Filming on the Cheap
so there’s this media-related internship i’m applying for, and they ask for a small film or podcast about amman; well, although i was working on my first short film, i figured, why not use this as an opportunity to make a smaller film lol (the deadline is in a few days, so the push is good for me to get it done by a specific time and be done with it); obviously my goal is to make this for myself, so i twisted their assigned subject slightly to something i would want to make anyway; that way, if i get it, khair, and if not, cool, i still have a video for my own purposes out of it, no time wasted; therefore, it goes without saying i wanted to do this as cheaply as possible (that’s usually my goal in LIFE lol, i get that from my dad, i think; i dunno why, there’s this satisfaction that comes from exerting yourself and saying - i got it down to x amount; a penny saved is truly a penny earned lol); so for all you amateur filmmakers out there (i include myself in this category), here’s a look at some useful ways of making an amateur film for practically nothing:
1. camera - i’ve borrowed a friend’s home video cam - can you believe i’ve never owned one or even used one?! i’ve had more experience with professional cameras lol; so you either have this or you can easily borrow it (FREE)
2. tape - some cameras use digital memory and can be uploaded directly, but the one i got uses mini dv (5 JD ~ 7.5 USD; i believe they sell them cheaper, but i was pretty exhausted by then and took this guy’s price; you can probably get it down to 2-3 JD)
3. tripod - if possible, just place the camera on a surface and stack up sturdy books until you can angle it properly for the shot you want - i used my balcony and some computer and literature books (all very thick); for shots on the go, they have the little hand strap which isn’t as good of course but with some practice you can still get it fairly steady (FREE)
4. dolly - again, not as good, but you can get a makeshift dolly by using a car; i was in a cab, so it went pretty fast, but you can get some good seconds and another few seconds of a cool “effect”, the blurred bustle of the city going by (FREE)
5. content - a city like amman is pretty diverse and you can get very nice stuff for free; only thing is, if you look like an irhaabi like i do, be careful of filming without a permit, but especially governmental buildings and such (lol i dunno how i get myself into these situations, but i got taken in for questioning when i took a shot of a kids’ school! but there was no way i was gonna apply for a permit just to take local, random shots from a home video cam! i also made the policemen give me a ride to the station lol; i think they were actually trying to save me from the embarrassment of “taking me in” - it was already annoying cuz all the teenage guys were right there, watching us - but i certainly wasn’t going to pay for it! this totally cracked up the jordanian friend i borrowed the camera from - she couldn’t get over this lol); anyway, i’m a strong believer in creativity and believe the blessing of being broke is it forces you to think outside the box for interesting shots and effects, ways you can “class” up your cheap little amateur production lol; i believe i’ll use b/w as that is usually better if you don’t have a great camera or controlled lighting, and would be suitable to this particular project; but i’ll decide after i see what it looks like in the editing process; you can obviously interview people for free, but my project isn’t individually centered so didn’t apply to me (5 JD for cab rides across town and back; i did walk around a lot too for the more local stuff)
6. microphone - most home video cams do not have an external mic, although you can probably put one in; since most of them are not at all focused on sound as much as picture, it’s best to do the soundtrack separately (the style i have usually requires this anyway) and i heard from the filmmaking guy that even many big, commercial productions are starting to put ALL of their audio on another track that is recorded separately (this includes dramatic screams, dialogue, etc.!); again, for this project, i just borrowed a basic mic from someone (the kind you skype with lol) and will just input it directly into my computer; obviously, you want your setting to be quiet when you record and preferably be insulated - i’ve sat in closets; audacity is a free audio editing software (decent name, lol, decent prodcut) (FREE)
7. conversion - i haven’t done this yet, but i have HEARD it is for 3-4 JD; i’m planning on 5 in case to get the raw footage onto a dvd; i’ll then upload it to my computer and edit it and burn it onto another dvd; the first blank dvd was free from the internship place, but the second one will probably be included in the price for the conversion; blank dvd’s are like 5-10 qirsh each (5 JD)
8. editing - i have had pretty good luck with free software for audio, so i did a search for good video editing software; i found a top 5 list which seemed reputable, and found wax (which i think is an AWESOME name for a video editor; i put a lot of stock in names lol - i figure if you can be creative and clever in naming your product, you usually have something good - think of all the best bands for example, they usually have good names, no?); it looks really promising since it started as a college product, but we’ll see tonight/tomorrow when i begin; of course most of you probably have a laptop and internet connection; i usually only have internet at work, but our neighbor let us borrow this portable internet thingy which is very cool, and so if need be, i can dig up some images or sounds if need be for last-minute inserts; i’m focusing on cost here, but it goes without saying before you do ANYTHING, you should storyboard out your ENTIRE film, dividing your paper in half and putting your audio track on one side and your video shots on the other, down to the minute and second; this film is only 2 minutes long, tops (FREE)
well, it’s a lot to do for a part-time internship (with pay) and due to certain reasons i doubt i’ll even get it, but the cool thing is for 15 JD i can have something i would actually like and can use; if i do get it, it would be good for some seed money for the other “real” short film i wanted to make!