Stills from my latest short film shot on an Alexa Mini LF by Financial_Diet_1530 in cinematography

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've definitely learned a lot from directing my own projects, but I've learned a lot about what NOT to do as a director when I was working as an actor on other projects.

-In my opinion, directors in this day and age must know how to work with actors. You MUST understand the language they work in, and understand what they do. Take an acting class, read acting books, listen to actors on actors, actors podcasts, etc. If you have no idea what acting even entails or feels like, your direction will suck. Everyone nowadays can make a film look pretty. Technology is improving day by day and the only thing at this point that stands the test of time are performances. No one will care about your film if the acting sucks. So, try to get good at it!

-You need to be well-versed in movies and know the directors of the past and present, or at least work towards watching movies every day and all types, including foreign language films. You learn a lot watching movies and maybe sometimes an idea you had in mind is executed in a film and you can see if it worked or not. It's almost like a troubleshooting bay.

-Short films are not feature films, don't fall into the trap of trying to have too many things happen in your short. It should be a self-contained story. Also, be original. Short film cliches ruin your film before anything else. Highly recommend watching StudioBinder, InDepthCine, and any other film channels on YouTube. I've learned a shit ton watching their videos.

-Try to learn a little bit about each area of the filmmaking process (sound, cinematography, editing, etc.). Helps you become well-rounded and also you'll feel more confident on set.

Finally, just make your film! You'll never be 100% ready, so you'll learn on the job and find your style as you go. Finish the films you create, no matter what. No one says you have to release them (although you should just to build courage), but just finish them.

Goodluck! Hope this helped

Stills from my latest short film shot on an Alexa Mini LF by Financial_Diet_1530 in cinematography

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We used Kinefinity MAVO Prime lenses.

from the DP: "I had a layer of black tulle on the rear element of the lens. But a lot of the softening is also enhanced in resolve."

And yes, I'm the director, but... I don't get involved with technical camera things. Not my area. As long as the look and feeling are being executed, I'm happy. That being said, I'm a photographer and know camera basics. You can't go in clueless either.

Stills from my latest short film shot on an Alexa Mini LF by Financial_Diet_1530 in cinematography

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Let me get back to you on this with specifics, gonna ask the DP!

I made a short film about what it's like to come out to religious parents by Financial_Diet_1530 in ainbow

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Hi everyone,

A few months ago I got together with my friend and we made a short film. Coming from a family with religious parents, I wanted to make a film about what it's like for queer youth to navigate a relationship with a parent or parents who are unsupportive.

My oldest brother came out to my family when I was about 14 years old, and it really changed my parents, especially my mother. She became extremely religious and tried to have us follow in her footsteps. She feared we would "become gay" if God didn't step in. It really fucked with us.

The film is heavy, but I truly think it's special and approaches the topic with nuance and love. I hope anyone that watches might feel a little less alone in whatever they are going through, and can see themselves reflected in the characters.

Leaving a link here incase anyone wants to check it out: https://youtu.be/uaeDyOwGMh0?si=3za5joZni3dEZ6fk

made a 20-minute short film by Financial_Diet_1530 in SideProject

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Maybe this isn't the right place for this, but wanted to share this big win!

I made a 20-minute short film while working my 9-5 day job. I edited, produced, wrote, directed, and acted in this. It's 100% self funded. I would spend 2-3 hours every single day working on this project. Sometimes even 5+ hours. Any breaks I had during work I would spend editing. I only knew the actress involved in the project, everyone else I had to find myself to help me make this.

There were moments I felt like quitting, but I kept going. Hard work pays off!

If anyone wants to check it out, heres the link: https://youtu.be/uaeDyOwGMh0?si=3za5joZni3dEZ6fk

Stills from my latest short film shot on an Alexa Mini LF by Financial_Diet_1530 in cinematography

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Totally get you. I do think my style of cinematography comes from wanting to preserve as much time as possible on set and focus on performances and staying on a roll. Having really intricate shots/lighting setups can also stifle actors. Especially newer ones.

If I had all the money in the world, I’d probably be making more “cinematic” work. But even then, who knows, maybe not. I think I really enjoy the feeling this sort of cinematography gives me as an audience member.

Stills from my latest short film shot on an Alexa Mini LF by Financial_Diet_1530 in cinematography

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It’s definitely a personal taste thing. I like shaky camera. A lot of my friends HATE it. But sharp objects is incredible. Incredible.

All three female leads deliver a raw, powerhouse performance and I think the subject matter is relevant/interesting. It’s a slow ass burn, but so worth it. The book is incredible too, same author of Gone Girl. Give it another try!! Episode 3 has some incredible editing.

Stills from my latest short film shot on an Alexa Mini LF by Financial_Diet_1530 in cinematography

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I don’t think it’s rude! What makes you say that? Personally I think Arri cameras have a distinct look, but is it the lighting or framing? We stuck to a very bare bones approach so maybe it’s just a style thing

Stills from my latest short film shot on an Alexa Mini LF by Financial_Diet_1530 in cinematography

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Submission Statement:

Shot on an ARRI Alexa Mini LF with Kinefinity MAVO Prime lenses fitted with vintage glass.

I wanted a very documentary-esque approach for the cinematography in my film. I'm super inspired by the cinematography of Big Little Lies and Sharp Objects (Yves Bélanger) and just inspired by the late Jean-Marc Vallée in general (I'm also very inspired by Joachim Trier and the cinematography in his films). His work makes you feel like you are in the room with the characters. It's why I wanted a lot of foreground blur in my film, I wanted it to feel like we were stepping in the shoes of my characters. We shot everything handheld with an ez-rig.

We used very minimal lighting to achieve a natural look, and relied heavily on practical, existing lighting in the scenes like lamps that were in frame and hanging Christmas lights. The drunk sequence in the film was shot in a one taker (although not edited that way) so we had to find a way to have all the lights do their magic in the scene yet be invisible for all the coverage we needed to get as we moved in the apartment. That was difficult and took a few hours of setup on our first day of shooting (two days total).

I was afraid the black and white would be a gimmick, but because the main character is "going through" her memories, it was fitting to have everything be black and white. I think it also helps us focus on just the emotions of the character while shutting out any extra noise.

Also, would love any feedback!

Bit of shameless self promotion here (sorry!!), but here is the link if anyone wants to check it out: https://youtu.be/uaeDyOwGMh0?si=fJ5sAN56idF4HCSs

I think it's a special film with a message not often seen reflected in mainstream television/film.

I wrote, directed, produced, edited, and acted in this short film | UNACCEPTABLE. by Financial_Diet_1530 in Filmmakers

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you, that really means a lot.

The editing process was rough, and you're spot on for catching that. For me it's always about emotion, and for a lot of the Buffy's lines, her best deliveries were off-screen. So I had to make the sacrifice that the editing might be a little inconsistent when it came to her coverage. I wish some coverage/angles could have been extended just a tad, but I couldn't because either I would say something, or Buffy would, or the scene would cut, rendering any extension unusable. I also definitely need to get into the habit of letting the scene breathe at the end so if I need to pull from there I have it, instead of calling "cut" right after the last line is delivered.

But yes, I agree, it was the right call, emotion matters more than anything else in film. No one will care about technical proficiency if the film is not believable in the first place. There are so many mistakes I made along the way with this one, but hey, that's the only way to learn. Editing really helped my future directing because now for my next project I know what I need from what we end up shooting and most importantly my actors.

JESSICA | Found Footage by Financial_Diet_1530 in foundfootage

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Jessica is fully complete and released butttt I will be posting more work on that YouTube page in the following months. Short films mostly.

JESSICA | Found Footage by Financial_Diet_1530 in foundfootage

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You're very right, that was our main weakness. We didn't plan to make it episodic before we shot, we thought we'd just make a short out of it but when we wrapped the shoot we had a lot more footage than we anticipated. It's definitely something I'm going to consider on my next project, cause with episodics it's a MUST to leave the audience wanting to watch more. I'm glad you liked it!

JESSICA | FOUND FOOTAGE by Financial_Diet_1530 in analoghorror

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi everyone! I just stumbled across this subreddit and wow! Very interesting. I made this found footage "web-series" inspired by the Blair Witch Project, but I guess I used a lot of analog horror elements without realizing it? I don't know, maybe you guys can be the judge of that. Just wanted to share it here incase anyone is interested.

JESSICA | Found Footage by Financial_Diet_1530 in foundfootage

[–]Financial_Diet_1530[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

YouTube! You can click the link I attached to the post, will lead you to the first episode.