advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

J

johncordell

Member
Hi all. First time poster, but I've been lurking for about a month. Here goes…

I am about to buy everything I need to make short films. Would love advice/thoughts on my purchasing plan.

First off, my goals:

1) To create short films (videos) such that when put on anamorphic DVD appear to have been originally shot on film. Will be viewed on HD capable widescreen sets and projectors.
2) To have these films look as professional as possible. For the purpose of this forum, I am mostly interested in what set of tools can best be applied to achieve these goals from the technical side of things.
3) I plan on submitting such films to festivals once I’m happy with them.
4) I am hoping to buy everything I need so that the marginal cost of making a short is very low. That way they can suck at first and I won't be upset since they didn't cost anything.

I am expecting to spend about $20,000 and here’s what I propose buying:

-DVX100A ($3500)
-Anamorphic lens adapter ($1000 when modified for matte box)
-Matte box with filter holder (about $1200)
-Follow focus setup for the camera (about $1800)
-Tripod and fluid head (about $1000, miller ds-10 is a possibility)
- shotgun mic and boom (about $500)
- UHF wireless lav system (about $500)
- sound mixer ($500)
- field monitor (about $600, not sure what, something with 16:9 obviously)
- lighting kit (about $2000. thinking Arri fresnel kit with some soft lights as well)
- jib (about $1500 for EZFX jib plus jib handle, have played with it, liked it)
- low end stabilizer (about $300-$500)
- dolly and track (about $1000, thinking indie-dolly systems)
- new top of the line PC ($2500-$3000, 3.2ghz, 1 gig ram, SATA raid-0 dual drives)
- NLE software (about $1000)
- misc. goo such as cables, tape, clamps, gels, etc. (about $1000)

Specific questions:

1. How important is the follow focus rig. Should I not bother?
2. Which NLE would be best? Right now I am leaning toward Vegas, but something is nagging at me that that’s not the right choice. Note that I would be willing to switch to the Mac if the correct NLE software leads me that way.
3. If you owned nothing, but had this sort of budget (or slightly higher), what changes would you suggest? Nothing has been bought yet, so the plan is totally malleable at the moment.

Thanks in advance for any advice/help.
 
Re: advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

What a great op you have.
Not to open a can of worms, I use Vegas and FCP and have used FCP for many years since beta. I really like/love it, but I had been an AVID editor for quite sometime so the transition was not too hard. Spend time on both systems.

You might also be interested in the AJA/IO for FCP. It has every possible I/O going.

Good luck.
 
Re: advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

If I had that kind of budget I might consider the mini35 adapter or similar solution... But that could cost LOTS of money when you consider lenses, adapter etc...
 
Re: advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

The follow focus may not be necessary depending on the shots you have planned. Actually, the same could be said of the dolly and stabilizer. In the end, it all really depends on what you are trying to convey in your story. Of course, they are all really great to have and at least for the Chrosziel follow focus, the nice thing is they are so well made they will last you a great while. On top of that, follow focus units sell well if in good condition. Something to keep in mind if you ever need to sell it on eBay or something. If you aren't going into massive debt, and you can afford it, I'd buy the follow focus too.

I wouldn't go for the standard gear though. Check out Century Optic's Cine Style Focus Ring for the AG-DVX100 instead. More expensive but better suited for the follow focus unit. Click here to see: Focus Ring.

2. Avid is very powerful but the learning curve is tougher. Additionally, you may need to purchase Avid's Mojo for more 24p output options, which increases the price of your NLE software another $1695. Ouch. That's a follow focus unit. Vegas and Blade are the only other editing applications on PC that support 24p natively and without having to use another program. I'm learning Avid myself...

3. With such high end gear on your camera side, I'd recommend a better sound package, especially if you intend on making films for festivals one day. Eventually may want to look into a double-system sound setup and get a DAT, MD, or solid-state sound recorder. Possibly two or three shotguns like the Sennheiser MK416.

Ultimately, I think it would probably be better to purchase your gear according to the stories you want to make instead of the other way around. Trying to account for every possibility will prove expensive, and in the end, unless you are rich, there comes a point when you should look into renting instead. More versatile that way.

May want to start off with a basic package - the essentials first - then stick to that old saying, buy only when you need it. What those essentials are though only you can say. Get an idea of what you want to do then gradually upgrade/aquire/rent equipment as needed. With product releases so quick now - check that Disappointed with Panasonic thread - you could have better options when you only buy when you need to.
 
Re: advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

My reply will be short compared to the rest... (adhd kicking in probably)... i have the follow focus and wouldn't want to pull focus without it... it's very smooth, and very accessible, since you don't have to grab the lens everytime. As far as NLE, i'm completely Mac biased. So, in my mind, FCP is the way to go. That movie "Cold Mountain" was just edited on FCP and some G4's. Pretty amazing the technology that's available to everyone nowdays (for a grand too)... just my 2 cents...
 
Re: advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

Don't ya love these POST's?

"Hi. I'm going to gear up to make films and have $20,000..."

Sigh...

How come this isn't like my brother or neghbor or Haitian helper or something?


DISCLAIMER

Nothing at all was meant by the Haitan comment. IT just as easily could have been my BOSNIAN friend.
 
Re: advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

>>> John Hudson wrote: Don't ya love these POST's? ... Sigh...

I probably should've apologized in my first post for having $20,000. Sorry about that!

>>> Oz/Kai's follow focus advice...

Thanks, these are exactly the kind of first hand accounts/advice I was hoping to get before buying.

>>> Kai wrote: Ultimately, I think it would probably be better to purchase your gear according to the stories you want to make instead of the other way around. Trying to account for every possibility will prove expensive, and in the end, unless you are rich, there comes a point when you should look into renting instead. More versatile that way.

I will be doing narrative/comedy stuff, and do have a short in mind that prompted this list of gear.

With regard to renting, my resistance to doing so comes from the fact that I don't want to have a $ clock ticking as I spin up on these new tools. Would rather not feel pressured while I'm learning.

I am trying to put together what would be considered a basic but very nice set of filmmaking tools. At one point I had considered the dolly/jib/stabilizer as a "pick any one" or "pick any two" option. Am not planning on tons of hand held shots in my work.

I've read the "disappointed with panasonic" thread and am firmly in the camp that believes there's no cause for grievance in that case. Just the opposite, in fact, as it's the norm for technology purchases.

Thanks to everyone for the comments, very helpful, feel free to keep them coming.
 
Re: advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

>>> Kai wrote: Ultimately, I think it would probably be better to purchase your gear according to the stories you want to make instead of the other way around. Trying to account for every possibility will prove expensive, and in the end, unless you are rich, there comes a point when you should look into renting instead. More versatile that way. <<<

Hey, I've become Kai! I'm glad, now I get an extra follow focus. ;D

John, I know what you mean about renting. In fact, where I'm from, there's not too many places that sell good gear much less rent them out so I'm constantly forced to purchase. Unfortunately, that list gets longer everytime so I have to eventually cut corners somewhere. That's life though ;)

I think you've got a great setup going, should be a worthwhile, challenging, but fun learning experience. Let us know how it goes.
 
Re: advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

lol I thought I felt different today!
 
Re: advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

>>> Oz wrote: Hey, I've become Kai! I'm glad, now I get an extra follow focus.

Oops. You became Kai in a random act of editing.

I'm in LA, so I'll be lucky in that I'll be able to rent just about anything I need to try.
 
Re: advice sought on gearing up for filmmaking

Yeah no kidding I just have the camera, light kit, light stands.Some refelectors, steady system and the floor space is getting smaller and smaller. Starting on my sound kit this month! :P
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top