The Following reflects the opinions of Todd Burrows and may not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of ZP International, LLC
3 days and 6 weeks
Well all you students of the cinematic conclusion out there. I have a little news for you.
We are almost done with our shooting schedule. about 3 more shots
to go. But the tricky part is we have our festivals to go too. All of this brings
to mind something I have yet to talk about.
Scheduling your movie. Bruce Campbell was asked about
what he thinks is important when making your movie. His answer
was Planning, planning and planning. ( or was it preparation?) Anyway,
you need to plan just about everything. You can’t go willy-nilly with your
film. It makes sense that if you have 3 scenes taking place at one location,
you should try to shoot all 3 around the same time. Sometimes you can’t, due
to length of a scene or some kind of effect that needs to be done. But if you can
get one or two done. You are doing ok. Now sometimes things do get in the
way. An actor has to cancel out or life happens. (death, marriage, birth,alien invasion, etc)
Now even with something that by its nature means you shoot fast. i.e. 48hr film fest .
You still need to plan out your shots , and your schedule.
Otherwise you might end up missing something you vitally need. Get the
shots you need, then you can play around with different types of shoots.
Dutch angles for example.
That all I can think of students. So now I have to pack
for my trips. I’m off to another planet to fight aliens.
So I shall see you in the back row after my trip.
The following reflects the opinions of Todd Burrows, and may not necessarily reflect the opinions of ZP International, LLC.
Gasp , could it be? Have my prayers been answered? The word is there is a new
Gong show being made. Ah yes, many was the time I sat on the floor watching the
acts that were good ,bad, and so , so , horrible. Such acts as the Unknown Comic and
Mean Jean The Dancing Machine. Seeing Jug bands, Girls licking lollipops and
some acts that were just indescribable. Judges were including Jaime Farr, Ruth Buzzy,
Nipsy Russell. And of course your host Chuck Barris. There is a place in my heart for
that show and I fear what this new show may do to corrupt it.
The remake of Nightmare on Elm Street has been announced. What madness is this?
This is as wanted as the MTV announced remake of THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE
SHOW. Please, please will someone stop this madness?
Now on to other matters. I will speak on a subject which I admit I know
little about. But sometimes when watching dvds of movies I notice sometimes
things look a little off with peoples faces. This usually comes under 2 problems
White Balance and Lighting. Its a really good idea to white balance your camera
before you shoot. Just so that your colors look right or what you might
end up with is someone looking redder than a lobster white than a ghost.
It is a quick and simple process. Aim your camera at something that is really white.
go into your menu and fiddle with your white balance bar. Sometimes you might need
to add a little flesh tone in the balance but you deal with it as it goes.
Now the next thing you need are 3 lights of different intensity ( different types of bulbs)
and some coffee filters. Usually for most shots you might want your most powerful light
behind the camera giving your scene the over all coverage. a smaller light in front
of the actor ( adding on a filter taking care not to let it burn.) giving that person their
KEY light. and a small light behind them if needed to separate the actor from the wall.
It is especially needed if someone has dark hair against a dark background.
A good help for you will be the Filmmakers Handbook. In it was several examples and
info on basic lighting and key lights.
That’s is it for me for now. I will bring you up to date on other film making news later.
CIAO!
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The following represents the opinions of Todd Burrows, and may not necessarily reflect the opinions of ZP International,LLC.
Some fun Hell-ephone news. I have had the opportunity to work with some
pretty interesting people. Melissa Wolf, John Dugan , just to name a couple but
now is one of the truly greats in horror. Ari Lehman! Yes Ari, you know him best
as Jason Voorhees. He scared the hell out of me wayyyyyy back in the eighties
when he jumped out of the lake to grab the girl.
I remember, as a little boy going to see Friday the 13th at the theater. Watching those
young teens going around the camp ( including a young Kevin Bacon) doing all of those
things that teens do. Smoke, drink , have sex and then the next thing you know. You hear
a SHINK , a surprised look on somebody’s face and that music. OOH that music that just
tells you that someone has been killed. Sometimes you saw the death from the killers perspective,
others from the safety of beyond the fourth wall. Still never actually seeing who the killer was.
Imagine the surprise when you found out who the killer was and why. For those who have not
seen this classic I won’t tell you who or why. But just at the end of the movie when you think all
is well, the girl survived, Up pops Ari , and the next thing you know the diarrhetic has taken effect.
Other news is we are killing people left and right. Its a gory time in the old town and I love it.
And soon we are going to the shows again. Hocking our wares ( which are hard to hock by the way)
and there is a rumor of a special display that you can have your picture with . (insert maniacal laugh)
I shall love to see you at the shows.
Now how about those surprise endings in films. Sometimes they work great. Friday the 13th for
example. But others not so much. Phantasm 2 comes to mind. They have to make some kind of
sense to me. Yes, the son avenging the mother is great and it follows some kind of logic. But having
the tall man reappear after having his brain drilled, acid flushed , and several pieces chopped up
to me means he was reappearing just for sake of a sequel. Yes the unstoppable killer is a mainstay
in horror films but please for my peace of mind, let there be a reason why. Transferred over to the dreamworld,
Evil forces, just too stupid to know when to die , things like that, We the audience can consider. But please
give us some credit.
Now I have some demons to fight so I will let you go for now. So think about todays lesson students and
remember He may look dead but keep your finger on the trigger just in case and don’t turn around.
The following reflects the views and opinions of Todd Burrows, and may not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of ZP International, LLC
Good afternoon or when ever you get to read this article.
my name is Todd and I am a film maker. Yes I know you think
this is a glamours life, but really its not. I have done things. Bad things.
that make me question my self. I go to conventions and talk to other
people in the same business. We go talk about how hard it is sometimes
just to get people, regular people, to be in the movie. Let alone getting some
one to help with behind the scenes work. Someone who can build a set. Make
a fraking chair , or even to move a light.
People who don’t realize just how hard it is to act. They think that just show
up and say your line once and that is it. Not realizing that there maybe several
takes needed. Different angles, flubbed lines, something screwy with the scene.
(lights,sounds, etc.) Or maybe the director thinks the performance could be better.
Other problems you might have is with your staff. Those people who would
rob you blind if you let them. Who take what you need for the scene and steal
it. They say its for a souvenir but is it really? If it shows up on ebay, then you
know you have a liar. What do you do? How about those people who want more than
one copy of the completed product. They want a copy for each and every freaking
member of the extended family for free. The accepted standard is ONE copy for
the actual cast or crew member. These dvds are not cheap to make. Yes 1 free one
is ok but if you want six or seven or more then you need to pony up some cash.
Otherwise the discs need to be available for conventions or festivals.
Giving those same discs out at shows is a horse of another color. The people to
do that need to be extremely limited otherwise you would be out of product just
when you really need it. Not to say there are not times to give them out. Handing
them to those who you might want to help you in some way that is good for the company
and film is encouraged. A copy to reviewers, Actors that you want in your movie,
film critics and such.
We talk about distribution. What the state of companies are in these days. What type
of product they are looking for. Even a contact name. We talk about the technical
aspects of our movies. Basically at this point we just want to hear just how awesome we
are. ( alcohol being involved usually.) but sometimes we get different stories, the things
gone wrong. people screwing us over, and sometimes those other folks we just
want to strangle with our bare hands. The dangers out there of other companies who work with
the majors and screw around with the smaller companies because they carry as much clout
as the big guys.
Yes this is what goes in the indie circuit. It feels like once you get in, then you stay in.
No-one gets out alive. This business requires a lot of give and take. We might give you
something ( a feature roll perhaps) but we do require things from you as well. Your time,
EFFORT, common sense. and not to screw us over. Thing is we remember this and
reward or punish as warranted.
My name is Todd and I am a film maker.
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The following reflects the views and opinions of Todd Burrows, and may not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of ZP International, LLC
Ok students, at the time of this blog we have 11 days of shooting left on
H-PHONE. Sure it would be great if they were in a row, but no they are weekends.
Last time I had to be up at 4:15 in the A.M. Such is the life of a filmmaker. I have heard how
some actors would be up at 3 or so and go spend a few hours in make-up. So now I have
some sympathy for the make up crew that had to work on them. But I still want to be back
in bed.
Now what else should I talk about? I have been checking the news reports here and there
and looking at the general state of local filmmaking. Over all it seems like its doing well.
Actor Jason Crowe has had some publicity in being in a contest for the afterdark films auditions.
He didn’t win unfortunately but he got his name out there, got some publicity and got Hell-ephone
name mentioned a few times. The Lights…camera.. Kentucky group had the Ky bill they were
sponsoring defeated. That bill would have been a serious blow to local low to medium budget
filmmakers everywhere in this state. I have been enjoying my Sirius Sat. radio and a major
hurdle was overcome in a SAT Radio merger. ( means more channels). The comradery on
the set has become more enjoyable. The sex jokes, the snide cuts , the crankiness is almost
gone. ( not mine, chronic condition.)
Now for a couple of sad note.
Stan Winston ( make-up and f/x artist extrordinaire has passed
away. The man who gave us the TERMINATOR , PREDATOR , and ALIENS, along with
many other being imaginable.
Cyd Charisse a dancer who could give Fred Astaire a run for his money has left us. I have seen
some of her work and WOW is all I can say.
They will be missed.
On a much different tune is summer movies. Hulk, Get Smart, Hellboy ll, I might
have to go back to the theaters now some non remakes are starting to appear. But here
is a question- Pixar’s new movie coming out called WALL*E doesn’t he look a lot
like Johnny 5 from Short Circuit? HMMM! I wonder.
That’s it for now students, next time I will start going back to film teaching
but for now grab the popcorn and meet in the back row. The makeout session
begins now.
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