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Ironically, zero budget Needs Money!

Hey there. Well, to be honest, its great that you make movies. Im the same age. But i think, for anyone to give a 15 Year old that much money, you would need a really solid base. Good lighting, good camera, good sound.

I myselft got some great locations for my film just by asking nicley for free. (E.g: Empty Shopping Centre, Graffiti Tunnel...)

Also, I have a Scriptwriter as well, who is really a nice guy and writing is his passion so he is doing it for free...
Of course, I offered him a free Shirt, poster, first screen credit and some little stuff like custom pens. But i think this would be something to consider to get you going.

Havent shot material for my own film just yet, but I am doing nothing else than planning and of course keeping my grades in school good, (You know how dads are, they give money if youre good xD )

Id love to see more.

Regards
 
directorik said:
I'm glad you came back. And it's pretty cool that you learned a
little something - so many people come here asking for donations,
get advice and then get mad and go away.

I was one (of maybe many) who thought if I donated money,
much of my donation would go to t-shirts and not the movie.

I hope you hang around here and keep us updated with the (now
cheaper) project.
Click to expand...

I see this from time to time-people come here for advice, it's freely given by some knowledgeable people like yourself, and then they get mad because for whatever reason, it wasn't the answer they were prepared for. Why ask the advice then?

To the OP-Kudos for the "knocking sense into me" and accepting the info as freely given-sounds like you're on your way there with a better plan of attack of what to do. Looking forward to your project! Takes a optimistic and thoughtful look one to accept advice given :) (and a 15, I envy you at the age-oh if I discovered at 15.....that's awesome!)
 
Alcove Audio said:
What I still don't understand is the obsession indie filmmakers have with owning everything. Half of what they buy is outdated within a year.
Click to expand...

Not necessarily - in fact, only if you buy into the constant chase of the latest & greatest. I think owning your basic equipment - camera, mics, some lights - is important when you're just starting out. Knightly outlined the reasons best - ability to practice, try out ideas on a whim, possibly earn some money as well. Plus, we've really hit a point right now where the price of equipment capable of high quality results (if you know what you're doing) is cheap to own.

Whenever someone asks about buying expensive equipment I point them to this video (made over 3 years ago):

http://www.vimeo.com/1333375

There's some really good discussion of the making of it here: http://rebelsguide.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1641&start=0

It's a long thread, so to sum up what it took to make that: Canon HV20, Rode NTG2 Shotgun mic, mixer, Ikea fluorescent lamp, cheap tripod, some shop lights & foam core. Maybe just over $1000 worth of equipment 3 years ago... probably half that now.

Of course, I did forget to mention a few more minor things you need to make something like that: a good idea, strong composition, good locations, an eye & skills for lighting, editing and color correction, directing chops, decent actors & a lot of rehearsal and testing. All stuff that comes from practice & time, not expensive equipment.

So if you're not doing stuff at that level yet (and it's certainly not a flawless film) you probably don't need to buy an expensive camera - you just need to spend more time using the one you've got.
 
I'm back! Again! To update, I'm being horribly un-proactive at getting a summer job (what idiot doesn't leave a phone number for an employer to contact you with? Oh yeah, me), and have been looking around for some ridiculously-cheap stuff. I wish there was a good HD camera with external mic input for under $500, but I'm pretty sure there isn't. If anyone has any advice on the cheapest good camera they know, it'd be much appreciated. My first step, to be completed over over this summer, will be to write the screenplay... that's pretty important, no? The improvise-based-on-an-outilne format did not work so well last time. If all goes according to plan-like, for real this time-we should be able to shoot next summer to "release" the movie some time in spring or summer 2013. It's only three full years after the initially set date, that's not too bad, right? *sarcasm*
Right, so thanks again for the three-month-old advice, and if anyone has any camera recommendations I'd love to hear them (I'd prefer something that records digitally, but apparently tape gives you better picture, and it'd be great if the total equipment budget was well under $1000). Now that I think of it, my great-aunt has some ridiculously bright florescent lights I can borrow, so that shouldn't be a problem.
 
Knightly hit the nail on the head the first time! A cam op who has their own gear and willing to work for free is really all you need, at this level anyway. You'd be surprised at how far you can get with someone like that on your team. let the film speak for itself online, DVDs and t shirts really wont make a difference if your short isn't good.
 
Interesting thought, SHD, but my school department is kind of in one of those budget-crisis states, and we barely have a legitimate theatre department, let alone any sort of A/V thing. And I get the idea-I'll save the DVDs for when it has some sort of following.
 
FormerDominator said:
I'm back! Again! To update, I'm being horribly un-proactive at getting a summer job (what idiot doesn't leave a phone number for an employer to contact you with? Oh yeah, me), and have been looking around for some ridiculously-cheap stuff. I wish there was a good HD camera with external mic input for under $500, but I'm pretty sure there isn't. If anyone has any advice on the cheapest good camera they know, it'd be much appreciated. My first step, to be completed over over this summer, will be to write the screenplay... that's pretty important, no? The improvise-based-on-an-outilne format did not work so well last time. If all goes according to plan-like, for real this time-we should be able to shoot next summer to "release" the movie some time in spring or summer 2013. It's only three full years after the initially set date, that's not too bad, right? *sarcasm*
Right, so thanks again for the three-month-old advice, and if anyone has any camera recommendations I'd love to hear them (I'd prefer something that records digitally, but apparently tape gives you better picture, and it'd be great if the total equipment budget was well under $1000). Now that I think of it, my great-aunt has some ridiculously bright florescent lights I can borrow, so that shouldn't be a problem.
Click to expand...

Just to clarify some things, any camera that uses tapes in your price range will likely be worse quality than one that records to a memory card. There was a deal a while back on the Panasonic GH1 for $399 with a lens. I'm not sure if that's still going on, but even if you have to shell out $500 for one it's still probably the best camera in your price range. You'll still be without audio, but I'd suggest you just learn the camera first, and worry about audio later.
 
Okay. I've seen time and time again that AVCHD is worse than tape, but I suppose that's on the higher-end models. And thanks, that looks great, I'll look into it. Just to confirm-it can hook up to an external microphone, yes?
 
FormerDominator said:
Okay. I've seen time and time again that AVCHD is worse than tape, but I suppose that's on the higher-end models. And thanks, that looks great, I'll look into it. Just to confirm-it can hook up to an external microphone, yes?
Click to expand...

What tape are you talking about? MiniDV, HDV, DVCPro? And yes, it can hook up to an external microphone. There's no way to monitor the audio via headphones, though.
 
ItDonnedOnMe said:
Not necessarily - in fact, only if you buy into the constant chase of the latest & greatest. I think owning your basic equipment - camera, mics, some lights - is important when you're just starting out. Knightly outlined the reasons best - ability to practice, try out ideas on a whim, possibly earn some money as well. Plus, we've really hit a point right now where the price of equipment capable of high quality results (if you know what you're doing) is cheap to own.

Whenever someone asks about buying expensive equipment I point them to this video (made over 3 years ago):

http://www.vimeo.com/1333375

There's some really good discussion of the making of it here: http://rebelsguide.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1641&start=0

It's a long thread, so to sum up what it took to make that: Canon HV20, Rode NTG2 Shotgun mic, mixer, Ikea fluorescent lamp, cheap tripod, some shop lights & foam core. Maybe just over $1000 worth of equipment 3 years ago... probably half that now.

Of course, I did forget to mention a few more minor things you need to make something like that: a good idea, strong composition, good locations, an eye & skills for lighting, editing and color correction, directing chops, decent actors & a lot of rehearsal and testing. All stuff that comes from practice & time, not expensive equipment.

So if you're not doing stuff at that level yet (and it's certainly not a flawless film) you probably don't need to buy an expensive camera - you just need to spend more time using the one you've got.
Click to expand...

Wow! May I just say you have just inspired me. What you achieved with limited kit is amazing and far better than I could do with more expensive kit. I'm going to buy a load of cheap kit now and practice, practice practice.
 
I'm probably going to sound like a total n00b (remind me to never use that kind of internet slang again) when I say this, but I'm a little wary to purchase this only because it does not seem to come with a lens, which I'm pretty sure would be a requirement for shooting, no?
Panasonic GH1
 
directorik said:
Welcome to indietalk, Mike.

When I was your age I made a short film (on film) for
$900 - adjusted for inflation $1,700. I'm wondering what
you will use the $6,500 for? I have made full length
features for $6,500.

And I do see the irony, making a movie about making a zero
budget movie and you need a LOT of money. I'd love to see
a rough breakdown of how you will spend the $6,500.
Click to expand...

Which full length features have you made? I am curious to see what kind of a movie you can make for $6500.
 
FormerDominator said:
I'm probably going to sound like a total n00b (remind me to never use that kind of internet slang again) when I say this, but I'm a little wary to purchase this only because it does not seem to come with a lens, which I'm pretty sure would be a requirement for shooting, no?
Panasonic GH1
Click to expand...

Yeah, you would definitely need a lens in order to use the camera. Adorama sells the camera for $400 without a lens. You can get a Canon FD Adapter for ~$30 and a used Canon FD lens for ~$30 as well. That will have you ready for shooting for under $500. Please note, however, that it's a manual lens and you'd have no ability for auto focus/iris.
 
Can't you make shorts with just you in, or with your friends helping you, for free, rather than just paying people for a practice one? This is a practice one, right?
 
If your plan is to write this summer and shoot next summer, you might hold off till then to buy. Anything you bought now will be another year outdated come shoot time.

Unless you're shooting other stuff inbetween.
 
harmonica44 said:
Which full length features have you made? I am curious to see what kind of a movie you can make for $6500.
Click to expand...

Here are our 5-6K features--all with national distro and NUN being on PPV and VOD also:

Nun of That
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5yBfouKhXw

Atomic Brain Invasion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZ7Q-GbjoFI

The Disco Exorcist
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAi8E_zTvMc


Bear in mind, we are all friends, so we are saving money on cast and crew. Yes, a handful of the main players get paid, but it's not a whole heck of a lot. Shot on JVC 3ccd 720p (7K camera when it came out, but today you can spend way less for a more high budget look). And stock lens...the director doesn't cream over DOF...he does what he does, and fast. Each film is less than a year from concept to premiere.

I post this not as promotion...but as a reference and as example. Yes, these films have a very campy look, and you can tell they are low budget...but they are what they are and don't try to be anything else...and that is why the are successful I think. My main point is, you can tell that the budget is low, but you can also tell that every aspect from composition, to lighting, to sound, to acting are taken seriously, and are competent. We don't show off our tech...we show off our crazy stories--I recommend all beginning filmakers follow this ideal.

Cheers.

To the OP: you've received great advice here. Definitely glad you stopped by. Forget spending a bunch on equipment and absolutely forget merch. Just get the basics and learn to do it right first.

Take care.
 
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