THE TURNING POINT

Last week I set out a plan to take over the world. Cleverly disguised as an invitation to filmmakers to shoot a short film by the end of this month, this call to arms will be seen in the coming years as THE BEGINNING OF THE END!!!!!!!! Or, quite possibly, THE END OF THE BEGINNING!! Or, if historians mishandle the facts, THE MIDDLE OF THE MIDDLE. But I surmise that THIS, October 6th in the year of our lord 2006, is a turning point for us all!!!*

*(“us all” being myself and the two people reading this)

TO THIEF A CATCH
Still struggling for a topic for your short? Relying on the old adage that “all good ideas are taken?” Amen, I say. My advice in this situation is quite simple: steal. Steal like the dickens. There’s no room for shame in the movie business “not after “Anaconda”. Do you know how many “Casablanca” rip-offs were made after that film struck gold? Now obviously, you don’t want your film to stink of unoriginality. So be SPECIFIC about your thieving. Make it a challenge. See if you can steal a single line from each of your twenty favorite films and make a story based on those lines. Try avoiding the obvious ones, like “We are now the knights who say: Icky Icky Icky Sublang Whupsunofverch…” But steal a couple of gems, a couple of random quips, and you’re on your way.

BORED? STORYBOARD!
Today I’m putting the finishing touches on my storyboards. This, in my opinion, is the most helpful preproduction you can possibly do. I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve been brought to the set of a film only to stand around as the director and cinematographer wander around looking for the perfect shot. Time wasted. Just the act of sitting down to conceptualize how your story is going to look will shift your thinking. You’ll etch a dialogue between two people and immediately know whether it looks right. If it doesn’t, go back to any film you love and study where the cinematographer puts the faces on the screen. Next week, I’ll post a sequence of these shots for y’all. If you’re doubting your directorial expertise, I guarantee storyboarding will get you over that hump.

HAVE YOU CALLED YOUR MOTHER LATELY?
To make this film on the cheap, you’ve got to aim high and buy LOW. It’d be great to have a fully paid union crew, but we all know that ain’t gonna’ happen. And it’s okay. Darren Aronofsky’s mother worked catering for his first film, “Pi”. Does the film LOOK like it was shot by a misfed crew? Not so much. So grab as many people who love you or owe you money, and ask them to take some time out of their upcoming weekend(s). And remember, you may lose friends by overworking them, but your mother will always be your mother no matter how much she wants out of it.

REFORMAT YOUR HARD DRIVE
Right now is the perfect time to take advantage of new media formats, as well as old. Places like Pro8 (find it on the web at www.pro8mm.com) here in LA offer their own quality 8mm film stock. If you’ve got an old Super 8 camera, you’re halfway there. It costs around $35 to buy and process a role of Super 8 film. Granted, a role is only 3 minutes long, but if you maximize your shoot, you can get everything you need in the can for under $150. Or shoot with the old Fisher Price PXL200. Or take a thousand shots with your cell phone camera. Whatever format you shoot in, just make sure it doesn’t look like you hired your sister to do the lighting (which, most likely, you did).

SHOOT THE SHORT, AVOID “THE SHLONG”
We shot a great film three years ago called “Advantage Hart” (see it on www.ifilm.com) starring Kate Bosworth. What was a mystery to us was why festivals weren’t gobbling it up. And then we realized: festivals didn’t know what to do with a 34 minute short film. It’s a little long. A few more scenes and we had ourselves a feature (which would have been better for the film, to be honest). In the end, we got into two festivals and the film has been nothing but a burden to its creators. So please, make it short and sweet. Save the big monologues and the epic storylines for your big epic. In the meantime, give people the best damn five minutes you can. You’ll be surprised how much more willing people are to watch a flick that’s five minutes long than one that’s thirty-five minutes.

RAPE THE LAND
October is easily the most visually stunning month of the year: bright leaves, warm sunsets. It’s hard NOT to capture some real beauty. If you’ve got a scene outdoors, don’t set it on a street corner, set it on a hillside. Underneath a red maple tree. Use that soft, forgiving autumn sunlight to light your actors. I’m fortunate enough that 90% of my story happens on a farm and in the woods. The production value is free. All I’ve got to do is capture what’s already being provided.

DEADLINES
By this time next week, I will have secured my major locations, my cast, and my crew. The script is done as of today, and the storyboards as well. Make a checklist for yourself, and see if you can catch up with me. Take time out of your work day; trust me, your boss won’t mind. Everybody likes movies. Offer him/her a part. He’ll blush, he’ll get excited, he’ll get behind you 100 percent.

And THAT’S when you ask for the raise.

Hell, if it’s gonna’ happen, it might as well happen now.

NEXT WEEK: SHOOT FIRST, ASK QUESTIONS LATER.

-Sam Jaeger

Comments: None