Did i go overboard?

D

dreallen

Active member
I am VERY serious about this film making. I have done about a dozen music videos and I have been lucky enough to start with the DVX100B and work my way up through the HVX200A with all of it's red rock adapter madness and now the Panasonic AF100 which is awesome. I always kept my eye on the prize and now after 5 more videos I bought what I am going to use as a production trailer. It has about 70k miles on it but it's in perfect condition (i'll try to attach photos). It also has an onboard Onan 5000 watt generator for external power and will be used as a combination grip truck, dressing room, & on set potty...lol. I really want to give my actors and crew a true and complete film making experience to the best of my ability and after about $10k on camera, lenses, DIY scrim, jib arm crane, dolly, & diffusion screen builds I believe I am on my way to a great rig. I got the RV for $15k bringing my grand total to a little over $30k in total gear, grip, and equipment. I have been working towards this goal for 5 years and I guess my question is this. Is it important to create a professional set to the best of your ability for your crew and actors in order to make everyone comfortable and do you think it contributes to the creative atmosphere in so far as getting better performances from them?
 

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You better save another 5k for gas, whats that get 8miles per gallon:) On a serious note, I guess it's how you prioratize, everyones different, I would have used it for either a cooke lens or maybe picked up a used f3, but thats me. The great thing is, you can jump in a take a trip to film around the country if you have the time and cake. Not to mention save on hotel for actors or crew. Allthough it depends if crew and talent will mingle, haha

Right now is the time to buy though, you can pick up motorhomes for pennies on the dollar these days. I was very close to pulling the trigger on one, but that was three yrs ago, now their even better deals to be had. I don't commute to work anymore though.
 
I'd prolly ad a separate tow behind unit to store the larger gear (like the crane), but yeah, I think it's an awesome idea. But for the love of Pete, get some good insurance on it, b/c if it's stolen with all your stuff inside it would be a disaster.

Best of luck!
 
You deserve to succeed...you crazy guy. :thumbsup:

BTW- the side flags on your mattebox should be swapped left with right. Knobs go on the out side.... unless you want to paint them out later when they get in edge of shot.
 
Treating people with respect definitely goes a long way towards getting a better performance from them -- as does paying them, and feeding them properly (no cheapo pizza if at all possible). If people feel you value them, rather than that they're a commodity to be used, they're much more likely to respond well.

Gear & all is a good start, but script and actors are far more important, and a good/competent crew is invaluable. There are a few good filmmaking resources out there in the Vegas area that can lead you to getting all of those. And, as it is, a few DVXUsers might be in town next month, maybe you should hold a get-together in the new production motorhome and make some contacts... :)
 
I've hired big trucks in the past and I can say that, for the right client, it definitely impresses. It's got 'serious crew' written all over it and that can pay dividends in recommendations and repeat business (assuming your end result is up to scratch of course). Plus you can go on vacation really easily now :)
 
Dreallen

I think getting an RV is a great move. I did it myself a year ago. You can buy an older motorhome with extremely low miles (nobody drives these often) for cheap and they are powerful and can haul a ton of gear. IMO anyone considering buying a small cube or box truck should look into getting an older RV instead. You will be looking at rigs with 50-60k miles vs a truck with 150-250k miles.

Plus they are damned convienent to have on set as well.

The only mistake I think you might have made was buying a really nice one. In my experience they tend to get beat up very quickly. For example, I did a show recently where our location one day was down a remote road that no one bothered to trip the trees on so my rig took quite a few scratches. That would have been much harder if my rig were as pretty as yours. lol The interiors get beat up quickly too it seems. Just my $0.02

Good move IMO.

:)
 
Shooter I never fail to feel like an amateur whenever I hear your pearls of wisdom...lol. To the thread...thanks for the support. And YES! I am going to the lake a little more often with the kiddos now...LOL! I'm not too sure about a tow unit. It's a V10 and could handle it but it's alot of truck to move. I DI go get the big State Farm insurance fire/flood/theft/vandalism policy to cover all equipment and the unit as well so i'm good there. Thanks for all the advice!
 
Derbrocks Yeah...i'm gonna be really careful. But the floors are tile...no carpet and the upholstery is faded blue but looks decent. What more could I ask for $15k out the door? Mechanic cleared it totally, generator tested today to handle about 3 1k's and an Arri 2k...might push it a little further tomorrow to see how much juice I can get.
 
I worked on a national fishing show a few years back where we had an RV as a support vehicle. It was nice to have it on location. Also had an extra AVID edit bay tucked into that puppy. I'm sure it will be a big plus for you Dre. They are a great location for doing makeup when a dedicated trailer isn't available.

derbrocks09 said:
IMO anyone considering buying a small cube or box truck should look into getting an older RV instead. You will be looking at rigs with 50-60k miles vs a truck with 150-250k miles
Click to expand...

FWIW, many diesel trucks are just getting broken-in after 150K miles. My 2005 Mercedes Sprinter van has almost 400K miles on the clock. I'm guessing the reason they named it the Sprinter, is once the turbo spools up, it sprints! And I get around 27mpg.
 
I've heard nothing but great things about that Sprinter.

Dreallen, One more note, with that V10 you should have no trouble towing just about anything with it. Eventually as you acquire more gear you could easily pick up an enclosed trailer to tow for all the gear. Just another suggestion. :)
 
The setup is awesome.

As always, make sure your quality, talent, and creativity match your gear and equipment.

The only way it is overboard is if someone produces something better than you with way less. Your focus should always be on the craft. So long as the equipment is truly complimenting your skill, not compensating for it, then it's not overboard. Happy film-making :)
 
dreallen said:
Shooter I never fail to feel like an amateur whenever I hear your pearls of wisdom...lol. To the thread...thanks for the support. And YES! I am going to the lake a little more often with the kiddos now...LOL! I'm not too sure about a tow unit. It's a V10 and could handle it but it's alot of truck to move. I DI go get the big State Farm insurance fire/flood/theft/vandalism policy to cover all equipment and the unit as well so i'm good there. Thanks for all the advice!
Click to expand...

If you don't mind my saying-- I was trying to look at your company website, and came to your Wikipedia page instead. And with your list of accomplishments, I'd hardly call you an amateur. ;) Shooter's wisdom has that effect on me, too, though. lol. Cheers, mate.

Oh, and as far as insurance, I keep hearing that your typical insurance isn't usually enough when it comes to your equipment. Maybe at least when they aren't inside of the RV and you're actually using them. It's something I've been looking into for my equipment. Might be something that some of the other guys can chime in on.
 
See??? That's why I love this community. I come back to the thread and all this great productive activity. First let me answer a couple questions...the generator is GREAT on output but it is audible on the opposite side of the unit. It is fixed and attached to the unit so theres no getting away but I can park up top 300 feet away with the cords and such. Brandon...you're too kind. I did a video today of the whole set up. I am still buying one ARRI 2K flood so I have a little extra lighting muscle. I want to get active in making money with this rig. Oh...Shooter IS awesome...lol. I am definitely intimidated because there is really nothing left to do but make my movie. I want to tell you all about it. I just registered it with the WGA so I feel comfortable enough. It's a vigilante film about people who should definitely die. It's controversial at LEAST and i'm going to use alot of shoulder mounted moving type shots as well as dolly and crane shots. We cold heartedly execute several people in the film until the vigilantes begin to suffer their own brand of PTSD. But by the time they do, the public is now cheering them on and a conflict arises. Continue to do the dirty deeds or selectively pick high value targets and make more of an impression. I have alot of work to do. I will be posting that link now...
 
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