I want to be a good film maker. Don't know why, don't know how. Where to start?

S

Seph

New member
Hey guys,

I'm 32, I have a background in marketing and journalism. So far in my business life I got in touch with movies here and there, mostly in a marketing context. I got some classes also about filming and taking pictures and while in university, I made two short movies. So, I'm basically starting at zero.

And now I feel like a sudden urge to get good in it. Mostly because of YouTube, because I saw so much stuff which was awe inspiring. Also, I love the storytelling aspect of it, to think about clever ideas and how to express them intro strong pictures. I love the importance of sound and music in combination and how it forms a big picture. And I like that in this day and age, we have the technology to share the results of our work with an big audience. I'm a very visual guy, thinking in scenes and pictures seems easy to me. Making short movies seems like it's helping with getting them out of my head. I don't know.

I got hard- and software which is good enough.

That said, I don't really know where to start. Since I know some basics and I'm already old, I tink it is better to get started by just doing short movies. Think of a topic, do a movie. I did this for the last couple of days. But that won't suffice in the long run. So my question is, what would be could targets to aim for? What should I try?
 
It's all about storytelling, so write a good script for a short film. If you're not a good writer (and few are) find a writer that has a script already done that you like and shoot that. Don't worry about the gear yet. As long as you have a script, actors, a camera and an audio recorder, you can shoot a film. Use your smartphone camera if it's what you have.

Remember: if you can't make a good movie with a cellphone, you can't make a good movie, period.

Best of luck!
 
Your project will only look as good as it sounds, because
"Sound is half of the experience"


If your film looks terrible but has great sound, people might just think it's your aesthetic.
If your film looks great and has bad sound, people will think you're an amateur.
Sound is the first indicator to the industry that you know what you're doing.​
 
That is true, thanks for the advise.

Instead of shooting something more akin to a movie, I was thinking about little projects showing stuff, locations etc. around me which are part of my life and make them somehow interesting by making a story out of it. I think execution is everything in this case, which can make the difference between a wow-production, a bad one and a "been there, seen that" thing. I'm just not sure where to start yet.
 
I think film making is bringing strands together. Visual audio and of course story.

For just starting you could film 'making a cup of coffee' or 'mowing the lawn'

Then build up to 'Freds vintage motorcycle collection'

In the background consider 'drama'

S
 
just go out and shoot - something, anything

then do it again

there are stories around you everywhere, they don't have to be big important stories, they can be anything
 
It depends on the work you want to do. If you want to do movies, narratives that is, then beside learning the language of camera, lighting, acting and composition you need a great story. I've done a bunch of shorts. I've learned a lot and parts of them, scenes, shots, moments are very good but narrative films are about the viewer's experience and that is binary. It is either good or bad. All the execution of camera moves, focus pulling, emotive lighting, etc. won't provide success unless you have a well structured script that keeps the viewer engaged. Write screenplays, learn to write, or join with someone in your community who can write. Then shoot, edit, and finish. Finish them. It's a lot more work than you might think but if you're into it, it's very gratifying.
 
Seph said:
That is true, thanks for the advise.

Instead of shooting something more akin to a movie, I was thinking about little projects showing stuff, locations etc. around me which are part of my life and make them somehow interesting by making a story out of it. I think execution is everything in this case, which can make the difference between a wow-production, a bad one and a "been there, seen that" thing. I'm just not sure where to start yet.
Click to expand...

If you are interested in being a sound man, then worry about sound. If you are interested in being a Director of Photography, then worry about lighting. If you are interested in being a camera man, then worry about fstop focus and controlling each millimeter of the framing.

If you want to be a director, ignore all these things and worry about your story and your actors. Shoot a wide shot and two close ups for each scene, and forget about the rest.
 
hscully said:
It depends on the work you want to do. If you want to do movies, narratives that is, then beside learning the language of camera, lighting, acting and composition you need a great story. I've done a bunch of shorts. I've learned a lot and parts of them, scenes, shots, moments are very good but narrative films are about the viewer's experience and that is binary. It is either good or bad. All the execution of camera moves, focus pulling, emotive lighting, etc. won't provide success unless you have a well structured script that keeps the viewer engaged. Write screenplays, learn to write, or join with someone in your community who can write. Then shoot, edit, and finish. Finish them. It's a lot more work than you might think but if you're into it, it's very gratifying.
Click to expand...

Commercial movies, that is movies that people actually pay to watch whether indie or Hollywood, have structure. learn story telling structure. You can use basic story telling structure for a feature, or a 3 minute short. Story telling structure exists in great films like The Godfather, bad films like Transformers, and even short cartoons like Mickey Mouse. Story telling structure is like the physics behind lighting. Light falls off inversely squared to the distance. No matter if you want high key lights, or film noir, that rule applies. Same with story structure. If you don't have a protagonist, a conflict, and hit the beats at the right length into the story, your audience will be bored.

https://timstout.wordpress.com/story-structure/blake-snyders-beat-sheet/
 
I was 32 when I was your age.

What I would suggest is coming up with a concept for a feature and then film a few shorts that challenge you on specific skills that will be necessary for said feature.

Let's say you come up with an idea that will become Fight Club. Since there's fighting in there, you should make a short film that features fighters. There is that oddball Ikea scene where his apartment turns into an Ikea catalog. Trying making a short where a guy's apartment turns into a J Crew catalog. Lot's of explosions. Make a short where your local downtown area is blown to smitherines to hone your Aftereffects skills.

I sometimes found myself unable to film since I imagined every short film to be the greatest thing ever filmed. It was better if I saw shorts as learning opportunities with specific technical goals.
 
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