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Gonzo_Entertainment

Gonzo_Entertainment

I've had it posted in the Premiere Lounge for a while, but interested in getting a little more reaction to it, so here it is. I'll probably only leave it up for a day or so, so watch while you can if you're interested.

REMOVED

In a lot of ways there are experimental elements in this film. It was the first thing I ever shot on DSLR and it's the shortest thing I've ever done (at about 00:12:30). I also threw the kitchen sink at it a bit as far as shot choice goes. There is handheld, there is glidecam, there is slider, there is locked down tripod, there is an intentional line cross, there is a two minute continuous shot, etc...

All the music is original and recorded by us, including the songs on the radio, and the music on the television.

I'm still struggling with uneven performances, my failure in the casting process. It's not my strength (working with actors) in fact it's probably my biggest weakness and the thing I enjoy least about filmmaking.

Shot in two days for about $1000 on a Canon 5D using mostly Pentax Super Takumar lenses.
 
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Gonzo_Entertainment said:
(working with actors) ... the thing I enjoy least about filmmaking.
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I want that printed on a T-shirt before my next shoot. :)

The short is great and I love the music and the ending. Love to see it with the non-Vimeo compressed colors and audio. Curious, with it being your first 5D shoot, will you shoot with the 5D again? And on that same line of thinking, can you imagine shooting a low budget feature on it or would you change cameras?
 
Yes, I'm pretty committed to the 5D at this point, at least for the next 2 or 3 years.

That was one of the main reasons for doing this film was to see exactly what the strengths and weaknesses of the camera (and myself at this stage) were. It has a LOT of weaknesses to be sure (as do I), but thay can all be worked around for the most part.

I do intend to shoot a micro budget (say 50K range) feature on it. After making this film I think I probably need to knock out one more short in the next six months or so to try and work on a few more things first. Luckily I already have a treatment for another short done. I also have a couple of music video shoots upcoming, so hopefully work some of the remaining kinks out as far as figuring out what works well and what doesn't with the 5D.
 
Watched it. If you want any feedback let me know and I'll post it here.

Otherwise, thanks for sharing and keep progressin'.
 
Sure Kholi, I'm a big boy, I can take the good and bad for what they are.

Edit:
I'll add I'm not 100% happy with the edit, or the editor, but I'm a believer in setting a deadline and putting a project to bed and the time has come and gone on this one.
 
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Gonzo_Entertainment said:
sion.

I'm still struggling with uneven performances, my failure in the casting process. It's not my strength (working with actors) in fact it's probably my biggest weakness and the thing I enjoy least about filmmaking.
.
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Interesting, not saying I'm great at it, but it might be my favorite thing. Love hearing how actors analyze and interpret something and the give and take that goes on as the character is interpreted and locked down. I do some of it via email, which I still consider a major part of directing an actor even though cameras aren't there.

What's your favorite part?
 
brianluce said:
Interesting, not saying I'm great at it, but it might be my favorite thing. Love hearing how actors analyze and interpret something and the give and take that goes on as the character is interpreted and locked down. I do some of it via email, which I still consider a major part of directing an actor even though cameras aren't there.

What's your favorite part?
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Shot composition, shot selection, art direction, the writing of the screenplay.

In my dream, fantasy, rainbows and unicorns world, actors would show up on time, know their lines, stand where I tell them, and deliver the performance exactly as I ask them to, only asking questions when it's required to know how to better give me exactly what I want. That, however, is not reality, so I'll have to continue to get better at both selection of performers as well as how to extract the best performance from them.
 
Gonzo_Entertainment said:
Shot composition, shot selection, art direction, the writing of the screenplay.

In my dream, fantasy, rainbows and unicorns world, actors would show up on time, know their lines, stand where I tell them, and deliver the performance exactly as I ask them to, only asking questions when it's required to know how to better give me exactly what I want. That, however, is not reality, so I'll have to continue to get better at both selection of performers as well as how to extract the best performance from them.
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I hate writing the script, but I love having written it.

Except for scripting process, The things you like most are the things I'm weakest at and dislike the most because I don't feel confident I'm making the right choices.
 
brianluce said:
I hate writing the script, but I love having written it.

Except for scripting process, The things you like most are the things I'm weakest at and dislike the most because I don't feel confident I'm making the right choices.
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Same for me and actors. We like doing what we are good at and hate the areas where we are weak.
 
Production is definitely an anxiety attack mixed with an adrenaline rush. Rare does everything play out like I was originally thinking, but the adrenaline keeps me going. The anxiety has definitely diminished with the more projects I've done. My favorite part though is post - bringing all the chaos from the months prior into an actual movie.

Gonzo - Do you work as your own DP? Lighting and camera? Curious whether your 5D comfort was in directing someone using it to get what you wanted or using it yourself to get what you want.
 
"Gonzo - Do you work as your own DP? Lighting and camera? Curious whether your 5D comfort was in directing someone using it to get what you wanted or using it yourself to get what you want. "

No, I don't DP my own films. I know just enough about lighting to be dangerous, and I'm not a great operator in the sense of silky smooth pans/follows, etc... However he and I collaborate on the framing of pretty much every shot and have lengthy discussions beforehand on what I want. I do know the camera well (especially now) what it can and can't do, etc.... When I shoot music videos and that type of thing I DP myself.
 
Gonzo_Entertainment said:
Sure Kholi, I'm a big boy, I can take the good and bad for what they are.

Edit:
I'll add I'm not 100% happy with the edit, or the editor, but I'm a believer in setting a deadline and putting a project to bed and the time has come and gone on this one.
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That was actually my major hitch. THe cut was a bit slow and lingered, lots could've been sped up and you could've shaved a lot of time off to make the watch easier.

Also, the effort to get good and interesting shots is great. In the future, from one Director to another, if you have time to grab safety material in case one shot just doesn't work or isn't smooth, take it. It could mean a world of difference between a solid scene and one that comes off as sub-par.

Some of the shakiness I'm sure you couldn't help, but an audience member won't really care about your budget and such, they'll just know that it's not up to big-screen standards and it'll seem off.

But, that's just my opinion and--as always, take it with a grain of salt.

I think it's definitely an improvement over the last one I saw, which equals progress. Looking forward to seeing the next.
 
Thanks for watching.

It was shot on a very compressed timeline for sure. Were there times I would have liked more coverage or another take, absolutely. I continue to strive for better planning and better organization that can help towards that end. Sometimes in no budget (We have one day at this motel, if it doesn't get shot today it doesn't get shot) you just plain run out of time. As I said, something I continue to work on.

I went away from my regular editor. I used a guy who is mostly experienced in commercials/industrials from California instead of the editor I have worked with in the past. The reason... free vs somewhere between $500 and $1000, major mistake. It's not bad, but I had to lead him by the hand the whole way. My old editor seemed much more to "get me" and do what I wanted without having to be given very specific instructions quite so much. He brought something to the table himself instead of just being a technician. Again, lesson learned. That being said, some of the slow pacing is intentional, but I agree it could be a little tighter.

I have never been a fan of low budget glidecam. It was a budget compromise vs. trying to use a dolly on those city streets. The follow of the girl looks pretty decent. It was done by the DP. The shots of the guy were done by the 1st AC (who owned the glidecam) and had to be massively cleaned up. They were a wreck of shakiness. Lesson learned, don't even attempt it without a very experienced guy operating the cheap steadicam rig.

Again, thanks for watching.
 
Great work Gonzo, for the budget you shot this with, it turned out well. The only advice I have to add to what's above is that you may wish to use a colorist in the post process, as the footage came out kind of dull looking. This may be just the vidmeo copy though, since the individual screenshots you posted earlier looked a lot more bright and saturated.

Keep it up!
 
Nate North said:
Great work Gonzo, for the budget you shot this with, it turned out well. The only advice I have to add to what's above is that you may wish to use a colorist in the post process, as the footage came out kind of dull looking. This may be just the vidmeo copy though, since the individual screenshots you posted earlier looked a lot more bright and saturated.

Keep it up!
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Thanks Nate. Yes, the vimeo is washed out, and the sound is a little too echoey sometimes. The Full Res, Blu Ray, etc.. are spot on. The DVD is the other extreme (as I have found they usually are) and is oversaturated.

It's a weird little movie I know. In some ways it's me finally letting my love of John Waters, Troma, David Lynch, etc... show
 
Nice work, Gonzo. I do like the story. I think we could get where we need to go, a lot faster, though. Pacing is lacking, for sure. For example, in the beginning, do we really need to see every single count? Couldn't an effectively-edited montage do the trick?

Gonzo_Entertainment said:
In my dream, fantasy, rainbows and unicorns world, actors would show up on time, know their lines, stand where I tell them, and deliver the performance exactly as I ask them to, only asking questions when it's required to know how to better give me exactly what I want. That, however, is not reality, so I'll have to continue to get better at both selection of performers as well as how to extract the best performance from them.
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I hope you don't mind me saying this, but, I think you're a producer, dude. Working with actors is what directors do, and filmmaking is a collaborative process. I wouldn't expect my DP to just show up and do everything I say, exactly how I say it. Yeah, I call the shots, but I'm hiring somebody because of what they bring to the table. A skilled DP knows much more about their process than I do, so I would want to hear their input. Same thing goes for every single position on the cast & crew. Ultimately, I call the shots, but I want contributions from everybody.

A skilled actor is a gem, a creative artist who can flourish, but only if you allow them to. If you try to turn them into robots, you kill their creative energy, and no amount of casting will change that.
 
Thanks for watching Cracker.

The pacing was a decision for sure. Not everybody is going to like it, it may have been a bad decision, but it's a decision. A LOT about the character, virtually everything we know is revealed in those first two or three minutes. A lot of it is visual in the objects around him (which he has obviously accumulated for some reason) and the way he interacts with them. The art direction in the opening scenes is actually a huge part of the narrative. The intent is to leave the audience with a little "what the hell just happened?" When it's over, hopefully intrigued enough to want to discuss it or view it again. I'm not saying I did a good job at any of that (heh), just saying that was what I was trying to do.

I think there are many ways a director can work. Will I EVER be an "actor's director", no most likely not. I think I do have other strengths however. I actually come from an acting background, which for some reason makes me have little patience for actors. I think I can however, get better. I have MUCH less trouble with good actors. The guy who potrayed the black cop was awesome. I told him what I wanted, he did a nice riff on it (bringing himself to it, while still giving me what i want), no problems. It's working with the marginal actor (as we all have to do in our budget world) that I dread.
 
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