, all I had was this stupid $20 tripod and I was running back and forth from the camera to see if I had done it right. Still, no excuses, i'm doing the casting tommorow so as to get real actors and so I can stay behind the camera as it should be. Thank you for your kind words.

MistterCat- I also agree with you about not telling enough in the teaser. When I first shot this was the day after recieving my DVX. I was clueless about whitebalance, Iris control, scene settings and whatnot. I shot this as a short but improvised and overexposed and oversaturated the hell out of alot of shots. The idea was to get the hang of my DVX, then it turned into a story.
The teaser was pretty much only the stuff I had that I could use without making everyone cringe. Thats another reason why I placed a comment, I didnt want anyone to think they were watching a Paradise Now knockoff.
I start shooting next saturday - I will definetly use your voiceover ideas, thanks kindly.

Bpotter- thank you for the warm words, especcially on the camera angles, I had so little space to work with but I cant wait to be solely behind the camera. All your thoughts will be invaluable.
About the lowes lights, lol, I bought two at lowes for the scene in the kitchen (i know that scene dosent make much sense) and if you noticed I was iluminating the hell out of that room. I dont know anything about lighting, but I figure now that as i'm starting out I dont want to wear too many hats... i'm gonna let my DP worry about lighting and just worry about getting something done. After reading barry's book and taking some online courses and reading all the wonderfull stuff that comes out of this forum, at least I know I'll have a more consistent look to my shots.

Like I said, my shoot is next weekend, anyone want to give me anymore heads up, pointers, comments or constructive criticism?
 
I'm usually the one infront of my camera lately. What do you edit with? If you use vegas you can manufacture fake camera movement in post.
I see alot parellels between you and I. I can light for crap either. lol :P

The biggest tip for me on lighting (which others may not agree with) is light as if it were a lighting fixture. If there is a lamp use your light as if it were the light from the lamp. Of course your light is more directional. Why do the 3-point light set up? We're not all in perfect light all the time! but I would reccomend getting a bounce board to use for fill.

But to each his own. It's all about look when it comes to lighting. Story is most important. I really liked the end. I didn't really get what was going on until I saw it. Then it all made sense.

Whatever it is that you shoot next week you should post.
 
Thanks legend for all your comments. I actually run Final Cut Studio off a Powerbook g4 with maxed out memory and a 320gb graid wich to be honest is kicking ass with my rendering times. I'm a little ashamed to say this, I have heard of Vegas yet I have no clue what it does... I mean is it just another nle software or a plugin? I took that Total Training coarse and FCP works wonders for me now, but still, I dont think it has that camera movement behavior.
About lighting, to tell you the truth I bought all these books on lighting and none of them make any sense to me, yet there is this filmmaking handbook that touches on everything from film to video to sound to light and it says things in such a way that a baby could get it. I'm gonna go look at it right now and check out 3 point lighting, thanks a mil Legend!
 
GlimmerGhost said:
Thanks legend for all your comments. I actually run Final Cut Studio off a Powerbook g4 with maxed out memory and a 320gb graid wich to be honest is kicking ass with my rendering times. I'm a little ashamed to say this, I have heard of Vegas yet I have no clue what it does... I mean is it just another nle software or a plugin? I took that Total Training coarse and FCP works wonders for me now, but still, I dont think it has that camera movement behavior.
About lighting, to tell you the truth I bought all these books on lighting and none of them make any sense to me, yet there is this filmmaking handbook that touches on everything from film to video to sound to light and it says things in such a way that a baby could get it. I'm gonna go look at it right now and check out 3 point lighting, thanks a mil Legend!
Click to expand...

Here are some web-sites that have helped me with lighting. You should take a look.
http://www.bluesky-web.com/new-page6.html

http://www.mediacollege.com/lighting/three-point/
 
Actually I liked it.. very simple, I think you should finish it...my two cents also.. As I'm still learning myself.
 
after rewatching it, glimmer, i liked the lighting in the last shot the best. the kitchen wasnt TOO bad... since it was morning and i assumed it was the sun. however, the shot where you open the box had pretty poor lighting... notice how you can see the shadow from the stairway railing... not very realistic. try to keep your subjects lit carefully, and keep an eye on your set... sometimes shadows can kill the legitimacy of your lighting rig. keep your audience on your side =) unfortunately for us, there are so many small things that can lose our audience's trust... thats why we have dvxuser! lol, we we get opinions from others just like ourselves =)
 
ncje - I've admired you since I joined the forum, that compliment was unexpected and much appreciated. Thanks.

legend - I checked out the sites and i'm taking notes. I'm scared out of my mind that my DP knows less about lighting than me, stuff like this will help me out.

Vicnewton - thanks for the words, when you do post a vid let me know so I can check it out.

and Kyleman - Amen to everything you said. To be honest i'm quite unhappy with the kitchen scene, it has a glow or tint that drives me nuts, but the scene when he's opening the box everything was messed up. Even the colors on the red shirt looked like they were spilling. The very last scene was when I stopped shooting, I felt like I had at least gotten a hang of the camera if not the lights, plus I would be getting barry's book the next week and I figured I'd learn from there.

Now here's a question that needs an emergency answer. I recently bought the cartoni focus head, and since it said 100mm ball I got these 2 stage support on ebay with a 100mm opening and ground floor spreader (ground floor spreader sold me) and low and behold they dont fit at all together. Theyre 515mvb bogen I believe... real pos but if i can get the head and legs to work together for now i'll be happy. Any suggestions?
 
Hey man. I look forward to seeing some more of your material as you learn in the ways of the DVX. I think with a little more emotion and creativity, this trailer could be much better. It's all about awareness.
 
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