FEATURE: TRAILER - SUPERSEEDS | Super Powered Adventure

Thanks Noel!!! Awesome. Every bit counts.

Here are some stills from this weekend's shoot. Enjoy! I'll be back with some written material.




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Kholi said:
SUPERSEEDS first three production days are done. Nearly wrapped a location aside from inserts and one more montage sequence.

22 Pages in a total of 3 Days have been shot.
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Congrats! Nice clip 7 1/3 pages a day...not crazy but robust.

keep it moving.

-Martin
 
THE PRODUCER

My neck hurts, like crazy. I had about two hours of sleep between Saturday and Sunday (on into this morning...finally got a few more hours), my apartment is a mess because I took most of it to location--including my television--for set decoration and I'm pretty hungry! I rarely eat on set, just forget.

None of that comes close to the hell that the incidental Producer of this Feature Film went through over the last week. Without Teresa this weekend would have been a disaster, and I'm fairly confident the overall production would've sagged greatly. She cooked, she cleaned, she made props and more.

I'm not all that experienced, but I was silly enough to think that I could really wear the Producer hat full time on this thing; how stupid and naive of me. Together (and by together I mean mostly Teresa) we were able to coordinate this last minute and everything came out incredibly well, not just because of the odds against us, but as a product that stands against others of its kind.

My major lesson here? No way in hell will I ever try to do that again. I don't know about anyone else, but I need a producer at all times now. The quality of the project escalates when I don't have to wear that hat and someone is dedicated to it.

It's no less like someone being dedicated to sound or photography. And, as much of a no brainer as some people might consider that, I think a LOT of the super low budget features suffer because the director has to cut corners and wear fifteen hats at once.

My visual for that? Well, I don't think it's very fashionable to wear fifteen hats in public...

I've also learned how to let someone else take the responsibility. It's essential to have a person that cares about the project nearly as much as you do. When you find that person and all they want to do is help, make them a part of the process and LET them share the burden.

They probably sincerely just want to be part of something great.

Hats off to the producers! You all rock! And arms and legs off to Teresa D... amazing work.
 
[ 9|29|10 ] The Camera Can't Fix your Image

Most of you know me to be a major gear whore. It's not a misconception, either. I think I've spent more time reading about, salivating over, dreaming of, playing with and acquiring gear than any other hobby in my life; that includes actual filmmaking and writing.

I think after I had all of my gear stolen it hit me that the gear wouldn't get me anywhere anymore. One, because everyone has it, two because it can't do much more than sit on a tripod (or on a shoulder mount).

Shooting this weekend with an amazing DP like Matty taught me heaps about the other stuff that actually makes the image, things that the camera can't do.

Here's a list:

Production Design.

Pretty short list, huh? No, really though! That's wardrobe, set design/decoration, right down to the actors themselves. They too are important to making the image look good.

No matter how many pixels your camera can count, it still can't make the bland white couch look awesome. Nor can it make a decent story.

I'm fortunate enough to have the power of RED MX on this shoot, and I'll definitely be employing the GH-1 or 2 for some tight shots (interiors of cars, etc), I'd definitely say that it's way more important to put money in front of the camera, not on it.

I wish I would have done more of that for the apartment material, but it's in mind going forward.
 
Kholi said:
[ 9|29|10 ] The Camera Can't Fix your Image

Most of you know me to be a major gear whore. It's not a misconception, either. I think I've spent more time reading about, salivating over, dreaming of, playing with and acquiring gear than any other hobby in my life; that includes actual filmmaking and writing.

I think after I had all of my gear stolen it hit me that the gear wouldn't get me anywhere anymore. One, because everyone has it, two because it can't do much more than sit on a tripod (or on a shoulder mount).

Shooting this weekend with an amazing DP like Matty taught me heaps about the other stuff that actually makes the image, things that the camera can't do.

Here's a list:

Production Design.

Pretty short list, huh? No, really though! That's wardrobe, set design/decoration, right down to the actors themselves. They too are important to making the image look good.

No matter how many pixels your camera can count, it still can't make the bland white couch look awesome. Nor can it make a decent story.

I'm fortunate enough to have the power of RED MX on this shoot, and I'll definitely be employing the GH-1 or 2 for some tight shots (interiors of cars, etc), I'd definitely say that it's way more important to put money in front of the camera, not on it.

I wish I would have done more of that for the apartment material, but it's in mind going forward.
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Dude, you should have been shooting in the DVXFests a couple of years ago. I remember when Jack schooled us all in the benefits of prod design. I now put more resources into that than the camera every time.
 
Production design is the single most underrated/forgotten factor, and it's overwhelmingly important.

If you want a great looking shot, the easiest way to get it is to point the camera at something that looks great.
 
And I agree on the producer. I produced THE LOST CHILDREN, but spent months in pre-prod trying to lock down as many details as I could. Even still, I too will have a producer from here on out.
 
Barry_Green said:
Production design is the single most underrated/forgotten factor, and it's overwhelmingly important.

If you want a great looking shot, the easiest way to get it is to point the camera at something that looks great.
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Indeed. It's the biggest way to increase production value once you've got a competent D.P. and decent gear (doesn't have to be all that amazing gear).

Barry & Kholi, you definitely hit the nail on the head.

-M
 
Mark Harris said:
Dude, you should have been shooting in the DVXFests a couple of years ago. I remember when Jack schooled us all in the benefits of prod design. I now put more resources into that than the camera every time.
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Definitely. I wouldn't be shooting RED if it wasn't in the budget (can anyone decipher what that means?).

I will say there wasn't much available as far as actual spending money goes, so we had to borrow and grab stuff from everywhere we could. I wish I could've given Matty something on that large wall, but at the end of the day it is what it is and at least it's not a blank white wall.

That would've been hell.
 
Barry_Green said:
Production design is the single most underrated/forgotten factor, and it's overwhelmingly important.

If you want a great looking shot, the easiest way to get it is to point the camera at something that looks great.
Click to expand...


That goes for actors, as well. Which is something else I'll get into as far as "looks" go.

From hereon out and in the future, it'll always be the first thing on my mind. I know it was the first on Matty's and he openly said he would rather have more production design than lighting equipment.

Again, we did what we could given budget and time frame and I'm much more than happy with it. Things could always be better.
 
Martay said:
Indeed. It's the biggest way to increase production value once you've got a competent D.P. and decent gear (doesn't have to be all that amazing gear).

Barry & Kholi, you definitely hit the nail on the head.

-M
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I'm not a fan of the Canon DSLRs anymore. So many flaws, but even THOSE will suffice. We were at the point of "good enough" when the DVX showed up, then it got even better with HVX and Adapter Combos.

Now it's all plenty for the no budget filmmaker, in conjunction with know how, of course.
 
SHOESTRING TIP on (Production Design): When there's little money available, there's plenty of time to prepare. I'm no pro at this, but maybe you could do as much as you can in the writing stage? My script actually has short (see:brief) descriptions of locations, but enough to evoke the imagination as to what needs to be placed in a scene. I believe what happens is, as you read the material OVER and OVER again, you visualize details and those details are what you're going to tell people around you that you need.

Hey, there's supposed to be a cereal box on the floor in this scene, we need that.

Write it into the script. Don't get overbearing with it, but grab the outstanding details (paintings, posters, a weird lamp or a rogue blanket) and write it in for yourself, so that you unconsciously drill it into your imagination.
 
Kholi said:
SHOESTRING TIP on (Production Design): When there's little money available, there's plenty of time to prepare. I'm no pro at this, but maybe you could do as much as you can in the writing stage? My script actually has short (see:brief) descriptions of locations, but enough to evoke the imagination as to what needs to be placed in a scene. I believe what happens is, as you read the material OVER and OVER again, you visualize details and those details are what you're going to tell people around you that you need.

Hey, there's supposed to be a cereal box on the floor in this scene, we need that.

Write it into the script. Don't get overbearing with it, but grab the outstanding details (paintings, posters, a weird lamp or a rogue blanket) and write it in for yourself, so that you unconsciously drill it into your imagination.
Click to expand...

I actually do this more in the storyboarding stage. Either I go through the scenes with my art director(as well as him reading the script and asking me a bunch of questions). Or if I have no art director, I tend to do this in storyboard phase, cause then I have a better idea of what the shots are going to be.

Also, at this stage, I am often running about and snapping pictures of locations in vaguely the same angles as many of my shots, so that I can see what the shot will look like. This is easier than you might think, and even if done quickly, can provide a wealth of information about what you will need in the art direction.
 
That goes for actors, as well. Which is something else I'll get into as far as "looks" go
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This is very true. I worked for Deal or No Deal as a casting director two years ago and their major qualifications were
1. Does the person look good on camera?
2. Do they smile?
3. Do they have all their teeth?
4. Do they "pop"?

For my stuff I go after "pop" first and then do they look good on camera for the part.
 
Day Four of shooting finished yesterday. Learning many lessons about how great it is to embrace the unplanned. Absolutely loving the pages we shot yesterday!
 
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