Hello, Me and a group of friends have recently come into a little bit of money (£30,000) and we were hoping to shoot a documentary about cannabis. (we are big fans of micheal Moore) we are all ready to start planning the Film. Can anybody tell me what equipment we need e.g what type of camera, what mic and all that stuff thank you.
Documentary being shot
- Thread starter benj09
- Start date
why are you wanting to make purchases before you start planning?
Kiss £30,000 goodbye...
Plan, plan, plan first. It's inexpensive, will have a HUGE impact on your final results (and budget) -- and then you will have a good notion about what you need and can pick equipment accordingly when you're ready.
Cameras are just tools. You don't start building a house by considering which brand of hammer is best.
Now, if you've never used one: buy a cheap one and shoot something every day. Go out & talk to people with it. Chase dogs with it. Whatever. The results will likely never get in your film but will also inform your choices when planning, as you learn where the ropes are.
Good luck! And know that you will now spend several months hearing a lot of people make the same jokes over and over, saying they'd like to spend their £30k on a big shopping cart full of BC Bud
Kiss £30,000 goodbye...
Plan, plan, plan first. It's inexpensive, will have a HUGE impact on your final results (and budget) -- and then you will have a good notion about what you need and can pick equipment accordingly when you're ready.
Cameras are just tools. You don't start building a house by considering which brand of hammer is best.
Now, if you've never used one: buy a cheap one and shoot something every day. Go out & talk to people with it. Chase dogs with it. Whatever. The results will likely never get in your film but will also inform your choices when planning, as you learn where the ropes are.
Good luck! And know that you will now spend several months hearing a lot of people make the same jokes over and over, saying they'd like to spend their £30k on a big shopping cart full of BC Bud
I'm seriously suggesting that you get in contact with
the cameraman you have hired. He will have specific
likes and dislikes regarding a camera. Since you cannot
get in touch with him for a year you do not want to
surprise him with a camera of YOUR choice only to find
he prefers shooting with a different camera.
Also keep in mind that in the next year, cameras will
change. What anyone here may suggest today might
not be the right camera for your project in a year.
From what you post here, I get the impression you are
going about this very important decision the wrong way.
Slow down. You can't shoot until the cameraman you
hired is back in touch anyway, so choosing the camera right
now isn't important.
The good news is, there is no best camera. That should
put your mind at ease. In fact, there may be a better
camera introduced during the time you are out of touch
with the cameraman you hired.
Please do not waist your money on buying equipment. Right now everything is heading towards HD. RENT, RENT, RENT! Also, make sure you bring in a producer to handle the legalities if you are new to this. You can find a very eager student that will probably will do it for free or close to that. I would look for other students as well if you are lacking in any other aspect of production. You can still get what you want from them but you also get to be the boss. I am working on my second Documentary right now and working with the right people would of saved me tons of time and money. It is worth bringing in people that know what to do if only to learn from them for your next project. Plan as much as you can before you shoot anything. It is very common to shoot everything in a documentary and then find the story. What do you think would happen if you cooked in that manner. Plan, plan, plan to keep your focus on the project. Good luck! All the best.