Utah Film Commission

Marshall Moore is the Head of the Utah Film Commission. He told us what the UFC does and how we can use its resources to get a crew, find locations and post our resumes to the UFC site and hopefully get hired on to a production. I thought this presentation was the most informative experience of this semester and I am looking forward to using the UFC to complete my films in the future.

Budgeting

Budgeting is something I know I'm really going to need to do a lot of since my capstone is going to require some ca-ash to get things like sets, costumes, and props. We got handouts today that listed all of the above and below-the-line costs that a production would have. Its daunting, but also a little nice to get everything I might possibly need into a nice list I can go through when I need to.

Went on a class trip last Wednesday to the NAB Show. I had been last year with my class at CSN so I knew it was going to be huge, so instead of just aimless wandering I decided to pick a few booths I was most excited about and spend my time there. Black Magic was my first stop, it was just inside the doors in the south hall, which was convenient as I was expecting to have to search for it. I had no idea the booth was going to be so huge, though I probably should have realized since they had just announced a few days earlier their latest cameras, the URSA and their broadcast cameras.
The URSA is a beast of a machine, and one of the first cameras available that allows you to upgrade components of the camera itself. And that huge 10 inch fold out monitor is just about as much as a selling point as the ability to upgrade components, such as the sensor, lens mount and body. All this plus the ability to shoot 4k RAW plus the DaVinci Resolve editing software included with a starting price of about $6000, makes this camera a RED killer.
 Only slightly less impressive to me but still cool was the Studio Camera, with a starting price of $2k this camera was optimized for broadcast studio work with a 10 inch viewfinder and PL lens mount for the highest quality lenses, these cameras are essentially the Black Magic's Cinema and Production Cameras respectively, with giant monitors on the back. Still nice, but since I plan on being out in the field I'll stick with my plan to have a BMPC by the end of this summer. At only $3k, it really is the best option for me, price wise and in its ability to shoot 4k RAW, its Canon EF lens mount and 12 stops of dynamic range allow me to be able to use the camera at my current student level as well as take me up into the ranks of professionalism.

The Lizard King

Brit Poulton is filming a short film called "The Lizard King" in order to get some directing experience before she shoots her first feature about religious snake handlers in the Adirondacks. A lot of her advice centered on keeping your work safe from production companies and how to make sure they don't change your vision for the film.

On the 17th and 18th we had a casting session for the class project as well as our personal projects. There were plenty of good actors there, even one of my very good friends, Trey Paterson, auditioned. I'll most likely use him for one of my roles though I don't think I found anyone else for the other roles. Most namely Mara, my lead. I fear she will be the most difficult to cast.

Screenwriter Dan Levine

Dan Levine, a retired Hollywood veteran, came and spoke about getting out scripts written. He donated some scripts to the school so we would have something to look at and be able to see what a professional script looks like.

Introduction

In this post I'll introduce the premise of my student film, and some ideas as to where I want to take it.

Jackal as a project, is an idea that a friend came up with that I decided I could do better than he could, so a challenge was issued to that effect and now my film is becoming quite ambitious for a film student. It has been suggested to me by my instructor, Phil Tuckett, that I only film a small part, the opening sequence. That may be a good idea.

I knew from the start that I wanted to make Jackal a period piece, late 1020's - early 1930's, shot in black and white in a deliberate attempt at replicating the feel of the classic monster movies. The Mummy (1932), especially is an inspiration to the look and feel that I want to bring to my project.

I want to incorporate as many practical effects and sets as I can in this project, using as little CG as I can to really punch up the classic feel I want. Matte paintings for backgrounds and scenery will play an integral part in making small areas feel much larger and more dynamic. Using set models will let me create the feel of large sets while only really having a few pieces of full size architecture for the characters to interact with. Even the monster (yes, monster!) will be all practical. I realize this is a lot of work to put into a student film, but I also feel that I have to stand out and really shine if I'm going to get anywhere in this business. I really hope I can do that by bringing back classic film making techniques.

Casting

Varlow Davenport spoke about casting. He gave us some pointers on what to look for when casting actors for our films, as well as some etiquette on how to direct actors while they are auditioning. After that we talked about how the class project casting session would be held.

Location Scouting

We had a class about location scouting. Kathryn Szewczyk was the guest speaker. She is a Dixie alumnus who was the location scout for Jon Heder's new production. Our assignment was to go to the Holland building and take some pictures of potential areas we could shoot the class project.

Writing a Screenplay

Brian Straussman, a Professor here at Dixie, came and talked to us a little bit about writing. I knew most of what he was talking about since I have had to go through the screenwriting process a couple of times while I was taking classes at College of Southern Nevada, though it is always nice to get a refresher and and alternate perspective. Brian handed out a 4-page treatment plan that I hadn't been taught about before. I think I like it.

Sound with Joe Garrard

Joe Garrard came and spoke to the class today about audio, what kind of equipment he uses and how he got into the business. Joe has been in the audio business for quite some time and was able to share some of his expertise with us. Apparently audio wasn't what he wanted to do necessarily, he only did it out of necessity and then people just kept coming to him to do it. Also there are enough audio guys in Utah, though there is usually work for boom mike holders...