I'm going to do it!

sfoster

Staff Member
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Life is for the living.
I am going to make a great short film!

The script is 3 pages, and it will take me about a year and a half to shoot.
It's a super hero action comedy

I've also got a separate, one-day crime-thriller set to film on march 9th.
 
Scary as hell "The Shadow"!!!

Hey everybody check out the new short film "The Shadow" scary as hell!!

Don't watch alone!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=https://youtu.be/xZlS-rV7B74
 
I'm loving that this project is coming together! Looks great so far.

Thanks Jay. I just got back from boston on sunday, nice town, I liked it there. Very dog friendly.

I've slacked off on planning this foot chase which is a problem because the clock is ticking. I need to be skinny by autumn 2016 and I can start to diet once this foot chase is filmed.
 
It will grow back ;)

There were a lot of bushes too. Doesn't matter, I got what I needed.
i have to film there next halloween too but I don't need wide shots, just some close up inserts with the trees in the background. I'll be alright.


I'm a little disturbed that this dream sequence is 3 minutes but the script was less than a page. If I factor in these fight sequences and the foot chase too my film is going to end up a lot longer than 15 minutes. (15 pages)

If I end up with a 40 minute film that is going to be a disaster.
 
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You'll cut it down to the right length - don't start worrying about that now :)
You may need/want to bring in someone else to give some suggestions on where and how to cut it down, when you get to that point.

Thanks. I'll show it to my actress next week and see what she thinks.
It is a nice little scene as is but you're right, it's a tough call for another year.
 
Thanks Jay. I just got back from boston on sunday, nice town, I liked it there. Very dog friendly.

I've slacked off on planning this foot chase which is a problem because the clock is ticking. I need to be skinny by autumn 2016 and I can start to diet once this foot chase is filmed.

Thanks! Yeah I've been here about 3.5 years and there is a good little film community here. I sometimes miss the Upstate NY community but a lot of them moved to LA/Austin/Atlanta. I think I remember you saying your gf moved here earlier this year? Or was that someone else on here?

Anyway, loving the shots you posted and am dying to see the finished product.
 
Thanks! Yeah I've been here about 3.5 years and there is a good little film community here. I sometimes miss the Upstate NY community but a lot of them moved to LA/Austin/Atlanta. I think I remember you saying your gf moved here earlier this year? Or was that someone else on here?

Anyway, loving the shots you posted and am dying to see the finished product.

Yeah she is going to BU for her MBA so i'll be up there over the next 2 years.
Met with a film composer while I was there last time which was pretty cool.

Time to plan the Foot Chase

Cast: uniformed police officer chased by half dozen masked men with knives
Location: Requires a high rise building (fat officer is exhausted from running, desperately goes into elevator to catch his breath)
Props: Cop Car arrives at location (IDK how to do this one just yet)
Ambitions: Ideally I would use real blanks at the start of this scene.
Also ideally this would be at night so there is less car traffic. I don't want people to wonder why the cop doesn't escape via a car during the foot chase.

This location in towson is a mix of business and residential, and has a high rise behind the photograph. I own a condo in the high rise so I feel like I might be able to get away with using it.

foot%20chase%20towson.png


The Current Plan
Find a location to match that photograph above. Somewhere that isn't high population but still well lit. Somewhere I can shoot blanks and begin my foot chase.

Concessions
In the actual city I think I can put away the knives, and film the masked men and the cop separately. So to the casual observers there won't be any weapons and there won't be anyone being chased. This seems like a really reasonable and realistic request for a film maker to make of the local community.
 
I got a phone call back from a baltimore sergeant.. his name was short, a single syllable and I didn't want to be annoying and ask him to repeat it.

The point is that it's really fortunate I was prepared with my concessions because he called to tell me 'no' and I turned it into something that we can make happen for this foot chase. He wants me to move the date from dec 19th to something after the christmas season. I'm thinking January 2nd right now although I have some concern my extras (anyone i know that might help me) may be out of town for new years. It's simply a date that works out well for me on a personal schedule.. and I'd like to get this wrapped asap.

I'll get a phone call from his superior next week.

I think I also have a great idea for where to begin this foot chase.
A public baseball field.. I'll have to scout around. It's interesting visually, and it's something that exists in a variety of locations. I can find one that is in an isolated area and then pretend that it's adjacent to the city high-rise.
 
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If you film it properly, you can easily add the city's buildings into the background of the shot

That might a way to go.
I spent yesterday looking around google maps at baseball fields, churches, golf courses, etc.

Any tutorial or reference on how to frame the shot?
Does it need to be on a tripod?
 
Does it need to be on a tripod?

Preferably, but with motion tracking, it can still be done handheld. It makes it a hell of a lot easier if you can see a clear blue sky, to basically use that as a blue screen. Otherwise you'd have to create a mask (which you don't really wanna do on a shaky camera)

here's a basic example I found

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2gZSD7MbR4
 
Preferably, but with motion tracking, it can still be done handheld. It makes it a hell of a lot easier if you can see a clear blue sky, to basically use that as a blue screen. Otherwise you'd have to create a mask (which you don't really wanna do on a shaky camera)

here's a basic example I found

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2gZSD7MbR4

Thanks for the example. Clear weather would definitely help.

It didn't seem too expensive to use the street location.
The greatest expense will probably be insurance but I think I can do this practically.

Since I can't shut down the streets I'm aiming to do this late at night. That should minimize car traffic.
 
I found my starting location.. business park that is hidden from public view and desolate at night.

I can do my foot chase without worrying about roads or cars or bystanders. I don't have to worry about masked men with knives chasing a cop here.

IMG_20151129_224523.jpg


IMG_20151129_224929.jpg
 
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