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OTHER: WEBSERIES: Pirate Birthday Party
- Thread starter Doc Peter
- Start date
My operating principle for this whole project was "finish it" -- that is, don't let the pursuit of "the perfect shot" (or performance, or scene) paralyze the process. Getting it mostly right is better than not getting it done at all because it wasn't perfect. Most of the shooting days were only 3 hours long. People show up, I give them 2 pages, we rehearse it, shoot it twice and then say goodbyes. You have to do this on a volunteer project because people are excited at first to be in a movie but then get bored when they realize how long it takes. Also you can't do 10 takes with a casual actor like you can with someone more dedicated. They start to become self-conscious, or tired, or the performance becomes forced and it just gets worse and worse. Also you can't ask volunteers to show up and then sit around for two hours while you fiddle with the camera and the lights.
Of course, I look at some scenes now, the ones that were shot in a hurried panic because there was only 3 minutes before someone had to leave, and I just wanted to "finish it" no matter what -- and I see the results on screen being choppy, the moment doesn't play like it could. That's a scheduling issue -- I wish I had thought more about the priority scenes that really deserved more time, and the ones that would have been fine with only one takes.
I did try to shoot all the outside scenes first so that when fall started to happen (leaves changing colors, trees becoming bare, SNOW on the ground) I could still shoot the inside scenes and keep up the illusion that it was summer.
Of course, I look at some scenes now, the ones that were shot in a hurried panic because there was only 3 minutes before someone had to leave, and I just wanted to "finish it" no matter what -- and I see the results on screen being choppy, the moment doesn't play like it could. That's a scheduling issue -- I wish I had thought more about the priority scenes that really deserved more time, and the ones that would have been fine with only one takes.
I did try to shoot all the outside scenes first so that when fall started to happen (leaves changing colors, trees becoming bare, SNOW on the ground) I could still shoot the inside scenes and keep up the illusion that it was summer.
There's an expressionist moment in this chapter that I'm really happy with. I've tried to include pirate and nautical elements throughout the movie, especially where the bad teacher character is concerned. She represents the modern day pirate, sort of, in her opportunism and exploitation. So there's a parrot swinging from her rearview mirror, she has a knife, a prosthetic leg would have been great but hey this was a homemade affair -- I couldn't afford to amputate. But in terms of her relationship to the main character, I put sharks in where I could. In the scene toward the end of this episode when he's texting the teacher, he's having a fit, he's having a crisis, he's flirting with dark forces, I include a mobile swirling over him -- like he's swimming with sharks.
I also like using the music theme there, but with grungy electric guitar. It's not consecutive, it starts and stops like someone learning how to play it would sound. It has an alienating buzz to the amplifier. It feels like adolescence. To me, anyway. Some people hate the music there, but I love how rough it is.
I also like using the music theme there, but with grungy electric guitar. It's not consecutive, it starts and stops like someone learning how to play it would sound. It has an alienating buzz to the amplifier. It feels like adolescence. To me, anyway. Some people hate the music there, but I love how rough it is.
It really shows in this chapter the limits of working with non-actor kids. It was over a hundred degrees in the woods and they had no energy or enthusiasm for shooting. They do a pretty good job but had no focus and kind of hated being there. Luckily (or unluckily) the better part of each scene was a kid reading a clue -- what little memorization they did have to do was taxing for them in the heat. Most of these scenes were two cameras and two takes -- and I just had to hope I got it.
But I can't blame the actors because the script is flat in this section -- there's no conflict, and nothing advancing the story. I tried to add pizzaz and experimented with using the text of what the clues were saying -- having the words appear when they're spoken, swooping in and out, trying to be graphically engaging -- but it was distracting so I scrapped it and left it plain. . The clues are kind of a MacGuffin, it's not really about the clues, and emphasizing them so much was alienating. What I should have done was spend more time on the script. Oh well. Next time.
But I can't blame the actors because the script is flat in this section -- there's no conflict, and nothing advancing the story. I tried to add pizzaz and experimented with using the text of what the clues were saying -- having the words appear when they're spoken, swooping in and out, trying to be graphically engaging -- but it was distracting so I scrapped it and left it plain. . The clues are kind of a MacGuffin, it's not really about the clues, and emphasizing them so much was alienating. What I should have done was spend more time on the script. Oh well. Next time.
Hey Peter, just finished the whole 10 episodes.
Really enjoyed it.
The dialogue and banter, especially between the main family, was great. The father's tantrum scene had me laughing my arse off. You set that up well.
Production issues aside (of which I have no experience other than that of a viewer), everything worked. The writing was good; the characters weren't all cardboard cutouts, which they could easily have been given that there were so many characters in so little time. There was enough nuance in both dialogue and performance for each to be an individual character, rather than a mere caricature. Even all the kids. Some, maybe even all, may have been just the projection of each kids natural persona, I dunno, but it worked, and you managed to capture it. That's no easy task. Well done.
You did kind of lose me when the teacher showed up. It was the weak link in the story, and, unfortunately, the weakest acted. It could have worked, but the narrative took a somewhat jarring tonal shift once she lured the eldest son over, then threw the youngest in the trunk. There was something in the mix of that that just didn't work. Whether that be something was missing, or something should have been removed or replaced? I dunno. There was just something about that transition that was fumbled. A more astute observer of film could probably figure it out. I am not that. haha
Each episode was timed right. Pacing worked. Nothing dragged on.
A few things, some of which you've mentioned, regarding the production side can be looked at before heading into your next project. Inconsistent exposures between different angles in the same scene. Lighting of certain scenes. The teacher and boy in-car scenes were the most glaringly inconsistent. Looks like you either shot stuff a bit later that was edited in among footage shot earlier, or even on a different day. A few were really grainy, and look like you had to crank up the ISO due to lack of light.
But, stuff like that (for me) is best learnt via experience anyway ... and none of it was bad enough to the point it threw me out of the story.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Well done mate.
I'm now following you on Vimeo, and look forward to what else you may have in the works.
Cheers,
Russ
Really enjoyed it.
The dialogue and banter, especially between the main family, was great. The father's tantrum scene had me laughing my arse off. You set that up well.
Production issues aside (of which I have no experience other than that of a viewer), everything worked. The writing was good; the characters weren't all cardboard cutouts, which they could easily have been given that there were so many characters in so little time. There was enough nuance in both dialogue and performance for each to be an individual character, rather than a mere caricature. Even all the kids. Some, maybe even all, may have been just the projection of each kids natural persona, I dunno, but it worked, and you managed to capture it. That's no easy task. Well done.
You did kind of lose me when the teacher showed up. It was the weak link in the story, and, unfortunately, the weakest acted. It could have worked, but the narrative took a somewhat jarring tonal shift once she lured the eldest son over, then threw the youngest in the trunk. There was something in the mix of that that just didn't work. Whether that be something was missing, or something should have been removed or replaced? I dunno. There was just something about that transition that was fumbled. A more astute observer of film could probably figure it out. I am not that. haha
Each episode was timed right. Pacing worked. Nothing dragged on.
A few things, some of which you've mentioned, regarding the production side can be looked at before heading into your next project. Inconsistent exposures between different angles in the same scene. Lighting of certain scenes. The teacher and boy in-car scenes were the most glaringly inconsistent. Looks like you either shot stuff a bit later that was edited in among footage shot earlier, or even on a different day. A few were really grainy, and look like you had to crank up the ISO due to lack of light.
But, stuff like that (for me) is best learnt via experience anyway ... and none of it was bad enough to the point it threw me out of the story.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Well done mate.
I'm now following you on Vimeo, and look forward to what else you may have in the works.
Cheers,
Russ
Russ W. Thank you! I really appreciate your comments and the time you took to jot them down.
Yes, the teacher. Huge problem with the script. For the sake of making it a pirate-ish story I wanted things to get dark for a bit, a little sinister -- I still like the creepily ambiguous sexual relationship with her and the red flags this raises for the parents. And I like that the boy has his self-reliance tested in a serious way. But I pushed it one step too far to make her a too literal pirate -- an irresponsible, thieving, impulsive child snatching manipulator -- which maybe works in theory (maybe) and the right actor could maybe pull off the major tonal shift and have it be fun but it really doesn't work at all here. The actress had trouble with the part and instead of recasting I just kept thinking we could make it work by cutting and rewriting scenes on the fly... Rewriting in a deeper way could have made a difference, but I didn't have the energy or the head-space and didn't have anyone who could help. So I just tried to find a way through it. It was really hard --- and was The Big Lesson of this project for me. Casting is hugely important. It's not everything, but it's close.
And you're so right about learning the production stuff. If there is a next one, it will be better.
Yes, the teacher. Huge problem with the script. For the sake of making it a pirate-ish story I wanted things to get dark for a bit, a little sinister -- I still like the creepily ambiguous sexual relationship with her and the red flags this raises for the parents. And I like that the boy has his self-reliance tested in a serious way. But I pushed it one step too far to make her a too literal pirate -- an irresponsible, thieving, impulsive child snatching manipulator -- which maybe works in theory (maybe) and the right actor could maybe pull off the major tonal shift and have it be fun but it really doesn't work at all here. The actress had trouble with the part and instead of recasting I just kept thinking we could make it work by cutting and rewriting scenes on the fly... Rewriting in a deeper way could have made a difference, but I didn't have the energy or the head-space and didn't have anyone who could help. So I just tried to find a way through it. It was really hard --- and was The Big Lesson of this project for me. Casting is hugely important. It's not everything, but it's close.
And you're so right about learning the production stuff. If there is a next one, it will be better.
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My operating principle for this whole project was "finish it" -- that is, don't let the pursuit of "the perfect shot" (or performance, or scene) paralyze the process. Getting it mostly right is better than not getting it done at all because it wasn't perfect. Most of the shooting days were only 3 hours long. People show up, I give them 2 pages, we rehearse it, shoot it twice and then say goodbyes. You have to do this on a volunteer project because people are excited at first to be in a movie but then get bored when they realize how long it takes. Also you can't do 10 takes with a casual actor like you can with someone more dedicated. They start to become self-conscious, or tired, or the performance becomes forced and it just gets worse and worse. Also you can't ask volunteers to show up and then sit around for two hours while you fiddle with the camera and the lights.
Of course, I look at some scenes now, the ones that were shot in a hurried panic because there was only 3 minutes before someone had to leave, and I just wanted to "finish it" no matter what -- and I see the results on screen being choppy, the moment doesn't play like it could. That's a scheduling issue -- I wish I had thought more about the priority scenes that really deserved more time, and the ones that would have been fine with only one takes.
I did try to shoot all the outside scenes first so that when fall started to happen (leaves changing colors, trees becoming bare, SNOW on the ground) I could still shoot the inside scenes and keep up the illusion that it was summer.
Bravo Peter! Overall impressed with your motivation and passion behind this. And to be able to get in 10 episode for someone who has had very little crew assistance, is very impressive. The fact that a majority of your audio is audible, kept me engaged. Being technical and understand how camera/lights/tool work is good, but nothing beats a good story. Practice makes perfect, looking forward to your next project!
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Watched the first one. Nice. All sorts of layers and s*%t. I don't necessarily understand all of them, but I know they're there. Feels "mature". One thing I would say from reading through this thread is be careful about publicly knocking cast/crew/people who helped you out. Seems like bad form and it could come back to bite you.
Agreed. Thank you for saying this.One thing I would say from reading through this thread is be careful about publicly knocking cast/crew/people who helped you out. Seems like bad form and it could come back to bite you.
Thank you! I wanted to post the series here especially because this is a group that understands just how hard it is to make anything.And to be able to get in 10 episode for someone who has had very little crew assistance, is very impressive. The fact that a majority of your audio is audible, kept me engaged.
On the audio: Yes, getting the sound right is a priority and a struggle for me. I think great sound will improve a poor quality image -- but it doesn't work in reverse. The places in my series that are the most painful to me are where the picture and the sound both are poor quality -- and that is a consequence of rushing, or not reshooting.