$4,000

D

daviddelaurier

Active member
Okay, I have (to make a 100min film on the HVX)

$4,000
Steadicam (no monitor)
Dolly w/6ft of track
Boom pole/mic (but the mic is cheep)
Apple editing
nice Full lighting kit

What should I buy with my money? A kessler crane and the Marshall monitor? 35mm setup? Nice audio and monitor?

This will be transfered to film if it gets and note. The team is ready when I get the correct equipment with such a limited budget.
 
Well, a quality mic looks like it would serve you very well. More dolly track could work too. But great films have been made for less then what you already have. Can this money be poured into some other area of production (art design, etc)? Just a thought.
 
Why buy? You'll be able to get better gear (and may be able to hire some help) if you rent.
 
You are shooting a feature with $4000 and you want to buy your gear? I don't understand this philosophy. Someone please explain.
 
daviddelaurier said:
Okay, I have (to make a 100min film on the HVX)

$4,000
Steadicam (no monitor)
Dolly w/6ft of track
Boom pole/mic (but the mic is cheep)
Apple editing
nice Full lighting kit
Click to expand...
Do not use a cheap mic no matter what.
Since you have lighting, I'd spend $550. on an AT4073A (look in the audio forums, considered one of the best values in quality shotgun, I love mine),
a Marshall monitor for $1200.(you have to have a monitor bigger than the flip out lcd), redrock M2 for $1300 (includes rods), and $500 for some nikon primes (about $100 each on ebay, do research and shop wisely). That's $3,550. spent... leaving you a few bucks for food and gas money. Now the M2 can be a pain to use(compared to just the bare HVX), but the results can be beautiful. You will also need someone who can pull focus well.

That said, hopefully your script doesn't have too many characters, and is doable for a zero budget, a la Mr. Rodriguez. Good luck!

(It makes sense to own your own gear if you are planning on making several projects. Owning the equipment gives you the luxury of time; you can then go out and do pickups/reshoots whenever you want, and as often as you need to.)
 
Don't buy anything, partner with someone who already has that gear and give 'em $2,000. You can get way better stuff than you'll ever be able to buy, you'll be getting someone who (probably) knows how to use it, you'll be helping a fellow DVXUser out, you'll be saving $2,000 and you'll be getting someone to help you out.
 
R Gale said:
(It makes sense to own your own gear if you are planning on making several projects. Owning the equipment gives you the luxury of time; you can then go out and do pickups/reshoots whenever you want, and as often as you need to.)
Click to expand...

I'm beginning to agree with the buy rather than rent. I think the paradigm has shifted. Budgets are not what they use to be, and shooting schedules are not what they use to be. More and more of my longer format clients want package deals. If I had rented gear, it would have cost me almost as much as it would to buy. A shooting day could just be a quick b-roll shot and nothing more. I would only rent specialized accesories of course.

Nice full lighting kit sounds a bit vague. I'm biased toward spending money on grip and lighting. Shallow depth of field may hide poor lighting, but at some point you are gonna want to see some stuff. For some reason everybody is obsessed with this shallow depth of field thing, like it's the holy grail of film look. Is it really used that often in the real world? Looks kind of hack when overdone(you know, that rack focus to the killer standing behind you). Lighting is the true art of the cinematographer. Not many people do it well. Plus grip and lighting don't really depreciate. I've been using my stuff for over 10 years, and it's still relevant. Maybe wireless audio as well.
 
Barry_Green said:
Don't buy anything, partner with someone who already has that gear and give 'em $2,000. You can get way better stuff than you'll ever be able to buy, you'll be getting someone who (probably) knows how to use it, you'll be helping a fellow DVXUser out, you'll be saving $2,000 and you'll be getting someone to help you out.
Click to expand...

Dead on advice.
 
I'm of the owning your equipment school (I don't like my projects hinging on others availability/mood). You can then rent that equipment out and possibly have it pay for itself. If your lighting is taken care of I would definitely look at a new mic and the M2 35mm adapter with Marshall Monitor.
 
Barry_Green said:
Don't buy anything, partner with someone who already has that gear and give 'em $2,000. You can get way better stuff than you'll ever be able to buy, you'll be getting someone who (probably) knows how to use it, you'll be helping a fellow DVXUser out, you'll be saving $2,000 and you'll be getting someone to help you out.
Click to expand...


great advice!!!! i have a good friend there in atlanta that has a redrock, primes, hvx, marshall lcd, jib, stix, final cut rig, etc. and i'm sure he would love to make some money and help out. PM me and i can hook you guys up if you like....

too bad you're not in l.a. because i would love to help out too!!
 
Well, the question is: the guy wants to make a 100-minute film on the HVX. So the question is, does he want to make the most of his money and make the best film he can? Or does he want to own equipment?

Those aren't the same goal.

If someone's learning to shoot, etc., then yes they should own their own gear, definitely. But if someone's poised to begin production on a 100-minute movie, that's not the time to be buying stuff and learning how to use it, that's the time to be working. Hire someone who has the equipment and expertise that you don't have, and make everyone happy.
 
Definitely rent - or beg/borrow. If ths is a student film, then look around for someone who might be sympathetic to your low budget cause and let you "rent" the few pieces of gear that you need for a credit in the film. Use the cash for art department, or to feed your crew (the key to low budget films is keeping your crew happy) or hire good actors for your starring roles.

Barry
 
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