DVDs for good BTS?

Shawn Philip Nelson

Shawn Philip Nelson

Veteran
Anyone got any recommendation for DVDs that show good BTS that actually show you how the movie was made (i.e. shots of the crew at work, lighting setups, shots of gear used, etc.) and not just a series of self-gratifying interview rants by the cast and crew that's overcut with rapid blurring shots where you can't tell a damn thing?
 
i doubt it's anything you don't already know (in fact you even probably have seen the dvd) but El Mariachi goes very much into detail about HOW the movie was made, including lighting setups.

of course, I don't think El Mariachi was a very good movie, so the point might be moot.

I'm trying to think of others, but having a hard time... The king Kong production diaries are actually pretty good about showing the lighting setups, although they don't go into detail about them, but you can get a pretty good look at them. I'll try to think of others
 
King Kong and Lord of the Rings have a lot of good production diary things. They don't go into a ton of technical detail, but you can certainly learn some by watching them.

edit - and be amazed by the benefits of having 200 million dollars to make a film.
 
On the original Die Hard BTS McTiernan goes into some good details about why he chose the shots he did, but no technical stuff.

It is one of my favorite BTS commentaries, definitely about filmmaking.

For the opposite of what you are looking for, check out the commentary on the anniversary edition of Blood Simple. The Cohen brothers made up a fake film critic who does commentary on the film and tells you things like the actors in the car in the opening scene were actually hung from the ceiling and the camera turned upside down so it would appear right. And that the dog was anamatronic, etc.
 
For the opposite of what you are looking for, check out the commentary on the anniversary edition of Blood Simple. The Cohen brothers made up a fake film critic who does commentary on the film and tells you things like the actors in the car in the opening scene were actually hung from the ceiling and the camera turned upside down so it would appear right. And that the dog was anamatronic, etc.
Click to expand...

That sounds hilarious. I'll check it out.
 
we've had "great extras" threads before, but specific to what shawn's talking about, I don't think those are terribly helpful.

LoTR are maybe the best produced DVD's available, simply awesome, but they don't really help US make our movies at all, outside of motivation :)
 
*A quick shameless plug, but it's totally apt.*

Flip on DVD has a 2+ hour production diary detailing every production aspect imaginable. There are also 8 featurettes covering various production stages. If you made an All Hallows entry this year, you'll be getting one for free, but if you didn't it's available now for $14.99 from the banner below. You can also read what other DVXusers have said about the film on it's USER FILMS thread.

Oh, also, good production diaries on the Magnolia DVD. 40 Year Old Virgin & Knocked Up have nice ones too.
 
Oh hey, for an actual, this is how we made this / shot this ...
Checkout November ... the DVX feature that won the Cinematography Award at Sundance in 04 or 05.

DP Nancy Schriber and the director talk about how they set up shots and made their short shooting schedule.

It was made for InDigEnt Films, which had a mission statement of shoot on digital for very little money basically

They talk about things like, while you can't light for both people in a scene or to cover both sides, you can light for a master favoring the side you are getting your closeup on and double your time that way.

Also they did something called a french closeup where when two people are talking in a hallway, you have the actors switch places rather than move the lighting setup and move the camera a bit so the shot is not identical.

She also talks about the lights they used etc.

OK-ish movie, but it looks good and has some good info on there.
 
The Criterion Collection has a wealth of this kind of information (their DVDs really are what they set out to do when they started with laserdisc, which is to have a film school in a box). The DVD for Faces, in the John Cassavetes Box Set, actually has a list of the exact camera and sound equipment they used, and the cinematographer goes in great detail about how he lit the film. Almost all of the films in the set have some kind of technical information. A Woman Under The Influence has a very informative commentary track by the Cameraman Mike Ferris, and the Composer/Sound man Bo Harwood.
 
Oh yeah ... THe Conversation, Coppola, Hackman, 74
http://www.altfg.com/blog/film-reviews/the-conversation-1974-dvd-review/

"the director provides good insights into the camera technique of allowing characters to walk out of frame, and then, as if robotically, panning after them too late. He also explains how he gave Harrison Ford free reign to expand his Martin Stett character, and the effect that repeating certain scenes and motifs has on the viewer. There are also trivial tidbits that enliven the commentary to make it seem as if Coppola is actually speaking to you alone. He recalls that Hackman and Duvall were roommates, and Duvall did his brief role as a favor to him and Hackman. He also explains how the dream sequence was originally part of the film’s end, but he had trouble shooting it so that idea was scrapped. The scene would later be used elsewhere in the film, as it is the only glimpse the viewer has into Caul’s past."
 
the DVDs for Gerry and Last Days have a sort of fly-on-the-wall documentary on the shooting of one specific shot in each film.
 
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