Finished my film, what now?

S

skywalks

Active member
Hello everybody.
I've been working the past year on a very low budget feature. I'm not to sure what to do with it or where to submit it? I was wondering, if I post my trailer if some people with experience starting up could advise me on what direction I should go. I understand it's not the greatest film and who even knows what the greatest film is, but I had fun making this project and would like to see it in at least one film festival. I've tried looking through withoutabox.com, but i'm not too sure based on the quality of my film which festivals are right for me.

Here's the trailer.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJ8a8baPqcA

I made this trailer for friends and family, since then i've done alot of color work to the film and work on the sound. Also I think theres a shot in the trailer where the little boy might look at the camera (thats not in the film)

Run time is 90 minutes, I shot it in 1080i on the hvx200. Even though it's interlaced it still looks rockin on blu ray.

Thanks, sorry if this is a little much to take in, I understand theres alot more to it when giving guidence so feel free to ask questions or critique.
 
Maybe start with Withoutabox again, eliminating genre festivals like scifi and horror, and maybe concentrating on festivals close by-ish, so it's easier for you to attend any screenings?

As far as critiquing goes, looking at your trailer and the couple of scenes you have on Youtube, you might want to look up the filmmaking definition of "crossing the line" for future reference :beer:

Cheers
 
The main issue seems to be lack of camera movement. Viewers expect lots of camera movement, especially now days, it's not 1920. ;) That means dolly shots, jib shots, steadycam shots, etc. Also some constant crossing the line. That is kind of filmmaking 101 stuff, it's good to read all of these rules before you shoot something.

The scene at night about 1:20 in or so, that's where to watch. She is on the left side of the screen, then the right, then the left, then the right. She should always be on the same side of the screen when you cut back and forth between OTS shots. It's distracting otherwise, and throws audiences' sense of geography off. Even just the eye should be able to tell you that it looks wrong, without knowing any rules.
 
Whoa. That was kind of rough, man. I'm not sure you want to start your branding on the back of this flick. You may be just a kid now (not sure how old you are), but remember that everything you put out into the world attributes to your personal branding. While you can reinvent a series or a product, it's much more difficult to reinvent people's perception of you and your work.

I think it's great that you completed a feature length film. Take some joy just in accomplishing such a feat. But in prose (novels) they tell you to always put that book on the shelf for 6 months and move onto something else before doing your edit. I don't write books anymore, but when I did, the first novel I ever wrote I ended up having to throw in the trash. I'd accomplished writing a novel at 19, but 6 months later I saw it for what it was -- an experience, college, whatever. I now knew I could do it, I could write a book, but doing it well is a completely different animal.

So, the good news is that you CAN do it. Now take the time to read lots and lots and lots of books and watch lots and lots and lots of films and listen to lots and lots of critical commentary and go to seminars, etc. 6 months from now go back to THIS film and be hyper-critical of it, making sure to circle every single thing that you did incorrectly.

Once you've done that you can make a GOOD film and then you can go onto your next stage of failing, which will be in the promotion and distribution of the film. You'll make a whole new slew of mistakes that you can then learn from there.

This is the way real life happens and the way real artists emerge. You've made enough mistakes where you can spend the next year correcting them. However if you were to continue with the process (showing it to an audience or, god forbid, a production house) you risk tarnishing your name (your brand). Heck, *I* don't even use my real name on the internet for fear that it can negatively affect my "name". Nothing is more important than your credibility as person and as an artist.

Just my $.02
 
The main thing in any flick is to be able to believe the actors to a point you are in the story, not watching actors. All the pretty camera work and prestine post-production in the world cannot make bad acting believeable. You'll find throwing out a local ad and offering flyers at your local theatres will bring out the nest thespian selects in your area and it doesn't have to cost you anything. In a nutshell, this looks like a great start, showing much passion but a good candidate to put on the shelf and learn from.
This is a good thing though. If you are not always embarrassed by works you created in the past, you are not growing as an artist.
 
JonathanLB said:
The main issue seems to be lack of camera movement. Viewers expect lots of camera movement, especially now days, it's not 1920. ;) That means dolly shots, jib shots, steadycam shots, etc. Also some constant crossing the line. That is kind of filmmaking 101 stuff, it's good to read all of these rules before you shoot something.

The scene at night about 1:20 in or so, that's where to watch. She is on the left side of the screen, then the right, then the left, then the right. She should always be on the same side of the screen when you cut back and forth between OTS shots. It's distracting otherwise, and throws audiences' sense of geography off. Even just the eye should be able to tell you that it looks wrong, without knowing any rules.
Click to expand...


I'm on kind of a Dark City kick lately and so watched the movie with the Ebert commentary track yesterday, and on the track he went into detail about the very static camera work present in the beginning of Dark City and how the shots were set up to emulate a comic book panel -- Ebert pointing out that the angles in comic books must always be hyper-dramatic, hyper-realistic so to garner the most impact in a single frame.

This just struck me when you mentioned the camera movement. I think PURPOSE of movement and PURPOSE of frame are what's paramount. I think rushing the camera here there and back again can provoke a certain emotion from the audience, but what exactly is the emotion we are trying to provoke? Mamet wrote extensively about the pictures telling the stories, that most American film is done incorrectly (and moreso scripts are written incorrectly) in that in American film the camera simply follows the protaganist around. There's no intention within the frame; the camera is simply hanging out, watching what happens. He talked about each and every shot progressing the story, opposed to the story happening and the camera just being this necessary viewer.

Now, obviously, Mamet is not the best film director, but I think his theories are sound. What is in the frame and what is the camera doing with the information? Is the camera framing something of importance, is the camera revealing something, etc? Every shot needs to progress the story/motivations/conflict or you just end up with the worst that American cinema has to offer -- reality television.

;)
 
grinner said:
The main thing in any flick is to be able to believe the actors to a point you are in the story, not watching actors. All the pretty camera work and prestine post-production in the world cannot make bad acting believeable. You'll find throwing out a local ad and offering flyers at your local theatres will bring out the nest thespian selects in your area and it doesn't have to cost you anything. In a nutshell, this looks like a great start, showing much passion but a good candidate to put on the shelf and learn from.
This is a good thing though. If you are not always embarrassed by works you created in the past, you are not growing as an artist.
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So true.

Well I'm not embarrassed by work I did in late 2007, that's about when I started being able to do pro work, but anything before that, ugg, yikes!

I made a lot of crappy little short films that I wouldn't show to anyone, didn't send anywhere, and are an embarrassment. But I learned from them, a lot actually, and that helped me become the filmmaker I am today. Just the same, the mistakes I make now still help me learn for better work still in the future!

Chamber have some really good advice. He's right. You don't want to start getting your work out there until it really shows your developed, polished potential and professionalism.
 
The most important thing you did is you completed your film. That alone is a monumental accomplishment.

I would strongly suggest you secure yourself a copy of the HollywoodCameraWork DVD series Master Course on Blocking and Staging.

Go through the material several times and then pick a scene from your film and examine it through the eyes of your new found knowledge. I can sit around expounding all kinds of advice, but you will be your own best critic and your post HollywoodCameraWork experience will open your eyes wider than I could with a bunch of rhetoric on some community board.
 
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It's difficult to get into festivals (unless you know someone who decides which movies get shown.) If you haven't sent too much money on making this movie, you might consider showing it from your website. Look into streaming movies. That's what I'm doing. I figure if you're going to show it for free, might as well get the credit for showing it yourself.

Regarding the wrong screen direction in the early scene of the trailer (unless it was intended), simply "flop" one of the angles.

Good luck with the movie. Keep on making more movies.
 
Congrats Skywalk! I can not wait for the day that I can ask the same question you asked. I have yet to to a feature film, but it is in my plans. You get a gold star in my book just for completing a feature film!
 
Seems ok, not awful so some advice is to.

1. Give your movie a more movie look. Check out magic bullet looks and apple trailers to get some ideas. http://vimeo.com/5298634?pg=embed&sec=

2. Add great music to help sell it. Even if copyrighted at this point.

3. Cut this trailer way shorter! 1 minute max.

4. Maybe change the name. Use a catchy or repetitive line from the movie.

5. Put a limiter on your sounds. and lower your sound effects like gun shots a little.

6. Add some speed changes. Fast motion. slow motion, ramp motion.

7. Do a virtual dolly shot. Just zoom in 10% or so slowly.

8. And Finally tell everyone it cost 50k to make and act like you are the best director ever.

If you complete all of the above I can't see why you wouldn't be able to sell this movie for 20k.

Next time get a known actor of some sort in your movie and a script based on a old book or a true story.

Hope this helps you pimpin!
 
Item #2 can be quite costly if you sell under the pretense that the music has been cleared. Way too many filmmakers have never been able to clear or afford the rights to songs they felt they could just add at will.

Just using any old book also needs to be cleared for rights. Not all old books are in the public domain.


Michael
 
MichaelP said:
Item #2 can be quite costly if you sell under the pretense that the music has been cleared. Way too many filmmakers have never been able to clear or afford the rights to songs they felt they could just add at will.

Just using any old book also needs to be cleared for rights. Not all old books are in the public domain.


Michael
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Ok like he said
 
congrats on finishing a feature film. That's a huge deal and you should feel proud.

For your next project I strongly suggest you hire lead actors of varying age groups. People in their young twenties are generally still finding their way in life so it's okay the way you presented them. But if a role calls for someone in a position of power/authority, hire actors in their forties/fifties. This will add much credibility to your film and your story.

Just a thought

Also, consider boosting the audio when the girl says, "He's a heroin addict." It's a pivotal line describing your main character and i missed it the first time around.
 
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