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Making my film look more professional

I have just finished writing a zombie script and was wondering if I could get a few tips on making my film look abit more professional. The camera I am using is a Canon Hf20 ( I know its not a fantastic camera) I was just wondering if you guys or girls could give me some lighting tips or maybe even some shooting or editing tips? I could use the help
 
use 3-point lighting technique. there are videos on this topic on www.youtube.com.

I hope your camera has manual focus. get a lens that has manual focus with a very low depth of field. i.e. you should point at the actor, say a M.S. shot and get the B.G out of focus. to get the professional look, the most important thing is the getting that out of focus part.

regards,
ace.inc1
 
lighting and sound sound sound


You forgot to say sound ;)


Seriously, and I know this sounds so simplistic and "duh", but remember to use a Tripod.

I've lost count of how many shorts I've seen in which they were too cheap to buy a tripod(I got my decent one for 20 bucks at at pawn shop), and thought "I'll just hold the camera still".:rolleyes:

Also, if you can use more than one camera, use a switcher to switch between cuts of people's closeups, it will make your life SO much easier :)
 
PRODUCTION DESIGN! One thing that screams amateur is a lack of an interesting background. If you're in the woods, nature is pretty good. An indie film shot in rooms with white walls and little in the way of decor looks cheap. In real life, the rooms may be okay but not on screen.
 
Well as far as cameras I only have one. I am working on getting a shot gun mic. The film will take place in an apartment, garage, on the street, and in a car.
 
It may be strange to say but making it grainy and black and white could prove to be a professional look especially since it is a zombie movie....black an white sometimes works wonders.

uh or if you're not looking for a classic look as it was said before scenery is your friend.
 
Thats a GREAT camera! Nice big lens, manual focus, mic in, big sensor, HD. Some folks here would KILL for that camera. :)

Its hard to be helpfull without knowing "where you are" in your current abilities\skill set. But maybe these simple suggestions will help..

  • Light flat and even (adjust for LOOK in post)
  • Use tripod
  • use the basic "three takes" coverage for dialog scenes (gives you everything you need to edit a solid looking dialog)


Dont cross the "line"
( google for "180 degree rule" for more info)

1) Shoot master "2 shot" of entire dialog, you can see both actors
2) Shoot OTS from Actor A looking at Actor B for entire dialog
3) Shoot OTS from Actor B looking at Actor A for entire dialog





line_of_action.jpg




For shallow DOF with that camera, step AWAY from the action, then ZOOM back in for desired framing.

Shoot 24f with 1\48 shutter (your camera can do it!)

Don't pan too fast, unless the subject your following is taking up a large part of the frame..

Tripod

External Mic, External Mic, oh, and EXTERNAL MIC! !!! !!! ! duck taped to broom handle and call it a boom! :)

One of my favorite ghetto DIY projects!
http://www.indymogul.com/post/11245/wesleys-weekly-how-to-super-cheap-shock-mount
 
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Well as far as cameras I only have one. I am working on getting a shot gun mic. The film will take place in an apartment, garage, on the street, and in a car.

Is it taking place during the day, night or both?

Another thing about professional look (which I learned the hardway). For each location, do all the shots at the same time, regardless of where it is in the story. I tried the "shoot at A, then B, then go back to A, then go back to B". That way the camera doesn't move, and there's isn't that slight "jarring" of scenes that look "slightly" different in angle.

As far as the car, if you're doing night shooting, there's a thread just recently on lighting in a car....see if I can find it.

EDIT: here it is...

http://www.indietalk.com/showthread.php?t=22187&highlight=lighting
 
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As far as the time of the shots goes I will be doing both day and night. Most of the nigh scenes will take place in the car or on foot outside. As far as my level of knowledge goes I am a noob to the max. So I will take any advice I can get.
 
Plan and visualize. If you don't know where your going, thats exactly where you will end up!
Try to imagine each scene, then each shot IN that scene.

For example, go through the script and create index cards for every scene. On each scene list the actors, the location, the time. Now, rearrange the cards so that all the scenes from one location are together. We don't care about the cards being in the "correct" order for the story, rather efficient use of time\resources is what your after.
 
Plan and visualize. If you don't know where your going, thats exactly where you will end up!
Try to imagine each scene, then each shot IN that scene.

For example, go through the script and create index cards for every scene. On each scene list the actors, the location, the time. Now, rearrange the cards so that all the scenes from one location are together. We don't care about the cards being in the "correct" order for the story, rather efficient use of time\resources is what your after.

Only SLIGHTLY disagree. Time/resources is a very important factor to consider in a shooting schedule. It's inefficient to do the same setup you already had in place yesterday. However, the actors are another factor. Bouncing them around all the emotional spectrum can be very difficult and damage their performance. A really good shooting schedule balances everything.
 
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