Okay, first and foremost, I am, at least for the next two or more years, a student of film making. I am attending Minnesota State University in Moorhead, Minnesota as a Film Major with Emphasis on Production, which means, God willing, I will walk away accredited, as a director, able to run a budgeted production whether it is a commercial project or a private grant.

It would not mean that I will automatically become a Hollywood director since that will solely depend on my ability. As a minimum, I am hoping to land a job where I would be making film-related projects. I also want to persue a directing career in the Philippines. But like every other film student, our Holy Grail is a Hollywood project.

I opened this thread because some have already noticed what I do. I have had questions PMed to me, pertaining to the art of making films. I also know that our film industry in the Philippines is in the brink, which is one more reason why I wanted to do what I do. Then maybe, I can rouse enough interest in this forum to aid to end a bad trend which is the Filipino Film industry. Even as a minimum, if I do make it big, I would already know what is lacking and what the mass wanted to see all along.

I grew up watching Filipino movies and that's how my love for movies started. When I migrated in the US, I was exposed to Hollywood movies, something I really never enjoyed in the Phils. After a stint in the US Army, I promised myself to be a film maker, or die trying. After two years of being a film student, I wanted to share what I know to those willing learn in hopes of creating interest in the art of making better films in our country.

I don't claim to know all the answers to the question, but I am willing to answer them to the best of my ability. Please feel free to add comments, questions, problems, solutions or critique.

This is one of the question that was PMed to me by santoloco, and hopefully would help others with my answers as well.

Okay, first, the movie's final look would surely depend on what camera it was shot on, what film stock they used and the quality of equipment they used for editing. In the Phils. most studious use low quality film stock and editing is mostly still done by hand. Of-course, money is always a deciding factor as to what kind of film stock they would use. Like my professor always remind us, film making "is a matter of economics."

In my school, we have access to Hi-def video cameras, and digital MiniDV cams that average around $5000 which could do things that a regular consumer video cameras can't. We have access to Super-8mm and Super 16mm film cameras depending on a class requirement. But we still have to buy our own film or video. Video isn't that expensive, that is why we shoot most documentaries and short scenes using a video. Film on the other hand could cost up to $5000 in a single project, especially "final" project where 25% of your grade sit. This is a good training for future directors to really buget within their limitations.

Does that mean sacrifice quality for your vision? Hopefully not. Easily, most film students plan thier project with how much they want to spend on it. What does this have to do when it comes to film making in the Philippines?

Well, it seems that most studios in the Philippines are much more serious at making a quick buck. They try to spend the least on production and makes it up in publicity (hype) and star power. Sometimes I doubt that the director gets paid more than what the actors get, which is the norm in Hollywood. Worse, they stick to the redundant formula of sex (rape!), struggle (poor vs. rich), romance, and violence (gun and fist fights) but never ventures to new ways of telling, hell even re-telling an old tale. The stars and the directors seem to lack a lot of discipline. Often times, the stars are good-looking but devoid of talents. Directors never really have any knowledge of shot selections or concept of composition.

Which brings me to the other question above. Given that not everyone would have access to quality equipment, it does not mean that a good story can't be told using what is available. As a matter of fact, Hollywood deals with this problem everyday. Peter "LOTR" Jackson never envisioned the Lords of the Rings Trilogy as how we saw it. I am sure, he wanted more but he made do with what he have available.

Likewise, to all aspiring film makers, it is a good practice to tell your story using the equipment you have. Focus on the basic. The Filipino music video above looked odd for the simple fact that they seemed to have used every concievable special effect; not to mention a no-no to us film makers; the use of blue screen or "chroma." Basically, that's when you remove the background and replace it with something else, usually a computer generated one. As a discipline to us film students, we were asked to make a music video without using any computerized special effects (check my signature).

The Indonasian music video works because one, they obviously have a higher budget shooting that commercial. Two, they stuck to basics by focusing on composition, easily seen by the slow movement, framing and the use of believable (realistic) backgrounds.

The structure of music video was well thought out with an intent on telling a story, while the Filipino video looks as if they aimed to be high quality by polluting it with digital effects but ending up short since the video or film (stock) they used is of low quality.

i have some questions:

what are u doing in fargo? haha...but yea..that's like the whitest city in the u.s...but don't be offended :P

and..why do u consider hollywood to be the holy grail?..of course hollywood movies get more publicity worldwide and thus have a bigger impact, but i think u can be a successful director/filmmaker without hollywood. i just don't want to see an earnest filmmaker get caught up in doing what hollywood wants him/her to do instead of what he/she really wants to do...i would assume that its very difficult not to sell out for an asian in hollywood, so maybe just not aiming for hollywood as the holy grail would be a better scenario?

i dont think hes really aiming for hollywood. i think hes more aiming on gaining hollywood knowledge and incorporating them on to the philippines.

soo wat if he turns to hollywood. if u dont like him, then dont watch his movies or works. plus he lives in the united states, where hollywood is the movie. sooo u cant really blame him for being hollywood and all that. thats what he really wants, being in hollywood. not hollywood that wants and to control him.



nice thread btw!!!! thnx alot bro. ill be postin questions soon.

Well, as my professor say, "it's all a matter of economics." Going to Hollywood does not neccessarily selling out. Yes, Hollywood is the Holy Grail for film makers since every concievable resources are located around there. From producers to financiers, to actors, distributors, etc. The nature of the beast is to sell your project. If you cannot understand that basic concept, how far do you think you would go?

Sure, it is a known fact that wrestling with the "Hollywood suits" tend to be messy, but it is also a known fact that your talent is your biggest bargaining chip. Contrary to popular belief, Hollywood have been very kind to Asian directors historically. Akira Kurosawa, Wong Kar Wai, John Woo and Ang Lee are just a few.

It doesn't ahve to be a Hollywood studio... It could just be a Hollywood distributor that would guarantee world-wide exposure.

It doesn't hurt to have a Hollywood talent staring a Filipino Historical epic...

Fargo? LOL! Yeah, I know. It is a white town. Very friendly town though. Zero discrimination so far and the tution for a film degree is wallet-friendly. Lots of talents (actors), and a nice internship program to boot!


Whehehe! Well said!

I would love to shoot a feature-length film in the Philippines. As a matter of fact, if projects becomes scarce here in the US, I'll pack my bags and personally ask for a job in any of the TV or Film studios in the Philippines.

My plan is to invade Hollywood first, then, come home to the Phils. with at-least two feature-length film under my belt, then the suits in the Philippines might have a hard time turning me down, especially if I take a pay cut!

BTW, I'll answer the rest of your question. Keep postin!

Part II of santoloco's question.

You know, the picture quality really plays little to the over-all feel of the movie. It doesn't mean that because it is shot in black and white that it would not have artistic quality in it. As a matter of fact, most of our projects are shot using video cameras (such as Directing), unless the class is geared toward film hands on (such as Basic Film Production).

Likewise, students are promptly warned when using digital effects because sometimes special effects destroy the over-all believability of a scene.

So now, you ask yourself how you can make a project "a high class piece of work." First is focus on the basics. Special effects are handled by people who pioneer digital effects but rarely know anything about directing actors and shot composition. Basically, if you prove your worth that you can handle actors and the meat and bone of a production shoot, you will have at your disposal special effects studious to beef up a finished product. But that's down the line. You must learn how to crawl first, before walking, then finally learn to run. So let's talk basic.

I am happy that you have provided an example above. The major problem in the Filipino film industry is that the acting is lacking. The delivery of lines is almost a ping-pong match where the focus bounce from one character to the other. Sit down and watch a conversation between two friends, or between your parents. Pretend you are the camera. Compare that to what you see in the Filipino movies.

What makes Hollywood film so engrossing is that most dialogues between two subjects could have happened in real life, while Filipino films are "acted" for the audience. I qouted "acted" since to trully act, it is by not acting at all. Acting is being.

Act sad. More than likely you will force emotion to express sadness. Now feel sad. More likely, you will exhibit any emotion at all. That is the principle of acting while being. Take out a camera and videotape your self "acting" sad, then "feeling" sad. You will see the difference. Contrary to popular belief, an absence of facial emotion speaks louder than "forced" facial muscle to exhibit emotion. Now couple each of the example with a dialogue. You will see the impact of "being." Waht I meant by being means to think sad, feel sad, talk sad and so forth, while if you are only to act sad, you really do not have to think, feel or talk saddly.

To be successful in film business, you must learn the psychology of acting, especially if you are to hold Hollywood caliber actors. Capturing an emotional moment is key to absorbing the audience. You can apply that from a home-made video to a Hollywood blockbuster.

I have mentioned above of how you should watch conversations. That is a good excercise to study reality. Because you know that the conversation between your parents isn't acted. Now, try to mirror the same using actors and a video camera, you will understand the point I'm making.

Back to the question above. Watch the Filipino movie link above. Pay attention to the girl. Watch her dialogue in the car, especially her delivery (of her lines) in the table. People do not act like this. Imagine her toning her acting at least 90%. Wouldn't she be more believable?

Keep watching it. How about the scene in the airplane? Watch the old lady. This is what we call "head bobbing" by canting your head to the side and opening your eyes wide. Imagine if people actually talk like this, it would be a very annoying world.

Now watch the X-men trailer provided above. Notice the the quality of acting, on how Prof. X and Magneto delivered their lines almost devoid of facial emotion, but you will surely believe the seriousness of their statements.

What you just did is what we call "scene study" although the scenes you provided are trailers. You can do the same in any movie. Study the acting, their delivery and the overall emotion. I had to do the same on my short scene (the link is in my signature, with a download option that can be viewed with Quicktime), since it is the last part of a movie, I had to make-sure that the audience would understand in the end that this two aren't lovers, but brother and sister saying good-bye to each other.

Now, try this. Imagine the Filipino movie above shot using a bunch of special effects and the highest possible film stock. What you have is still a crappy movie about a love triangle between a star, a girl and a guy.

So here's the lesson, keep it real-looking. Even as a scene is shot using a crappy video camera, if the acting is believable, you have succeeded as a director. The special effects would be handled by an army of special effects personel, something the film student refer to as "over-all packaging."

You can easily practice any scene you want, but I suggest to keep it around three minutes. All you need is two actors, a video camera (that have a firewire or USB so you can upload it to a PC) and an editing program that could be found pirated around the internet. Which is a lesson in directing all in its own; hands-on learning is the best way to learn. Don't worry, mistakes are going to be plenty, but that helps you improve on the next project.

@ Azrach - Would your rather work in Independent film making or start out with the big movie studios??

Here found an article on the film problem in the Philippines. At least the Philippine gov't is trying to save there film industry.
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2005/m...050523opi1.html

The philippines has it better than us. Our pop. is much smaller when compared to the Philippines so really cannot support much of a movie industry unless you export. Problem with exporting is many nations protect there film industry (like Mexico) and if its not in english many places won't want it. Its cheaper to bring in programs or movies from Mexico, Venezuela or US (dubbed or translated) than to make them here. Things weren't like that decades ago they said but today they are. Some ppl. are asking for the gov't to better support actors and film industry but they seem to be dragging there feet. Also, most of the tv stations are owned by outside companies. If it wasn't for the gov't channel which tends to produce local shows which deal with our culture many ppl. would lose touch with there real culture.

Im glad to see there are more Asians (Pinoy) that are into filmmaking. The Filipino movies I've seen have horrible quality which I dont get since the local commercials have a better production quality but I would assume its because they're handled by smaller but quality driven production firms also because they're paid $hitload by those corporate giants.

Filipino movies tend to have a watered down version plots and stories, we could do so much better. Dang, I wish we'd be a Asian entertainment powerhouse someday

Azrach, mad props to ya bro! Show us some of your portfolio Im also into filmmaking, I've got several projects ahead, personally funded so I tend to get broke all the time But first and foremost I'd like to mark my spot here in the West. I'd like to follow Justin Lin's "initial" independent filmmaking determination but I dont know why he ended up making lousy movies after BLT, lol Annapolis? but I dont know about Tokyo Drift Gotta see it first.

One of my favourite cinematographers is a Filipino, Matthew Libatique I love his work! Hey have you seen 'Cavite' by Neill Dela Llana and Ian Gamazon ?

What equipment do you use? I just got an HD cam(HVR-A1U(cost me an arm and a leg) and planning to emulate my videos into 24p with the film like contrast, I just cant afford film stocks or more like afford to do a trial and error run I have a Super 8 but I'll only use it if I know all the determining factors are right.

props, dude. im pretty sure u'll make it in the industry. there hasnt been a decent pinoy director since the lino brocka days n that was waaaaaaaay back. thats when pinoys use to get all sorts of accolades in the international platform. but nowadays, local talent is sparse what with godawful teen stars & d-grade romance movies, its really fu-king bad.



hope u change the scene real soon.

ye lets pray for our films guys!!! i do hope someday the philippines will develop its movies. and i hope its in my lifetime.

Nice article. Where are you at?

Professors always told us, film students, that whether we like it or not, we will be "independent" film makers first before we make it as a big-budgeted directors. This is true since Hollywood studios would not bank-roll an unproven director. If so, it is because of connections which is the nature of the beast. To tell you the truth, I would love to direct a B movie as long as backed by financiers, which by the way is still considered below an indie production.

Would I direct an indie film? But of-course! Contrary to popular belief, some idependent films are mostly backed by big studios and distributors, Lions Gate, Fox Searchlight, MGM/United Artist are but a few who have companies running as "skunk works" totally independent from the mother studio, hence, the term independent. Basically, for me to prove I am worthy of an indie shoot, I might as well be worthy of a studio blockbuster. Here's a good description of what an independent film really is.

The career path most director take, are short project first, such as a short film, music videos, or commercials. Then comes an indie shoot mostly financed by the film makers themselves. Then maybe an earlier project attracted a "major" indie studio or a B movie studio, and a green-light is given to a project. Based on that, a director is now ready to take on a bigger budget as long as he/she was successful from earlier works.

Don't understimate the power of foreign movies. It might not be "open" to other countries if you are to sell a movie made in Philippines directly to Venezuela. But hitting a big time distributor in Hollywood, would guarantee world-wide exposure. Taiwan, China and Hong Kong are capitalizing from this "import exposure" and Japan is now starting to. Foreign films have always had a strong showing in the US and in Europe. Most Asian directors such as Wong Kar Wai, Kurosawa, Ang Lee, and John Woo, got their exposure sending foreign films to the US. Nowadays, a film appreciation class is never complete without a thorough study of a Kurosawa masterpiece.

I am hoping to follow most models I have given above. One of my dreams is to import a Filipino backed film in the US as a foreign movie, complete with sub-titles. Invading celebrated film festivals all over the world, wouldn't hurt either.


Thanks for the info in Cavite, I have it saved in my Netflix since it seems that it isn't available in DVD just yet. Yep, Libatique is a very good example for photography. I loved Pi when I first saw it, but when I realized it was shot by a Filipino, the prouder I am to tell my classmates who hailed Pi as how indie films shoud be. Maybe someday, I'll work next to him.

Yeah, Lin sorta sold out. Hey, when money is tight, Gigli sounds like a good project to get green-lighted! I'm happy to know there are others like me since I am attending a university up here in Midwest, I feel that I am alone, as far Filipino film student... heck, I'll be happy to run across another Filipino student!!!

Nice! I only have a Sony PD-110 I got almost three years ago. For the most part I only use it for proofing the location I would shoot and I found out it is excellent for recording sounds such as dialogue and foleys. I have an old crappy Super 8mm that I used in Beggining Film, but the mere thought of cutting and editing by hand, makes me cringe at night!

We have plenty of equipment in school though, we have PD 110s, 150s and 170s plus a couple of HDs. We have a crapload of Super 8s, mostly used for Beggining Film. We have Super 16mm Arriflex with video assists. Like this summer, we can actually sign-out equipments if we want to shoot, as a matter of fact, I'm part of the crew of a documentary being shot by an upper classman this July.

Nice! Dropping frames to 24 has been a long held secret by those with limited budget! I have experimented with that but saddly, our professors don't like it! We are to announce ahead of time if we are shooting a project in film or video, so dropping frames really defeat the purpose of making it look like a film, since we can't "cheat" as far as the look of the overall project. Hell, chroma or green-screening is another no-no to us!

I do have a couple of projects in the net, but I have most of my projects are "sanctioned" since the professors don't really like us uploading projects in the net. Here's a couple though. Click the following for a YouTube showing which have a quality that leaves less to be desired. Or else click on my signature to view it in Hi-res (requires quicktime).

Music Video in YouTube.com

My short movie (under 8 minutes) about a sister saying goodbye to a brother.

Keep it up dude, we might see each other in the business, in the near future!


Yeah, I miss Lino Brocka. Heck I saw American Adobo by Laurice Guillen, one of my favorite Philippine directors because I saw Salome as a kid and thought it was a masterpiece. I almost threw up after watching American Adobo!

Believe it or not, I am about to devote that last two years of my schooling to invade the film festival circuits, local and overseas. it is basically the fast track to an indie film green-light!

Yeah, I hope to change the scene as soon as possible. Even as a consolation, I hope to revive an interest in film making, here and maybe in the Philippines, to save what was left, in the Philippines. Just to see us in the international circuit would make me feel that my sacrifices in school was worth it.

I thought I should share some pictures taken as production stills of Of Lovers, shot in Super 8mm. Wow, those were the days! Cutting and editing by hand!











I can assure you that my actors know how proud I am of being a Filipino!

@Azrach187

Located in PR.. Anyway did some checking and we do have a film commission. But think they more interested in getting outside companies to film here than support local filmmaking.
http://www.puertoricofilm.com/

That article on Independent film was informative. Have a question, how rare is it for a person starting out in filmmaking to make a movie like "El Marachi" by Rodriguez and have it turn into a big hit. He spent $7000 in making it.
Today hardly any big budget movies are made in black and white even thought some might have been better made that way. Whats your opinion on this. Know that some ppl. today, especially kids, won't even watch a movie unless its in color no matter how good.
Some ppl. also say movies from silent to the early 60's, even with the censors and usually smaller budgets, were better made then most of todays movies. They told a story without all the special effects we have now. That today they are more interested in getting out a movie as fast as possible in order to try to make a profit as quick as possible no matter if the movie is really well made or not. Do you agree with this??
Another example of this would be Mexicos so called Golden age of movies which was from the 40's to the early 60's. After that the quality of movies went downhill.

Just watched 'The Great Raid'..awesome and very patriotic movie. That movie made me cry yo.

First, about Rodriguez, a truly success story. Worth mentioning that he went to UT as I did, except back then I was more into History (as my major). I am sure you can easily find info on Rodrigues in the net but one thing that you should be aware of is that his success is rooted from his early works as a student film maker, like Spike Lee. Rodriguez was successful in the short film categories well before he decided to make El Mariachi, the prequel to the Antonio Bandera's vehicle, Desperado.

Winning a Sundance Audience Award, like El Mariachi, is basically a guarantee that your film would be picked up by a major distributor and you as a director would be offered a big budgeted film.

Second, there are still classic B&W movies that are hailed as the finest ever made. Citizen Kane is voted by the American Film Institute as the best movie ever made. Pi was shot using black and white with no apparent special effects.

Of-course, if you are to shoot a super-hero or a sci-fi, more than likely you'd be using SFX, but more than likely, you nailed down the basics of film making before managing a big budgeted sci-fis. George Lucas did American Graffiti before doing Starwars.

You are right about the quick-buck scheme employed by some directors, but most of the time, their films are always forgetable.

So, if you want an early success, you have to really study the craft seriously. Nailing the basics, developing style, and sacrifices, seem to be the fastest route most young directors take as a short-cut to success.

That's why our professors are quick to warn us film students of planning our Sci-Fi masterpiece while a student. This would not prevent us from winning short story categories in local film festivals.

If you are an aspiring film maker, I suggest to do the same, of sending your work to all accessible film festivals. I will be doing the same this next two years.


Yup. Good movie. Too bad it was shot in Australia and Shanghai, China.

I can not believe it. This is the PERFECT thread! (I registered just for this one topic. lol)

I'm fifteen years-old and I live in Pasig City, Philippines. And there is only one thing I can say about the film industry here, and that's HORRIBLE. Awful.

For years I've been dreaming of making and producing films Hollywood style. The Philippine style of making movies suck. You know, they, like, call a million dollars a big budget, when (i'm not really sure) ten million is regular, or even low, in hollywood.

Locally made movies don't NOT sell. They really sell, actually. I mean, the masses, like, make up sixty percent of the population and they really love the cheap, underdeveloped, perverted films here. I love the Philippines, but try as I might, I just can't get myself to watch locally made movies. Because after watching one, I'd feel that the people who worked behind these films cheated on me. I mean, they make big money, why dont they take the risk of investing a bigger budget to produce a better film?

My family is quite, modesty aside, wealthy, so I think I could attempt to change the local scene. No, I will. My plan is to start now, as young as I am, in making short movies. Digitally first; then, as my dad has promised, he'd buy me a, what's the name?, camera that uses film. I'm also planning on enrolling on a summer course next year. Right now I read online how-tos and stuff.

My dream, as is probably everyone elses dream, is to suddenly rise with a bang. I'd produce and make local films in english. I have trouble with tagalog, believe it or not. Besides, I want my movies to get international recognition (not that non-english films don't. but...). I also want to make them independent of hollywood. First, I'll start, like, introducing them to other asian countries. Then, maybe, into the west. I really want to not bring it into America 'cause, no offense, I kinda hate the country. She's like taking everything away from the Philippines! The people especially. Everybody's flying off to be helpers in u.s.

I want my films (haha) to be unique and original. Not dumb rip-offs from foreign movies. I also want to separate the tv stars from movie stars. here kase, a tv star can have a tv series, host a noon time show and star in three films all at the same time!!! Stupid right? They even record albums. I'm not saying it's bad, but when every celeb is doing it it's stupid. My older sister is planning on starting a tv network (we don't watch the local channels) that targets the upper and middle classes. I also want to open a recording company once i'm rich and famous. Haha.

So that's all. I hope you won't laugh at the absurdity of my dreams, but instead encourage me. Because that's what I need.

By the way, forgive my english, I'm also not that good in english. But I definitely speak it better than tagalog.

^ur from pasig huh?? me too!!! good luck in ur career. i hope to do the same as u. u almost have all of the same ideas that i have. that plan on separating tv stars to movie stars is what im always actually thinking of.

wish u luck bro. keep postin more. azrach will help u.

this is a great thread.

how come ur tagalog is not good if ur born and raised and living in the philippines hehe..i was born in canada so that's my excuse that i'm using ..just curious that's all..
and what we need are more people like u..people who are not content with what constitutes as tv or film and want to do something about it...that's so cool that ur dad is gunna buy u a film camera hehe..u inspire me bro! i wanna make movies again too hehe

First, let me say good-luck and more power to you. As a fifteen years old, you already know what you want out of life, which I may say is never bad.

Next, let me address your comment about the US. You are right about the mass migration but you really can't blame those who decides to try their luck somewhere else. You can, how ever blame the Phil. government. The US isn't to be blamed either, since, as far as I can tell, they have been very kind to those who works hard enough to want a better future. Which brings me to the other point.

I have said this earlier, Hollywood or US isn't an "Americans" only club. It have been the Mecca for entertainment since the emergance of Hollywood as a film powerhouse, after Europe was devastated by WWII. Hollywood have attracted different talents from around the globe to give them more (ironically) world wide distribution and coverage. Europeans and Asians have used the Hollywood to market their films which would otherwise be in limited market covered by their respective regions, at best.

Developing your style, doesn't have to be "Hollywood" style since you really can't quantify all the directorial style available in Hollywood. Those that are quick to point "Hollywood" as one style isn't a good student of exceptional films that came out of Hollywood. I do use "Hollywood style" only to differentiate from (mainly) Filipino style film making.

Now, lets go to the meat and bone, the production. There are a lot of aspects you need to take into consideration before yelling your first ever "action." A comment made by a film professor rings true after my two years as a film student. "You can teach a monkey how to operate a camera and you can watch the result. But it takes talent to captivate an audience to watch your movie all the way to the end credits."

The biggest enemy of first time film makers is something called "Theaters of the Mind." In our head, we watch over and over how good our film would look, or how a concept/story we want to tell, would finally be captured in film/video. But the ugly truth is, in reality we rarely see what we saw in our head, on the finished prduct. It just doesn't work that way. Mistakes abound in a film set; technical, weather, equipment, talents (actors) and yes, even directoral mistakes.

Egos, tend to be an obstacle, too. Directors have the biggest egos around, believe me I see it all the time in class, but there is no more humbling experience than to see your work projected in screen and the audience yawns, laughed at something which isn't suppose to be funny, points something unbelievable, or a technical glitch that should have been edited out. Likewise, if you see your fellow student captivated and transported by the story you told on the screen, it is the greatest feeling in the world that even I would take a pay-cut to show that piece to the masses. Having a big ego is part of being a film maker (as an artist in general), but don't let it get in your way. If you really are that talented, then you know enough to not compromise your vision, yet not egotistical enough to lose a green light to a nice project.

Another obstacle is what we call the feel, for being a director. This is your overall talent when it comes to directing that entails different areas of production, namely but not limited to: Leadership, you as a director is the unifying whole of the whole production, pre-production crew, production crew, and post production crew. Shot selection, although this is mainly the cinematographer's job, you still have to make sure the psychology of shot selected is in keeping with what you think the finished product should look like. Talents, a generic term we call actors (which by the way, the word now applies to females as well), you must properly motivate your actor and have a keen sense of reality that it may be potrayed properly, which basically means that you must be an actor yourself without going out there and acting. Editing, this is one of the last stop before a product is first watched by anyone who did not participate in the actual creation of the film, so therefore a director should have an idea how editing should be done.

Sadly, even a Film professor would warn film students on their first semester that some people have the feel naturally, some would develop it as they go, and some, will never have it in their lifetime. This is a caution flag as I started with two hundred peers (film students as a freshmen) but we are now down to less than fifty after our second year. The next two years would surely decide who would end up directing a big-budget project or those that would be superimposing the beauty of a spaghetti sauce.

I am sure, the question would pop in your mind, how would I know if I have the feel? In a class environment, you would know since criticism is handed out like candies. Likewise, kudos are given to those who deserve it as well, although at a much stingier frequency. But if you are all on your own, the only way to really find out is to show your project to those who never participated in the production. The internet have made it so that you can reach audience of varying taste, but I feel that I should warn you that you must have a thick skin to entertain criticism.

How do you get good at filming? I said it again, and I will say it over and over. Stick to the basics. A project could have a look of a home-made video, but if your story is captivating enough, the audience would get past it and forgive you for using an video camera. Go out and shoot. This is the only way to find out what I mean by the obstacle called "theater of the mind." Do shorts. Three to five minutes shouldn't cramp too much of your weekend. Finding talents and crew is another thing, but you must remember that the quality of your piece would only be as good as the quality of your talents and crew.

What else? Study good movies. These movies aren't necessarily your favorite ones or the latest Hollywood blockbusters. Being a good director is like being a good chef. If your taste buds is stuck to tasting bad foods, you will develop taste for bad foods. However, if you refine your taste based on critically acclaimed movies, more than likely, your style would be develop on that level as well. Film/directorial studies is part of being a true movie maker. The more you know about pioneering directors, the more you enhance your style, which doesn't mean copying a ceratin directorial style to claim as your own, but it means more as using their experience as you enhance your own.

So now we are ready for production. Going out and buying the most expensive video camera shouldn't be your first priority. Settle for anything that captures and allows you to edit. After four or five finished project, you should be able to have a taste of what filming is all about and could make a honest decision if you need to upgrade your equipment.

And then comes the heart and soul of movie making. The film camera. So you've watched some of your project and finally understood the obstacle "theater of the mind." First thing you must know is that filming using actual film is very expensive. I don't care how rich you are, even in Hollywood where excess is part of life, they cringe at the mere thought of financing a film that promises little return. Mistakes are very common in film, making it more expensive, especially with talents who aren't prepared to act in front of a film set. Careful planning during pre-production eliminates tons of waste and streamlines the budget.

How much does a film shoot really cost? Lets talk money.

Let's use American dollars since we could all calculate the exchange rate wherever you are.
-videos camera run-of-the-mill miniDV cameras (miniDV is the only thing I recommend) that allows you to upload directly to a PC (for editing purposes) - $450 - $550
-videos camera, Professional Grade miniDV such as the Sony PD-150 - $4,500 to $6,500
-a decent PC (or Mac) that allows you to edit a video or film - $1000-$2,500 (my investment on my PC is close to $2,000!)

-Tripod, professional grade - $250
-Headphones, professional grade - $100 - $250
-Light kit, bare minimum - $100
-Light kit, pro grade - $1000 - $2,500
-Boom and mike kit - $500 - $1,000
-reflectors, refractors - $500 - $750

-Super 8mm Film Camera - $20 -$100
-16mm Film Camera (old version) - $4,000 - $7,500
-Super 16mm Film Camera (what we usually use in school) - $25,000 - $75,000
-35mm Camera (Hollywood Standard) - $500,000 - $1,500,000

-Super 8mm film cartridge (2 minutes) - $8 - $16
-16mm film (200 ft. or 7 minutes) - $50 - $75
-Super 16mm film (200 ft. or 7 minutes) - $100 - $150
-35mm film stock (200 ft. or 7 minutes) - $1,500 - $25,000

In all honesty, very few beginning film makers (students) actually shoots a full-legth movie using any film cameras. Most have film shorts, shot in Super16mm. The graduating class last semester only had two students who shot using film. Most are on digital or videos, since it is within reasonable budget. Antoher is that if you are to send a "demo reel" to a prospective production studio, the talent scout would not sit down and watch a two-hour movie made by you, a prospective talent. He will be more interested in watching a variety of short projects you did to find a certains style in your directing.

I hope to fuel more dreams here, as far as film making!

Dreams have to begin somewhere. My dad always said that if you plan on making a castle in the clouds, make sure you put foundations in it. If you start following your dream tommorow, you might just be a day late already. So don't delay, shoot today!

I am here for any other questions you guys might have. I am always willing to share my knowledge, but keep in mind I am no better than you in making films, except for the formal education! Keep those questions coming or else I'm going to start talking about scriptwriting... the really broing aspect of film making!

@azrach187 -

What percentage of the ppl. of the Philippines have migrated? Here out of a total pop. of 6.5 million about 40% or 2.7 million have migrated to the US mainland leaving only 3.8 million on the island. Out of that 3.8 million left on the island 300,000 at least are from other nations.

Have a question. What does a director do when a producer tries to take control of everything or interfers with the direction the director wants to take the movie. Heard of movies that turned out badly because of demanding producers.

A rough estimate population was done last year put the at around 87,857,473. Migration is at 1.5 per a population of 1,000 so, your looking at a yearly immigration of about 1.3 million. But that figure includes OFW or overseas Filipino workers that tend to come back to the Philippines, rated at 67% of that migration number so annually I would say around 700,000 people migrate annually, not just in US, but all over the world. I got those numbers on-line so it might be a tad off.

You should consider yourself lucky, because if I haven't been to PR before hand, I would say that that's too bad, but since I've been to Puerto Rico, I would say that's a good number to keep since I still think PR needs to have more land reserved for natural habitat.

About the conflict you mentioned, it does happen a lot. You have to remember that producers basically gathers enough resources for the director to shoot the film, therefore he is basically the bank-roller of the whole production. You must also remember that most of the time, producer hires the director. Keeping in mind also that the director is usually hired for his talent and ability. So here are some possible scenarios:

The producer hires the director. The producer got a hold of a terrific script and wants a talented director to shoot it. He then coordinates everything the director would need to finish this product. The talents, crew, production company would be hired according to the director on how he view this production should go. The producer becomes the go-between between the studio and the whole production.

The producer hires the director, only if they are making a "cash crop" meaning a movie, usually a sequel to a wildly successful first movie, and the original director of the movie isn't available or turned down the monetary offer. In this case, the new director's ability might be questionable since more likely than not, the movie would be populated by B, C, or even D list actors. At this point, it is safe to assume the director would only focus on one thing and one thing only, the acting of actors which would also be provided for him also without his approval. Regardless, first time directors or non-popular directors might want to get their hands on this "quick buck" scheme. This set up is usually drummed up by studios.

The producer hires the director, the actors, and the production company. This is the same as the above, except more than likely, the director is a nobody, or the money offered to the director is right. This whole production might only be geared toward one thing: star power. This is typical of the Filipino film making and B movie productions. Hollywood sometimes fall for this thinking that starpower alone could generate money. Sure it does, but only initially. Those directors that accepts such green-lighted projects runs the risk of ending their carrer, such as Martin Brest who did Gigli. The star power of Ben Afflect and J-Lo failed to generate revenue as they expected and the movie is a monstrosity. Big studious are infamous for setting up things like this.

The producer is the director. Quite a task if the director isn't rich like Spielberg who bank-rolls most of his films. First, he have to do a producers job of raising the proper budget to shoot his project. Something most directors would never do unless they really believe thier project is a money maker. Studios go straight to the director, unless you're Spielberg who owns his own studio (Dreamworks).

The director hires the producer. More than likely, the two are good friends or have done a project before. This is a rare instance where a studio approach a director to do a film since the last one he did was a success. The director then hires the producer to take care of whatever funding or financial planning the director would need and as a go between between the production and the studio. This is also a rare instance where a director might have total control of everything.

The producer and the director co-produce a film. A good chance is that the two worked at an earlier project and trust each other completely to do each other's job. It is safe to say that the producer would not have any control during the shooting, except to takecare of the financial need the director might have.

I mentioned the studio on all the set up, where in reality, the studio really doesn't ahve to be a part of the scene until the movie is complete. Which means, a movie could first be complete before offering it to a studio or distributor.

What is the safest set-up for a new director? None. As a film maker, your first priority is to get exposure. Sam Raimi started out with Evil Dead, a B-movie at best, but now directs the three Spider-man movies. The worse you can be, if a director is to grow an ego bigger than your name as you arrive in Hollywood. Save that for later. Once you have proven you are a very reliable director, you can order your producer to get you a pink trailer where you will take a nap between takes. As you start out, be happy to have a trailer where you can sleep.

Does this mean you allow a producer to walk all over you? Of-course not. Most of these set up is done in the bargaining table. Once you agree to take on a project, it is all up to you as a director on how to handle each and every situation that arise once a project enters pre-production. That will be the measure of your talent.

Like we always say, they'll forget who the producer was, but they won't forget who the director was!

To mojo. The reason I'm not "good" in tagalog is because tagalog is a very complex, confusing language/dialect. Even Tagalog dictionary know less than me. There are so many words that nobody knows even half of them. Besides, I was raised speaking english and up until grade two went to an english-speaking school (you know what I mean). But my everyday words are of course tagalog with english. Taglish.

To santoloco. I used to live in Valle Verde 2 but recently my dad decided we were getting too big for our house (we're nine in the family) and moved us to a very much larger house in Riverside Village along Ortigas Avenue. How bout you? Where are you located?

to azrach187. Thank you for your reply. very educational. Hehe. Anyways, the truth is I really have no real reason for hating America so much. Insecurity issues I guess. I mean everytime I see Americans (which is everyday as my neighborhood is practically american) I get these thoughts that they're all thinking, "Ooh, these poor Filipinos, God help them," "Pitiful Filipinos, so corrupt and lazy," and I just hate that. You know, because it's true. The filipinos are pitiful, corrupt and lazy. It is. There's no denying that. but everytime I see white people, they don't really have to be americans, I start thinking like that. Even to the chinese I direct hatred. And that's a bad thing. I know.

Wow. that little speech about egos really hit me right in the face. I've got about the biggest ego you'd ever see. And although I try hard not to, I tend to be stubborn and believe in myself too much. Which is a big no no so I'd have to change that. My parents and sisters are always telling me that, but they don't know how hard it is to change ways.

That's about all I can type 'cause... I'm a filipino. I'm lazy. Hehe...

I am an Igorot. I am not lazy. I am not corrupt, I am not pitiful: therefore I am not a Filipino

valle verde and riverside village??? wooooww ur really that rich!!!! ooohh well, im not and i used to live in rosario and the border of pasig and cainta, juz near countryside and decastro. but now i live in ontario canada.

there are many kids like u who only speaks english in pasig. i remember my couzin growin up, he only spoke english. i also remember a couple of kids in my school who only spoke english and never spoke tagalog. even the mestizas in my skul knows less english than them. its really funny to see the white looking ones speak better tagalog than the filipino looking ones.

Okay, since I don't want to yell "Get out there and shoot, maggots!" brought on by my Army training and film background, I will just try to empower those still reluctant to shoot their first short by giving them hints on drafting their first "movie"...

Without further ado, here are some hints for pre-production, note that I omitted some stuff to talk about the most important things... Or I might have just forgotten some stuff!

The Pre-Production
Well before you go out and shoot your first shot, a good way to avoid certain mistakes must be made in planning, commonly called pre-production. Even amateur directors must have an idea of what his finished film would look like, if not, maybe you shouldn't be near a camera. Pre-production involve a lot of things. We'll stick to the amateur level since a Hollywood pre-production is a book all by itself.

Why is pre-production important? As an amateur, you will have to burden the financing and organization of any shoot. Even if your talents and crew are working for free, you must keep in mind that they are here for you, and the least you can do is give them assurance that you somewhat know what you are doing. In the long run, this will save you time and money, especially if you decide to provide craft sevice, or in layman terms, food.

First step is to clean up your script and give the final draft to actors as soon as possible to give them plenty of time to memorize their lines. This will allow you to breakdown your script, per scene, shot, and location for the first time.

You can then scout the possible locations where you will shoot each and every one of your scenes taking into consideration the visual background, background noises, camera placements, natural light sources, additional equipment needed, and restrictions of each location. Other things to consider is power supply, if you are using lighting equipment; restrooms; craft (food) area; or anything else that your shoot needs, including setting up a set, or just merely cleaning the location. Taking photographs, making a map, and video proofing the location are also to your advantage.

You can now finalize your script breakdown.

Breaking down a script is possibly the hardest thing you as a director, would do in pre-production stage, since in reality, your producer is the one handling most of the pre-production preparation such as logistics and budgeting. But breaking down the script is also the most important thing to do in pre-production and needs to be done as soon as you can, so you will have a better visual presentation before you yell your first "action."

So now you sit down and play the movie in your head, scene per scene. This is where I usually have a pen and paper handy, and a stopwatch to time each shot and scene. I usually visualize the opening shot, all the way to the end credits. Using the script as a reference, I start to jot down each shot and a short description of it, until I am finished with a scene. I replay the whole thing in my head one more time, to make sure I covered each possible shot in my head. My shot list is now ready. I then take out a blank paper and start drawing each of the shot I listed down, called storyboarding. No, you don't have to be an artist (although it is very helpful) to draw your story board just as long as you can understand it.

Once you are finished with your storyboard, you can now make a rough map of each location you chose and find the position of the camera per shot, as you saw it in your head, conforming with the storyboard. You now took care a good director does, watching the film using the theater of the mind, before anyone ever watched it. Your vision is complete. Now it is all up to you to make it look in the screen as how it looked in your mind, as close as possible.

Now, you jump in your computer to finalize the schedule of the shoot. It is only courteous of you to check with your crew and talents to make sure there isn't a conflict in the schedule. You then plan what scene to shoot first, with regards to the location. It has been known that shooting an exterior shot is your first priority, in-case the weather interferes. If you don't believe me, watch my short movie. If the weather does become an issue, you can always shoot an interior shot instead, unless of-course your movie is all exteriors.

Part of this planning is keeping a close time restriction. Overworking your actors and crew makes for a very bad performance. Take brakes. A snack, food or beaverage does wonder for your crew and actors which translates to a more positive motivation and craftmanship. Including breaks in your schedule, or at-least setting aside slack time would give you room for contingencies. Trust me, I've shot enough shorts, promising my talent and crews to be out by 7pm, only to finish at 11:30pm. So time management is a must.

Then there's the equipment. You as a director, should be the most organized person in your team. Checking your equipment the night before a shoot should be a ritual. Are the batteries charged? Snacks ready? Properties more commonly known as props ready? The light works? Shot list ready? Storyboards? Tripods? Mikes? etc.

Then comes the day of the shoot. It is only professional that you, the director (and producer) of the movie you are about to make, needs to show up earlier than any of your talents. Hell, even earlier than your crew. You then assist your crew in the set up of equipment for the first shot of the day. The actors arrive, and you should instantly brief them what the first shot would be.

As the rest of the crew finish with the set-up, you as the director, runs the scene with your actor, going through blocking, beats, emotion, and motivation. You then rehearse the scene until you are satisfied. During rehearsal, your cameraman (in-case it isn't you) should be looking to adjust the location of the camera now that the actors are in front of it. He can also practice following the actors, or whatever special things you want, visually. The lighting/reflector person adjust the lighting, and your sound and boom operator adjust the proper height of the mike as the actors throw lines at each other.

Finally, you walk away from the front of the camera and assume your position behind the camera. You ask your actors if they are ready, they give you a nod. You look at your crew to give them a signal that you are now ready to shoot. You yell, "Sound!" and the sound person yells "Speed!" You yelled "Camera!" and the camera man answered "Rolling!" The slate bearing your name and your production is shown in front of the camera as the slate guy/girl yells "Scene 1A, take one!"

You eye your actors like a hawk, your blood boils as your adrenaline surge almost coming out of your nose. You yell "Action!"

Pre-production officially ends, and production begins.

Thats some nice tip there azrach

lately i've been trying to build an improvised dolly...looks like its gonna cost something then I thought why not just a stabilizers? they seem pretty cost effective and doesnt require any tracks to roll on, do u guys have access to those? or make ur own?

Haha. Santoloco, don't get the wrong idea, we're not rich. We're just better off than some people. Really. We just happen to be living in these rich peoples neighborhood. Riverside's really close to countryside and I don't know if it was like this when you were last here, but that place is a mess. Haha.

I'm sorry Kanlungan. I'm just a little impulsive at times. Ok, a lot. Haha. But I'm not really saying the Filipinos are like that, but... you know, we're just, like, a leisurely-living kind of people. Avoiding stress and problems through laughing and drinking and singing and dancing. You get me.

To azrach187, do you really have to make a storyboard. I mean can't you just shoot then choose the best shots and edit out the lousy ones? Oops, I guess not. Hehe.

We do have a dolly, if we want to use one, but the problem is that it is a pain a neck to set up with a small crew. Just to operate the dolly, you will need at least two guys, minus the cameraman and the focus puller. In film, you constantly have to measure the distance to the subject since there is no such thing as an auto-focus in film cameras. So the focus puller must be really good if you are to do a dolly or tracking shot.

You can make one, if you want to. Just make sure it is heavy enough that it would not bounce at the slightest bump. A shock absorber is a must and a seat to the cameraman would make sure he won't have to chase a shot. As a matter of fact, most students "created" a lighter version, which goes without saying that the tracks are non-existant. Sort of, an off-road version, so a shaky camera is expected, but still much better than hand held.

We don't have a steadycam rig. Those are the stabilizers you are reffering to. They are very expensive and high maintenance, something isn't fit for student film making environment. Another thing is that those that operate the steadycam are basically professionals, just for that type of shot. There have been students making a home-made type with marginal success. The professors would be quick to remind you that you are learning to be a director, not a cameraman, which could be learned on a two year vocational school.

But it doesn't mean you can't utilize any equipment you can create to capture a particular shot! Part of the film making business is creating "rigs" from a moving-car-shot-next-to-the-driver rig to a helmet cam. That is the beauty of film making, if it is stupid but works, it isn't stupid. You decieve the audience any which way you can. You can decieve other film makers the same way. If a car chase scene made by Hollywood costing them $3M, but it only took you $1M to do a better car chase... you win.

The same goes with the equipment. Sam Raimi (Spiderman 1, 2, & 3) did not have a crane and a dolly (steadycam wasn't invented yet!) when he shot Evil Dead. Instead, he improvised by harnessing the film camera on two 3" X 3" X 8 ft. woods. He then used two guys on each side, and instructed them to run in the woods, chasing an actress. The scene is now one of the most recognizable in horror genre, and a cult favorites among cinephiles. His cost for that shot? $3 minus film. Hollywood would have paid close to $100,000 to copy the same shot.

Cost effectiveness is the name of the game, even if you are bank-rolled by Hollywood. As an amateur, use whatever equipment you can. There is no mandatory equipment to use for any shot. Hell, even tripods are sometimes replaced by books, rocks, and wheelchair... Ooops! I'm not suppose to say that! Because wheelchairs are good alternative to dollies! Shsss! Our secret, okay?


Nope, you don't have to. As a matter of fact, you don't even have to have a shot list nor a script. But here's a good thing to keep in mind. The moment any of your crew doubts your ability and organization, you can kiss your project good-bye. If you sit there and contemplate how you will shoot a scene, your crew would wonder if you really know what you are doing. How about the actors? How can they take you seriously if you aren't taking yourself seriously?

Why is storyboarding important? There are plenty of reasons. It gives you an idea how many shots you would be using. How many times you would be moving the camera (the lesser the better). You can explain the scene better to your actors as they can visualize what you want them to do. Since the shotlist is often written with just a brief description, the storyboard could refersh your memory.

And you mentioned editing. Well, the storyboard is the biggest help you will have on post-production. If you aren't editing your work as a big shot Hollywood director, your editor could use the storyboard to follow your vision. A good 100% of the time, you won't be shooting a project, chronologically, from beginning to end. Hell, I've shot three shorts, beginning with the end sequence first! Once you have all the shots in a computer (video/digital) or strip board (film), you will have a fun time trying to find which shot is which.

Having a storyboard next to you, you can easily figure out which shot is which. If you need to, you can even fine tune your editing (without following the storyboard). And the biggest reason why you need a storyboard? Coverage! I have known enough classmates who have forgotten a crucial shot, because they weren't following the shot-list and not consulting the storyboard. Hell, I've done it,too.

I almost cried my self to sleep during a project for Beginning Film Making when I realized I missed a shot of Death transforming to his real self, and the film has to be sent out the next day for processing! I couldn't call my crew and actors just to shoot that crucial part, so I ended up animating that part! It took me the whole night just to animate (shadows) about four seconds worth of footage! I'll post that project in about a week or so, so you can see the importance of shotlist and storyboard.

Bottom line, if you are shooting to be a big time director, then you shouldn't settle for anything less than professionalism. Just look at the Filipino film makers. I doubt any of them took the time to develop a shot list, much less a storyboard. You'll soon see that your professionalism will be reflected by your crew, even if they are your buddies, and the best part, the talents would recognize your devotion and they have no choice but to give the same.


Here's a fellow film student (left, Gaib Wimmer) going through the storyboard and explaining to the actor (right, Cole Flaat) the following shot and the motivation for that particular scene.

Haha. Right, right. Your reply was great. Just great. But I have this question. Um, I read somewhere in the web, a blog of an extra in some Working Title Films production, where he said there that the actors weren't informed how the scenes were to be shot, so that they would not be concious (sp?) if they're getting a close-up and so that they would stay in character the whole time even if they aren't seen in the shot. Is that a good idea? Because I think it is. But is it good?

Staying in character, between takes is the best thing an actor could do. As a matter of fact, if you are shooting an emotional piece, it is highly recomended. Sometimes, I warn my actors before hand where they would start their dialogue and where it would end, and ask them to keep the emotional level as I move the camera. Yes, it's true. Most Hollywood films are shot mostly using a singular camera, since there is usually a single cinematographer. So for you to change angle, and reshoot the same scene in a different angle or distance, it is advisable for the actors to stay in character even if the camera isn't roling. Watch out though, emotional scenes are tasking to your actors much more than an action sequence.

If you can, shoot the whole scene in a single day or without taking a break so you have the same level of performance across the board and consistency would be achieved especially during post/editing phase. I also warn my actors to stay in-character as we take a fifteen minute break.

But then you will have to face situations where two opposite emotions could be shot back to back. I helped on a shoot a scene where an actor finds out his dad died from a heart attack, an end sequence, but the next shot is where his girl came back from an absence. The actor stayed in character in between takes and when the shot of him hugging his girlfriend came up, he started crying...

That's fine, but see, the shot after was actually suppose to be earlier before he found out the death of his father! When we looked at the dailies (shots taken the whole day) he looked really sad seeing his girlfriend! So we ended up re-shooting the scene. The point is, staying in character is super important. But providing motivation before a shot is equally important. If the director would have taken a minute or two to "cheer" the actor as if to start from a clean slate, we didn't have to reshoot a difficult shot a day later.

As far as not briefing your actors of what shot you are taking, I would guess that it is but a directorial style. Actors are taught to not spike the camera (or look at it directly, unless the director asked them to break the fourth wall). As a matter of fact, professional actors are aware of the fourth wall convention, a term that came from theater acting, where stage actors never seem to see the audience watching them. The same is true acting in front of the camera.

Professional actors would have to deal with a full crew of grips, gaffers, script supervisor, production assistants, security, on-lookers, extras, boom operator, sound person, focus puller, cinematographer, producers and the director himself, looking at him during a shoot, not to mention his audible "Action!". So I really don't know how you can not be concious that you are being filmed.

Same in a student production where you will be watched by at least four person, as reflectors, lights, a boom mike over your head, light meter being measured in front of your nose, and the slate or clapboard person hints you that the camera is now rolling.

So, all the actors revert to the fourth wall. They pretend to not see anything, as if seeing a 4rth wall, as the first three walls surround them in the sides and the back.

During screen testing of amateur actors, I ask them to hold a particular thought and look in the distance as if following that train of thought (like that guy in my signature) while I move the camera near and away from their face. If they get distracted, then I know I wouldn't be working with that actor.

Putting your actors in-character is very important. Then I have to instruct them on blocking or his/her movement in relationship to the camera. NO. Blocking is not when you turn your back from the camera or block an actor from being covered by the camera.

Then I listen to their dialogue making sure they hit the proper beats or change of emotion/pace in dialogue. So, I really can't see myself not briefing my actors as to what shot is going to be taken or what scene we would be checking off the shot list.


Here, I am going through blocking with my two actors.



Me going through the shot list with my production assistant. Notice the highlighter she uses to check off shots taken.



Here, I am trying to put a motivation (anger) to one of my actress.

I'm in awe. Haha. Your SO good at answering questions. Just great.

OKay, so go out there and shoot! I can't wait to see your first piece! As a matter of fact, you'll soon have more questions, once you shoot your first film/video!

Yeah, I really wanna start too. But I'm having a hard time persuading my siblings to act for me. Haha. so I've decided to start with a, like, two to three minute silent movie. But I can't really think of an idea for a plot. And i do have a question: do you shoot scenes in consecutive order or what? And how about lighting? What do I do with lighting? Do i need a steadicam?

Okay so that's four questions. haha.

First question, it doesn't really matter if you shoot a scene in sequence or not, since you can move it around in post or editing phase. Shoot it as you think is the best possible. Later on, you would be shooting in locations and that is when sequence really matters because you might have to use a location for two different scene or shot. For example, you need a daytime scene and a night time scene of the same location, where in your story, you would use the night time first and the daytime later. So it only makes sense to shoot the daytime in the afternoon then wait till it's dark to shoot the night time.

This is where the importance of shot list, storyboard, and script, really plays a major role, because a shoot could be a hectic undertaking and a shot is easily missed.

Another example is two locations, where one only needs a few shot and the other needs more. The one that needs a few is somewhere in the middle of your story and the rest is on the other location. It only make sense to shoot all the shots at the location where it needs most and the one that requires less to shoot it separately. You don't want to go back to the same place twice, unless you ran out of time or you need a time lapse, such as a night scene of the same place.

Logistics (moving your equipment, etc.) is the biggest hassle in a production, so the less movement you have the less stressful for you. So, sequence is really not important.

Second question. Lighting is a trial and error thing. I will probably cover the basics later on, but the more artificial sources you have, (a minimum of three), is the better, if you are to shoot indoor/night scene. Natural lighting is the best, so use it to your advantage. Investing in reflectors is worth in gold. But don't go out and buy professional grade reflectors. Anything that reflects, soften, and provide ample light is sufficient especially if you are just shooting videos, which requires little light compared to film. Lights with stands could be purchased in a nearby hardware shop if you really want to use it.

For now, I suggest shooting external/outdoor scenes that takes advantage of the natural light. Save night shoots or indoors later, once you have a good idea how to light the subject, once you experience an outdoor shoot. Then you'll be aware of the difference between morning light to an afternoon light, and the weather changes. Just watch my mini movie where the cloud rolled in and not even all the reflectors I could get my hands on saved it!

Develop a story that requires to be shot outside during daytime. Then you'll have an idea how to use, or avoid shadows, hot spots (high contrast lighting), back lighting, key lighting and so forth. Once you have a handle on scene composition, you can start integrating lighting to your story/script or shoot.

The same goes for sound.

Steadicam? No way! Avoid hand-held for now! You can experiment with hand-held but it throws you off the basics. You must invest in a tripod, at-least before shooting your first piece. It will help you steady the camera, and experiment with composition especially as your actor start rehearsing their dialogues. Investing in a nice grade tripod is worth in gold. Most student film makers, including me, have purchased their own tripod.

Good! I'm glad you want to shoot your first as a silent. I couldn't agree more! Can't think of a plot? Start small. Don't worry about content for now. Don't worry about the "wow!" factor. It doesn't matter if your first piece is only two minutes long, since this is your experimental phase. It will be a great learning experience for you so the story really doesn't matter. The beauty of a silent is you can side-coach the actors as the camera is rolling and get rid of the audio later. You can even ad music later on, if feel like it.

Here's some suggestion for plot development since I'm not going to cover script development just yet. Create a story that require one or two actors. If you think two minutes in length, but more than likely, it will end up three minutes, you'll see. The plot isn't important, but the subtext is, or what your character is thinking, his/her wants, his/her reaction to a particular event.

Let say your film is about a guy recieving a telegram.

The postman walks toward a house. The postman rings the door bell, a man-servant is watering the plants and hears the bell. He walks toward the gate. He sees the postal delivery but warned the postal guy that the family isn't home. The postal guy read the name and suprised, the man-servant reached for the telegram. It is for him, not the family he works for. He opens the telegram and finds out he just won millions of dollars from a lottery, he runs like crazy around the house and in the street.

Now, let's try it with subtexts.

The postal delivery guy knows what a telegram means, it is usually bad news. He hates this part of his job, delivering bad news. Not to mention dogs and the morning sun. He sees the house and realized this family is well off.

The man watering the plants have been working for the family for three years now. He is only doing this to help his family back in the province. He have forsaken college so he can help out his family.

The postman felt quesy hitting the doorbell of the nice house.

The guy watering the plant was suprised at hearing the doorbell. He wasn't expecting anyone this early in the morning. He cuts off the water and reluctantly walked toward the gate. He saw the postman waving a brown telegram envelope. Chill ran through his body seeing the envelope. He walked cautiously toward the guy and explained to him that he is only a servant for this family. They aren't available at this time.

The postal guy read the name in the telegram to verify it is the right place.

The servant was shocked to realize it was for him. The chill turn into dread. Was it about his mother who is weak at the heart? Of his little sister? He felt his hand got heavy as he reached for the terrible envelope.

The postal guy realize that this is bad news by the mere look on the guy's face. God, he hates his job. He reached over the fence to give him the envelope.

The guy verified the name on the evelope. It is his. Afraid now, he looked at the postal guy, as if asking him to stay around a bit, or at least after he opens the letter.

The postman felt sorry for the man-servant. He decides to stay just in case the man needs to be consoled.

The guy opened the envelop slowly and unfolded the letter inside. He read the content. At first it didn't sink. He looked at the postal person and read the letter again.

The postman felt like crying at the expression given by the servant.

Suddenly the servant's face lit up. It was a notification that he have just won a million dollar! His woes are over! Stuttering and barely able to contain himself, he shares the news to the postman, and accidentally kissed an hugged the delivery person. He runs around the house yelling and screaming.

The postman was speechless. He didn't expect that. Slowly, with a smile in his face, he walks toward the next house. Suddenly, he realized how much he loved his job. A second later, the man-servant ran past him yelling and screaming at the neighbors. The postman stops, smiles and shakes his head.

As easy as that! The story isn't important (for now). Focus on what your actors/talents would reflect back to the audience, not the plot or story in general. A story like the one above have a complete spectrum of emotions, form nonchalant (watering the plants), to tiresome and hatred (the postman in the beginning), to dread, shock, elation and realization.

The best connection for actors/talent isn't your family, believe me! Because I've tried it with my siblings and parents but it looks like a home movie... literally! I suggest looking around your class in school, or even better, use people outside your class. You would be suprised at how many are willing to act for you. You'll soon discover that it is one of the best part of the job. Depending on your professionalism, you'll meet more people that'll become you friends and your reputation spread in campus.

So keep it basic, cut down on the technical stuff, and create a nice piece. All you need for now is a camera, a tripod, two or three actors/actreses, and inspiration!

@ Azrach187 - Have a question. If you should happen to find or buy old 16mm movie negatives (no sound) at a garage sale of a 20 yr. old film or documentary that was never finished by a production company. Who owns the rights if you should decide after many years to finish it or just develop what you have and make dvd copies for sale? Is there a statute of limitations that after certain yrs. however has the negatives of the so called abandoned or lost film owns it all and needs no ones permission, not even the ppl. in the film, to reproduce?

One state is different from another. If it is in PR, that's even a different animal.

Here's the skinny (according to Prof. Casselton, MSUM), if anyone created something, let's stick to the subject; film/video/movie; they own it, regardless 1 to 200 years have passed...

Now, if anything is abandoned, and a proof that it had been abandoned is documented, they legally cease ownership of that particular product. The problem with 20 years is that it is still too close if they (the original makers) have no statements abandoning or selling the product.

Property taxes is another thing, and the best possible loophole you'll see in cases like this. For a studio, producer, royalty recipient or an individual to properly own a certain work, such as a film, they will have to pay property taxes on it. This is the case for successful films in the past. Studios, such as Universal who owns the right to King Kong, first released in 1933, would have to pay yearly property tax to properly own it.

Some studious were forced to destroy films and negate property ownership so they won't have to pay the taxes. One cave, found in Nevada, contained so much early films, supposedly destroyed in the 30s, was acquired by the US government for safe-keeping and film preservation.

So, my suggestion is to make sure that it is abandoned. Research the production company and individuals who created the project, they should still be around since 20 years isn't that far. Once proven that you did acquire the film "as a finder" or a bonafide colector, you own it plain and simple. Hiring a lawyer if you plan on selling the finished product is a must, even before you go to pre-production to fullfill necessary paperwirk.

Contacting the original makers is the safest way. Giving them 5 to 10% royalty might be better than a lawsuit later on that might cost you 50 to 75%. As a matter of fact, if the studio, production company still wants the movie finished, they just may hire you as the director.

Check with local laws, to be sure. I gave the you bare minimum but you know law, there's a lot of holes in it!

@ Azrach187-

I didn't know that movies had to pay yearly property taxes even if they are shelved. Thought they only had to pay taxes on the income they generated from the showings.

Found this article on copyright and making film material public domain: http://www.stayfreemagazine.org/archives/20/prelinger.html

Right on! Films that generated income in the past becomes properties of the studios, directors, producers, etc. Notice I used King Kong as an example since it is owned by Universal, if they never claimed it as property, the franchise would have been open for other production houses to re-make, copy, or reshoot it.

Some you will find nowadays as re-issues, such as Director's cut, special editions, DVD releases, Criterion Collections, etc. So they basically could generate income past their time and pay off the property tax they generate.

I mentioned one of my professors earlier, Rusty Casselton, he specialize in film restoration (non-digital). Here's a link to my university's crappy and outdated page: Click here.

I will e-mail him the link you gave me since I know he will be interested in that.

Remember too, that it doesn't mean that a film is finished and it would automatically hit the theaters. For the studio houses to claim copyright on a "shelved film" they have to claim it as a property. A good example of a shelved movie is "The Great Raid" (2005) which was finished in 2003, but hit the theaters two years after completion. Right now, there are films stuck in limbo because of different reasons; politics, unfinished, comittment problems (director or actors quitting), etc.

Well while I write my scripts and do the storyboard, I do imagine everything in my mind(ala Hitchcock) thats why I love operating the camera. The stabilizer has been very helpfull, making alot of smooth shooting. Im also in a planning process on making a small but strong dolly with rollerblade wheels on the tracks hehehehe wheelchairs like the Robert Rodriguez's El Mariachi!

btw have u seen Leave it to Chance? lol 30K fil-am production

I know many people didnt like it....thought it was too corny or whatever...

But I thought that Filipino-American movie, "The Debut" was a good job..... Kinda deals with things alot of Asian-American kids deal with too....

haha corny but nice effort tho considering the fact that none of the crew went to a film school. The Debut was pretty good, the Basco brothers have always been great! Dante is so talented!

Wtf happened to Gene Cajayon after the Debut??? he just dissapeared?? During the fund raising for the movie he was dissapointed by the cheaponess of rich Filipino businessmen/women and Asians to an extent..sounded like Justin Lin's struggle to fund his indie projects...

go azrach!!!!! hope you can change tha sad pinoy system. goodluck!!!!!

they said hollywood praised this movie. its called Sigaw, and heres a trailer. it looks like a world class movie to me. heres the link and an article relating to this movie:

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

This movie is creating a buzz in Hollywood. Please visit our family's website for a review and more video clips of Sigaw (The Echo):


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Sigaw: Asian Cinema's Next Big Thing
If you're a fan of Japanese and Korean horror movies, here's something to look forward to.

Filipino director Yam Laranas's film Sigaw (internationally released as The Echo) has been drawing raves in Hollywood after producer Roy Lee watched the movie and confessed: "I found myself jumping at certain scenes and I have seen many other horror movies where that never happens."

You'll appreciate that quote more if you know who Roy Lee is. He's the hot Hollywood producer who brought Japanese horror movies The Ring, The Grudge and Dark Water to Hollywood and turned them into critically acclaimed, international box office hits. Right now, Roy Lee is executive producing The Departed starring Leonardo Di Caprio and Matt Damon, and directed by Martin Scorcese.

How Roy Lee discovered Yam Laranas and The Echo (Sigaw) is fast becoming the stuff of legend in filmmaking circles. It is absolute proof of the power of good word of mouth. Roy heard about Philippines' The Echo (Sigaw) from someone who watched it and loved it and knew other people who saw the movie and were raving about it as well.

Without a single centavo spent on Marketing and PR, Sigaw outlived the hype and hysteria of the 2004 Metro Manila Film Festival where it debuted and quietly cultivated a cult-like following.

The cult spread far and wide. Before Yam and his producers knew it, Sigaw had been booked to make its Hollywood premiere as The Echo, in the same LA filmfest where the original Japanese film The Grudge debuted.

Amidst the buzz, the respected critic Keith Breese of filmcritic.com asked for a copy of the movie and reviewed it, giving The Echo a stunning rate of 3 1/2 stars out of 5. That's the same rating the critics gave Batman Begins, and higher than the ratings of big budget Hollywood movies Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (3 stars), The Island (3 stars) and Fantastic Four (2 stars).

According to Breese, Sigaw "has an atmosphere of fear and loneliness that is positively sinking. Sigaw cuts past all the shock and awe of revulsion to really get to the meat of the traditional ghost story: the human element. Ghost stories aren't about cackling bones, they're about people and people's fear, Laranas knows this and preys upon our emotions expertly."

He goes on to say, "American readers may encounter some difficulty in tracking down a copy of Sigaw (try the net), and I doubt the Hollywood machine will be remaking it any time soon. That's a shame, because Sigaw is a subtle, human ghost tale that will haunt you long after you've forgotten Dark Water or The Ring."

Today, Sigaw continues to echo and haunt its followers through its website. The site itself is a pioneering and an impressive display of film and web design by young Filipino filmmaker and web wizard Chuck Gutierrez who pretty much invented the technology behind it.

One good work inspiring another...

The Echo (Sigaw) will premiere on October at the ScreamfestLA International Horror Film Festival, the biggest genre festival in Hollywood.

LOL!! I DIDNT READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE.......TOO LAZY TODAY!!!

and here's another filipino flick i found on youtube comin to theatres i guess:

its called "white lady." it looks funny rather than scary:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EQSA-l2jHk

^^^
Uhm... I don't mean to bust your bubble or anything santoloco... I've seen the movie (Sigaw) but I thought it was kinda like a rip-off The Sixth Sense and other Asian horror... the acting and character development still have a long way to go. Acting isn't bad but directing is. The cinematography holds a lot of promise, but all in all, the story failed to captivate me.

Sure there are "Boo" parts, but even a monkey could scare you like that. Music + Somebody looking for something + somebody jumping to say hi. Cliched for the almost a million times. Most of it "scares" are unmotivated and the plot gives away the supposed twist in the end. If you got scared with this movie, more than likely you missed The Sixth Sense on how they fooled you...

This movie never fooled me though...

oohhh well i see!!! the preview never hit me too. i thought it was pretty lame in the beginning too. but its good u said sumthin cuz thats what i was expectin from u. u pretty much have the same view as me.

i dont get how hollywood likes this movie tho. but have u noticed, filipino movies these days all try to create horror movies?? i mean there has been like 4 straight horror movies that came out on philippine theatres this year. but still all of them fail to scare audiences.

That's why I generally stay away from both the comedy and horror. I'm scared (pun) that a horror might not be scary, or a comedy, not funny.

Plus, Hollywood is about to get tired of Asian horrors that the Japanese flooded the market. There are others tales to tell, but I don't think Philippines should start with horror. The Echo (Sigaw) played in LA Screamfest but did not earn any awards...

^well i guess the article over exaggerated.

Haha. I never got to watch Sigaw, but I know that it's no good. It's annoying that just because other asian countries are making horror flicks the Philippines follow. It just shows how unoriginal we are.

I think that it's the fact that Lee don't undertand filipino that made him like the movie. I mean, if you just read subtitles and not understand the things the actors are saying, you get to not see the cheesiness and over exaggeratedness of the acting. Right? Haha

hmm.. what i like the best about independent movies is the scriptwriters themselves.. i still like hollywood movies so dont get me wrong though.. but if im a director and a writer at the same time, i would want my movies to have different meanings to different people, try to make them think after the movie's done.. it's like when i first saw like confusingly meaningful movie (a tale of two sisters) i kept thinking about it until i had a headache!!! somehow that really satisfied me!!! so yeah, what im appealed most of films and movies is the scriptwriting itself so i wouldnt call it the most boring (well that's my opinion though he he)

as for the directing aspect of film making, i wouldnt mind directing my own script that i wrote myself so i might take film classes as well.. chan wook park and wong kar wai are the ppl that really inspired me of wanting to be a writer as well as a director.. after i saw his best work (IMO) oldboy, i said to myself " i gotta make at least ONE movie before i die " ha ha!!

Wong Kar Wai is one of my favorite. Just read from the past posts!

The problem with scriptwriting is a that there is a guild in Hollywood. There are people specializing in scriptwiriting, original or translations (from books). The same in cinematography, where directors aren't allowed to touch the camera (only view the viewfinder) unless the cinematographer allows him. There's also a director's guild, and actors. Most jobs in Hollywood are unionized to protect each specific jobs.

Some directors do write or co-write a script, if they have proven their talent in the past. But for the most part, a director's job is mostly about the acting and actors. I called scriptwriting the most boring since scriptwriting is an English (Writing for Screen and Television or English 285) class. I love film production, film appreciation and film history. Not sentence structures and character development.