12 Tips for Better Film Editing

1. Cut tight – The best editing approach is to cut tight scenes without becoming too “cutty”. This means taking out unnecessary pauses between actors’ delivery of dialogue lines. Sometimes it mean tightening the gaps within dialogue sentences through the use of carefully placed cutaways. It may also mean losing redundant lines of dialogue, after the director has reviewed your cut.

In general, my approach is to start with a cut that is precise from the beginning as opposed to cutting the first pass sloppy and then whittling down from there. Most basic films don’t support audience attentions for lengths over 90 minutes. If your first cut comes in at about 100 minutes, then you can typically get to 90 through further tightening of the cut. On the other hand, if it clocks in at two hours or longer, then major surgery is going to be needed.

2. Temp music – Many editors like working with temporary music as a placeholder. I advise against this for two reasons. First – people tend to fall in love with the temp score and then it’s hard to get real music that feels as good. Second – temp music becomes a crutch. You tend to be more forgiving of a weak scene when there’s interesting music than when the scene is naked. I prefer to cut a strong scene and make it work through editorial solutions. If a scene can stand on its own, then the addition of sound effects and a score will make it that much better. The exception is a visual montage set to music. Here, I tend to do better when I’m cutting to music rather than the other way around.

3. No Dragnet edits – The original Dragnet television series used a certain approach to cutting dialogue scenes. Audio and video edits tended to be made as straight cuts between the actors without any overlaps as they delivered their lines. It followed this formula: cut to actor A – deliver the line; cut to actor B – deliver the line; cut back to actor A and so on. Walter Murch refers to this as the Dragnet-style of editing. Our brains seem to react better to edits where the change in picture and sound is not always together. These are called split edits, L-cuts or J-cuts.

I suppose this more closely mimics real life, where we first hear someone start to talk and then turn our head to see them. Or one person is talking and we look over to our friend to see their reaction before they respond. Editing in a style where images often precede or follow the dialogue edit feel more natural to our minds and make the scene flow more smoothly.

4. Matching action – Matching actors’ hand positions, use of props, eyeline and stage position from one cut to another fall into the technical category of how to make a proper edit. Walter Murch offers a rule of six criteria that form reasons to make a cut at a given instance. The greatest weight is given to whether that cut drives the emotion of the scene or moves the story along. Technical matching is the least important concern. I’m not saying you should throw it out the window, because a mismatch that is too extreme can be very jarring to the audience. On the other hand, as an editor friend often tells me, “Matching is for sissies.” The audience will often ignore many minor continuity differences from one shot to the next if they stay totally engrossed in the story. Your job as the editor is to cut in such as way that they do.

5. Moving camera shots – Moving the camera around is a staple of action sequences. This might be a camera on a dolly, crane, Steadicam or just handheld. In an action scene, this is designed to create a level of tension. When I cut these shots together, I prefer to cut on movement, so that the camera is in constant motion from one shot to the next. Many directors and DP will disagree, preferring instead to start and stop each camera move before making the cut. Both approaches work under the right situations, but my tendency is to cut tighter and not let the audience’s eye rest on the set or a shot or a scene for too long, unless there is a reason to do so.

6. Don’t cut back to the exact same angle – If you have a choice of several camera angles, don’t automatically cut back to the same camera angle or take that you just used in the previous shot. This is, of course, unavoidable in a dialogue scene with only two angles and one take of each; but, if the director shot different takes with different framing, try to use a little of all of them. Don’t get stuck in a cutting rut, like master/single/reverse, master/single/reverse, etc. Mix it up.

7. B-roll shots in threes – When the scene calls for cutaway inserts, it feels right to use three on a row. Not a single shot, not two, but three. These should be at least 1.5-2 seconds long (or longer). An example might be when a character enters the room and looks around. The POV inserts work nicely in triplets and give the audience a good idea of the landscape that the character encounters. It mimics our real-world experience of moving our head around and seeing different aspects of the same surroundings.

8. Cut for the eyes – Actors that do well on TV and in films (as compared with the stage) are all very expressive with their face, but most importantly, their eyes. When I’m cutting an intense dialogue scene, I’m looking at how the actors’ eyes play in the scene. Do they convey the proper emotion? What is the reaction of the other actors in the scene? What the actors are or aren’t doing facially determines my cutting. It drives my decision to stick with the principal actor delivering the dialogue or whether I briefly cut away to see reactions from the others.

9. Pull the air out of actors’ performances – Going back to Item 1 – I like to cut tight. Recognize that many actors will overact. They will milk a scene for more than is appropriate. They will accentuate pauses, add more stumbles and stammers (where scripted) and give lengthy glances. Sometimes this works, but your job as the editor is to dial these back as you cut. Take these pauses out by cutting away and then back. Cut out redundant actions and line deliveries. Make it real, so it doesn’t feel like ACTING.

10. Shaping story – It is said that there are three films: the one that’s scripted, the one that’s been filmed and the one that’s edited. When you cut a feature, pay close attention to the story chronology and don’t be afraid to veer from what was written or filmed if it makes sense to do so. Many editors use note cards on a storyboard wall to create a quick visual representation of the storyline. This helps you make sure that you reveal things to the audience in the most logical order and that nothing is inadvertently edited out of place.

11. Digital aids – Modern NLEs and finishing techniques like digital intermediates offer a lot of tools that aid the filmmaker. For example, digital images are very tolerant of blow-ups. You can add camera zooms or blow-up a shot (creating a wide and a close-up from a single shot) with these tools. This is especially true if you shot on 35mm film or with the RED One camera, because the large image area of the film negative or camera sensor allows more overshoot space than HD cameras. Don’t be afraid to zoom in as long as the image quality holds up.

Many editors talk about using split screens for invisible edits. This is often done when the timing of the performance of two actors (such as in an over-the-shoulder shot or a two-shot) doesn’t quite match on the preferred take. Sometimes the original performance was right, but the pace of the scene has been picked up during the edit and now the timing of the two actors feels slow or late. If the camera is locked off and the overlap of their physical positions in the shot isn’t too complex, it’s a simple matter to create a new OTS shot. This would be a visual effects composite of these two actors with a slight offset in the timing of their performances.

12. Make your choices, but be prepared for others – Your job as the editor is to shape the story and the pacing of the film. First and foremost this means you are there to help the director realize his or her creative vision. But you were also hired for your own best instincts. Most editors finish a first cut without the director sitting over their shoulder. During that time is your initial chance at putting your own stamp on the film. When the first cut is completed, the director and editor work together to refine that cut into the director’s cut.

The choices you make in cutting tightly or altering an actor’s performance all factor into the look and feel of the film. For instance, you can heighten the tension between characters in a scene by cutting their dialogue in a way that one actor overlaps – or steps on – the other actor’s lines. This conveys a level of impatience that might not have been there in the way it was actually filmed. When you make such a choice, it alters the emotion of the scene and should be done only if that serves the story. Of course, you’ll only want to make this sort of edit if you have a logical reason for it, the director agrees with it and you have an alternate solution if the director disagrees.

I like to review the takes and make my own decisions about the best performances. On set, the director might have marked the third and fourth takes (out of four) as “circle takes”. I might actually like the front end of number one as the best way to start the scene, but then end on take four for the back half. I will frequently cut scenes that use a little of each take as I cut back and forth between actors’ dialogue lines. This will create the best composite performance of all the actors in a scene. When you do this, though, you should be prepared to defend what you liked about the choices you’ve made – and be prepared to change the scene back to something else.

Most directors aren’t going to review each and every take in the edit suite. They will react to your cut based on whether or not it works for them and whether or not they like the performances on screen. They will suggest changes and review one or two other takes to see if they really liked a different performance by the actor. The closer a scene is to one that feels polished and conveys the most believable job of acting, the more accepting a director will be of your cut.

Ten Tips For Writing Your Own Movie

1 Watch and learn

It is essential to view as many films as possible, good and bad. The classics are not top of the best-ever lists for nothing, and it is difficult to be original when you don’t know what went before. Working out the structural kink in say Memento or the emotional punch of something like It’s a Wonderful Life cannot fail to inspire your own thought process.

2 Don’t show off

European writers in particular try to make their work look complex and clever. The major skill in screenwriting is making the multifaceted seem simple and accessible. Look at Shrek.

3 Structure

Every script has to have a beginning, middle and an end. Once you remember this you can play with it (see Pulp Fiction, where Tarantino started in the middle, went to the end and then back to the start).

4 The story must have a point

Like it or not, the story has to be about something, with a goal at the end, or it lacks interest (Bertolucci's The Sheltering Sky looked great, but had no real premise). If you can’t describe your story by saying “once upon a time . . .” then maybe there’s no story. A conventional plot will follow someone who has had their status quo interrupted; the drama comes from that person trying to redress the balance.

5 If it’s not 90 minutes then there must be a good reason

Generally speaking, one page of screenplay will take a minute of on-screen time. A movie should be 90 minutes. If your script is over 100 pages there had better be a good reason for it (Ghandi was deserving of three hours; many others are not). Commercially, if you go much above 100 minutes the cinemas will lose one showing a day.

6 Choose your protagonist

Movies should have a protagonist. This can be more than one person (Crash), or even an inanimate object or a place (Fargo). They do not always have to be sympathetic, but they do have to be intriguing.

7 Make an impression

There has to be some suspension of disbelief for a film to work. This is easier for some stories than others but if in doubt, think of Groundhog Day. This was a truly preposterous premise, but logical at every step.

8 Avoid being linear

Movies benefit from having at least two contributory subplots to help vary tone and pace.

9 Be original

These are general guidelines. But you must be true to yourself and your vision. Don’t simply copy others. Good movies stand out because they dare to be different, whether it be the tongue in cheek tone of The Big Lebowski or the reimagining of the Brit gangster flick in Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

10 You’ve either got it or you haven’t

Talent that is. All the courses and screenwriting gurus in the world will not help you if you don’t have aptitude. There is a knack to writing dialogue that doesn’t feel wooden when spoken. So, happy writing!

Tips for Making Your First Film Better

Whether you’re a student or hobbyist, there are some common mistakes made in a filmmaker’s first film. Many students attempt to do too much with an extremely low-budget, short film. Worse yet, students will often make their first film too long.

The same concepts that apply to feature screenplay writing apply to first film projects. The exception is with experimental film, where no rules apply except the creativity of the creator. Most beginners are assigned to tell a story by their instructor or are attempting a short story-telling film. Lets focus on the short story-telling film project.

Short films use the same structure and story telling techniques as longer films. The difference is that turning points and elements such as rising and falling action are quicker. Turning points are when the direction of the story makes a sudden turn. If one exercises the concepts of the popular instructor and writer, Syd Field, then turning points for a five minute film would be at approximately two minutes and four minutes. Most script analysts consider a feature length film’s entire exposition to take up only about two to four inches of a script page spread throughout the script (approximately 25 seconds). Therefore, for a five minute film, there would only be about five seconds worth of exposition. This is a critical factor in student films and is a common mistake. Student films are often filled with exposition such as characters making long speeches about what previously has happened to them. For that reason, students are wise to consider making their first film with no dialogue. Then they might not encounter the problems associated with exposition. Use of exposition is one of the more difficult problems of making films.

Students should first strive to express their story in one short sentence. This is also true for veteran screenplay writers preparing their pitch. Most often that sentence takes hours or days to write. It is an important step, as executives won’t listen to you after hearing that sentence if they don’t like it.

Next, write a paragraph describing your story. One of the greatest problems is that students often don’t have a clear protagonist or antagonist. These are the same problems that experienced screenplay writers have. Writing is always a continual challenge.

Let’s look at shooting. The single most common problem with cinematography on student projects is camera movement. Of course exposure and composition are critical, but badly motivated camera movement is common in student films. Save complex camera moves for later when you’re much more experienced and know when to use them properly. Any camera movement must be unobtrusive and motivated by the action. I’m not suggesting that all shots should be static. Instead, limit your movement and make sure it doesn’t call attention to itself unless it is intentional. No single element (camera, music, acting) should stand out on its own. Conveying your story in a seamless and unobtrusive manner so the audience becomes one with the story is crucial to your filmmaking success.

This is just a brief look at common problems in student films. There are often many other mistakes. Sound out of sync with the speaker and distorted sound often destroy a student film. I’d really like to emphasis again the importance of storytelling. If the student has a clear handle on his story, then the student takes the rest of the process very seriously and does a good first film.

It’s also important to choose the most experienced crew possible. Don’t simply work with friends. Find another student who has worked as cameraman on several other student films so you have someone with experience. Filmmaking is expensive. Be very selective when picking your crew and actors. Always try to surround yourself with crewmembers who are more experienced than yourself. Hopefully they will help save you on this first film project. If you are shooting on film, then spend a lot of time with your lab manager getting advice and help. Sometimes labs have special student rates.

The more time you spend in preparation prior to shooting, the more successful your project will be. Producing is planning and preparation. Get your script critiqued by your instructor or an experienced filmmaker. Put your cameraman together with the film lab manager and discuss what film stock you would be best using. Create storyboards so you and your cameraman have carefully visualized the shooting in advance. Visit your locations with your cameraman and other pertinent crewmembers in advance. Be aware of any power problems that your gaffer might experience. Note whether or not there are any loud ambient sounds at the locations such as it being in the landing pattern for LAX Airport. If your using individuals homes or offices, make sure your arrangements for using them are in writing and the agreement is very clear. Also, make sure you have releases from all the talent or extras that appear on camera. Take extra release forms with you on the shooting day just in case you have to use someone unexpectedly as an extra or cast member. Create breakdown sheets for each scene that includes all the requirements such a personal, props, crew, cast and location needs. Complete a shooting schedule and some alternative schedules in case of rainy days or sick crew or cast. If possible, create a production board for your scheduling.

Most of all expect the unexpected and try to anticipate problems. Spending several days with your actors rehearsing and blocking their movement is invaluable. If you can bring some key crewmembers to rehearsal such as your cameraman and editor, then it may be possible to discover some unforeseen problems. It’s far better to discover them in a rehearsal hall than on location.

These same suggestions apply to feature length professional motion pictures and not just to the beginner. For instance, on shooting days you might want to contact your actors or crewmembers in the early morning to insure they are awake and on the way to the location. Student filmmakers will likely have a voluntary crew. You need to provide superb leadership when you have a free crew. I’ve known students who decided to behave very autocratically to their crew only to have them resign from their free job leaving the beginning filmmaker in tears. Your job is to motivate the crewmembers in a friendly manner and exercise much patience.

These are only a few suggestions for successful first short films. If your film is successful and you enter it into student film competitions and win some awards, then you are very fortunate. Most student films don’t qualify for any competitions. Remember, short films are your first calling card for your potential film career. Future employers at production companies often pay more attention to these films than anything else on your resume. It is truly worth the effort to do an excellent short film if you’re pursuing a career as a filmmaker.

Nine Digital Cinematography Tips

So you know the basics of digital cinematography: medium shots, wide shots, closeups and even extreme closeups. But why do your videos still lack that special zing?

Next time you're watching your favorite TV show or movie, take a look at the camera angles the Director of Photography is using; they're a lot more varied than you probably think. Let's take a look at a few ways better digital cinematography can get your productions out of the doldrums.

1. Get Up High
Shoot from a ladder, a balcony, a window, or even from on top of a chair. This bird's-eye view is a one we're not used to seeing - things look different and exciting - it grabs the viewer's attention. Cooking shows often use shots that look straight down on the action, so that viewers can see over the edge of the cooking pans. It's also a very handy shot for looking at something like a pool game. But why not try an aerial shot of the birthday party or family reunion as well?

2. Get Down Low
To get the camera in a new spot nobody had tried before, wunderkind Orson Welles famously chopped a hole in the floor to fit a camera and tripod at shoelace level. Today's modern video cameras don't require anything so drastic to peer through a mouse hole.
This doesn't just mean lying on the floor and photographing up people's noses. Consider videotaping what a child or pet might see or what goes on under the dinner table. What can you tell about people from their shoes and socks? What's under the sofa? How about putting a camera inside a dresser drawer as someone opens it and puts clothes away? Putting the camera somewhere other than eye level makes you look at the world in a new way.

3. Get Rid of Your Bubble Level
The 1960's vintage Batman TV show and 2000's Battlefield Earth were both famous for having extremely canted horizons and bad acting. While many directors spend a lot of time making sure that their camera is perfectly level, there's no rule that says your horizon can't slope drastically to one side or the other. It can add drama and a sense of forboding in tense scenes and can add interest in action shots during sporting events.

4. Mount It, Move It
Stephen J. Cannell was famous for mounting a camera on the door of the car, about wheel height, to get viewers six inches off the ground in a car chase. Add screeching tire sound effects, and even a twenty-mile-per-hour car chase looks like a scene from The French Connection. You don't have to mount your camera to a car, but how about a skateboard? Or the door of the fridge? Today's tiny camcorders don't require the huge supports of yesterday's huge video cameras; take advantage of this.

5. Steady as She Goes!
Steadicams are brand-name stabilizer devices with counterweights which make handheld camera movements smooth. The originals weighed a lot and had to be mounted to the operator with a brace, and the operator had to be trained and licensed in its use. New consumer versions weigh only a few pounds, and you can carry them with one hand. Try a stabilizer shot moving through dancers at a wedding or following the running dog at a park.

6. Spin It Around
Who says a camera has to look in one direction all the time? Try putting your camera on a rotating device like a lazy susan to pan back and forth between two characters in a dinner scene. Just don't go crazy and make your viewer nauseous!

7. Use a Crane
Crane shots add a whole new level of sophistication to your shoots. They can cost thousands of dollars, but there are also low-cost alternatives. Cranes like the Cobra Crane (www.cobracrane.com) start at just a few hundred dollars and use your existing tripod as a fulcrum. You could also use a camera strapped tightly to a monopod, or try making your own crane out of a sling securely fastened to the end of a long pole.

8. Point of View
We sometimes call a point-of-view shot a "first-person shot" or abbreviate it as "POV." It is the camera shot we see very often in home videos, where the camera operator is holding the camera at eye level and walking about. But you can also effectively use POV shots to show what the Sasquatch sees as it creeps through the quiet camp at night.
Steven Spielberg used POV shots effectively in Jaws to show us what the shark was seeing. This added an element of excitement, as the audience wondered which of those tasty swimmers would be eaten. It also allowed him to show that the shark was in the scene without actually showing it, which he didn't want to do, not only for budgetary reasons, but also to keep the viewers in suspense.

9. Put Your Camera Inside Something
"Hidden camera" shots by undercover journalists often use cameras placed inside purses or boxes to catch people unaware. Allen Funt made a career with Candid Camera by hiding cameras in plants or in coat closets and playing practical jokes on people.
YouTube and a spate of new reality TV shows have taken this a step further (very often taking an unabashed leap from the realm of questionable to complete bad taste). Spying on people while putting them into increasingly unbelievable situations has become de rigueur at this point. But you can also put your camera in a paper bag and rattle it for a first-hand account of the last thing a mouse sees as your cat charges across the floor to attack.

Asian Film Making

The 21st century Hollywood should be seeing more of Asian-themed films. This is not to clearly mention an understatement that Asian films has went on unnoticed for several years in the United States but slowly at present Asian film making has finally attracted the credit it deserves in mainstream media.

Kudos should go to the predecessors of Asian film making and for their incessant hard work in getting Western film outfits to look at the East for some film making lessons. Thanks to them, the new generation of Asian film makers and actors has found the industry to be more open to Asian stories and roles.

The works of Ang Lee, Ken Watanabe, Jackie Chan and John Woo should be recognized for paving the way for the Western market to adapt some very Asian aspect in film making—its loyalty to art and storytelling.

Asian films are not just about promoting the actors who lent their faces to the characters, which in most cases are what Hollywood films are all about. In Asia, first comes the story and how it weaves many other facets of art—dance, poetry, songs and martial arts.

Asian movies are usually elaborate in detail because every piece of it is important to bring to life a beautiful story. Remember the production design for Memoirs of a Geisha? Nothing was compromised in the case of the set design, costumes and acting. Because of this, it became one of those films that outdone the book version.

While most Asian movies are known to be intricate, there are many who also rely on the effortlessness of how the stories are being told. One of the world’s scariest movies to date, The Ring, held a pretty simple plot—the ghosts of a past that continues to hound the future. The original Sassy Girl movie may seem like a light comedy at the first look but deep into the movie, you see a simple love story made poignant by the easy way the actors portrayed their parts.

Both of these movies have Hollywood adaptations and the adaptations clearly did not do justice to the original stories. One of the underlying reasons behind this is because both movies, when made in its original sense, have relied heavily on some cultural oddities that made the film sensible.

Worthy of mention are also some Hollywood films that refused to take on true Asian actors to portray the roles of Asian characters for fear that the market will refuse to see them. What tops the list would be the movie 21. But the backlash that 21 received has become an eye opener to American production houses.

So if there is so much that Hollywood can learn from Asian moviemakers, it would have to be the fact that nothing else breaks the movie for its unfaithfulness to a culture Asian or not. If the story will call for it—character, location, culture, costumes or traditions—better deliver whatever comes close to authenticity. Besides, it is never a good idea to shortchange the moviegoer.

Low Budget Films Are Not Hard to Make

When something is done on a shoestring budget, people's impression could be that it would be unsuccessful or it would be done in such a tedious manner. This is apparently because of the concept that money is like grease; it lessens the friction and it makes motion much smoother. This could be true in a lot of ways but not so much in film-making. In fact, big-budgeted films are more epic in nature and are therefore more difficult to produce. With low-budgeted films, however, film-maker is less pressured to come up with a product that is worth all the investments poured into it.

If you are the film-maker yourself, you would find out that not being tied to the high expectations of the investors or the studios allow you to concentrate more on your craft or your art. Therefore, your focus would be on the creation of a really good film, regardless of the small budget it may have. Big budgets after all are synonymous with special effects, box-office artists, and exotic locations. As a movie buff first and a director second, you should be able to tell that those are not the ingredients to make a really good film.

Work always based on what you have; this is a golden rule that you should follow as a newbie filmmaker. This means that you should not go out buying hi-tech cameras and stuff that you think you would need. Besides, if you are ambitious enough to buy these things you may just have in mind the reason why other newbie filmmakers fail: the unwise decision to compete with the more established names in the industry. Do not go into that yet, at least for now when you are still trying to make a name. You must have seen how those indie films gathered praises despite the fact that many of these were just made with a simple digital camera. Emulate the filmmakers of these low-budget masterpieces, not Steven Spielberg or George Lucas.

You may be tempted to hire professional actors and actresses to compose your cast. Sure, if they are popular already, they would certainly be money-makers too. But then, this would also require you to invest much more in the project. These artists would just give you a cold shoulder once they find out that you could not even afford a quarter of their talent fees. Why not hire amateurs? Believe it or not, there are still so many undiscovered talents out there waiting for an opportunity like the one that you have.

It is obvious that making a low-budget film is really easy as long as you develop the right mindset first. Think of it as basketball, if you aim too high you overshoot the ring or even the board. If you aim too low, the ball may not even touch the rim. But when you make the shot, nobody would tell you that you aimed just right. They would just say that you hit well. In filmmaking, nobody would say you are spending too big or too small; what matters is the quality of the film.

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Special Film Making Techniques

Film making is a type of entertainment and it takes place in all places of the world featuring all aspects of the real life stories like political, economical, love stories, and social. The objective of film making, is to come up to an idea on how to make an attractive and compelling for the audience to watch the movie, from the selection of a good story through script writing, shooting, directing then do some final editing after the film is done, and finally it will be distributed to the different cinema to the all different possible places for the audience.

Typically, film making is referred to as movies and as part of entertainment industry, which involves many personalities with corresponding talents and abilities. It usually takes from few months to several years to make one film. The period of making the film depends upon the kind of story. There is one longest film making recorded in this industry, which took 28 years in the making, "The Thief and the Cobbler".

Nowadays, there is a stiff competition between producers and directors on how to make very convincing movies in order to attract more audience. More audience to watch the movies means more profits to come. For this reason, the film makers use variety of techniques and high technologies. The purpose of these special effects is to make the movies more exciting and thrilling.

To compare the old movies before and now is very much different in terms of stories, special effects, and the cinematography. Here are some special effects which will augment the reality of the stories in the movies.

- The use of lighting effect is very necessary to portray the desired shot. It has great influence to give the meaning of a certain shot. Lights could be very bright if it wants to emphasize a scene or dimmer light for some creepy scenes.

- Making smoke is another effect which could do drama and create illusions on the scenes. And the making smoke for the movie effect can be done by using the traditional fog machine, or the use of dry ice, or some use mosquito smokers.

- If the movie needs blood effect, the movie blood is made of mixture of either hypoallergenic clothing detergent with red, yellow and green food coloring with kyro syrup. The one will make this kind of effect must choose the natural products that will not harm the actors to prevent accidents.

- An explosion effect is very common to action movies, usually it is created through the use of gasoline and match, but it is found not safe to the film makers and the actors. The safe way and modern way of making the explosion effects is the digital explosion, it is a high tech which makes the big bang to a film more realistic.

- In horror movies, fake heads are used as a prop and this is only made out of gelatin, latex or silicone and molded the actor's face.

In film making it is supposed to be the responsibilities of the producers, directors, and the writers to make it morally good that can affect the person's life. The desire of the authors in the film making is to make the special effects and to control the presentation of the story, but now the author has no longer the complete control of the story, but must share control with the viewer.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6340883

Filmmaking Technical crew

A film crew or Fimmaking Technical Crw is a group of people hired by a production company for the purpose of producing a film or motion picture. Crew are distinguished from cast, the actors who appear in front of the camera or provide voices for characters in the film. Crew are also separate from producers, those who own a portion of either the film company or the film's intellectual property rights. A film crew is divided into different departments, each of which specializes in a specific aspect of the production.

Production
“Production” is generally not considered a department as such, but rather as a series of functional groups. These include the "front office" staff such as the Production Manager, the Production Coordinator, and their assistants; the accounting staff; the various Assistant Directors; and sometimes the Locations Manager and his or her assistants. The Director is considered to be a separate entity, not within the departmental structure.
Executive Producer is usually an investor in the project or just a credit that the filmmaker gave to someone who paid for the credit. You can have as many executive producers as you want but generally keep it to a minimum.

Producer
A film producer creates the conditions for making movies. The producer initiates, coordinates, supervises and controls matters such as raising funding, hiring key personnel, and arranging for distributors. The producer is involved throughout all phases of the filmmaking process from development to completion of a project.

Production Manager
The production manager supervises the physical aspects of the production (not the creative aspects) including personnel, technology, budget, and scheduling. It is the production manager's responsibility to make sure the filming stays on schedule and within its budget. The PM also helps manage the day-to-day budget by managing operating costs such as salaries, production costs, and everyday equipment rental costs. The PM often works under the supervision of a line producer and directly supervises the Production Coordinator.

Unit Manager
The unit manager fulfills the same role as the production manager but for secondary "unit" shooting. In some functional structures, the unit manager subsumes the role of the Transport Coordinator.

Production Coordinator
The Production Coordinator is the information nexus of the production, responsible for organizing all the logistics from hiring crew, renting equipment, and booking talent. The PC is an integral part of film production.

Film Director
The director is responsible for overseeing the creative aspects of a film, including controlling the content and flow of the film's plot, directing the performances of actors, organizing and selecting the locations in which the film will be shot, and managing technical details such as the positioning of cameras, the use of lighting, and the timing and content of the film's soundtrack. Though the director wields a great deal of power, he or she is ultimately subordinate to the film's producer or producers. Some directors, especially more established ones, take on many of the roles of a producer, and the distinction between the two roles is sometimes blurred.

First Assistant Director
The first assistant director (1st AD) assists the production manager and director. The ultimate aim of any 1st AD is to ensure the film comes in on schedule while maintaining a working environment in which the director, principal artists (actors) and crew can be focussed on their work. He or she is in charge of overseeing the day-to-day management of the cast and crew scheduling, equipment, script, and set. A 1st AD may also be responsible for directing background action for major shots or the entirety of relatively minor shots, at the director's discretion.

Second Assistant Director
The second assistant director (2nd AD) is the chief assistant of the 1st AD and helps carry out those tasks delegated to the 1st AD. The 2nd AD may also direct background action and extras in addition to helping the 1st AD with scheduling, booking, etc. The 2nd AD is responsible for creating Call Sheets that let the crew know the schedule and important details about the shooting day. In Canadian and British functional structures there are 3rd ADs and even Trainee ADs; in the American system there are 2nd 2nd ADs.

Production Assistant
A production assistant assists the first assistant director with set operations. Production assistants, almost always referred to as PAs, also assist in the production office with general tasks.

Script Supervisor
Also known as the "continuity person", the script supervisor keeps track of what parts of the script have been filmed and makes notes of any deviations between what was actually filmed and what appeared in the script. He or she makes notes on every shot, also keeping track of props, blocking, and other details to ensure that continuity is maintained from shot to shot, and from scene to scene. The Script Supervisor's notes are given to the Editor to expedite the editing process. The script supervisor works very closely with the director on set.

Stunt Coordinator
Where the film requires a stunt, and involves the use of stunt performers, the stunt coordinator will arrange the casting and performance of the stunt, working closely with the director.

Art Department
The Art Department in a major feature film can often number hundreds of people. Usually it is considered to include several sub-departments: the art department proper, with its art director, set designers and draughtsmen; sets, under the set decorator; props, under the propmaster; construction, headed by the construction coordinator; scenic, headed by the key scenic artist; and special effects.

Production Designer
A production designer is responsible for creating the physical, visual appearance of the film - settings, costumes, properties, character makeup, all taken as a unit. The production designer works closely with the director and the cinematographer to achieve the 'look' of the film.

Art
Within the overall Art Department is a sub-department, called the Art Department, which can be confusing. This consists of the people who design the sets and create the graphic art.

Art Director
The art director reports to the production designer, and more directly oversees artists and craftspeople, such as the set designer and set decorator, who carry out the production design.

Assistant art director
The first, second and third assistant art directors carry out the instructions of the art director. Their work often involves measuring locations, creating graphics and paper props, collecting information for the production designer and drawing sets. Sometimes a set designer is also the first assistant art director; in this capacity, he or she manages the work flow and acts as the 'foreman' of the drawing office.

Set Designer
The set designer is the draftsman, often an architect, who realizes the structures or interior spaces called for by the production designer.

Illustrator
The illustrator illustrates visual representations of the designs to communicate the ideas imagined by the production designer.

Sets
Set Decorator
The set decorator is in charge of the decorating of a film set, which includes the furnishings and all the other objects that will be seen in the film. He works closely with the production designer and coordinates with the art director. In recognition of the set decorator's importance, the Academy Award for Art Direction is given jointly to both the production designer and the set decorator.

Buyer
The buyer is the number two person in the set department below the set decorator. The buyer locates, and then purchases or rents the set dressing.

Set Dresser
The set dressers apply and remove the "dressing," i.e., furniture, drapery, carpets—everything one would find in a location, even doorknobs and wall sockets. Most of the swing gang's work occurs before and after the shooting crew arrives but one set dresser remains with the shooting crew and is known as the on-set dresser. In some countries, such as England and Ireland, the set dressing department is referred to as dressing props department.

Props
Props Master
The property master, more commonly known as the props master, is in charge of finding and managing all the props that appear in the film. The propsmaster usually has several assistants.

Props builder
The props builder, or more frequently propmaker, as the name implies, builds the props that are used for the film. Props builders are often technicians skilled in construction, plastics casting, machining, and electronics.

Armourer
The armourer is a specialized props technician who deals with firearms. In most jurisdictions this requires special training and licenses.

Construction
Construction Coordinator
The construction coordinator oversees the construction of all the sets. The coordinator orders materials, schedules the work, and supervises the often sizeable construction crew of carpenters, painters and labourers. In some jurisdictions the construction coordinator is called the construction manager.

Head Carpenter
The head carpenter is the foreman of a "gang" of carpenters and laborers.

Scenic
Key Scenic
The key scenic artist is responsible for the surface treatments of the sets. This includes special paint treatments such as aging and gilding, as well as simulating the appearance of wood, stone, brick, metal, stained glass--anything called for by the production designer. The key scenic artist supervises the crew of painters, and is often a master craftsperson.

Greens
Greensman
The greensman is a specialised set dresser dealing with the artistic arrangement or landscape design of plant material, sometimes real and sometimes artificial, and usually a combination of both. Depending on the scope of the greens work in a film, the greensman may report to the art director or may report directly to the production designer. If a significant amount of greens work is required in a film, then the Greens may be an identifiable sub-department, with its own team - often of a size numbering double figures - and hierarchy (eg. Greensmaster, Greens Supervisor, Foreperson, Leading Hand, Laborers). Specialists from other areas of the Art Dept. (eg. Fabricators, Sculptors, Painters/Scenics) may also be drafted to work exclusively on Greens.

Hair and make-up
Make-up Artist
Make-up artists are beauticians that apply makeup to anyone appearing on screen. They concentrate on the area above the chest, the face, the top of the head, the fingers, hands, arms, and elbows. Their role is to manipulate an actors on screen appearance whether it makes them look more youthful, larger, older, or in some cases monstrous. There are also body makeup artist who concentrate their abilities on the body rather than the head.

Hairdresser
The hair stylist is responsible for maintaining and styling the hair of anyone appearing on screen. He or she works in conjunction with the makeup artist.

Wardrobe
Costume Designer
The costume designer is responsible for all the clothing and costumes worn by all the actors that appear on screen. He or she is also responsible for designing, planning, and organizing the construction of the garments down to the fabric, colors, and sizes. The costume designer works closely with the director to understand and interpret "character," and counsels with the production designer to achieve an overall tone of the film.

Costume Supervisor
The Costume Supervisor works closely with the designer. In addition to helping with the design of the costumes, the he or she manages the wardrobe workspace. He or she is responsible for supervising the construction or sourcing of garments, the hiring and firing of support staff, the budget, paperwork, and department logistics.

Key Costumer
The Key Costumer is employed on larger productions to manage the set costumers, and to handle the Star's wardrobe needs.

Costume Standby
The Costume Standby is present on set at all times. It is his/her responsibility to monitor the quality and continuity of the actors and actresses costumes before and during takes. (S)he will also assist the actors and actresses with dressing. This person is also known as a 'set costumer'.

Art Finisher
An Art Finisher may be employed during the pre-production stage to "break down" garments. This specialised job includes making new clothing appear dirty, faded and worn. They are also known as breakdown artists.

Buyer
On large productions a Buyer may be employed to source and purchase fabrics and garments. A buyer might also be referred to as a shopper. This distinction is often made when the lead actor in a production has control over their wardrobe, and they may personally hire this person.

Cutter/Fitter
A costume technician who fits or tailors costumes, usually on-set. They can also be called cutters, seamstresses or tailors. Some celebrity actors have favorite cutters, and larger productions may hire several and have them on set at the same time, particularly in period film projects that might have complicated or extremely expensive extras wardrobe.

Camera
Director of Photography
The director of photography is the chief of the camera and lighting crew of the film. The DP makes decisions on lighting and framing of scenes in conjunction with the film's director. Typically, the director tells the DP how he or she wants a shot to look, and the DP then chooses the correct aperture, filter, and lighting to achieve the desired effect.

Cinematographer
The term cinematographer has been a point of contention for some time now. It is usually synonymous with "director of photography," though some professionals insist that it only applies when the director of photography and camera operator are the same person.

Camera Operator
The camera operator uses the camera at the direction of the cinematographer, director of photography, or the film director to capture the scenes on film. Generally, a cinematographer or director of photography does not operate the camera, but sometimes these jobs may be combined.

First Assistant Camera (Focus Puller)
The first assistant camera (1st AC) is responsible for keeping the camera in focus as it is shooting.

Second Assistant Camera (Clapper Loader)
The second assistant camera (2nd AC) operates the clapperboard at the beginning of each take and loads the raw film stock into the camera magazines between takes, if there is no additional specifically desiginated film loader. The 2nd AC is also in charge of overseeing the meticulously kept notebooks that records when the film stock is received, used, and sent to the lab for processing. Additionally, the 2nd AC oversees organization of camera equipment and transport of the equipment from one shooting location to another.

Loader
The loader is the designated film loader. He transfers motion picture film from the manufacturer's light-tight canisters to the camera magazines for attachment to the camera by the 2nd AC. After exposure during filming, the loader then removes the film from the magazines and places it back into the light-tight cans for transport to the laboratory. It is the responsibility of the loader to manage the inventory of film and communicate with the 1st AC on the film usage and remaining stock throughout the day. On small production crews, this job is often combined with the 2nd AC. With the prevalence of digital photography, this position is often eliminated.

Camera Production Assistant (camera intern)
Usually a volunteer or trainee in the camera department, the camera PA assists the crew with menial details while learning the trade of the camera assistant, operator or cinematographer.

Digital Imaging Technician ("DIT")
On digital photography productions the digital imaging technician is responsible for the coordination of the internal workings of the digital camera. Under the direction of the cinematographer or director of photography, the DIT will make adjustments to the multitude of variables available in most professional digital cameras to creatively or technically manipulate the resulting image.

Steadicam operator
A Steadicam operator is someone who is skilled at operating a Steadicam rig (the genericized trademark for a camera stabilization rig).

Motion Control Technician/Operator
This technician operates a motion control rig, which is essentially a 'camera robot' that is able to consistently repeat camera moves for special effects use. Motion control rigs are typically rented with an experienced operator.

Production Sound
Production Sound Mixer
The production sound mixer is head of the sound department on set, responsible for recording all sound during filming. This involves the choice and deployment of microphones, operation of a sound recording device, and sometimes the mixing of audio signals in real time.

Boom Operator
The boom operator is an assistant to the production sound mixer, responsible for microphone placement and movement during filming. The boom operator uses a boom pole, a long, special piece of equipment made from light aluminum or carbon fiber, that allows precise positioning of the microphone above or below the actors, just out of the camera's frame. As well as the Placement of Radio Mics and other Microphones 'Hidden' on set. In France, the boom operator is known as the perchman.

Utility Sound Technician
The utility sound technician has a dynamic role in the sound department, most typically pulling cables, but often acting as an additional boom operator or mixer when required by complex filming circumstances. Not all films employ a utility sound technician, but the increasing complexities of location sound recording in modern film have made the job more prevalent. This role is sometimes credited as "cable man" or "python wrangler."

Grip
Grips are trained lighting and rigging technicians. The main responsibilities of a grip are to work closely with the electrical department to put in the lighting set-ups necessary for a shot. On the sound stage, they are responsible for moving and adjusting major set pieces when something needs to be moved to get a camera into position. They may belong to the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.

Key grip
The key grip is the chief grip on a set, and is the head of the set operations department. The key grip works with the director of photography to help set up the set and to achieve the correct lighting and blocking.

Best boy (Grip)
The best boy grip is the chief assistant to the key grip. They are also responsible for organizing the grip truck through out the day.

Dolly grip
The grip in charge of operating the camera dolly is called the dolly grip. He/she places, levels, and moves the dolly track, then pushes and pulls the dolly and usually a camera operator and camera assistant as riders.

Electrical
Gaffer
The gaffer is the head of the electrical department, responsible for the design and execution of the lighting plan for a production. Sometimes the gaffer is credited as "Chief Lighting Technician".

Best boy (Electrical)
The best boy electric is the chief assistant to the gaffer.

Lighting Technician
Lighting technicians are involved with setting up and controlling lighting equipment.

Editorial
Film Editor
The film editor is the person who assembles the various shots into a coherent film, with the help of the director. Film editors may belong to the American Cinema Editors (A.C.E.)

Colorist
With a photochemical process, the color timer adjusts the color of the film via printer lights for greater consistency in the film's colors. With a digital intermediate process, the colorist can use digital tools in manipulating the image and has greater creative freedom in changing the aesthetic of a film.

Negative Cutter
The negative cutter cuts and splices the negatives as directed by the film editor, and then provide the assembled negative reels to the lab in order for prints (positives for projection) to be made.

Visual Effects
Visual Effects Supervisor
The visual effects supervisor is in charge of the visual effects department. Visual effects refer to post-production alterations to the film's images. They are not to be confused with special effects, which are done during production (on set).

Compositor
A compositor is a visual effects artist responsible for compositing images from different sources such as video, film, computer generated 3-D imagery, 2-D animations, matte paintings, photographs, and text.

Inferno, Flame
These artists operate an Inferno or Flame visual effects system. These systems are manufactured by Discreet (now a division of Autodesk).

Roto, paint
These artists may rotoscope the footage, manually creating mattes for use in compositing. They may also paint visual information into or out of a scene, such removing wires and rigs, logos, dust busting, scratch removal, etc.

Matte Painter
These artists draw/paint entire sets or extend portions of an existing set.

Sound/Music
Sound Designer
The sound designer, or "supervising sound editor", is in charge of the post-production sound of a movie. Sometimes this may involve great creative license, and other times it may simply mean working with the director and editor to balance the sound to their liking.

Dialogue Editor
Responsible for assembling and editing all the dialog in the soundtrack.

Sound Editor
Responsible for assembling and editing all the sound effects in the soundtrack.

Re-recording Mixer
Balances all of the sounds prepared by the dialogue, music and effects editors, and finalizes the films audio track.

Music Supervisor
The music supervisor, or "music director", works with composer, mixers and editors to create and integrate the film's music. In Hollywood, a music supervisor's primary responsibility is to act as liaison between the film production and the recording industry, negotiating the use rights for all source music used in a film.

Composer
The composer is responsible for writing the musical score for a film.

Foley Artist
The foley artist is the person who creates and records many of the sound effects for a film.

Tips to Consider for Beginners in Filmmaking

Film making is very hard but not impossible. With the advent of YouTube and similar posting sites, anyone can create a masterpiece and offer it to the world. Let’s start small though with a five minute original. So what do you need?

A Plot – A good story is not necessarily blood guts and gore; it can be a heartfelt story that means something to you. A documentary, fiction, drama, any subject matter is relevant as long as it is a story that you truly believe needs to be told. Where do all the socks go?

A Script – Now a plot and a script are two diverse beasts. A script is a recipe as to how the plot will unfold. Make it detailed. Know how you will impart the plot. This may be through actors interacting between themselves and the environment; you may use imagery or simply film events as they occur. Whatever your method know exactly what you are expecting, your intentions and realistic expected results.

Equipment and Resources – You don’t have to be paramount studios to shoot footage but having good quality basics will be reflected in the product you produce. Sound and lighting are usually the areas that are paid the least amount of attention and these are the two major areas that will let your production down. Don’t buy, hire! Most equipment these days comes with a training DVD or you can you tube how to use the equipment for your shoot. You can also post advertisements on appropriate sites seeking technicians with equipment who may work for credits, kudos or in some cases.

Cameras – Who is your audience and where are you screening your five minute wonder? If your intention is to screen your epic in a studio, then film with a studio quality camera. If your sites are lower, then so will be your camera. There are exceptions to camera and equipment quality, sometimes the content of a film can be so watchable that it eclipses any quality issues that the viewer might have.

You will need to splice your movie together. Most computers come with preloaded software that will enable you to put a rudimentary film together or you can download trial software. Just keep in mind, crawl before you walk, and walk before you run screaming full tilt down a mountain waving your arms.

Filmmaking-Stages and Techniques

On watching a film, most of us tend to get involved with the character and the story of the film. A film is produced by recording images through camera or by creating images through various animation techniques.

Steps involved in film making in Vancouver:
1. Film making starts with the preparation of concept for the film. A concept or an idea is considered to be the foundation over which the story (building) needs to be developed.
2. After fixing a concept in your mind, you have to develop the story by writing script with dialogues. The story shall be depicted in pictorial forms (using diagrams and pictures), so that each and every scene can be communicated easily to the crew members.
3. Now with your script, you have to seek the help of certain companies to finance for your film. The company shall decide to finance for the movie after listening to the script. Then select the persons to play specific characters in your movie (be focused while selecting the cast and crew members for the film).
4. Look out for locations. Location should suit the particular scene.
5. Schedule the timings for each and every scene and organize them. Giving away the call sheets.
6. There are various costly equipments available in Vancouver and BC, and the equipments for film making can be selected based on the budget of the film.

To begin your career as a film maker in Vancouver, it is necessary to get trained in some film school which teaches your valuable techniques in film making. Only, when you get proper training, it is possible for you to survive in this field. This is one field which keeps developing day by day and there is no recession for this industry, wherever they go, they could survive. This field offers you with a variety of jobs. Making a film is not a simple one, it includes screenwriting, producing, directing, acting, editing and so on. The film school offers many diploma and certificate courses in filmmaking.

The following are the stages in filmmaking:
1. Development
2. Pre-production
3. Production
4. Post-production
5. Distribution

Is filmmaking an income or expenditure?
- Making a film require lots of efforts, here a huge amount of money is spent and the films are taken with a hope, that it might fetch more profit In the future.
- People give good response to nice story. On the whole, filmmaking is a beneficial one.
- Altogether, expending in the present might fetch you more profit in the future.

Act 2 & 3: The Middle & End

Continuing the direction of your film

2. The Middle

The middle of the script is the real meat and potatoes of the story. It is also the hardest part to write and the part where audience members become most bored if the script isn't written properly. This is because you need to be aware of many new components of story writing, pace and momentum to conflict, story logic and the importance of subplots which help provide another dimension to the script. The middle is complex and also the longest part of the story usually ranging from 45 minutes to 1 hour.

3. The Ending

The ending is the last part of the 3 act structure and is a critical part of the script. The 3rd act is where everything comes together. In this section the answer to the question raised in the first act will be answered and the protagonist will usually prevail (audiences tend to like happy endings). However, there are also many complexities in structuring the 3rd act as it tends to be the most dramatic, most changing and has the quickest pace out of all of the acts.

Act 1: The Beginning

Starting the direction of your film

The beginning of the story (act 1) includes the set up. This section will introduce the style of the film, the theme and the main characters. The set up is the section of the script which develops the spine or direction of the film. The beginning tells us the most important information about what the film is going to be about. It will immediately let us know if the film will be a drama or comedy, where it will be located, and who the characters are going to be.

The beginning or "set up" can consist of different scenes as it works its way towards the second act. Often, starting the 1st act with an image is the best way to set the stage for the rest of your film. Films that start with character dialog can often be hard to follow as it lacks the rapid editing or montage ability that images can provide to establish some important facts quickly.

For instance, in the example of the mother and daughter script mentioned above, the story starts out with visual images of an old dilapidated city. The camera then moves in and explores the streets of this impoverished neighborhood. We see the clothes the people are wearing and the things they are doing and we immediately form judgments. Secondly, there is usually music playing underneath this initial set of images which help set the mood. At this point you can almost immediately get a feel for the type of cinematography of the film. Are cranes involved in sweeping the camera around for a dramatic visual effect or is the camera static and focusing more on human behavior or colors? Alternatively maybe the camera is more interested in capturing a certain type of behavior. The first part of your film will be responsible for setting the "tone" the film will take on. The viewers will get accustomed to the music, the look of the moving images, the style of cinematography, the setting and so on.

Regardless of what's happening these initial images help us form almost immediate judgments about the film and what it's going to be about. Setting the stage so quickly would be hard through dialog which is why an image sequence is often used at the beginning of a screenplay.

The set up is usually about 15 pages (for feature films) and takes up the first half of act 1. Remember that 1 page of screenplay equals approximately 1 minute of screen time. This means your script will need to be no less than 90 pages in order to be a feature film. Most feature length scripts are between 90 pages and 120 pages in length.

Within the set up of act 1, the theme of the film will be introduced. It may take some time to fully develop the theme, but it should be introduced early on and you should be as clear about the main theme as possible.

The first act is really an introductory act. It's an opportunity for you to educate your audience about the film and introduce them to your main characters. The first section of your screenplay is usually fairly fast paced as you try to introduce many people and ideas into the story in a fairly short period of time. You must be careful however not to seem rushed or glance over important ideas or themes. During your first act you are also attempting to establish a close relationship between your characters and your audience. If you have a likable character in your film, you should try to get your audience to start liking him or her in your first act.

The first 10 pages

It is worth mentioning that the first 10 pages of your 1st act are extremely important. If you've submitted your script to an agent or a producer, they often don't get passed the first ten pages. They expect to learn a lot about your story in this time. They will want your script to have established the characters, genre, setting and circumstances and they will judge it very closely to see if the script is going to "work".

These expectations are why you should insert an inciting incident or catalyst into your first 10 pages. This incident will propel your story forward. This incident pushes your characters down the main path of your story (plot). It could be two adventurers setting off on a road trip that will become their story. Alternatively it could be a bombing of a city. Whatever you choose your catalyst to be, it should take place within these first 10 pages.



The catalyst is the event that causes the story to gain momentum. The catalyst is the first point which moves the plot forward in some way. A catalyst of a script could be an action, a situation or an event. For example, catalysts for the story of the mother and daughter could be the mother receiving a knock on the door from social services as they explain to her how they will be taking her daughter away due to child neglect. At this point, the audience will assume that this catalyst will now set the story in motion. Will the mother go after her daughter over the upcoming months to bring her home? Will it take many years to happen? Will the story be about the daughter's new life in a foster home? It could go any direction, but the bottom line is that it needs to go in some forward moving direction.

At this point Act 1 is almost complete. However, there are still a few missing ingredients needed to complete a successful first act. An important objective of the first act is to expose the main question of the film. Although the answer to this question will remain a mystery for some time, it must be posed in the first act. The question will be answered (usually in a positive way) near the end of the film during the climax.

In continuing with the story of the mother and daughter, any of the following questions could be raised:

1. Will the mother get her daughter back?
2. Will the daughter be able to fend for herself in her new (possibly bad) home environment?
3. Will the daughter be able to reunite her mother once she grows up?

Obviously Act 1 needs to set the stage with all the necessary information to allow us to wonder which question is being asked. For example, maybe the main thrust of the story doesn't have to do with the mother / daughter relationship at all. Maybe the screenwriter conveyed the Mother as a really bad parent so we as the audience don't want to see the mother and daughter reunited. Maybe the focus of the introductory sequence is on the innocence of the daughter. In the first act the screenwriter could have introduced the social workers who will be taking care of this young innocent girl. The social workers could be cruel or very stern which is in contrast to the young girl's innocent yet bubbly attitude. The question raised would then be "how will this young, innocent and bubbly girl make out with all of this negativity around her?"

Once you have posed the question, you need to continue showing your characters in action. Acquaint the audience with their mannerisms, voice, back-story or any other information you need to help orient the audience to the story. Don't wait until your second act to start.

First plot point

Your first plot point will take place after your "catalyst" or "inciting incident" which set the story in motion. However, now that your story has been set in motion you need to keep that momentum. This is the main role of your first plot point. This plot point often moves your story in a slightly new direction but ensure that your story stays on track. The role of the first plot point is to provide a catalyst to help move your story into the second act, therefore your first plot point should occur at the end of your first act.

Continuing with the example above, following the loss of her child to social services, the 1st plot point could be the mother cleaning up her life and then going to Child Services only to find that there are no records of her daughter ever being taken from her. This throws a twist into the story and propels the action into the second act. Now the mother must figure out if this is a government conspiracy or if the people who showed up at her door to take her daughter were not government workers at all and the action begins.

Once this is all done, you can start your second act.

In summary of Act 1.

1. Start with images
2. Introduce your theme & characters
3. Introduce your catalyst around page 10
4. Pose your central question
5. Insert your 1st plot point to give your story momentum into act 2
6. Ensure Act 1 is about 15- 30 minutes.

The 5 major components of a screenplay

A screenplay can be divided into 5 major components:

1. Storyline
2. Characters
3. Theme
4. Images
5. Dialogue

Many people misunderstand the role of screenwriters. They assume that a screenwriter's only role is to create conversations between characters. However, this is far too simplified a view of what screenwriters do. Screenwriters first need to establish their ideas and create a general theme to their ideas. They then need to visualize where it will happen and work these visual elements into the script as well. Screenwriting is in fact a very visual process and much of the images, while manipulated by the film director and director of photography, are initially established by the screenwriter. Similarly, while screenwriters do create dialog between characters, this dialog is much more than simple conversation. This dialog helps the story progress, develops character depth and allows audience members to connect with characters on an emotional level.

To make a long story short, if there is no screenwriter, there is no film. This is often why there is jealously directed toward screenwriters within the industry. The screenwriters are the people with the ideas, they are the people who indirectly employ the producers, directors and actors of the film. They often have such clarity of vision for how their script should look on screen that they often work closely with directors to come up with a cohesive story board which brings the script from the page to the screen.

That being said, because the writer often has such clarity, they are also often kept off the set. The director doesn't want to be told how to direct just as the actors don't want to know about the writer's interpretation of the text. People will want the creative freedom to interpret the writer's script how they see fit. The result is often not what the writer imaged at all, while at other times the team of actors, directors and producers manage to capture the true essence of the writer's intentions. Similarly a truly brilliant film can be made from a director's loose interpretation of a script. There is not just one right way to interpret a script. Often the writer's vision will come second to a director's more ambitious and / or creative view of the writing.

That is why they say that a script is never "written"; instead a script is "re-written". This means that when you submit your script to your agent, they will often come back to you with some suggestions for change, then once you finally get it on a producer's desk, they too will want to put their signature elements into your script. Next you'll have actors wanting to change lines to fit their own personal styles. Seeing your script worked and reworked can be a very disturbing process. Every word you put into the script was well thought out and now these strangers are going through it and changing entire sections. However, as a writer you also want to try and ensure your main vision for the film stays intact. You can do this by creating very simple documents which outline the main purpose of your film. You can create both treatments and outlines so that everyone can always refer back to these documents to make sure that script changes are not altering the overall look and feel of the film concept. Let's begin by talking about treatments.

Canada Film Schools the Apt Option for Filmmaking Career

Watching movie is a kind of entertainment since people from all ages are entertained through the way it is taken. Picture and the representation are considered the essential aspect of the film or movie. When people watch the film, most of them have a tendency to get concerned along with the character as well as the narration of the film.

Images are produced with the help of camera film with different animatronics methods and video recordings. A number of Hollywood movies and just about several award winning TV shows are being shot in Canada. Canada’s film industry is completely elevated at an all time; therefore lots of Canada film schools are presenting various programs on the different flows of picture making.

Canada film schools have been the apt options for those candidates who really are interested in a filmmaking career. Canada presents a huge number of film schools and almost all the Canada’s film schools offer the required training and proficiency to the interested students. Canada film schools are not only prop up the practical necessities of filmmaking but they also consist of special designing and special effects, various camera operating methods, different lighting techniques along with set designing and film making.

These schools make sure the management of experienced as well as knowledgeable trainers. In order to help the students to figure out their thoughts to become a flourishing filmmakers, the ability of film making by these schools are compacted from the very basics. There are lots of Canada’s film schools presenting education on computer animatronics along with 3D imaging and unique effects. All the Canada film schools offer a range of programs to decide from and based on the candidate’s personal preference.

Various courses are there that presenting diploma, degrees and certification on filmmaking. Duration of the course and fee structures differs according to the time and organization status. There is a facility for students to select the schools as well as course online and they can register by following the process of application. Candidates who really deserve to get scholarship are getting financial aids and scholarships offered by various schools.

In order to evaluate the interest of the students and help in selecting the exact course, a number of schools are offering career counseling services. Career counseling services are presenting placement chances also but they offer is at the end of the course.

Nearly all the Canada film schools have their personal websites and giving all the essential details about the different courses which is offered by them along with they also provide process of admission. Students can compare between various schools and choose the best one. In order to attain a fair proposal student can go through the website and get details. Apart from that, student also can consult an ex-student of the same school to find the value of education with job opportunities

The History of Filmmaking

The earliest use of moving pictures was an outcome of simple optical devices such as magic lanterns which display still images in a rapid sequence. Such device includes the projection zoetrope and the projection praxinoscope. Such early motion projection devices were demonstrated as early as the 1860′s. Reel-based film projection was not established until the late 1880′s, with much advancement contributed by Thomas Alva Edison. By the early 20th century, films such as The Great Train Robbery innovated on the art of film-making.

By using pictures that were mainly similar, but with slight differences, the presenter could communicate the effect of motion to the viewer. Naturally, the images used in these devices need to be warily designed to attain the desired effect. The underlying principle remains the basis for the cinematic genre known as animation. With the development of photography, and principally of celluloid film, it became possible to directly capture motion in the real world. Previous methods sometimes required individuals to look into a special device to perceive the pictures, but translucent film made it feasible to use a projection system to display images for an entire audience. These “moving picture shows” came to be known colloquially as movies.

The cinema was firstly purely a visual art, and many silent films were created. Presenters soon found it functional to give a commentator who could narrate the action and fill in dialogue between characters. Within a few years, films began to comprise subtitles that could display dialogue when the actors on screen “spoke.” This rendered the function of a commentator largely unnecessary.

In the 1990s and 2000s, blockbusters and franchise films have become an important part of the film industry. Cross-promotions with fast food chains and toy manufacturers, as well as international distribution, have made movies like “Titanic” and “Jurassic Park” the ambition of most major studios, signaling a move away from small, character-driven movies. The technological advances in extraordinary effects and 3-D cameras have also allowed for more opportunities for this type of work. As time passes by, filmmaking is getting advance. So, there is nothing to wonder about.