How to make a street rundown?

Ewan L

Ewan L

Active member
I'm doing a short soon and there's a few shots where the actors walking down a deserted street (it's in the future). There's going to be fire and smoke but that'll be comped in during post. What other things could I do to make it run down?

It's about 40 feet long, and 15 feet wide. More of a lane really, no cars go down it. It's already pretty messed up but I want it to have a sort of sci-fi look.

Thanks.
 
If you can maybe tow some completely destroyed cars from a junkyard in there. Nothing says "apocalyptic future" like everyone abandoning their vehicles in the street, left to rot. See The Terminator series for good examples of this and maybe some other ideas.
 
Weeds, vegetation and animals. It has been shown that it doesn't take nature long to reabsorb the man-made world. A great deal of time and labour goes into sustaining our cities. There is not a great deal of permanence without constant maintainence. Bridges for example need to be constantly inspected, repaired and painted or else they will simply corrode and fall down. In tropical climates an abandoned town can completely disappear into jungle in about 20 years.
 
Thanks.

Unsure how much it would cost for a wrecked car to be towed down, but the weeds and vegetation sounds good. It's going to have a cold feel to it so it could work.
 
Sad Max said:
You can place some of your wrecked cars etc in post too, of course.
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Yes, I was thinking that, too. Especially because I'm on a tight budget for it. I'll need to try and keep the shot steady so I don't have to do too much tracking.
 
If you're fairly inexperienced with 3d modeling and compositing, I'd keep adding in elements (except maybe background smoke and fire) in post to a minimum. Chances are it will come out looking unrealistic, distracting, and amateur, or at the very least, slightly "off". The easiest thing to do is do as much as you can practically during production. It will save you a great deal of time and heart/headache during post.

Of course, this is all void if you're experienced in compositing, or are planning on hiring someone who is.
 
Ewan L said:
Thanks.

Unsure how much it would cost for a wrecked car to be towed down, but the weeds and vegetation sounds good. It's going to have a cold feel to it so it could work.
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It can't hurt to just ask. I'm always surprised by how willing people are to help out with a film. Just explain that it is low budget, and that you are making it for art rather than profit. Another option is to advertise on Gumtree. I bet a load of people out there have old broken cars or MOT failures sitting in garages that they have never gotten round to getting rid of. Of course, you'd still have to tow it to your location.

D.
 
WildTrackDave said:
If you're fairly inexperienced with 3d modeling and compositing, I'd keep adding in elements (except maybe background smoke and fire) in post to a minimum. Chances are it will come out looking unrealistic, distracting, and amateur, or at the very least, slightly "off". The easiest thing to do is do as much as you can practically during production. It will save you a great deal of time and heart/headache during post.

Of course, this is all void if you're experienced in compositing, or are planning on hiring someone who is.
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I'm ok/decent at compositing and modelling, especially in Maya. I should be ok with most of it, but I'll try keep it to a minimum and do most practically.

swopiv said:
It can't hurt to just ask. I'm always surprised by how willing people are to help out with a film. Just explain that it is low budget, and that you are making it for art rather than profit. Another option is to advertise on Gumtree. I bet a load of people out there have old broken cars or MOT failures sitting in garages that they have never gotten round to getting rid of. Of course, you'd still have to tow it to your location.

D.
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Thanks, forgot about gumtree. If I can hire it for under a couple hundred then I might consider it. It'd only be used in a few shots and about half a minute to a minute of film so I don't want to be spending too much since it's an indie low budget film.
 
Those elements will all be of use. But, do you have a permit to shoot at the location? That's going to be your key to turning it into a set.
 
Noel Evans said:
Those elements will all be of use. But, do you have a permit to shoot at the location? That's going to be your key to turning it into a set.
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It's a lane next to my house. I should be ok but if I'm doing anything big I'll run it by the local council. It should be ok hopefully.
 
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