How Cameras Work

How Cameras Work How The SLR Camera Works Lesson 2 by Brian D. Ratty Pictures and Text Copyright© 2011 By Media West Home Video There's one thing that happens to me all the time. I'll be out shooting somewhere and an amateur photographer will walk over and start a conversation that goes something like this: "Oh, I see you're using a Nikon...I've got a Minolta...it takes pretty good pictures...but do you think the Nikon is better?" And he always seems a little disappointed with the answer; a Nikon doesn't take a better picture than a Minolta, a Canon doesn't take a better picture than a Ricoh or Pentax or Olympus - they're all equally good. The point is, cameras don't take pictures, people do. Don't get me wrong. Some of the technological advancements in modern SLR's, made possible by computer aided design and micro electronics, are really incredible. They really can take a lot of the guesswork out of your photography. For now let's forget all that because I want you to think of the camera as just a basic tool. Remember, it doesn't take the pictures, you do. A modern SLR camera, film or digital, operates on the very same basic principles as the earliest pinhole cameras, and, for that matter, any other cameras ever made. I think it helps to think of any camera as a light-tight box with a hole in it. The hole allows a certain amount of light to enter the box for a certain amount of time so that it can expose, or create an image, on the light-sensitive medium we call film or CCD unit. But before that happens, the light is organized, or "focused", by the lens. So let's start with the lens. The lens is basically a metal barrel which contains several glass elements arranged in groups. These elements gather light reflected from the scene you're photographing, focus that light, and deliver it to the surface of the film, where it can form the sharpest possible image. The barrel of the lens contains a focusing ring which allows you to focus on objects near and far; from less than two feet away to infinity, for example. When you turn the focusing ring you are actually moving the glass elements inside the barrel in and out, varying the distance between the lens and the film. One of the real advantages of the SLR is that the image you see in your viewfinder is exactly the same image that the lens sees. When light enters the lens, it's reflected by a mirror up through a prism and out to your eye. And it doesn't matter which f-stop, or aperture, you've chosen for your final picture, since the image you see in the viewfinder is always at the widest possible aperture of the lens. This makes it easier for you to focus and compose because the image you're seeing is as bright as possible. When you press the shutter release to make an exposure you trigger a whole series of events which happen at an amazing speed. First, the lens aperture closes down to the f-stop you've selected. Second, the mirror swings up out of the way so that the light can reach the film, temporarily blocking your view. Third, the shutter opens for the amount of time you've selected, and the film is exposed. Fourth, the mirror swings back down, allowing you to see through the viewfinder again. Fifth, your lens aperture returns to wide open. You're ready to focus for your next shot. This general concept of how the SLR camera works is the same for both film type cameras and digital cameras. You'll notice I mentioned f-stops and shutter speeds, probably the most confusing concepts for any photographer who's just starting out. I'll take the mystery out of these concepts in "F-stops and Shutter Speeds". Understanding Camera Movements This subject is featured in Issue #2 of The Luminous Landscape Video Journal Understanding Tilts & Shifts While a full explanation of camera movements is the appropriate subject matter of a whole book, the basics can be summarized quite simply. Many years ago I was the Product Manager for Sinar view cameras in Canada and I used to take a perverse pleasure in teaching college students in one day what many schools tried to turn into semester-long courses. Camera Types Full camera movements are available only with a view camera. Usually 4X5" or larger, such cameras provide a full range of movements; rise and fall as well as tilt and shift of both front and rear standards. Depending on whether the camera is of monorail design or a flatbed there may be compromises or limitations in movement. Likely of more interest to readers of this tutorial are the various tilt / shift lenses available for 35mm as well as medium format cameras. Also there are some specialized medium format and smaller sheet film systems that have a limited range of movements such as Rise only. More on these later. Why? That's the key question, isn't it. Not only what are these things called Movements, but why do I need them? The short answer is, so that you can take photographs which would otherwise be impossible with a fixed lens camera. These include: Creating apparently infinite depth of field without closing down the aperture. Photographing buildings, trees and mountains so that they don't look like they're fall over. Photographing a reflective surface, such as a mirror, without the camera appearing in the shot. Rise & Fall & Shift These three movements are really all the same thing. Rise and Fall are the movement of the lens upwards or downwards in relation to the film plane, and a Shift is the movement of the lens left or right relative to the film plane. In the photograph below I used a small amount of front Rise. With the camera level, to avoid the trees tilting and looking like they were falling over, the trees at the bottom of the frame and the horizon would have been very high in the frame and thus the frame would have appeared too cluttered. The interesting clouds would also have been out of the frame. By using a Rise of the lens I was able to include more of the sky yet keep the trees straight at the same time. Clingmans Dome Forest. Great Smoky Mountains NP. September, 2000 Photographed with a Hasselblad ArcBody and 45mm Rodenstock lens on Provia 100F. A Fall of the lens would have shown more of the lower vegetation while a left or right Shift would have been useful in keeping the sun hidden behind the tree. (I did this by moving the tripod, but sometimes one can't, and so a lens Shift can really come in handy for changing the field of view without moving the camera. While it would appear that a few millimeters of lens movement wouldn't make much of a difference, it's astonishing to see how it can be the equivalent of standing on a 5 Ft ladder when the lens is raised just a bit. Tilts and The Scheimflug Effect This one seems like magic, and is similar in some ways to a free lunch. It was discovered in the 19th century by a fellow named Scheimflug. In a normal camera the lens plane, the film plane and the subject plane are parallel to each other. Yellow Stripe Hwy, outside Monument Valley, 1999 Taken with a Canon EOS3 and Canon 24mm L T/S f/3.5 lens on Provia 100 west of Monument Valley. But, if you tilt the lens so that an imaginary line drawn through the film plane A, and similar imaginary lines drawn through the lens plane and the image plane (B and C respectively) meet at a single point, then everything along the image plane (C) will be in focus. Here's the deal. With a subject like the one above, the road (plane C) will be in focus from the front of the lens to the distant mountains if the lens plane (B) is tilted so that the back of the camera ( A the film plane), the lens plane and the subject plane converge at that imaginary point. Enough theory. Look through the lens and adjust the Tilt knob it so that the image appears sharp. Final adjustment is made by racking the focus back and forth while adjusting the Tilt knob. You've got it. Cameras & Lenses While view cameras have comprehensive movements, some 35mm and medium format users also have access to these effects via specialized tilt/sift lenses. Canon has 3 different models offering both tilt and shift capability for its EOS cameras. Nikon has a lens with Rise only, as does Contax. There are also some third party lenses available on the used market. In medium format Rollei has a medium-wide tilt/shift lens for their 6000 series cameras and one was recently announced at Photokina 2000 by a third party German manufacturer for the new Contax 645. Two unique cameras from Hasselblad offer both tilts and shifts; the FlexBody and the ArcBody. Both take standard Hasselblad film backs and viewing accessories. The FlexBody takes regular Hasselblad lenses but is limited in its movements and won't focus to infinity with all lenses. The ArcBody only takes 3 specialized Rodenstock lenses but offers more comprehensive movements. Some medium format cameras like the Horseman SW612 Pro offer Shift capability and even the ultra-wide Noblex 150UX has 5mm of Shift. Camera Angles Camera angles and movements combine to create a sequence of images, just as words, word order and punctuation combine to make the meaning of a sentence. You need a straightforward set of key terms to describe them. Describing Shots When describing camera angles, or creating them yourself, you have to think about three important factors — The FRAMING or the LENGTH of shot — The ANGLE of the shot — If there is any MOVEMENT involved When describing different cinematic shots, different terms are used to indicate the amount of subject matter contained within a frame, how far away the camera is from the subject, and the perspective of the viewer. Each different shot has a different purpose and effect. A change between two different shots is called a CUT. Framing or Shot Length 1 . Extreme long shot Extreme Long Shot This can be taken from as much as a quarter of a mile away, and is generally used as a scene-setting, establishing shot. It normally shows an EXTERIOR, eg the outside of a building, or a landscape, and is often used to show scenes of thrilling action eg in a war film or disaster movie. There will be very little detail visible in the shot, it's meant to give a general impression rather than specific information. The extreme long shot on the left is taken from a distance, but denotes a precise location - it might even connote all of the entertainment industry if used as the opening shot in a news story. Long Shot 2. Long Shot This is the most difficult to categorise precisely, but is generally one which shows the image as approximately "life" size ie corresponding to the real distance between the audience and the screen in a cinema (the figure of a man would appear as six feet tall). This category includes the FULL SHOT showing the entire human body, with the head near the top of the frame and the feet near the bottom. While the focus is on characters, plenty of background detail still emerges: we can tell the coffins on the right are in a Western-style setting, for instance. Medium Shot 3. Medium Shot Contains a figure from the knees/waist up and is normally used for dialogue scenes, or to show some detail of action. Variations on this include the TWO SHOT (containing two figures from the waist up) and the THREE SHOT (contains 3 figures...). NB. Any more than three figures and the shot tends to become a long shot. Background detail is minimal, probably because location has been established earlier in the scene - the audience already know where they are and now want to focus on dialogue and character interation. Another variation in this category is the OVER-THE-SHOULDER-SHOT, which positions the camera behind one figure, revealing the other figure, and part of the first figure's back, head and shoulder. Close up 4. Close-Up This shows very little background, and concentrates on either a face, or a specific detail of mise en scène. Everything else is just a blur in the background. This shot magnifies the object (think of how big it looks on a cinema screen) and shows the importance of things, be it words written on paper, or the expression on someone's face. The close-up takes us into the mind of a character. In reality, we only let people that we really trust get THAT close to our face - mothers, children and lovers, usually - so a close up of a face is a very intimate shot. A film-maker may use this to make us feel extra comfortable or extremely uncomfortable about a character, and usually uses a zoom lens in order to get the required framing. Extreme Close Up 5. Extreme Close-Up As its name suggests, an extreme version of the close up, generally magnifying beyond what the human eye would experience in reality. An extreme close-up of a face, for instance, would show only the mouth or eyes, with no background detail whatsoever. This is a very artificial shot, and can be used for dramatic effect. The tight focus required means that extra care must be taken when setting up and lighting the shot - the slightest camera shake or error in focal length is very noticeable. Camera Angles The relationship between the camera and the object being photographed (ie the ANGLE) gives emotional information to an audience, and guides their judgment about the character or object in shot. The more extreme the angle (ie the further away it is from eye left), the more symbolic and heavily-loaded the shot. 1. The Bird's-Eye view This shows a scene from directly overhead, a very unnatural and strange angle. Familiar objects viewed from this angle might seem totally unrecognisable at first (umbrellas in a crowd, dancers' legs). This shot does, however, put the audience in a godlike position, looking down on the action. People can be made to look insignificant, ant-like, part of a wider scheme of things. Hitchcock (and his admirers, like Brian de Palma) is fond of this style of shot. A cameraman, raised above the action, gets a high angle shot 2. High Angle Not so extreme as a bird's eye view. The camera is elevated above the action using a crane to give a general overview. High angles make the object photographed seem smaller, and less significant (or scary). The object or character often gets swallowed up by their setting - they become part of a wider picture. 3. Eye Level A fairly neutral shot; the camera is positioned as though it is a human actually observing a scene, so that eg actors' heads are on a level with the focus. The camera will be placed approximately five to six feet from the ground. 4. Low Angle These increase height (useful for short actors like Tom Cruise or James McAvoy) and give a sense of speeded motion. Low angles help give a sense of confusion to a viewer, of powerlessness within the action of a scene. The background of a low angle shot will tend to be just sky or ceiling, the lack of detail about the setting adding to the disorientation of the viewer. The added height of the object may make it inspire fear and insecurity in the viewer, who is psychologically dominated by the figure on the screen. 5. Oblique/Canted Angle Sometimes the camera is tilted (ie is not placed horizontal to floor level), to suggest imbalance, transition and instability (very popular in horror movies). This technique is used to suggest POINT-OF-View shots (ie when the camera becomes the 'eyes' of one particular character,seeing what they see — a hand held camera is often used for this. Camera Movement A director may choose to move action along by telling the story as a series of cuts, going from one shot to another, or they may decide to move the camera with the action. Moving the camera often takes a great deal of time, and makes the action seem slower, as it takes several second for a moving camera shot to be effective, when the same information may be placed on screen in a series of fast cuts. Not only must the style of movement be chosen, but the method of actually moving the camera must be selected too. There are seven basic methods: 1. Pans A movement which scans a scene horizontally. The camera is placed on a tripod, which operates as a stationary axis point as the camera is turned, often to follow a moving object which is kept in the middle of the frame. 2. Tilts A movement which scans a scene vertically, otherwise similar to a pan. 3. Dolly Shots Sometimes called TRUCKING or TRACKING shots. The camera is placed on a moving vehicle and moves alongside the action, generally following a moving figure or object. Complicated dolly shots will involve a track being laid on set for the camera to follow, hence the name. The camera might be mounted on a car, a plane, or even a shopping trolley (good method for independent film-makers looking to save a few dollars). A dolly shot may be a good way of portraying movement, the journey of a character for instance, or for moving from a long shot to a close-up, gradually focusing the audience on a particular object or character. 4. Hand-held shots The hand-held movie camera first saw widespread use during World War II, when news reporters took their windup Arriflexes and Eyemos into the heat of battle, producing some of the most arresting footage of the twentieth century. After the war, it took a while for commercially produced movies to catch up, and documentary makers led the way, demanding the production of smaller, lighter cameras that could be moved in and out of a scene with speed, producing a "fly-on-the-wall" effect.This aesthetic took a while to catch on with mainstream Hollywood, as it gives a jerky, ragged effect, totally at odds with the organised smoothness of a dolly shot. The Steadicam (a heavy contraption which is attached a camera to an operator by a harness. The camera is stabilized so it moves independently) was debuted in Marathon Man (1976), bringing a new smoothness to hand held camera movement and has been used to great effect in movies and TV shows ever since. No "walk and talk" sequence would be complete without one. Hand held cameras denote a certain kind of gritty realism, and they can make the audience feel as though they are part of a scene, rather than viewing it from a detached, frozen position. A crane in use, following the path of a balloon floating into the sky 5. Crane Shots Basically, dolly-shots-in-the-air. A crane (or jib), is a large, heavy piece of equipment, but is a useful way of moving a camera - it can move up, down, left, right, swooping in on action or moving diagonally out of it. The camera operator and camera are counter-balanced by a heavy weight, and trust their safety to a skilled crane/jib operator. 6. Zoom Lenses A zoom lens contains a mechanism that changes the magnification of an image. On a still camera, this means that the photographer can get a 'close up' shot while still being some distance from the subject. A video zoom lens can change the position of the audience, either very quickly (a smash zoom) or slowly, without moving the camera an inch, thus saving a lot of time and trouble. The drawbacks to zoom use include the fact that while a dolly shot involves a steady movement similar to the focusing change in the human eye, the zoom lens tends to be jerky (unless used very slowly) and to distort an image, making objects appear closer together than they really are. Zoom lenses are also drastically over-used by many directors (including those holding palmcorders), who try to give the impression of movement and excitement in a scene where it does not exist. Use with caution - and a tripod! 7. The Aerial Shot An exciting variation of a crane shot, usually taken from a helicopter. This is often used at the beginning of a film, in order to establish setting and movement. A helicopter is like a particularly flexible sort of crane - it can go anywhere, keep up with anything, move in and out of a scene, and convey real drama and exhilaration — so long as you don't need to get too close to your actors or use location sound with the shots. Composition and Camera Movement Composition Composition exists in a context. That context is the frame, which is itself an element of picture composition. In 1894 Thomas Edison introduced the Kinetoscope motion picture format, with an aspect ratio (ratio of picture width to height) of four units wide to three units high, or 1.33 to 1. For the next fifty years most film used the 1.33 aspect ratio. Sixteen millimeter, eight and “super eight” millimeter film formats and NTSC, PAL, and SECAM television standards all share the 1.33 ratio. Composition and Camera Movement Composition Composition exists in a context. That context is the frame, which is itself an element of picture composition. In 1894 Thomas Edison introduced the Kinetoscope motion picture format, with an aspect ratio (ratio of picture width to height) of four units wide to three units high, or 1.33 to 1. For the next fifty years most film used the 1.33 aspect ratio. Sixteen millimeter, eight and “super eight” millimeter film formats and NTSC, PAL, and SECAM television standards all share the 1.33 ratio. 4 x 3 or 1.33 Aspect Ratio From an optical standpoint, the most efficient rectangular format would be square, since it would use as much of the lens area as possible. So why don’t we have square pictures? Artists and mathematicians from the ancient Greeks and Egyptians have focused on the “golden rectangle” as the perfect shape. The aspect ratio of the golden rectangle is 1.618. One might presume (although I’ve found no evidence so far) that the 1.33 aspect ratio is a compromise between the most efficient ratio and the most esthetically pleasing. Over the years a number of standard sizes with different aspect ratios became popular. The 8x10 photograph (1.25), the 4x6 photograph (1.5), and the 35mm slide (1.5) are a few examples. Film evolved, too. Cinerama (2.5 - 3.0), Cinemascope (2.55), and Panavision (1.78 – 2.4) are a few standards among many. High definition television has an aspect ratio of 16 by 9, or 1.78. The shape of the frame is the first consideration in composition. 16 x 9 or 1.78 Aspect Ratio Ideally, every shot in a television program should be composed as carefully as a still photograph. While this is not often possible, some general rules of composition should be kept in mind. The face of the typical television screen has been surrounded by a frame called a shadow mask, which hides about five per cent of the picture.. The composition of the same image will be different with and without the shadow mask. The presence of the shadow mask has always caused a problem for films transferred to video because they were generally composed to be shown “edge to edge.” Now the same problem occurs when images are composed using a digital (LCD) monitor without taking the shadow mask into consideration. The red border around the frame represents the shadow mask. It is unlikely the viewer will see anything in this area. The gold and green areas combined are referred to as the safe action area. Anything that takes place here is likely to be visible to the viewer. The green area is known as the safe title area. It is virtually certain that any text in the green area will be visible to the viewer. Notice the difference in "head room" in the pictures below this text. If you are using a camera with a monitor that shows the entire picture, be sure to allow for the shadow mask when you are composing your shots. Some viewfinders have "safe area" masks or lines to help you. Unless your subject is perfectly symmetrical, the screen should never be divided exactly in half by strong horizontal or vertical lines. Instead, it should be divided approximately into thirds. For example, the horizon (if you're shooting a corn field) should be either a third of the way from the bottom of the screen or a third of the way from the top. With the exception of titles, composition should not be perfectly symmetrical, but should rather balance positive and negative (filled and empty) space. Intelligent use of composition can be used to draw the viewer's eye to important parts of the picture. Too High Too Low When framing people, there are several additional concerns. By placing someone too high or too low in the frame, the individual can be made to seem taller or shorter than he actually is. The tendency is to place people too low. When the screen is filled with a face, the critical part of the face includes the eyes, mouth, and chin. The picture should be framed to include those, allowing hair or ears to fall outside the frame. When shooting a profile (side view) of a person, it's important to allow empty space in the direction the subject is looking. This extra space is called "nose room." Insufficient Nose Room Good Nose Room Nose room applies not only to people, but to anyone or anything pointing or moving. There should be relatively more empty space in the direction of the pointing or movement. The kind of framing a writer or director wants is usually described in terms of wide, medium, or close-up. A wide shot includes the entire subject and important objects in the immediate surroundings. It's used to show where he is in his environment. If it's used at the beginning of a scene it's often called an "establishing" shot. A medium shot shows most of the subject, including all parts of the subject that are important to understanding what the subject is doing. A medium shot of a person sitting still might show his body from the waist up, letting hands and the lower half of his body fall outside the frame. A medium shot of a person dancing or performing Tai Chi, on the other hand, would have to include his arms and hands, since these are generally important to understanding what he's doing. A close-up is used to isolate the most important part of the subject. For a speaker, this is generally the head. For an entire football team, a close-up might be a shot of the quarterback only. An extreme close-up focuses on one important detail of the subject, perhaps the mouth alone, or just the eyes, if the subject is a person. The object is to focus on important detail either to increase the drama or impact on a situation or to allow the viewer to see necessary picture information more clearly. In shooting a group of people, we have a few special terms. A "one shot" is a medium shot of a single person. A "two shot," would still be a medium shot, but the "subject" is made up of two people and the shot is framed tightly around those two. We also use terms such as "head shot," "head and shoulders shot," and "waist-up shot." 4 x 3 or 1.33 Aspect Ratio From an optical standpoint, the most efficient rectangular format would be square, since it would use as much of the lens area as possible. So why don’t we have square pictures? Artists and mathematicians from the ancient Greeks and Egyptians have focused on the “golden rectangle” as the perfect shape. The aspect ratio of the golden rectangle is 1.618. One might presume (although I’ve found no evidence so far) that the 1.33 aspect ratio is a compromise between the most efficient ratio and the most esthetically pleasing. Over the years a number of standard sizes with different aspect ratios became popular. The 8x10 photograph (1.25), the 4x6 photograph (1.5), and the 35mm slide (1.5) are a few examples. Film evolved, too. Cinerama (2.5 - 3.0), Cinemascope (2.55), and Panavision (1.78 – 2.4) are a few standards among many. High definition television has an aspect ratio of 16 by 9, or 1.78. The shape of the frame is the first consideration in composition. 16 x 9 or 1.78 Aspect Ratio Ideally, every shot in a television program should be composed as carefully as a still photograph. While this is not often possible, some general rules of composition should be kept in mind. The face of the typical television screen has been surrounded by a frame called a shadow mask, which hides about five per cent of the picture.. The composition of the same image will be different with and without the shadow mask. The presence of the shadow mask has always caused a problem for films transferred to video because they were generally composed to be shown “edge to edge.” Now the same problem occurs when images are composed using a digital (LCD) monitor without taking the shadow mask into consideration. The red border around the frame represents the shadow mask. It is unlikely the viewer will see anything in this area. The gold and green areas combined are referred to as the safe action area. Anything that takes place here is likely to be visible to the viewer. The green area is known as the safe title area. It is virtually certain that any text in the green area will be visible to the viewer. Notice the difference in "head room" in the pictures below this text. If you are using a camera with a monitor that shows the entire picture, be sure to allow for the shadow mask when you are composing your shots. Some viewfinders have "safe area" masks or lines to help you. Unless your subject is perfectly symmetrical, the screen should never be divided exactly in half by strong horizontal or vertical lines. Instead, it should be divided approximately into thirds. For example, the horizon (if you're shooting a corn field) should be either a third of the way from the bottom of the screen or a third of the way from the top. With the exception of titles, composition should not be perfectly symmetrical, but should rather balance positive and negative (filled and empty) space. Intelligent use of composition can be used to draw the viewer's eye to important parts of the picture. Too High Too Low When framing people, there are several additional concerns. By placing someone too high or too low in the frame, the individual can be made to seem taller or shorter than he actually is. The tendency is to place people too low. When the screen is filled with a face, the critical part of the face includes the eyes, mouth, and chin. The picture should be framed to include those, allowing hair or ears to fall outside the frame. When shooting a profile (side view) of a person, it's important to allow empty space in the direction the subject is looking. This extra space is called "nose room." Insufficient Nose Room Good Nose Room Nose room applies not only to people, but to anyone or anything pointing or moving. There should be relatively more empty space in the direction of the pointing or movement. The kind of framing a writer or director wants is usually described in terms of wide, medium, or close-up. A wide shot includes the entire subject and important objects in the immediate surroundings. It's used to show where he is in his environment. If it's used at the beginning of a scene it's often called an "establishing" shot. A medium shot shows most of the subject, including all parts of the subject that are important to understanding what the subject is doing. A medium shot of a person sitting still might show his body from the waist up, letting hands and the lower half of his body fall outside the frame. A medium shot of a person dancing or performing Tai Chi, on the other hand, would have to include his arms and hands, since these are generally important to understanding what he's doing. A close-up is used to isolate the most important part of the subject. For a speaker, this is generally the head. For an entire football team, a close-up might be a shot of the quarterback only. An extreme close-up focuses on one important detail of the subject, perhaps the mouth alone, or just the eyes, if the subject is a person. The object is to focus on important detail either to increase the drama or impact on a situation or to allow the viewer to see necessary picture information more clearly. In shooting a group of people, we have a few special terms. A "one shot" is a medium shot of a single person. A "two shot," would still be a medium shot, but the "subject" is made up of two people and the shot is framed tightly around those two. We also use terms such as "head shot," "head and shoulders shot," and "waist-up shot." Camera Movement In the age of hand-held camcorders it must seem odd that there's an elaborate vocabulary describing how a camera can be moved. If you can do it, the industry has a technical term for it. Pan Tilt The two camera movements you use routinely are the "pan" and "tilt." A pan is a turning of the camera to the left or right. A tilt involves tilting the camera up or down. Pedestal Up The stand for a heavy studio television or film camera is called a "pedestal." That's why the term for raising the camera is "pedestal up," and the term for lowering the camera is "pedestal down." These terms have nothing to do with adjustments to the "pedestal," or setup of the black level of the picture, which is an electronic adjustment, not a camera movement. Truck Right In moving a camera from side to side you "truck right" or "truck left." To move the camera closer to the subject, you "dolly in." To move it farther away you "dolly out." Of course, whenever the camera-to-subject distance changes, the focus must be adjusted. Dolly In Purists will point out that dolly shots (in or out) are fundamentally different in effect from zooming in or out. They're right. But professionals will go to extreme lengths to get a smooth dolly shot, to the point of laying special tracks to roll the dolly on. People with more modest means have mounted cameras on bicycles, shopping carts and, of course, cars to get their dolly shots. Finally, in situations where important parts of a scene are not the same distance from the camera, it's possible to change the emphasis of a shot from one part of the scene to another by changing focus alone.. The instruction to do this is "rack" focus "in" or "out" for a particular object in a scene. "Rack focus into the cup on the table," would be an example. Such instructions are rarely used and are generally given for artistic effect. Camera Movement Arc Shot An arc shot is a camera move around the subject, somewhat like a tracking shot. In mathematics, an arc is a segment of the circumference of a circle. A camera arc is similar — the camera moves in a rough semi-circle around the subject. Some definitions of the arc shot describe it as being tracking and dollying at the same time, i.e. simultaneous side-to-side and in-and-out movement. Crabbing Shot The term crabbing shot is a less-common version of tracking, trucking and/or dollying. These terms are more or less interchangeable, although dollying tends to mean in-and-out movement whereas the others tend to mean side-to-side movement at a constant distance from the action. Dolly Shot Filming The Alamo (2004) Photo by Sean Devine A dolly is a cart which travels along tracks. The camera is mounted on the dolly and records the shot as it moves. Dolly shots have a number of applications and can provide very dramatic footage. In many circles a dolly shot is also known as a tracking shot or trucking shot. However some professionals prefer the more rigid terminology which defines dolly as in-and-out movement (i.e. closer/further away from the subject), while tracking means side-to-side movement. Most dollies have a lever to allow for vertical movement as well (known as a pedestal move). In some cases a crane is mounted on the dolly for additional height and flexibility. A shot which moves vertically while simultaneously tracking is called a compound shot. Some dollies can also operate without tracks. This provides the greatest degree of movement, assuming of course that a suitable surface is available. Special dollies are available for location work, and are designed to work with common constraints such as doorway width. Dollies are operated by a dolly grip. In the world of big-budget movie making, good dolly grips command a lot of respect and earning power. The venerable dolly faced serious competition when the Steadicam was invented. Most shots previously only possible with a dolly could now be done with the more versatile Steadicam. However dollies are still preferred for many shots, especially those that require a high degree of precision. Dolly Zoom A dolly zoom is a cinematic technique in which the camera moves closer or further from the subject while simultaneously adjusting the zoom angle to keep the subject the same size in the frame. The effect is that the subject appears stationary while the background size changes (this is called perspective distortion). In the first example pictured, the camera is positioned close to the subject and the lens is zoomed out. In the second shot, the camera is several metres further back and the lens is zoomed in. The Effect Dolly zooms create an unnatural effect — this is something your eyes would never normally see. Many people comment on the shot after seeing it for the first time, e.g. "That was weird" or "What just happened there?". The exact effect depends on the direction of camera movement. If the camera moves closer, the background seems to grow and become dominant. If the camera moves further away, the foreground subject is emphasized and becomes dominant. The effect is quite emotional and is often used to convey sudden realisation, reaction to a dramatic event, etc. History Invention of the dolly zoom is credited to cameraman Irmin Roberts. The technique was made famous by Alfred Hitchcock (Vertigo being the best-known example), and was used by Steven Spielberg in Jaws and ET. Many other directors have used the technique, which brings us to an important warning... Warning The dolly zoom is often over-used by junior directors. Many film critics see it as a cliché, so be very careful before you use this technique. Other Terminology The dolly zoom is also known as: • Hitchcock zoom • Vertigo zoom or vertigo effect • Jaws shot • Trombone shot • Zolly or zido • Telescoping • Contra-zoom • Reverse tracking • Zoom in/dolly out (or vice versa) Follow Shot The Follow shot is fairly self-explanatory. It simply means that the camera follows the subject ot action. The following distance is usually kept more or less constant. The movement can be achieved by dollying or tracking, although in many cases a Steadicam is the most practical option. Hand-held follow-shots are quite achievable in many situations but are not generally suited to feature film cinematography. Pedestal Shot A pedestal shot means moving the camera vertically with respect to the subject. This is often referred to as "pedding" the camera up or down. The term comes from the type of camera support known as a pedestal (pictured right). Pedestals are used in studio settings and provide a great deal of flexibility as well as very smooth movement. Unlike standard tripods, pedestals have the ability to move the camera in any direction (left, right, up, down). Note that a pedestal move is different to a camera tilt, which means the camera is in the same position but tilts the angle of view up and down. In a ped movement, the whole camera is moving, not just the angle of view. In reality, like most camera moves, the pedestal move is often a combination of moves. For example, pedding while simultaneously panning and/or tilting. Camera Pan A pan is a horizontal camera movement in which the camera moves left and right about a central axis. This is a swiveling movement, i.e. mounted in a fixed location on a tripod or shoulder, rather than a dolly-like movement in which the entire mounting system moves. To create a smooth pan it's a good idea to practice the movement first. If you need to move or stretch your body during the move, it helps to position yourself so you end up in the more comfortable position. In other words you should become more comfortable as the move progresses rather than less comfortable. Camera Tilt A tilt is a vertical camera movement in which the camera points up or down from a stationary location. For example, if you mount a camera on your shoulder and nod it up and down, you are tilting the camera. Tilting is less common than panning because that's the way humans work — we look left and right more often than we look up and down. The tilt should not be confused with the Dutch Tilt which means a deliberately slanted camera angle. A variation of the tilt is the pedestal shot, in which the whole camera moves up or down. Tracking Shot The term tracking shot is widely considered to be synonymous with dolly shot; that is, a shot in which the camera is mounted on a cart which travels along tracks. However there are a few variations of both definitions. Tracking is often more narrowly defined as movement parallel to the action, or at least at a constant distance (e.g. the camera which travels alongside the race track in track & field events). Dollying is often defined as moving closer to or further away from the action. Some definitions specify that tracking shots use physical tracks, others consider tracking to include hand-held walking shots, Steadicam shots, etc. Other terms for the tracking shot include trucking shot and crabbing shot. Trucking Shot Trucking is basically the same as tracking or dollying. Although it means slightly different things to different people, it generally refers to side-to-side camera movement with respect to the action. The term trucking is not uncommon but is less widely-used than dollying or tracking. Yet another equivalent term is crabbing. The example on the right shows a simple, very mobile set of tracks used with a standard tripod to create smooth trucking shots. Zoom Shot A zoom is technically not a camera move as it does not require the camera itself to move at all. Zooming means altering the focal length of the lens to give the illusion of moving closer to or further away from the action. The effect is not quite the same though. Zooming is effectively magnifying a part of the image, while moving the camera creates a difference in perspective — background objects appear to change in relation to foreground objects. This is sometimes used for creative effect in the dolly zoom. Zooming is an easy-to-use but hard-to-get-right feature of most cameras. It is arguably the most misused of all camera functions. scriptHollywood.com Sample Movie and Television Script Downloads Home | Writer Resources | Script Consulting | Script Typing | The Hollywood Standard, 2nd edition | Screenwriting Workshops | After the Truth | About Us | Contact Us Before your write a screenplay, you should read as many examples as you possibly can. These free screenplays can help. You would never try to paint a picture without first seeing one. You would never write a novel without reading one. So why try writing a screenplay without first reading as many scripts as you can get your hands on? Here are movie and television scripts written in standard screenplay format available for you to download. AFTER THE TRUTH, a screenplay for a feature film. This script was the subject of a six-figure spec sale and became a multiple-award-winning feature film starring Goetz George as the infamous Angel of Death at Auschwitz, Dr. Josef Mengele. To learn more about AFTER THE TRUTH the movie To download the original screenplay for AFTER THE TRUTH in Adobe Acrobat format click here. ACTUAL INNOCENCE, a script for a made-for-television movie. This script, written for the Fox Television Network and Mandalay Television Films, is adapted from the nonfiction book by attorneys Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jim Dwyer. Includes the first three acts of the television script, demonstrating how to format television act breaks, and a cast page and sets page in standard screenplay format. Expert Script Consulting Get help writing a script that grabs Hollywood's attention -- from writers who've done it. "The Rileys constantly made me dig deeper into the characters and go for the emotional truth. Thanks to their input, I now have a fellowship at Disney and a script that gets managers and agents to call me." Amy Snow Winner, 2004 Disney Screenwriting Fellowship To find out how Christopher and Kathleen Riley, the writers behind the scripts featured on this page, can help you, Return to Screenwriting Resources page. Go to Project: Project 1 Title: See Spot Run Length: :30 Video CG,sfx, music Audio, dialog FS CG: ”Once upon a Time” BG is CU of blades of grass Wide shot of Dick and Jane in backyard, shot from over neighbors fence Birds and leaves SFX Annc (older male): Remember the good ole days? Two shot of both as all white dog Spot enters shot from right Hear the jingle of dog collar before we see dog. Spot panting. CU of Dick as he suddenly pulls out a water pistol and soaks Spot with black ink. splat SFX Jane off cam scream CU of Spot being hit with ink and running out of frame Collar jingle and sounds of Spot running and panting CU of Jane furious with Dick and running out of frame Jane’s gasp LS of dejected Dick without his two friends Annc: Nice move Dick CU of Dick with Eureka moment Wide shot of Dick walking into Major Tom’s General Store (sign over door clearly visible) Upbeat music under Annc: Now you’re thinking Camera doesn’t move, Dick walks out smiling carrying a gallon of white paint, candy and roses Annc: Major Tom’s General Store, MS of Dick petting an all white Spot Has everything you need MS, different angle, Jane enters. Dick scoops up roses and gives to Jane. For all those unexpected jobs around the house. WS all three walk away, Dick & Jane holding hands, Spot follows. Paint brush still in Dick’s hand. CG over video: Major Tom’s General Store Major Tom’s General Store, Above shot darkens Main Street, Mecklenburg. It's important to remember that there is no hard and fast standardization. Each show has its own idiosyncrasies. There are some things, however, that remain consistent in all teleplays whether drama or sitcom. The goal here is to give you an idea of what those are. If you want to write for television, you must do your homework. Learn about the show you wish to write a spec for. Study its style, find out the common script length, and most of all, read as many scripts as you can get your hands on. Dissect them, try to figure out if anything is wrong with them and, if you find something, figure out how to fix it. In other words, know the show inside and out, be enthusiastic about it, believe in it and be a fan. Format and story structure are precise when it comes to episodic television. A 1/2 hour story runs about 22 minutes; an hour show, about 45 minutes with commercials dispersed for the remaining time. The breaks must be in the right spot for the advertisers to put up their wares. They also need to be compelling enough to bring your viewer back to the program. Television is like a factory. It survives on an endless stream of product; sometimes so similar in nature that it's hard to tell the shows apart. With the increase of cable, the need has increased an awful lot in the last 15 years. Network TV is no longer king. An increasing number of channels have gone into production with their own original programming. Examples are HBO, Showtime, TNT, Sci Fi, and USA. This is great because it has expanded the marketplace in which writers can circulate. The most important thing to remember here is that drama is conflict. Without it - no drama. You've got to take your characters to hell before you give them a happy ending or it won't mean anything. Conflict comes from inside the characters and an external influence. There are three types: Man vs. Himself, Man vs. Man, Man vs. Nature. One-Hour Drama In addition to the above, start your scenes late and get out early. They must advance the plot and develop the character. End them on a dramatic highpoint and make sure the conflict is well developed. Most of all, show don't tell. Types There are a few different kinds. 1. The procedural, which consists of shows such as the Law and Order franchise and the CSI franchise, 2. Next are the shows that deal with lawyers and politics. These are shows like The West Wing, The Practice, etc. 3. Police dramas, such as, The District and NYPD Blue. 4. Hero-types which consist of shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Smallville. 5. Fantasy/Sci-Fi - examples here are Enterprise, Twilight Zone, Dead Zone, etc. 6. Cable - Shows such as Queer as Folk, The Sopranos, and Six Feet Under are written without the act breaks seen in commercial television. Format One-hour shows are formatted like features, except for the act breaks. You begin and end them as you would a sitcom, however there are no scene breaks. Each page equals about a minute of screen time and script lengths usually fall between 53-60 pages. There are some, however, such as West Wing, which can be as long as 66 pages. Again, you must know your show. The best advice is to read the teleplays and copy the format precisely, The Cover Page should indicate the name of the show, episode title, and the writer's name. The Title Page should contain show name, episode title, writer's name and contact information. Typically, a one-hour drama consists of a teaser and 4 acts. There are some, like Enterprise, that have a teaser and 5 acts and still others that are only 4 acts, like Alias. Again, a good reason to study scripts for the show you wish to write for. Acts are designated numerically, usually written out and centered at the top of the page. Placing "End Act One" or "End Act 1" creates act breaks. This is centered and double-spaced beneath the last piece of narrative or dialogue. FADE or CUT may be used to end a scene, but it isn't necessary. A simple scene slug line will do nicely instead. Begin each new act of a fresh page. The act break is where the script reaches a strong dramatic moment. That's where the station typically inserts commercials. The big question here is whether or not the story moment is strong enough to break your audience back. The time breakdown works like this: Teaser: 2-4 pages Act One: 14-15 pages Act Two: 14-15 Pages Act Three: 14-15 Pages Act Four: 14-15 Pages Tag: 1-2 Pages Total: 59 to 66 pages Structure Be sure to follow the 3 Act Structure within your teleplay. In Act One, set up the goal for the character. Then your character runs into an obstacle. By the end of the act he should reach or fail to reach that immediate goal. Act One usually lasts about 10 minutes. In Act Two, you'll complicate the character's mission, then raise the stakes. Be sure to move your subplots forward as well and raise the stakes again. By this point, your character is at his lowest point. This act usually goes for about 40 minutes. By Act Three, your character, hopefully, will have reached a new level of determination. You will have made things even tougher for him, so he'll have to dig inside himself for more strength. Be sure to deal with your subplots and tie up loose ends. Finally, is the resolution or pay-off. Depending on the series, there can be up to three storylines running concurrently. The A story is the main plot, while the B story is the major subplot. The C story is called a runner or minor subplot, usually character developing. It usually occurs three times within the hour. Dialogue When writing dialogue, there are a couple of things to consider: A. The character ages, education, and background. B. Any emotional changes. How do they speak when emotional or angry? C. Don't use boring and/or unnecessary dialogue. D. It must move the story forward. E. Characters should NEVER explain their feelings. They should be acted out. F. Be specific in your dialogue. Details are everything and they'll serve to enrich your characters. G. Beware of long speeches. The thing about dialogue vs. action is that a page of action runs a lot faster than a page of dialogue. Time expands when you talk. Break up speeches with interjections from other characters or actions pertaining to the scene. H. Don't let your characters talk to themselves. If it's absolutely critical, do it sparingly, and only if the scene turns out better with it than without it. I. ALWAYS READ DIALOGUE OUT LOUD. Situation Comedies Someone once said that "dying is easy, comedy is hard." You really have to understand funny in order to write funny. If a joke is told badly, no matter how good the joke, it'll fall flat. The opposite can be true as well. If a bad joke is well told, it could be funny. Format There are two types of sitcoms: multiple camera format and single camera format. Multiple camera format is the traditional form, and it started with shows like "I Love Lucy," and continues with "Everybody Loves Raymond," Will and Grace," "Frasier," etc. Single camera shows are shot and formatted like films. Examples of these would include "Malcolm in the Middle," The Simpsons," Curb Your Enthusiasm," etc. No matter what type of show, it's important to find several actual scripts for the spec you're writing so that you can get really familiar with the format. Some shows have teasers and tags, some have two acts (multiple camera format) and some have three acts (some, but not all, single camera shows), and some have page counts that differ from industry averages. A good example of that is Sex and the City. This is a single camera show in three acts that includes a key scene in every script where Carrie sits at her computer and asks the question that frames all the stories in the episode. An analysis of past scripts would indicate this happens about 7-11 minutes into the episode, but not always. Know the rules before you break them. Typical format for multiple camera sitcoms: A. FADE IN: - All caps and underlined B. SCENES - numbered using CAPS. Ample space above and below and underlined. C. SLUGLINES - indicate location, time of day, and underlined. D. Character List - should appear directly below the slug line and indicate which characters are needed for the scene. Also enclosed in parentheses. E. ACTIONS/DESCRIPTIONS - listed in a capital letters F. CHARACTER INTROs - Capitalized and underlined. G. SOUND EFFECTS/SPEICAL EFFECTS/CAMERA INSTRUCTIONS - Capitalized and underlined. H. CHARACTER NAMES/DIALOGUE - Capitalized and double spaced. I. PERSONAL DIRECTION - appears within dialogue - on the same line - in all capitals and enclosed in parentheses. The Cover Page should indicate the name of the show, episode title, and the writer's name. The Title Page should contain show name, episode title, writer's name and contact information. Begin most 1/2 hour scripts by writing the name of the show, centered and capped, 6 lines from the top of the page. Double space down from the name and center the episode title in quotation marks. 6 lines below that, center ACT ONE, then A below that, also centered. 8 lines below that, write FADE IN: @ the 1.4 inch mark from the margin. A list of which characters are needed appears at the beginning of each new scene. Every page should contain page numbers as well as the scene letters. You can end each scene with a CUT TO:, DISSOLVE TO:, FADE TO:, etc., however this is seen less frequently today. The second scene begins on a new page. 21 lines down, write B, centered. 6 lines below that, write the opening slug line. All the scenes are "numbered" with letters. The script is divided into acts and each new act begins on a new page. Dialogue is double-spaced for legibility and stage direction is all in CAPS in order to distinguish them easily from the dialogue. There should be lots of white space for jotting down notes. Dialogue may also contain "personal direction" for the actors within it, rather than outside it; just like a stage play. As for time breakdown, the following applies: Teaser: 1-2 pages Act One: 17-20 pages Act Two: 17-20 pages Tag: 1-3 pages Total: 40-48 pages in length Typical format for single camera sitcoms: A. Formatted like screenplays and similar to the one hour drama. B. May or may not have formal act breaks written on the page (this depends on whether or not the show has commercial breaks. "Curb Your Enthusiasm,: and "Sex and the City" are on HBO, therefore they have no commercial breaks and read straight through. "The Simpsons," however, has three defined acts. C. Dialogue and stage direction are single-spaced. D. The characters are described in ALL CAPS the first time they are introduced. E. Scripts are generally 28-32 pages in length. Structure The plots for these tend to be broad and simple. The show may have a major plot line (A story) and a minor plot line (B story), but may not have a runner. Each act tends to be between 3-5 scenes. The locations are fairly basic, though outside shots are more common than they used to be. The focus isn't on action, but on the wittiness of the repartee between the characters. One page of sitcom script translates into about 30 seconds of screen time. In that time, there should be 3 to 5 solid jokes. These are jokes that are derived from the situations that the characters find themselves in. You have to know how to bring out the comedic nature of any situation. Taped sitcoms, such as Two and a Half Men, use a specific format. It's videotaped in front of a live audience, will have a laugh track, and locations are limited. In the half hour format, a scene break occurs when there is a major change in the location, time, and sometimes, actions. Ending one scene with a cut and beginning the next one on the following page indicates this. Scenes are designated with the alphabet, beginning with the letter A. A Few Extra Words of Advice: A. Be sure to capture the tone and character voices of the show you want to write for. B. Executives want to read shows they know and they'll want to see if you know it, too. C. Don't write a pilot. You have to be firmly established to pull this off. IF you do want to write a pilot, however, write a second episode and submit that. 99.9% of newer writers spend the first episode setting up the characters and the setting, which leaves little room for conflict, interest, or comedy. D. Your spec script is your calling card, so make it great. There should be no punctuation or proofreading errors. A dropped comma or a missing question mark can change a meaning or indicate a lack of concern for the little things. Make it clean and professional. E. Read as many scripts as you can. Do your research. F. Remember - 12 point, Courier Font is an ABSOLUTE RULE for ALL scripts whether feature or television. G. Have a theme. Be sure what your story's about and be clear on exactly what you want to say. H. Listen to people talk. No one speaks in the same way. Listen to their choice of words; the rhythm of their speech; the cadences and pauses are all unique. I. Make your characters listen to each other and respond in kind. You never want them talking at each other. They must react to what is being said. Invest emotions and reactions in them; it will say a lot about who they are and make them more multidimensional. J. If you must use parentheticals (particularly in dramas), use them sparingly and only use them to enhance the dialogue. Sometimes body language does speak louder than the actual words. Use them to imply things the actor may use in performance. It can also serve to change the meaning of the dialogue entirely by saying one thing and doing something else. K. Flesh out your characters beyond what the story actually needs. Look to the people you know, your own background, etc., for the little things that will make them jump off the page. L. When writing narrative pieces, avoid inserting explanations or clarifications of things that aren't revealed in dialogue or action. If it hasn't been given before, there's no point to it and the forward motion of the story stops. Keep it short and sweet; this allows the action to continue on uninterrupted. M. Never pad your script with dialogue and scenes that are added only to fill up space. If nothing is happening in the scene, cut it out. There are numerous books out there on screenplay format and structure. Below is a list of just a few of them: • The Complete Book of Scriptwriting by J. Michael Straczynski • Any book written by Linda Seger • Any book written by Syd Field • A Writer's Journey by Christopher Vogler • Successful Scriptwriting by Jurgen Wolff and Kerry Cox • The Screenwriter's Bible by David Trottier Good luck in your writing! How to Write a Proposal a TV Commissioner Will Actually Read By TV Mole ⋅ January 27, 2009 ⋅ Print This Post ⋅ 229 87 221 5636 ⋅Post a comment Commissioning editors can receive up to 80 programme proposals a week; few will be read from start to finish. Many commissioners never read past the first paragraph, or even the title. On average, they make a decision within 40 seconds. Usually that decision results in the proposal being filed in the bin. So how can you make sure a commissioner keeps reading to the end of your proposal? Here are ten ways to make your proposal stand out and keep your commissioner reading to the end. [mpinpage] Your proposal must have: 1) Title Your title can be the most important part of the proposal that doesn’t matter. Many ideas have been commissioned on the strength of a good title and nothing else – for example How Clean is Your House, was a phrase that was tossed into the conversation as a commissioning meeting was wrapping up, and Ben Frow commissioned it. Therefore, it makes sense to give your idea a good title if you can – it should be evoke the tone of the show and tell the viewers what they’re going to see, for example: The Big Food Fight, Baby Borrowers, Murderball , An Inconvenient Truth , Man on Wire , Location, Location, Location, Grand Designs. A mistake that producers often make is to try to be too clever with their titles. Convoluted puns and insider references to high culture won’t make the cut – not because your audience is dumb, but because TV listings only allow small number of letters. This is especially true for EPG – electronic programme guides – which allow 40 characters (however, only the first 10 will show for a 30′ programme), so if the title doesn’t reflect the content and fast, viewers are likely to ignore or miss it, as they flick through the TV guide. The channel have ideas of their own too – so under Stuart Murphy, BBC3 titles were of the in-your-face variety such as, My Penis and Everyone Else’s, Fuck Off I’m a Hairy Woman. Similarly, Channel 4 likes titles with shock value – The Boy Whose Skin Fell Off. If you are pitching to a channel that has a strong identity, give your idea a suitable name – there’s no point being coy, you need to show that your show belongs on their channel and nowhere else (if this makes you feel uncomfortable you and the channel are probably not a good fit and you should pitch elsewhere). However, if you can’t nail your title it doesn’t actually matter at this stage – as your film/programme/series evolves during shooting and editing a better title might present itself. You can get so caught up with trying to come up with the perfect title that you never get round to pitching it, (or worse, someone else pitches something similar before you do and get the commission). If you are stumped, a good working title is the “Ronseal” title, for example: Delia’s How to Cook, How Not to Be Shark Bait, How to Sleep Better (my original title was Get into Bed with BBC1), What Not to Wear, You Are What You Eat, Rogue Traders… you get the gist. Not only are these tittles good working titles they often end up as the final title. To find yours, just describe what your programme is about. And a word of warning if you are pitching to an international channel – what works in the UK (or USA) might not work elsewhere. For example, Strictly Come Dancing works in the UK because it accurately conjures up the programme – by simultaneously invoking a classic and much-loved institution and a cult dancing movie. However, those cultural references don’t translate, which is why you’ll find the same show being shown in 30+ countries as Dancing with the Stars, which does exactly what it says it is going to do. 2) Ownership Put your contact details on the proposal – you’ll be surprised how many people don’t. You should keep your proposal to one page but if there is supplementary material – character/presenter biogs or showreel, make sure you put your name and contact details on everything, as it might get separated from your main proposal. If you work for a production company, make your logo prominent – the commissioner wants to be reassured that you have the reputation, skills and resources to execute the idea. 3) Duration and number of episodes The commissioning editor wants to know the shape of your idea, as one of the ways they’ll be assessing your idea is to imagine where it will fit in their schedule. Don’t make your commissioner get excited about your pitch and then have their hopes dashed when you reveal you’re pitching a feature doc. If you are proposing a 90 minute documentary and the channel only has 60 minute slots, you’re never going to get a commission. In this instance you should have done your homework upfront – either offer them an hour long documentary, or work out if you can reformat it into 2 hour long programmes to make it more workable for the channel. 4) Genre Be upfront about what you’re pitching. Some channels favour different approaches over others – for example, they might only commission heavily formatted shows and never buy docudramas. You shouldn’t fall into the trap of pitching the wrong kind of programme to a channel if you’ve done your research, but stating your film’s genre at the top saves the commissioner searching all the way through your proposal to reassure themselves that your idea is takes an appropriate approach for them. If they’re wondering what kind of animal your film is, they’re not concentrating on the reading your proposal properly (or listening to your pitch, for that matter). 5) Outline by maveric2003 under CC Condense all the information a commissioning editor needs into the opening paragraph and gradually give more detail as the proposal progresses. This inverted pyramid structure is a classic approach used in news journalism, the idea being that if a breaking news story comes in up against the deadline, the editor can create space by lopping off the ends of existing articles without harming them. For our purposes, we need to remember that we have about 40 seconds to grab the commissioner’s attention, so you need to tell them all they need to know in the first paragraph. Once you’ve got their interest they will be happy to read more detail. If you don’t your carefully crafted proposal is in the bin. Your title is the first piece of information the commissioner will use to decide whether to read on. Next, a compelling tagline should describe your film in one sentence – this is the sentence you use to describe your film to strangers. If you can’t describe it in one sentence, you haven’t yet nailed what it is about and you will find it hard to pitch. Your first paragraph expands on the tagline and gives an overview of the overall narrative in general terms. State the genre if you haven’t already done so. “This observational documentary follows a year in the life the children, parents and teachers as they struggle to save their failing nursery school from closure, by using new, and controversial teaching methods imported from the USA.” Instantly we know that it will be full of conflict and human drama, with real-life jeopardy and a measurable outcome within a set period of time. The mention of controversial teaching methods acts as a teaser, making the reader want to find out more. Next you need to spell out the specifics – “an oversubscribed nursery school in the most deprived/leafiest part of Manchester” is better than “set in a failing school” as it tells us more about what we might see (and the first paragraph has already told us the school is failing – this suggests some reasons why). If you have already negotiated access to a specific school, mention it. Introduce the characters – at this stage you are painting the picture rather than writing detailed biographies, so describe characteristics: “Alison, the disillusioned, snappy headmistress… Sarah, the quiet but determined mother of six… Harry the hen-pecked caretaker, ” so the reader begins to get a sense of the people, their motivations, challenges, strengths and weaknesses. If you are asking an audience to sit through 90 minutes or a six-part series with these people they need to know that they will be informed, entertained or inspired by them – they need to provoke emotion in the viewers because they can identify with them in some way. Give an overview of how the narrative plays out – you might not know if it’s an ob doc, but you still need to lay out a story (it doesn’t matter if it changes as you film and edit), so make a best guess. What are the milestones and potential turning points? This is particularly important if you are proposing a series – each episode needs to have a self-contained narrative – The day of inspection”, “The US Troubleshooter arrives”, “The Nativity Play”, as well as a potential cliffhanger that will compel the audience to tune in the following week. Mention any special story-telling techniques you will use – animation, archive footage, hidden cameras, and flag up any scheduling issues – for example, if the US expert is arriving on a certain pre-arranged date that you have to film. by Frauenfelder under CC 6) Style Once you’ve written your first draft, rewrite it. Cut out all the hyperbole – don’t say it’s a compelling, extraordinary journey, If the story is extraordinary, it should speak for itself and the commissioner will come to the conclusion that this is an intriguing or exciting film without you having to tell them. Use short words and short sentences. You’re not proving how educated and clever you are, you are making your proposal easy to read for someone who doesn’t have much time. Use active words in the present tense – it gives your idea energy and makes you sound confident. Better: “The children to the zoo and see elephants for the first time.” Than: “One of the trips the children could go on is a trip to the zoo.” Ultimately, it doesn’t matter if the children do actually go to the zoo but you have provided a visual image that will give the commissioner an idea that you are going to be following the children on activities as they learn about the world, which has the potential to be cute, funny and heartwarming. Cut it down so it fits on one page. If the commissioner loves is and needs to see more they will ask. Give them six pages, and I guarantee you’ve wasted a tree. 7) Proofread Print out your proposal and put it to one side for at least a couple of hours, preferably overnight, before proofreading it. Ask someone else to spot the typos and spelling mistakes that your eye has grown used to. For a final sense check, ask someone who is unfamiliar with the project to read the proposal and tell you what the film is about. If they can’t, you have more work to do. If they’re excitedly asking you questions, you’re on to a winner. If they’re furrowing their brow as they ask questions, you haven’t nailed it, in which case you need to ask yourself some hard questions: is it your proposal that is unclear, or does the idea itself not stand up to scrutiny? Better to find out now than when sitting in front of someone important, as you might never get a second chance. Proposal Boosters: There are a couple of additional details you can add to your proposal, and they can lift it from a film that is ‘nice to have’ to ‘must have’ programme. 8) A photograph A carefully chosen image can really lift your proposal, bringing it to life by adding a splash of colour to a boring expanse of black and white text (personally, I think a photo is essential). It doesn’t have to be directly related to your idea, but does need to set the tone of your film. A striking image makes your proposal more memorable and easier to spot if your commissioner is trying to find it amongst a pile of papers. Flickr has lots of interesting images that can be downloaded for free under the Creative Commons license (choose photos that are licensed to use for commercial purposes). 9) Production talent If you are, or are working with an award-winning director, producer or executive producer, put that information prominently at the top of your proposal. 10) Onscreen talent Commissioners are always looking for new experts or presenters that they can develop to be the face of their channel. If you are pitching an idea around new onscreen talent, it can therefore make your proposal more attractive. In this instance, add a paragraph about their credentials and be prepared to show a talent tape when you pitch. Likewise, if you are pitching an idea that a famous person is interested in presenting/taking part in/being interviewed for, spell it out close to the top of your proposal. [/mpinpage] Need more proposal writing tips – including sample proposals? Greenlit: Developing Factual/Reality TV Ideas from Concept to Pitch reveals how to get an idea for a documentary or nonfiction television series such as Touching the Void, The Apprentice or Supernanny from concept to commission and explains why having a great idea is not enough. Step-by-step, it demystifies the TV development and commissioning process. You’ll learn how to: • Generate ideas every day, not just in brainstorms; • Write a compelling proposal that buyers will actually read; • Talent spot new presenters and keep them onside; • Exploit new opportunities offered by different platforms, such as YouTube and Facebook; • Pitch your idea to the right people; • Avoid common, embarrassing pitching mistakes; • Find alternative sources of funding; • Spot potential roadblocks and troubleshoot your proposal to make sure you get the greenlight. Candid interviews with fifty top industry insiders – including international producers and buyers – reveal how globally successful shows were originally conceived and pitched; their war stories are salutary, entertaining and inspiring. Each chapter is stuffed with case studies, practical tips, resource lists, sample proposals and exercises designed to boost your skills and help you develop your own commission-winning ideas. Read it straight through for a master class in development and commissioning, or dip in to specific chapters when you need a refresher. ORDER NOW fromThe Book Depository for FREE WORLDWIDE DELIVERY What industry veterans say about the book: “After 25 years in this crazy business, it’s the first time I have seen TV commissioning so comprehensively and entertainingly dissected.”Mike Slee: Independent Film & TV Producer/Director“The most comprehensive, insightful and entertaining book on television commissioning you’ll ever read.”Christian Drobnyk, Director of Entertainment, UKTV.“Spending a few hours reading this book now will save you months- even years – of blood, sweat and tears… Indispensable.” Lina Prestwood, Director of Content Current TV“Blows the lid on so many TV secrets the industry may never be the same again”Tom Archer, Controller Factual Production, BBC“More information than a year of film school. As soon as I’d read it, I read it again. I didn’t want to miss a single word. I only wish this book had been around when I started in the industry.” Fiona Tudor Price, Chairwoman, Women in Film and Television, South Africa Sample Program Proposal "Underwater Explorations" will be a weekly, 30-minute studio production featuring guests supplying their own video or film footage of their underwater exploits around the world. The proposed host for the show is Dr. Steve Adams, who has an established track record with us and WCFX-TV for doing marine specials. Each week he will have a new guest with new experiences. Given the numerous people within our seacoast broadcast area who regularly document their diving expeditions, we will have no trouble finding guests with exciting footage and stories to tell. In particular we want to feature in-studio close-ups of artifacts that have been salvaged during underwater expeditions. Initially, two guests who have documented the discovery of sunken ships are interested in appearing. In addition, we want to feature experts in marine life from the local university who have dramatic and colorful digital footage of a wide variety of underwater life forms. Dave's Dive Shop and Marty's Marine Supply have tentatively committed as sponsors. Numerous other potential sponsors also exist within our broadcast area. Production costs would be minimal. The production could be done "live-on-tape" on Wednesday evenings in Studio B with three cameras — one typically reserved for tabletop close-ups of exhibits. Dr. Adams indicates he would be willing to host/produce the show for $950 per program. Our initial contract with Dr. Adams would be for 13 shows. Although the guests would appear without compensation, the potential sponsors have indicated that they would give the guests gifts in exchange for on-air acknowledgments. The Sunday afternoon broadcast time slot now occupied by What In the World?, (which concludes April 2nd,) seems most appropriate, although the final decision on this would be up to Programming. Initially, the show would be done in three blocks: Block #1 - Introduction of the guest; overview of the day's topic with a brief look at footage and exhibits. (about 7 min.) Commercial break. Block #2 - Discussion of the topic, primarily VO [voice over] concentrating on underwater footage and in-studio close-ups of artifacts. Commercial break. Block #3 - Discussion and conclusion, again primarily VO concentrating on underwater footage and in-studio close-ups of artifacts. As commercial support increased we would have the option of going to four blocks separated by three commercial breaks. Dr. Adams has already been contacted by WCFX-TV about doing another special for them. If he hosted "Underwater Explorations," we would obviously prefer him to be under exclusive contract with us for the duration of the series. He has agreed to wait 30-days for our decision on "Underwater Explorations." How to Make a Documentary - Part 1 Few other communication forms have the power to reveal a unique perspective, capture imagination and even motivate change. In this 3-part series on how to make a documentary, you'll discover how you can move your story from dream to distribution. Few other communication forms have the power to reveal a unique perspective, capture imagination and even motivate change. In this three-part series on how to make a documentary, you'll discover how you can move your story from dream to distribution. Walk onto the working set of any television production studio and almost every person on the crew has a documentary they are just posting, getting ready to shoot, or trying to fund. Why? Because everyone from the Director of Photography to the Key Grip has a story to tell, they feel compelled to share their stories with a larger audience. True, the percentage of would be documentary filmmakers is potentially greater within the film/television community than among antique car salesmen, but there are many people from all walks of life who want to share their story or a significant piece of history through documentary filmmaking. In today's world dominated by high tech gizmos and reality TV, documentaries have never been more popular and the equipment to shoot and edit them more accessible and inexpensive. Is Your Story Compelling? The founder of our agency and I were approached one day by a reasonably well-known and respected individual in our community. He wanted to pitch a documentary idea to us for possible production by our company. The man went on to explain that although he still seemed to exist as a "regular" guy in our community, since his divorce he had lost everything and was living between his car and an abandoned building. We asked many questions, but despite his having managed to hide his status from the rest of the community, there just wasn't a strong enough plot line to hang a documentary on. We felt horrible for the guy but there was no universal truth, no significant lesson to be learned that we felt warranted filming a documentary. Two months later a woman named Patti Miller came to my office and described how 40 years ago as a Drake University junior, she had traveled to Mississippi to participate in the Freedom Summer, in order to help African Americans sign up to vote. Patti, "a lily-white Iowa girl" was fundamentally affected by her experience, an experience shared by others who had participated. She pointed out that the fortieth anniversary of Freedom Summer was approaching and many of the volunteers were now in their fifties and sixties. Patti's story was a part of history that could easily start to slip away and the 40-year anniversary presented a seminal opportunity to share the story. The story moved me, and my crew and I headed to the South to start filming. Patti's story had universal appeal and importance. We decided that we would tell this story of national racism, politically controlled hatred, and the individuals who fought oppression, through the very personal eyes of one Iowa undergraduate female, alone and out of her home state, for the first time in her life. Get a FREE Lighting Guide Get a solid foundation in proper lighting to make your videos shine; this guide teaches you the popular lighting technique that professional videographers prefer. Get this free guide when you sign up for free training updates. Read more... Tell Me a Story What's your story? Is it universally applicable? Is it simply a slice of life anecdote, but very funny or very profound? Would someone who doesn't know you care or benefit from becoming aware of your story? Is it a scholarly piece addressing an issue or topic discovered through research and others should be made aware of? Could others benefit by seeing the world through your eyes, watching you follow a particular person or group of people around as they do what they do? If you can find a way to turn your personal experience into a universally shared or recognized experience, you have the foundation for building a documentary. At this point, identify your eventual audience and keep them in mind as your documentary morphs toward its final form. Putting it Together, Bit by Bit So, you've got your story, now what? Old fashioned as it may seem, try to get all the elements of your story written down in simple outline form using 3x5 index cards. Keep it loose, put each element on one 3x5 card so you can shuffled and re-shuffled them. Lay your story out and look at it. Examine all your possible elements. (Of course, you can do this with a computer too, but the index cards work well for sorting out thoughts and ideas.) If you have old 8mm film from your youth, log it and list it as an element. Do you have old photos or access to old newspaper articles? Who are the people you want to interview and what subject mater will they cover? Record every element and every topic on a card and separate the cards with only one topic or element per card. Lay them out in an order that makes sense to you and use this to create your first outline. Keep these cards! You will use them over and over again. Dramatic Structure Every story needs three things, a beginning, middle, and end. You must define where these points exist in your story. Does your story have a great hook that will involve the audience from the outset and hold them? Is it most effective when told chronologically or should it jump around in time? Will your story be narrated, will you write the narration, or will the subjects you interview tell the entire story in their own words? Will it be a combination? You must discover what is most dramatic and engaging about your story and tell it in a way that highlights those points. Tone and Treatment How do you want your story heard? Do you want to create a formal documentary with voice-over narration and drops to interviews and B-roll, or do you want to do a Cinéma Vérité piece where the camera seems to just exist as it captures everything around it? Many documentaries these days have the raw reality look of the "Cops" TV show with hand-held cameras loosely carried on shoulders. Other documentaries use guerilla tactics; they surprise people by simply shoving a microphone in their face. Michael Moore is famous for this. An Emotional Center Regardless of your choice of treatment or subject matter, almost every documentary needs an emotional center. The audience needs someone or a group of "someones" to care about. A message or idea is not enough. The characters in your documentary will carry your plotline as strongly as your storyline. Very few documentaries based solely on intellectualism succeed. Give your documentary some heart and some emotion. Give us someone to root for. Formulating a Plan As soon as you have determined the structure and treatment of your documentary, you are ready to take your outline and create a projected timeline and budget. In order to create a budget you must decide the format in which you want to shoot your project. Will you shoot film or video? What type? How often will you need sound? Will you be lighting with instruments or will you be shooting in available light? How many days and in how many locations will you need to shoot? How big of a crew and how much equipment will you need? How long and with what means will you edit? Go Find Some Funding Collect your outline, timeline, bid and distribution plan (distribution will be fully covered in part three of this series but it must be fully fleshed out in your pre-production planning if you wish to raise funds from someone other than your parents or credit cards). Create a printed proposal using these elements to pass for your fund-raising efforts to support your project. Documentary film budgets can run the gamut from low-budget to multi-million dollar ventures, but many make it on a very limited amount of hard capital. Documentary filmmakers as a group are notoriously successful at getting "sweat equity" from people who volunteer their equipment and their expertise for a stock in the project. There will always be some hard costs though, and if you are not in a position to cover them yourself you should see an attor-ney and get help setting up a simple system that will enable you to accept funds on behalf of your not for profit project. Some filmmakers seek financial support by asking existing non-profit organizations to sponsor their project, then take in the funds, and allocate them back to the filmmaker. Randal K. West is the Vice President/Creative Director for a DRTV full service advertising agency. Sidebar: Budgeting Once you have made the initial choices about your documentary you will need to create a budget that reflects accurate estimates of the costs involved. First estimate how many days of shooting it will take to film your documentary. Divide the total into days when you will record sound and days when you will just shoot images. In the industry, they call this type of film/video budgeting as defining your "Day of Days." Create a proposed set of crew costs for both types of days. Even if your crew is volunteer, you will still need to consider food, travel and ancillary costs. Next create a list of equipment for each type of day and project any "real" or "hard" costs. Determine if you will have to rent support equipment, (sound, lights etc,) and get estimates for this equipment that you can put in your budget. Will you have to get permits or insurance to shoot in any of your locations? Include these and any projected expendables such as videotape, in your projected budget. If you plan to use much of your own equipment, (camera, editing system) and these will not constitute "hard" costs in your budget, create an "in-kind" contribution section of the budget that demonstrates the savings created by your "sweat-equity", (volunteered hours), and owned equipment. This is helpful when soliciting contributions to cover the remaining "hard costs" because potential investors can see exactly where you allocate their contributions. Create a postproduction budget and be sure to include both editing time and costs for licensing stock footage, existing film footage, photos or music. Video/Film budget templates exist on the Internet that can help you create your budget, just be sure to eliminate any line items that don't apply to your project. How to Make Your Own Documentary • At November 8, 2010 • By Christine Gilbert • In Documentary: The Wireless Generation, Popular • 26 Warning: this post contains extremely geeky insights into the technical side of making a documentary. Since I wrote the update on the Wireless Generation documentary we’ve been filming over this summer, a lot of people have gotten in touch asking about the gear, how we’ll promote it, what we plan to do — basically “how do you make a documentary?” — which is usually followed by, “Cool! I’d love to do that too!” You can. There’s a lot of information out there, so it can seem daunting, but we found our way through the data overload and were able to come up with a game plan. If you’ve always dreamed of making your own film, this post is intended as a starting point for further research — your needs and budget may vary. The Gear For us, the goal was to shoot at a professional level, with good sound quality, in high definition (HD) and at a film frame rate and size that could potentially be shown in a movie theater. While it’s possible we will end up going straight to DVD, we didn’t want to spend a year of our lives shooting, writing, editing and producing a film, only to limit our options because we didn’t pick a format that was inclusive enough. So we’re shooting in full HD at 1080 X 1920 at a frame rate of 24 fps. From this level, we can always downgrade or resize for the web, TV or DVD but it’s never possible to increase quality if you shoot a smaller size. We’re also shooting a film that has multiple types of shots. When picking your camera, it’s important to think about what kind of shots you’ll be getting. Since about 50% of our film is interview based, we decided to use the Canon 7D (a digital SLR camera, that now has HD video) as our main camera for interview scenes. The advantage is that it has a big sensor — 20 mb — which is many times more powerful than any of the entry level professional camcorders available on the market. In fact, several TV shows and films have been shot entirely on the 7D. The video quality is absolutely amazing. The downside is that unless you buy a very expensive camera mount, there is no stabilization — so the camera always has to be on a tripod. This works perfectly for our interviews, as we set up the 7D and start filming from a set location that doesn’t change. Since the other 50% of the film is travel footage, shot on location and on the go, we knew the 7D wouldn’t work for this. It’s time consuming to set up and using a tripod isn’t always practical — especially if you’re doing something like walking through the night market in Bangkok. So we decided we would invest in a second camera, the Canon XHA1 which is the cheapest Canon camcorder you can get that will shoot at a professional level (and is the staple of many indie film makers). This is a true camcorder, that will do all the cool things the 7D isn’t designed for… if you set it to “easy” mode, it can even handle most challenging situations on it’s own (fast moving objects, low light, camera shake and so on). Canon 7D and accessories breakdown (total for everything listed $3758): Canon 7D ($1699) This is a digital SLR camera with a video component. One of the things I’ve learned is that it only shoots in easy mode or manual mode for video. If you’re someone who likes to shoot in aperture priority, you’ll probably need to start using manual mode for video, because otherwise the default will make your entire depth of field in focus, which is often not what you want. I’ve also had little luck shooting at night with bright objects (in my case it was fire dancers). I’m sure there is a technique for this, but so far it’s alluded me. EF 24-70mm f/2.8L ($1449) This lens was reviewed as one of the “best general purpose lenses available” and after two years traveling with it, I completely agree. It’s really great for portraits (excellent for getting that crisp subject with a blurry background shot, so adored by wedding photographers) and it does pretty well for general travel photography as well. It’s not quite wide enough to do landscapes and it’s just barely wide enough to do architecture shots, so for true travel/landscape photography you’ll be constantly on the edge of getting that great shot. But for the purposes of this film, it does 90% of what we need, and for interview shots, I don’t think you can do better in the price range. It’s a very fast lens that handles low light extremely well. Tamrac camera bag ($50) We carry the camera, lens and accessories in this bag and take it as a carry-on when we fly. (It also doubles as a purse and diaper bag, when we’re about town… we can fit a billfold, a room key, two diapers and some wipes — but not much else). Additional Canon 7d camera battery ($100) I would highly recommend getting an additional battery. The camera will start to get too hot after about an hour of continuous filming, but if you’re out filming for the day, you can easily need two batteries — or at least not have time to charge between sessions. For a traveling production, like ours, this has been key. 32 GB compact flash card ($140 X 2) To record 12 minutes of video, it takes 4 GB of memory. So one 32 GB card will do about 90 minutes of filming. We travel with two 32 GB cards, which seems to be enough for most days. If you’re not able to pull your film frequently (this is time consuming and requires connecting to your laptop) then you’ll want more. We also have four 8GB cards for backup. Wireless remote ($80) One of the very nice features of using the 7D is that you can make some stunning time lapse photography. We just let the camera run for 20-30 minutes and then speed it up into a 20 second clip in Final Cut Pro. Because the image quality is so high, it can just look amazing. If you want to try this technique, you’ll need a tripod and a wireless remote… especially if you want to do longer sequences (like overnight) so that you don’t shake the camera when you reset the video. Tripod ($100) We debated on getting a nice carbonite tripod, and one day we will, but for this production we thought we could work around not having the pan/tilt features that a nice $1000 (or more) tripod will give you. Because we went so cheap on this, there will be no pans with our camera (it’s really noticeable when you do it with a cheap tripod), which is something we work around by how we set up our shots. (We only have one tripod, even though we have two cameras. We typically hand hold the camcorder and set up the 7d on the tripod). Canon XHA1 and accessories breakdown (total for everything listed below $5549): Canon XHA1 ($4999) This is our camera B, but it always surprises the me the level of quality that it can capture. You can hand this camera to almost anyone and get a decent shot. If you want to do advanced features, it’ll let you do those too. In fact, for about 48 hours I thought I had broken the camera, but I had just flipped one of the many toggle switches on the body to display the colored bars (like you’d see when a TV station is off air). You’ll definitely want to read through the manual and consider if you want to use things like gain or auto white balance, and understand how this will effect video quality. Aluminum Hard Case ($250) We use this to store the XHA1, all of our sound equipment and any electronic accessories we may need. For flying, we always take it as a carry on and it fits in the overhead compartment. Additional battery ($60) The camera has a setting to turn off after a set time (I think we have a 60 second period before we go into standby mode) so it’s good with battery life, but it definitely helps to have a back up for those long production days. Unlike the 7d we’ve never had a problem with it overheating after a long shoot, so it can just keep going if you wanted. HD video tapes ($6 each X 40) I’m not sure how we did the math on how many we’d need, but we calculated 40, and now 1/2 way completed with filming we’ve used exactly 20. We may need to pick up a few more, but for a 90 minute film (what we’re doing) plus getting lots and lots of b-roll footage, this seems like a workable amount. Audio Equipment (total for everything listed below $2,040) We have two main ways of recording sound. First, if you’re thinking of using the built-in mic for recording, forget it. Bad sound = bad video, as we were told over and over again by the industry pros we got in touch with. We settled on a pretty standard sound set up for an independent film. For interviews we record using the Zoom H4N which is a multi-channel hand held recorder. We also use a Sony lavalier mic (the kind that pins to your lapel, like on TV) and the wireless mic connects to the Zoom. Then we’ll also record audio on the shotgun mic, just to have a back up and to pick any room noise that the lav mic might isolate. I’ll either mount it on the Canon 7D and connect it to the Zoom (if can record two sources at once) or we’ll attach it to the Canon XHA1 (the hand held camcorder) and record into that device by turning on the XLR input. For shots other than interviews, we use the shotgun mic attached to whatever camera we’re using. If we’re just recording sound (like a musician playing on the street) we might just use the Zoom and it’s built in mics. Zoom H4N ($600) This hands multiple sources of audio. It can be used with the shot gun mic, the lav mics or with it’s own built in mic. Rode NTG3 shotgun mic ($900) We paid a bit more, to make sure we had really good audio, but this mic is so sensitive (a good thing) that you can’t use it without the wind muff (see below). Rode Deadcat microphone wind muff ($60) This does a very good job of reducing wind noise, which is a big problem when you’re shooting outdoors. Sony wireless lavalier mic ($480) The basic wireless lav. It is only one mic, so if you have two subjects at once, you’ll need another complete set — our you can use a boom mic for those situations. Computers and software (total for everything listed below $3447) Macbook pro 15 inch ($1999) Since Final Cut Pro is a Mac based software, it makes sense to edit the entire thing on a Mac. Final Cut Studio ($999) We could use Adobe Premiere as well, but we prefer Final Cut, and it’s the industry standard. Plural Eyes ($149) This is a plugin for Final cut that takes multiple sources of audio and merges it together with your video, so that you don’t have to worry about matching everything up in post-production. 2 TB external hard drive ($150 X 2) You’ll quickly eat up about 1-2 TB of storage space over the shooting of your film, and it’s critical to have a back up, so you might as well build it into your budget from the beginning. Grand totals: Camera A (Canon 7d) and accessories: $3758 Camera B (Canon XHA1) and accessories: $5549 Sound equipment: $2040 Computers and software: $3447 Total: $14,794 Did I pay this much? No. I paid just under $10,000. How was I able to get almost $5K off the retail price? How to get cheap gear 1. Watch Ebay religiously 2. Look at the used sections on B&H Photo and Adorama 3. Search Craigslist 4. Scour the film and photography forums 5. Check online retailers for discounts Shooting your film You can shoot anyone and anything you’d like. But wait! Did you get them to sign a release? Does it matter? Well, it depends. Generally we follow the rule, “if they talk, we get a release”. For our film, this has been relatively straight forward. We know who our interview subjects are, and we always have them sign a release. If we’re filming them walking down the street and other people walk into the frame, we don’t bother getting signed releases (besides it would be impossible anyway). If one of their friends come along for the interview, but is in only some of the shots, we usually get a release. If we’re shooting a street musician with the intent of using their original song in the movie, then we try to get a release, just in case. We’re using a modified version of this release (pdf). Tips for shooting • Charge all of your batteries every night. • Pull all of your video every night. • Always keep extra batteries, duct tape, memory cards, and video tapes on hand. • For the best interview lighting shoot outside, on an overcast day. • Make sure the video is recording and the audio is on. Remember to shoot multiple shots, so you have lots of options later. Get a long shot, medium shot, and close up. For the close up, try to get the hands on some shots, the face on others. Watch documentaries, films and TV closely and start noticing the different shots that they use. Decide on a basic shot list before you go out and consider things like getting an establishing shot (will you show the exterior of the building before cutting to your interior shot), transition shots (perhaps you’ll use a shot of clouds moving across the sky to transition from setting to another) and how you want to frame your interview subjects. Tips on interviewing your subjects Help them relax. The lesson we’ve learned time and time again is that is doesn’t matter how brilliant your interview questions are or how smart and interesting your subject is, if they freeze up when the camera comes on (and almost everyone except polished professionals will do this) then it will come across as forced, stiff and uncomfortable. Tell a joke. Make them laugh. Ask an off the wall question. In fact, if your interview is going too well, this can be a problem too, as no one wants to listen to your subject give a memorized stump speech. Be prepare to challenge them. Shake them up. Your job as the interviewer is not to ask awesome questions, it’s to get awesome answers. Then what? Then you edit it. And sell it to someone. We’re in the editing mode now, but our plan for next spring and beyond includes a tiered approach. We’ll aim for as high as possible, then revise our approach as needed. 1. Submit the film to multiple film festivals. 2. Hope to get screened at several of them. 3. Attend the festivals to collect our awards (naturally) and to talk to agents, studios and distributors. 4. If we get an offer, we’ll find an agent to negiotate it for us. 5. If we don’t get an offer we’ll self-distribute via DVD on this website. 6. Or if none of that works, then we’ll just use the film to get hired for other projects or to raise funds for a new documentary. Or we’ll just take a long break from film making and settle down somewhere in the south of France, where I can develop my palate for fine wine and my husband can practice pouring it for me.