SHORT: Consulting the Godfather - A 4K Comedy Short

[wannabeapilot]

Hey guys, I'm back with another comedy short!

This video was really fun to film, as we had a lot of good acting talent.

I'll break it down from the opening shot:



We blocked all the light coming through the window in the room with black tarps, and painters tape, it was a very nice home, so we used painters tape, even though duct tape would have made blocking out the window alot easier.

We filmed the aerial shot several months before during magic hour, but we decided it would be nice if it was a bit darker to match the indicated time inside, so we did day for night on the opening shot.

We arrived around 12:30pm just after lunch time and started blocking out the windows, and getting everything set up inside.

The gentleman who let us film in his home was very generous, and was a great sport even though we didn't leave until about 11:20pm that night

The transformation begins!


We finished setting up around 3pm, and our makeup artist began transforming the godfather.


Transformation complete!

Equipment used:
Sony PMW F5 with rokinon Xeen Primes
Dana Dolly
Libec LX 10 Tripod
Rode NTG3
Litepanels Astra Bi Color
Several C Stands
Nyrius Aeries pro wireless transmitter
Arri 300w light

Shooting was planned out well in advance as two of our actors could not be there until after 6pm.

So we began shooting with the godfather, and bruno, filming most of their shots that didn't include interaction with our other two actors.


To help the actor playing the godfather maintain the correct eye line, we positioned a monitor in luigi's chair until he could arrive to shoot his scenes

We shot with a mix of sticks, and dana dolly.


Once our other actors arrived, we flipped around, and shot the opposite way, this also worked out well as we didn't have enough material to block out the windows in the hall, and by the time we flipped angles, the sun had gone down enough to not be a problem



Afterwards the actors insisted on going to applebees... in character


Link to higher resolution photos:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/pbpuivr565iif5i/AAD8SN0Z0qsD-iPjfA3o68ewa?dl=0

Once again a very fun shoot, that I think turned out pretty well.
Feedback or questions please don't hesitate to let me know

 

[charliemcdanger]

The Brando actor made me laugh repeatedly. I think the elements that keep it from being a home run are 1) it's overlit like a sitcom; 2) despite pretty good acting, the casting feels like kids wearing grown-up boots (i.e. the toughs are skinny guys in ill-fitting suits); and 3) the camera movement draws attention to itself. Around the 1:50 mark, now it's sliding this way, now it's sliding that way. Wait, why is it sliding?

Still enjoyable. Thanks for posting.

 

[Cryogenic Filmworks]

Nice.

 

[wannabeapilot]

The Brando actor made me laugh repeatedly. I think the elements that keep it from being a home run are 1) it's overlit like a sitcom; 2) despite pretty good acting, the casting feels like kids wearing grown-up boots (i.e. the toughs are skinny guys in ill-fitting suits); and 3) the camera movement draws attention to itself. Around the 1:50 mark, now it's sliding this way, now it's sliding that way. Wait, why is it sliding?

Still enjoyable. Thanks for posting.

Hey charliemcdanger, Thank you so much for taking the time to comment!

it's overlit like a sitcom; 2)

If you don't mind me asking for advice, are there any suggestions you might have on what would look less sitcom like?

Would you use less light overall, or a different setup for the lights?

the camera movement draws attention to itself. Around the 1:50 mark, now it's sliding this way, now it's sliding that way. Wait, why is it sliding?

I do agree with you on this, and the only defense I can offer would be that the director liked the performances best from the shots that were sliding.

I have already spoken with him about this though, and in my latest video we stuck to introductory shots only for sliding movement, so I very much appreciate you pointing that out

Nice.

Thanks for taking the time to watch it Cryogenic Filmworks!