Budgeting a small feature to shoot on RED?

I did answer the replacement question in another post, but for some reason that thread has been deleted. Anyway, basically, we do plan on having access to at least one replacement unit at all times. We will do that through our inventory as well as my contacts to private owners around town and around the country that can be contacted in case of emergencies.

Depending on rental volume, we may be starting a program to consolidate private owners around the country to provide rental referals, replacements, etc. However, I'm getting ahead of myself. Suffice to say for now, that if you want to shoot a feature, if you can afford it, shoot two camera. Between that and renting from a good rental house you shouldn't experience significant downtime on any equipment.

We replace any gear that goes bad via overnight or same-day shipping/delivery depending on the situation.
 
It is kind of scary that you might not have a back up camera when working with something thats on the road like that. The feature we are producing slated for April we definitly want 2 cameras on set at all times just in case because of the tight shooting schedule and the particular talent. When I first saw this thread I was like, hey maybe I can use a Red also for our feature but I guess it would be putting a lot on the line if something goes wrong plus this is for DVD release only so maybe we just wait until its been field tested.
 
Aram, yeah, April would be impossible, I think.

If you are sure that your end result will be DVD, you should definitely look into using the HVX200, which would probably be ideal for you. I've got one I'll sell you cheap. ;)
 
Tom Lowe said:
Aram, yeah, April would be impossible, I think.

If you are sure that your end result will be DVD, you should definitely look into using the HVX200, which would probably be ideal for you. I've got one I'll sell you cheap. ;)
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The original idea was 2 HVXs which is most likey whats its going to be. Once we start buying equipment I will hit you up to see if you still have it. *sigh* it was a nice fantasy while it lasted.
 
I'm surprised that this thread is already so long and only a few people pointed out abstract nature of the original poster's budget. HIgh res of 4k production and it's DOF is only one of many aspects of filmmaking. I really wouldn't want to sink 1/3 of the budget into the camera gear alone. Getting real artists to directs, shoot, perform, edit, sound mix and score is the biggest asset and it's where majority of the money should be put to (or rather on such miniscule budget spread somehow equally around). Shallow DOF and high rest won't save bad lighting, great lighting then again won't do much if the location is poorly art directed. Great art direction and lighting won't save the film if it's badly acted and directed. And even if all those elements fall in place bad editing and scoring and sound can really undermine the production.

I have shot 6 feature lenght projects (ranging from $60,000 to $700,000) and can honestly tell you that spending 1/3 or even 1/4 on your camera is too much. On $200,000-$150,000 production spending 10% on camera is probably absolute max.
 
Patryk_Rebisz said:
I have shot 6 feature lenght projects (ranging from $60,000 to $700,000) and can honestly tell you that spending 1/3 or even 1/4 on your camera is too much. On $200,000-$150,000 production spending 10% on camera is probably absolute max.
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Well, they're planning to buy the camera, not rent it. As such, charging the entire price of the camera to a single production doesn't make any sense, as it'll presumably be used for multiple projects.

The proper way to set this up (particularly with outside investors involved) is to have the producer (or whoever) buy the camera out of pocket, and then rent it to the production at a reasonable rate. If the producer doesn't have the money, things get tricky. The investors might not be too comfortable paying $40K for a camera package that the producer gets to walk away with the end of the feature, whether or not the feature sells.
 
A lilttle less than 20% is budgeted for camera dept - ie, grip/truck/lights/dolly/steadicam. $20K out of about $130K. Plus another 5K to upgrade my editing system. We will be shooting entirely outdoors on location, using natural light, ala Malick, in some really scenic places in the deserts and mountains. Only 3 paid SAG actors. 10 crew, all paid. The model would be something like BADLANDS, if you know that movie. I am trying to set aside 7K for location sound and hopefully 10K for the sound mix. Does that sound reasonable?
 
when i look at "investing" in a project i always see that the producers want to BUY a camera for the production .. IMO if that works out best price wise OK BUT i always state that after production has wrapped the camera should be sold and that $$ put into post - which to date i have NOT found a producer willing to sell the camera at market price ( they always want to buy it for themselves at a very cheap price) ..

Investor are looking out for their $$ ... you buy something for the production with investors $$ then you sell it when it's no longer needed and put that $$ back into the project ...
 
donatello said:
...which to date i have NOT found a producer willing to sell the camera at market price ( they always want to buy it for themselves at a very cheap price) ..
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LOL, ain't THAT the truth!
For anyone planning a feature using RED in 2007; they'd would almost HAVE to be one in the first ~250 (or maybe 500) of the preorder #s for it to be realistic.
It's probably safe to say that there will be HUGE demand on all available RED rentals next year, and unless one prebooks a rental cam about now, there's a high risk that there simply won't be one available when production should start.
I can see how someone would want to have preordered 1 (or two) REDONE for a planned 2007 production.

Lenses might not be so much an issue, as their availability isn't so limited.

1050 cams seems like a lot, but spread around the world these will still be quite sparse really. There really are only a FEW people in the world that will be getting their hands on a REDONE next year, compared to other cams...
 
I think with such small crew and cast you should extend the shooting period so instead of regular 24 days maybe you can go for longer. SInce you plan to shoot in the summer you will get nasty light from 9am-3pm so schedule to do small things such as easy t "manage" closeups in that time frame and more open vistas in early morning and later afternoon.

Either way, good luck!
 
Yeah, I wish I could shoot for 35 days rather than 30 and I am thinking about it. You are exactly right about the light. I don't want to shoot at all during the day if I can avoid it, unless I am in a wooded area, which has the canopy. I really only want to shoot around magic hours!... but I know that will be next to impossible. A lot of firelit night scenes as well, which is why I am excited about maybe be able to crank up the ISO on the Red to 600 or 800.
 
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