Year 12 HSC Design & Tech Project Idea - Amateur Filmmaking Kit

[VVabbit]

I am in year 12, my final schooling year & i am undergoing a design & technology course in which i want to persue a filmmaking theme. I am very keen in the film industry & have been an amateur filmmaker for about 2 years. I have been doing lots of research on filmmaking equipment that is on the market & i have found that there aren't any kits which come with a wide range of filmmaking equipment that is affordable for an amateur filmmaker like myself.

For my design & tech project i am aiming to create an amateur filmmaking kit that contains about 5-6 pieces of equipment. My aim is to try to design a cheaper alternative of a filmmaking kit that would be used by someone who creates short/feature length films who doesn't have a high budget. I have done research to buy traditional equipment for my own use & i have only found individual items at pretty expensive prices for decent gear. Overall the aim of this kit would be for giving 'amateur' filmmakers a good starting point to familiarise themselves with equipment based off traditional equipment thats uses a simpler design so they can get used to the basic tools used in the film industry & as a temporary kit until the user can afford better gear.

I am intending for this post to be a source of feedback for any ideas on what an amateur filmmaking kit should contain. If anyone who reads this has any ideas on what equipment would be a necessity for an amateur filmmaker or any that would be useful, could you please respond to this thread by posting your ideas or any extra information. This information is highly valuable to me for the development in the creation process of this kit.
If you have any information about any filmmaking kits that are already on the market that you know of, could you please post the link for that website in a response on this thread

If you can help me out with this that would be great,your help is highly appreciated. I hope to hear some responses soon!

 

[Greg Smith]

Are you looking for a list of existing equipment on the market already that you can combine into a standard package, or is your intention to propose designs for altogether new items to be made in the future?

What would be the proposed price for the "kit?"

Can you define your potential audience for this product a little better? By "amateur filmmakers" do you mean people with no experience who want to shoot home movies of their kids, or people who would like to do short (or feature length) narrative films and want to learn how professional equipment operates, but don't have the budget for traditional "pro" gear? Describe the typical project that you would want to shoot with this setup.

Most professionals I know are leery of "kits" of any kind and prefer to mix and match equipment from different sources to meet their objectives of quality, ease of use, suitability to the task at hand and, of course, budget. The contents of a kit may vary radically depending on the needs of the individual production, the number of people available to help out, and the experience and personal preferences of the filmmaker.

Sorry for the "20 questions," but you need to define your objectives a little bit better before we can give much meaningful advice. BTW, I teach communications and media production courses for students in your age range - 8th through 12th graders in American terms.

- Greg

 

[VVabbit]

The kit would be for equipment that is already on the market. My aim is to try to design a cheaper alternative of a filmmaking kit that would be used by someone who creates short/feature length films who doesn't have a high budget. I have done research to buy traditional equipment for my own use & i have only found individual items at pretty expensive prices for decent gear.
I was looking for a kit that has the basic equipment needed for a short film that I am planning to shoot. I was surprised that there were no kits that include a range of tools needed that are in the one package (Examples of these are in the poll above).

Im hoping to create a full package that provides an amateur filmmaker with cheaper alternative to traditional 'pro gear'. My personal price range for buying the supplies to create this kit myself isn't fully specified quite yet, but the estimate price for a retail value for this kit would be within the $300-450 price range.

Overall the aim of this kit would be for giving 'amateur' filmmakers a good starting point to familiarise themselves with equipment based off traditional equipment thats uses a simpler design so they can get used to the basic tools used in the film industry & as a temporary kit until the user can afford better gear.

Thankyou for your feed back...ill update the post so it specifies my objectives a little better for any others who see's this

- Nathan

 

[Greg Smith]

OK, the budget's a bit tight, but I'll try to think about this. Can I assume that you already have all the following?

- Camera
- Tripod
- Microphone(s) (one hypercardioid or short shotgun, or one each of a couple different types) & cables
- Headphones
- Lights -- at least 3 fixtures, with capability to do both hard and soft sources
- Memory cards
- Spare camera battery

If there are any deficiencies in those basics, you'll need to correct them before moving on to the kind of accessory items that are listed in your poll.

Now insofar as the headphones I use are about as expensive as your whole budget, this is going to be a bit of a challenge. But let us know if this is on the right track toward where you're headed.

- Greg

 

[VVabbit]

Camera is not included in the kit itself. The kit is designed for just the equipment itself. I was thinking of adapting this kit so that it is more of an attachment system that can be attached to a standard tripod rather than the full bulky pieces of equipment themselves. The equipment would be used purely for capturing the footage.

What i was thinking for something like this would be a dolly stand that multiple tripod variations could slot into, a jib/crane arm that can be attached to the tripod itself & a steady-cam of some description. A lens shade would also be included with this as well.

Do you think that having the kit as a set of attachments could be effective?

 

[VVabbit]

Does anyone else have any ideas for pieces of equipment that could be included in this kit that I am designing?

 

[TimB]

slider. 'nuff said?