"Corrado" - A production blog

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taormina said:
LONG POST!

Barry thought it would be a good idea if I share my experiences making my first feature. After refleting somewhat, I agree - I've gained so much knowledge here that it would be nice to give something back.

Not sure how often I will be able to update this, but I will do my best.

Relevant facts about me:
I am a director who writes, produces, and edits
I have produced and directed many shorts, even one on 35mm film
I produced and direted a TV pilot that went....nowhere.
I have recently completed a feature length documentary
I have never shot a feature.
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I've been following this thread for a while. Thanks for doing this.
Is there any place where I can view some of your short films?

Thanks,

Mike
 
Rippie said:
Thats called a polyphonic wav.
multiple tracks of audio tied together as one.
Simpliest ex: a stereo track. In reality its 2 mono's but it's only one file.

The other way of delivering audio is monophonic where every track would have been its own file.

Poly's are for the most part the way you deliver these days.


Have you been keeping track of which takes you used for each cut?
labeled in vegas perhaps?

I'd hate to have to sift through 8 takes of an angle to figure out which track to use.

Glad its working out for ya though.
I came to this thread very late so I look forward to seeing a trailer or flick.

Future reference: if anyone is doing double system. Treat your video like film, meaning sync everything before you edit the first moment in the movie.
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Okay, cool. Learned a new word today. Yes, I've been keeping track of the takes....they are all labelled on the DVD RAMs from the sound mixer - is that what you were referring to? The filenames are scene and take number.

As for the advice, truer words have never been spoken.
 
Michael Anthony Horrigan said:
I've been following this thread for a while. Thanks for doing this.
Is there any place where I can view some of your short films?

Thanks,

Mike
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The simple answer to that question is no. Before I had undertaken this venture, probably six months before, ALL of my stuff was online....webisodes, shorts, the trailer for my TV pilot....you name it.

I decided to take all of it down before I went into production on my feature as I felt I wanted to be judged on my feature alone, not my previous work, some of which was amateurish and experimental, stuff I'd shot with just my camera and no lights, no crew or anything. Other stuff was pretty good, and definitely for public viewing, but before you start calling agents you need to have your ducks in a row.

Because some zealot agent will look up your "adventures of whatever" short that you shot in your basement with a DV camera and will immediately judge you on it.
 
taormina said:
Because some zealot agent will look up your "adventures of whatever" short that you shot in your basement with a DV camera and will immediately judge you on it.
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smart move.

i've heard this to be the nail in the coffin for some first time filmmakers or has just made getting the deal that much harder.
 
FilmBoy77 said:
smart move.

i've heard this to be the nail in the coffin for some first time filmmakers or has just made getting the deal that much harder.
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Well it's just that if you own your own camera, as most of us do, you'll accumulate a huge body of work....most of it garbage.

You play, you experiment, you put stuff up on youtube to show your buddies....most of it's not fit for people to see out of context. You aren't there when Mr. Agent or Mr. Actor is watching your short.

If you're going to leave it up, then make sure it's something you are proud of, something that will stand up to scrutiny when you aren't present to defend it.

When Corrado hits store shelves, it's on it's own, man. Cut it up, hate it, love it, whatever. It's absolutely on it's own.
 
i hear ya man loud and clear and no matter how big any of us get that's always gonna be the case. this definitely aint the type of industry to be in if you do not have thick skin or can't stand constructive criticism/bad criticism.

what do you think the biggest lesson you've learned is while working on Corrado as far as preproduction, dealing with agents, actors, and everything goes? Is there one specific thing you've learned that has you ready to hit the ground running on your next film?
 
The biggest prepro lesson would probably be confidence. I'm used to hitting people up for things as a salesman, what I wasn't attuned to where questions agents would ask that were meant to troll for warning signals....questions that would quickly get you shut down like:


Do you have all of your financing?
"We have most of it lined up"

Translation: you don't have any of it


When do you start filming?
"We start mid December"

Translation: You aren't filming for sure. Any answer to this without a firm date means you don't know.


Where are you shooting?
"We haven't got all of the locations yet"

Translation: You're movie isn't going to be made. You probably don't have the money.


These innocuous questions are asked so subtly that you think they are just polite conversation, instead they are actually probing you for weakness. If you reveal any, you get no attention.
 
taormina said:
When do you start filming?
"We start mid December"

Translation: You aren't filming for sure. Any answer to this without a firm date means you don't know.
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isnt this kind of a trick question though? how can you know a firm date on when you start filming if you're calling the agent to see if his client (the actor) would take on the role? obviously you cant film without the main actor.

Agent: When do you start filming?

Filmmaker: As soon as you stop screening me and tell me what your client's day rate is!

so should you just say a firm date even if it's not so firm?
 
Hiring a composer was your first option? I mean, were not other reasons, financially for example? I find hiring a composer a bit speculative. I know composers and the quality of their work is not always the same. What if you wanted to use a well known song?
 
djinjis said:
Hiring a composer was your first option? I mean, were not other reasons, financially for example? I find hiring a composer a bit speculative. I know composers and the quality of their work is not always the same. What if you wanted to use a well known song?
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Composing a score is much more than just having a well known song... which might cost and arm and a leg to get all the rights...

Most people if they want well known songs in their film start trying to get those rights in pre-production... and they can like I said above will cost a pretty penny...

But again... composing a score is much more than having songs... a good score can bring emotion to your film... plus a good piece of music can sometimes fix a bad cut... etc...
 
FilmBoy77 said:
isnt this kind of a trick question though? how can you know a firm date on when you start filming if you're calling the agent to see if his client (the actor) would take on the role? obviously you cant film without the main actor.

Agent: When do you start filming?

Filmmaker: As soon as you stop screening me and tell me what your client's day rate is!

so should you just say a firm date even if it's not so firm?
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Yes, it is a trick. You should have firm dates for the actor to work. If you make it sound like you are depending on that actor to make or break your production, you weaken your position.
 
Here is a very subjective matter depending on the quality of the music. Important is to be a good song/score or whatever. The issue score versus songs it's minimal next to good music, bad music.

but the money can be a problem...
 
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djinjis said:
Here is a very subjective matter depending on the quality of the music. Important is to be a good song/score or whatever. The issue score versus songs it's minimal next to good music, bad music.

but the money can be a problem...
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All movies are scored. All of them! Some movies have real songs interspersed throughout the score, but they are still scored by a composer...
 
taormina said:
All movies are scored. All of them! Some movies have real songs interspersed throughout the score, but they are still scored by a composer...
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Well, not all of them...The China Syndrome and Cloverfield are 2 examples of movies without scores, but I see your point...they're the exception versus the rule.

Sorry...just nitpicking. Personally, I think a score can make or break a film. :)

Love this thread and the advice it gives, and I'm looking forward to seeing the completed movie when it comes out!
 
For that matter if you neglected the work of composers and stuck to just songs, you'd miss out on such greats as the Godfather theme, Indiana Jones theme, Star wars theme, and a host of music composed especially for a movie that lends it is feel arguably as much as the cinematography does.

My next movie will utilize a song or two, but will be scored as well.
 
Adam, are you at liberty to disclose exactly who your composer is? Personally, I would be interested to see what other kinds of movies he or she has scored.

EDIT: Another question: how involved are you in the scoring of your film? I know some directors like to spend a lot of time with their composers, and some just "turn them loose", so to speak. What do you do?
 
My composer, who incidentally will be finished the score over the weekend is Ryan Franks....I've mentioned him before. Look him up at: http://www.ryanfranksmusic.com/

I watched the movie with him and told him the parts where I felt it was important to have strong supporting music. Ryan had previously done a demo score for a scene so we knew exactly the style of music I was after, and then he ran with it. He mentioned to me that it was the least amount of direction he had ever received!

I firmly believe in not restraining an artist - I don't do it with my DP, my post audio guy, my composer, or my actors. It must fit into my vision, but beyond that they have free reign to create.

Interestingly, the music he is making for Corrado is unlike any demo piece you will hear on his site in that it's not an orchestral score.
 
Yeah, a lot of films utilize songs and score (as will the one I'm working on right now) but nearly EVERY film has a SCORE.
 
I'm just under half way done the audio sync. Got seriously bogged down with a few scenes that used cuts from like 4 different takes. I fired the director for not being able to deliver a consistent performance and fired the editor for utilizing too many cuts in one scene.

The sad part is at this point after having written, directed, edited, and now assisted with the post audio, I could probably quote every line in the movie and pantomime the parts....
 
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