Looking for even more tips for a Hitchcockian feel? Here are even more ways to twist your movie to fit your budget and the big screen.
Walk a mile in your lead’s shoes. Or rather, make your audience walk in them. If your character is a serial rapist in jail, your audience may not have much empathy for him; engage the audience by showing things from his point of view, such as in flashbacks of a difficult life or in a current abusive situation while in prison. (more…)
If you want to really add some cinematic appeal to your movie without adding more money to your budget, look no further than twisted tale guru Alfred Hitchcock. There was a man who knew how to draw in an audience! Here are a few tips on adding some Hitchcockian style to your film.
Give your characters plenty of scene time. (more…)
Going to film school is the dream of many people. Unfortunately, times are tough, and many simply can’t afford to go–either because a job gets in the way or costs are simply too high.
Fortunately there are still ways to learn about filmmaking. While it doesn’t result in a degree of any kind, Wikiversity’s filmmaking class can be an invaluable resource for movie makers just starting out in the industry. (more…)
Every movie maker wishes that he or she had a favorite director, actor, writer, producer, or other professional at his or her constant disposal–an ear to bend that’s been there, done that, and has plenty of tips to share. Unfortunately, most of us don’t have that kind of resource–and acquiring one can be pretty costly.
That’s where the Filmmaking.net FAQ comes in. Whether your question is about financing or film school, music or marketing, they’ve got an answer for you. (more…)
With all this talk of special effects, a green screen has to come into play somewhere. A professional and portable green screen is ideal for conducting special effects on a set.
The good news is that a green screen can be made very cheaply. For about $40 you can make your own.
First, gather your materials. (more…)
If there’s one thing that every creative person hates, it’s paperwork. No writer likes to log his or her budget in a spreadsheet; no painter likes to record hours spent on a project. To artists, it’s all about creation; the rest is just a boring (though necessary) afterthought.
Filmmakers, like their other fellow artists, are also required to keep a mound of paperwork. Unfortunately, it’s often a lot more than the poet or concert pianist must keep.
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If you think the only part about the sound of your movie you should worry about is how to get Fergie and Taylor Swift on your soundtrack, think again. There is much more to movie sound than playing the right pop song at the right moment.
The sound effects, for one thing, should be considered in every scene of your movie. (more…)
The last thing you want to do when making a cheap movie is to blow your entire budget on a good location. The odds are not in favor of you getting high-traffic, high-profile areas with a budget under ten grand.
That said, you can still film on a great location for cheap–even for free. Here are some tips to keep in mind when you set out on finding your perfect location. (more…)
If you are a filmmaker, you definitely want a director of photography who you can trust. This is the very person who is going to record your scenes, the person who has to keep your vision in mind while making sure all of the shooting of the film, from the lighting to the lenses, the film stock to the film printing, is all as perfect as can be.
In short, this will be the most important person that you hire! (more…)
Movie making is an expensive business–but that should never stop you from getting creative and making your own film. Some of the most famous directors out there came out of poverty; lack of funding is no excuse to refrain from making movies.
That said, you will need funding somehow; you can’t get everything you need out of thin air. (Of course, you can get most of the things you need cheaply if you are creative. (more…)