Indie Film Buy-In & Cost

So here's the question: what is the minimum buy-in to produce decent independent film today? I'll just start with something that has elements of what I have right now to be the one sacraficed. Remember, this is production costs relating to equipment.

DSLR camera: $700.00
Lenses: $1700.00
Dollies and sliders: $2000.00
Lighting:$1500.00
Sound: $1000.00
Stabilizers: $4000.00
Monitor: $550.00
Computer & software: $4000.00 (light)

Total: $15,450.00 and we still have a crap camera and sound issues.

Oy.
 
You sure? I guess I'm used to seeing buddies of mine go out and make award-winning shorts with maybe 10 crew and one camera and a stationwagon volvo worth of equipment.

I could be totally wrong and they quite possibly could have been filming throughout an entire house or alleyway, but what I saw was a street corner shot and about 5 hours later I passed the same spot and they were still doing that shot.

Bah - I'm a scrooge when it comes to wasting money when it could go to young budding filmmakers :)
 
Growing up, my aerospace engineer dad would always b!tch and gripe about how road crews would always have a dozen guys getting paid to stand around holding up shovels.
Each and every time we drove by a site I'd listen to that complaining.

Not too long ago I did the general contracting work on my house and one for my dad, including clearing the land and prepping the site for foundation.

I learned first hand why there's a dozen guys standing around seemingly doing nothing.
When you're renting a piece of heavy equipment, like a bulldozer or backhoe, and hiring an operator for a day that's a lot of expense, especially for the skilled labor.
Often there's little weenie work like moving stones, pulling loosened roots or shoveling gravel that you don't want your skilled labor to stop operating the heavy equipment, get off, take care of it himself, climb back up and resume, then stop two minutes later, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat.

It's more cost effective to pay a shovel monkey $10 an hour to assist your $35/hr skilled labor + rented equipment/hr expense.

Likewise on the movie set...
 
Why spend $4500 on the AF-100, when you can buy a GH2 for less than 1/4 that price (with a lens) and have the exact same sensor? And a hackable camera that can do 4:2:2 color? I mean, the AF-100 has some features the GH2 is missing (like more options for frame rates), but unless you know you're going to use those features, I personally wouldn't spend the extra money.

Because I'd prefer not to shoot an entire movie on a DSLR. I'm not buying into the whole DSLR movement. I only use the 5D for still photos. I would never recommend a DSLR for an entire feature length movie (by itself). Just my opinion. I know that there are a lot of pro-DSLR guys/gals here but I prefer to operate behind some bulk. :)
 
Growing up, my aerospace engineer dad would always b!tch and gripe about how road crews would always have a dozen guys getting paid to stand around holding up shovels.
Each and every time we drove by a site I'd listen to that complaining.

Not too long ago I did the general contracting work on my house and one for my dad, including clearing the land and prepping the site for foundation.

I learned first hand why there's a dozen guys standing around seemingly doing nothing.
When you're renting a piece of heavy equipment, like a bulldozer or backhoe, and hiring an operator for a day that's a lot of expense, especially for the skilled labor.
Often there's little weenie work like moving stones, pulling loosened roots or shoveling gravel that you don't want your skilled labor to stop operating the heavy equipment, get off, take care of it himself, climb back up and resume, then stop two minutes later, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat.

It's more cost effective to pay a shovel monkey $10 an hour to assist your $35/hr skilled labor + rented equipment/hr expense.

Likewise on the movie set...


Yes. THat is all.
 
I was just wondering why both microphones above are needed and not one of them. What is the ideal setting that each should be used for?

A shotgun has more off-axis rejection (a narrower polar pattern) than other mics; think of it like a zoom lens, a very narrow focus. This is very desirable in noisy outdoors situations, but requires a bit of skill to do properly. Because of the way a shotgun records sound it exaggerates to the extreme the way sound bounces around an enclosed space - the classic "roomy" sound so prevalent in low budget indie projects. A hypercardioid mic mitigates (but does not eliminate) this effect.

The Schoeps CMIT-5U the ROC mentioned is a fantastic mic, and costs more than most indie filmmakers want to spend on their entire sound kit.

As always, knowledge, talent and skill are worth more than the gear that you use.

How's the weather in CT? I spent four years in New Haven.

It was beautiful yesterday and today after a rainy Friday. I got a little lobsterized (sunburned) at the beach today; the sun was hot, the water cool and a wonderful time was had by all.
 
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A shotgun has more off-axis rejection (a narrower polar pattern) than other mics; think of it like a zoom lens, a very narrow focus. This is very desirable in noisy outdoors situations, but requires a bit of skill to do properly. Because of the way a shotgun records sound it exaggerates to the extreme the way sound bounces around an enclosed space - the classic "roomy" sound so prevalent in low budget indie projects. A hypercardioid mic is mitigates (but does not eliminate) this effect.

The Schoeps CMIT-5U the ROC mentioned is a fantastic mic, and costs more than most indie filmmakers want to spend on their entire sound kit.

As always, knowledge, talent and skill are worth more than the gear that you use.



It was beautiful yesterday and today after a rainy Friday. I got a little lobsterized (sunburned) at the beach today; the sun was hot, the water cool and a wonderful time was had by all.

thanks for that info. Much appreciated.
 
You're shooting your entire film handheld fisheye? You invest $250 in sound but $4000 on a mac? Is this a joke?

My camera would already have lenses and it would not be a DSLR. Don't assume everyone is on board the DSLR bandwagon. The fisheye is another guerilla filmmaker secret weapon.

$4,000 for computer equipment is the key to success for a mircrobudget feature filmmaker, This includes everything - hardware, softwear, monitor, backups, et al. Oh yeah, its a Mac. :)

I don't consider going shaky-cam to be creative. A decent tripod is an absolute must;

I never brought up handheld. Shaky-cam is mostly a no-no these days and I agree. Tripods (or beanbags) are a must. You can find used ones at low cost.

[by trueindie] What does that mean, "being creative?"

Being creative -- it can work two ways: 1) write the script so that you can get the effect in your story without use of a dolly shot, or fake a dolly shot by using alternative methods to get that look.

[by someone] 'why own cameras?'

A micro budget feature film is created in the editing suite. This will require a constant need of your camera to go out and get images and footage during the entire editing process to put together a film with high production values. Besides, shouldn't you always be carrying your camera with you [in your car] to grab great shots as you go about your day? If its an expensive camera or takes too long to set it up for these grabs then you've got the wrong camera.
 
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All it takes is for you to win awards to get financed by a studio? Damn, what am I doing wrong?

Also, how are you going to go about winning these awards using a handycam your parents bought you for Christmas four years ago?

hey I spent 600 bucks on a hdv camcorder, and I've been in the headspace for years, my bro went crazy when he saw 7 years in tibet, thought the movie was about him, then he saw the black dahlia, a few years later, and it made him feel better, so I have an intricate understanding of the emotional levers these kinds of films pull, every day, I see people in psychosis' and depressions, and I automatically know what kind of movie woulld cheer them up, because my sense of empathy is keener than keen, and really in winter, in this town, it's really a thing worth more than platinum, to pull the right levers at the right times.
 
Being creative -- it can work two ways: 1) write the script so that you can get the effect in your story without use of a dolly shot, or fake a dolly shot by using alternative methods to get that look.

You sound like someone speaking from a position of experience and authority. I'm sure you're right.

But I still wouldn't call adjusting my script or "using alternative methods" being creative, as I've already expressed. It really doesn't take all that much creativity. Genius is not required. Access to youtube will suffice.
 
Because I'd prefer not to shoot an entire movie on a DSLR. I'm not buying into the whole DSLR movement. I only use the 5D for still photos. I would never recommend a DSLR for an entire feature length movie (by itself). Just my opinion. I know that there are a lot of pro-DSLR guys/gals here but I prefer to operate behind some bulk. :)

I would prefer not to as well, BUT it's the best tool that fits my budget. For about $3000 (body and lenses) I have something that is very versatile and provides a very filmic look. No other camera can do it at that price point. If my caemera budget was 10K or 20K or 50K, it would be a different story.
 
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