What Creates Production Value?

cameronchapman

cameronchapman

I have a vague idea of what goes into production value (talent, cinematography, editing, SOUND, etc.), but not really any concrete ideas as to how to improve production value, short of spending millions of dollars (which I would gladly spend if someone wants to give them to me).

I'm planning to film a drama feature next fall (and will hopefully be shooting a handful of shorts and possibly a web series between now and then), and want to maximize production value to increase my chances of getting distribution/getting into festivals/not embarrassing myself :cool:.

So, going on the basis that this is a drama film without any complex sets, no special effects, etc., what would you do to increase the production value? What gives you the most bang for your buck? What's the least effective thing to spend your limited funds on?

Let's also assume that the budget for this is likely going to be under $50,000, though possibly could go as high as $100,000. And let's also assume that I'm not opposed to begging if that will get things done/get me things for free. :yes:
 
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trueindie said:
Oh....

I didn't even know there was a blade runner version with narration..
oops
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It's some of the most awful - flat, dry Harrison Ford - narration ever! I think it was in there because the studio wanted the movie explained to the audience. It does not appear on the Director's Cut.

Watch this!!! Frank Darabont (director of SHAWSHANK) talks about how bad the BLADE RUNNER narration is. "It's like having cold water thrown on you, during sex." Priceless!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_nsSxblpoI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_nsSxblpoI


Ha ha ha!
 
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cameronchapman said:
And I thought the Voice of God was Alan Rickman? :P
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Well, then I guess I have to break the news to you....


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Wow. Loving this thread, but I must just be a real old fart because I grew up with Blade Runner having narration. That just felt like part of the style and I always enjoyed it. When the Director's Cut came out many years later without it and some stupid unicorn scenes I was totally annoyed and couldn't help but keep listening for the hard-boiled private eye style narration I was so used to. I do understand that if you first discovered the Director's Cut and heard there was some stupid narrated version that originally "ruined" it, it would be easy to agree. But yeah, I'm still a sucker for the original and bummed I only have it on VHS.

That said, I'm sure if I was Scott and I never intended for it to have narration and the studio pushed it in there, I'd be pretty damn pissed.

A good example of studio editing outside of the director's control and destroying a film would be Terry Gilliam's Brazil, and the studio's "Love Conquers All" version of it. Luckily Gilliam prevailed in the end. I know at least with the Criterion release there are 3 versions. The Studio Cut, Gilliam's European Cut and the American Cut. That was such a mess they even wrote a book about it, although I have no idea if the book is even available anymore.
 
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Scoopicman said:
Morgan Freeman's narration in THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION really made that movie.
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As with many great films-with-narration the narration was read on the set while filming to provide the proper timing for pans, leave enough empty space for the narration, etc. Another classic narration film is "Forrest Gump." The entire narration was shot on the bench (the first scene) and the actual recordings were played on the set. It's great the way the narration leads into dialog and dialog leads back into narration.
 
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MichaelPaul said:
Wow. Loving this thread, but I must just be a real old fart because I grew up with Blade Runner having narration.
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Same here - I saw it when it first came to theaters. I hated the narration the first time I saw it because it sounded forced to me. Apparently, Ford was forced to do it and didn't try to do a good job. From the book, "Future Noir: The Making of BLADE RUNNER"

Future_Noir_BUK.jpg


Originally, Ridley Scott was for a narration that it had the style of a 40's noir thriller. But there were many production complications and the script was constantly changing. The narration went from meaningful reflection of a detetive's thoughts to redundantly explaining things like "Skin jobs."

Editor Terry Rawlings:
If you're going to do a voice-over, I'd say, you don't want it to say, "Look at this! I have found a pen!" while you're showing a character holding a pen. That is moronic. In fact, Ridley had a rather scornful term for this sort of redundancy - he called it "Irving the Explainer."

.....The commentary that was released talked down to the audience and I think that's what offended everybody about it.
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Harrison Ford:
"It was in my contract that I do the voice-overs, but I hated them. Ridley hated them as well, but when the film went over budget, they made me do it. I went kicking and screaming to the studio to record it."
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Sneak previews in Denver and Dallas had the studio and the filmmakers on edge. Survey cards indicated that a portion of the audience (though not the majority) was confused by the storyline:

Michael Deeley wryly recalls:
"Still, when those cards came back, everybody panicked. And by everybody, I mean everybody. Ridley was upset, I was upset, Tandem was upset... It was alarming becase we were sitting on an expensive picture that had gone over budget. That was a fragile position; nobody, particularly Warner Brothers or the Ladd Company, which at that point was pretty much on the financial skids, had enough ready cash to insure covering their losses if the film was released as was.

"So, we were all jumpy as to how this picture was going to end up. And we all thought we had to do something about it. That's when the idea of a new narration came up."
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By this point there was a lot of tension and Ridley Scott was told not to be around.

Harrison Ford, Bud Yorkin, and Katy Haber gathered together in a small Beverly Hills studio to record the third attempt at a Blade Runner narration....
.....Haber continues, "and Harrison hated it. He hadn't wanted to do voice-overs in the first place, and by now I think he was sick of the whole movie anyway. Harrison also didn't like what Kibbee had come up with. So he purposely, I think, recited that narration badly. I think he was hoping they wouldn't be able to use it. And of course they did - that third narration was the one they released with the finished film."
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Ford talks more about the narration on the BladeRunner "Final Cut" -- which is the real director's cut. Apparently, the studio released the official "Director's Cut" version without bothering to consult Ridley Scott.

Anyway, Ford showed up to record the final version of the voice-over and they didn't even have a script, there was somebody he didn't recognize who was in the process of hammering one out on a portable typewriter right there in the studio. Ridley had been present for previous recording sessions but wasn't for that one.
 
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